2 week videography training and internship

Train to become a BSAC Professional HD Underwater Videographer on Koh Tao, Thailand

Underwater videography course Thailand

2 Week BSAC Pro HD Underwater Video Training

Become an underwater videographer in one of Asia's top dive destinations! While you are living on the beautiful island of Koh Tao, you will be trained to capture the stunning underwater world. Oceans Below will provide you with all of the skills and equipment needed to produce professional HD underwater videos. Your training will include the use of high-quality HD video cameras, Gates and Aquatica Underwater Housings, and Adobe software. Join our highly experienced team of professionals for the 2-week BSAC Pro HD Underwater Video Training program.

You must be a certified PADI Rescue Diver (or equivalent) with 50+ logged dives It is possible to add on the scuba training courses before the start of the Pro HD Underwater Videographer Training if you have no prior dive experience. Oceans Below can organize your dive training and accommodation through Koh Tao’s Premiere 5-Star IDC Center.

2 week video training

Get hands-on experience in the making of top-quality underwater movies. Learn to shoot everything from the biggest fish in the world, to the smallest shrimp, using full manual camera controls for that perfect image(white balance, focus, exposure, lighting, and zoom) edit your movies on Adobe Premiere Pro.

Instructor and student with the HD cameras

Available Dates

The Pro HD Underwater videographer Training Course is available year-round. We only take 2 people per course to ensure that each trainee gets lots of personalized attention throughout the course. We begin a course at the start and at the middle of each month. These courses usually are booked at least a few months in advance, so make sure you check in with us prior to traveling to check the availability.

The best time of year for a chance to see Whalesharks is close to the monsoon period, so April/May and September/October/November are the best months. However, they can turn up anytime. May to February are the best months to get close encounters with the Bull Sharks. April, May and June are the easiest months to spot Green and Hawksbill turtles. Throughout the year you’ll see Moray Eels, Stingrays, Scorpion Fish, Octopus, Sea Snakes, Boxfish, Jacks, Groupers, etc...

Health Requirements for underwater videographers

If you are looking to participate in this program you need to ensure that you are reasonably fit and free from any conditions that may prevent from or be a danger to you while diving. Before coming to Thailand, it is best to consult your doctor and get a signed Medical Statement.

Underwater videographer training Thailand

2 Week Underwater Video Internship (only available after the 2 week BSAC Pro course)

Once you have completed your training, you will have the option to follow one, or both of the following:

-learning to produce souvenir videos for divers. Film and edit a movie to music telling the story of the diver's day trip. By the end of this internship you'll have gained all the skills and knowledge to be successfully employed in the field.

-continued Education and skill development. Quite simply, diving and filming to produce your own short documentary. Diving away from the main student dive sites and so avoiding the crowds, spending 45 minutes filming a seahorse to get that perfect shot. Or head out to the dive sites that the big student boats can't reach, Sam Ran pinnacle, Sail Rock, Hot spots to shoot the big stuff.For this course we will be using the Goodtime Adventures speedboat so we have no time restrictions and can get to any dive site in a matter of minutes.

Goodtime Adventures speedboat

You must be a certified BSAC Sports diver or PADI Rescue Diver (or equivalent) with 50+ logged dives. Being a competent scuba diver is critical as you will be filming PADI Instructors with students in training and you will be expected to look after yourself underwater. It is possible to add on the BSAC Dive Leader or PADI Divemaster Training Course or even the BSAC Open Water Instructor Course or PADI Instructor Development Course (IDC) before or after the Underwater Videographer Internship.

Available Dates

The Video Internship is available year-round. You may begin any time after your 2-week Video Training Course. The length of the internship is 2 weeks. Oceans Below will give you as many opportunities as possible to gain experience.

Notes from a Freediving Videographer...

Written by jason

Tuesday, 21 December 2010 19:18

Silence surrounds me with every dive into the blue. As I look through the eye of the camera, I can see a diver approaching from above, his moves graceful as he glides towards the deep. Touching twenty meters, he turns to me with a huge grin and begins his ascent back to the surface.

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Returning from the blue

It’s been nearly three months since I began filming freediving students on Koh Tao with Apnea Total, and it has literally taken my breath away! The feeling that one gets when dropping to twenty meters, holding position to get that perfect shot, and heading back towards air after a two minute breathhold dive is more than words can explain! I love the way freediving allows me to take shots at different angles and lengths to give my footage an artistic quality about it. This, along with filming students achieving impressive depths, is what drives me back again and again with enthusiasm and excitement!

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Jason in his element

Besides filming freedivers challenging themselves in the blue, I do get the odd encounter with some of the ocean's bounty which creates an almost otherworldly feeling. On a recent trip, a graceful yet deadly Box Jellyfish cruised past our lines. With every encounter, they serve as a reminder of both the beauty and the danger of our ocean-going life. An array of reef fish also make appearances in my videos as they rush toward my camera lens to be in the spotlight, if only for a moment...

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Monica has a moment with a box jellyfish

Other than being in the water, I get to spend time in the studio editing the footage I've collected each day. This process fascinates me as I'm able to employ the skills I was taught by the Oceans Below team. Adding subtle yet impressive effects to my HD Underwater videos is something I love to surprise people with while they watch themselves in the big blue.

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Jason- Scuba Instructor, Video Trainer, Freedive Videographer...

Thankfully, the people at Oceans Below have uncovered ways to allow me to further my passions for teaching, filming and freediving. Our newest offering is a Freediving Videography Internship whereby people will learn underwater videography techniques adapted to breathhold diving. These interns will train with me and I so look forward to introducing people to my silent world. While my love for filming scuba divers will always be there, my main passion lies in leaving the tanks at home to film freedivers on a single breath.

One breath, one moment, caught on camera!