Sayonora 2010! Happy New Year all from Jett & Kathryn!

All I Ever Want For Christmas!

...is my wife, Kathryn.  She is by far the greatest gift ever!  And one of those priceless gifts that never stops giving.  I love you, baby! XOXO

Kathryn Britnell - An Underwater Model Is Born!

December 22, 2010: Kudos to my lovely wife, Kathryn!  The first published photo of her working as an underwater model appeared today in PhotographyBB Magazine.  Certainly a notable achievement as she was only certified as a scuba diver in the Philippines on November 30, 2010!

Jett Britnell - Photographer In The Spotlight

 
December 22nd, 2010 – PhotographyBB announced today, the release of the 35th edition of the downloadable PhotographyBB Online Magazine. This is a completely free publication with the goal of educating beginner to intermediate level photographers, and has become a leading resource in the future of free information distribution. PhotographyBB Online Magazine offers readers: Digital Photography tips and techniques, DSLR camera function training, discussions on issues surrounding the photo community, and image post processing tutorials in Adobe® Photoshop, and RAW processing in Photoshop Lightroom.

My interview appears on page 48. Here is a download link to the issue PhotographyBB Magazine - issue 35.pdf

Dave Seeram, Editor/Publisher was highly complimentary. ("I'm still blushing!")

"I just wanted to let you know that I read through your interview replies and I am absolutely blown away by your amazing photography! Your interview was among the most interesting I've done to date, and I really enjoyed the amount of history/stories that you included about yourself and experiences. Thank you for doing such a well thought out job; your writing is top notch."

Dave Seeram
Editor and Publisher,
PhotographyBB Online Magazine

Seasons Greetings!

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Let your heart be light
From now on,
our troubles will be out of sight

Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Make the Yule-tide gay,
From now on,
our troubles will be miles away.

Here we are as in olden days,
Happy golden days of yore.
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more.

Through the years
We all will be together,
If the Fates allow
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough.
And have yourself A merry little Christmas now...

John Lennon ~ We Still Remember

Dec. 8, 1980.  A date every Beatles fan, let alone any music fan, over 40 remembers.  The news that John Lennon had been shot and killed in New York City seemed both shocking and surreal.  Like waking from a nightmare only to realize... we were not dreaming.  It was all too real.  An Englishman in New York, a true artist, husband and father had been shot several times in the back by a deranged human insect. It was one of those sorrowful events that most can recall where they were and what they were doing when they found out.  It's hard to believe that 30 years have passed - harder still to comprehend that it happened to John, his family... and to us all.  We still remember...

Underwater Video From Brian Goddard - Sogod Bay, Philippines

The following video footage was shot by talented videographer, Brian Goddard, who was diving with us during our recent diving adventure to Peter's Dive Resort, Sogod Bay, South Leyte Island, Philippines. This area features encounters with Whale Sharks that come to feed at this time of year. I have also linked some of his other footage from Sogod Bay.

"Let The Bells Ring Out, And The Banners Fly" ~ Kathryn Britnell Is A Certified Scuba Diver!

Stewart Sy snapped this picture of Kathryn yesterday and said on his Facebook posting... "Dear friend and newly certified OW Diver, Katie Britnell in freefall. Napantao Fish Santuary, Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte."

 

In Search Of Whale Sharks, Sogod Bay, Philippines

We have been seeing whale sharks here in the Philippines off Southern Leyte Island.  Photographing them has been a challenge due to the fact you must use a snorkel and shoot with available light only.  We try again tomorrow.  In the meantime, here are a few images from the other day...

Facebook Postings From The Philippines!

Stewart Sy, a very talented underwater photographer, snapped this picture of me diving off Limasawa Island, Southern Leyte, Philippines. Yeah, I might have made it as an underwater model ;)

 

Enjoying the diving off Southern Leyte Island, Philippines!

Here's a picture of a seahorse that I made on a night dive beneath the local town dock.  Awesome dive site!

All Aboard! Ha ha ha ha ha ha haaaa!... OZZY at Rogers Arena!

Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay... Sunday night at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, I took the family out to a show.  Ozzy's show was the bomb!  An impressive live performance from an original  metal rock legend.

Oowatanite! - April Wine at the Red Robinson Show Theatre

November 12, 2010: One of Canada’s legendary classic rock bands of all time played to a soldout audience  tonight at the Red Robinson Show Theatre in Port Coquitlam, BC. I first saw April Wine from in front of the stage at the Ottawa Civic Centre in 1973 when they headlined a bill with bands Mainline, King Biscuit boy and Africa.  Even after all these years , they can still rock the room!

Alert Diver Magazine ~ Browning Pass - Diving Wild in British Columbia

Alert Diver has published my story, "Browning Pass - Diving Wild in British Columbia" in their 4th Quarter 2010 issue.

Alert Diver is the quarterly magazine of Divers Alert Network (DAN). Read by more than 250,000 active divers, 1,100 dive businesses and 14,000 dive professionals, each issue is a must-read reference that is archived and shared. Alert Diver is the only magazine of its kind, educating and informing divers on a number of topics, including medical issues, research studies, incident studies and safety insights.

Lest We Forget ~ A Poppy is to Remember...

In honor of all who served. In memory of those soldiers who fell. Wherever you may be on November 11th at 11am, take a moment to pause and reflect upon the men and women, past and present, that have helped to preserve our way of life as well as freedoms of allies throughout the world.

Depth Magazine - That Beautiful Somewhere - British Columbia's Sunshine Coast

Depth Magazine, an online internet scuba publication, has published my story, "That Beautiful Somewhere - British Columbia's Sunshine Coast" in their November/December 2010 issue. The cover shot is also my image of of a diver in "the Skook", current-swept Skookumchuck Narrows.

Using Shark Imagery To Promote Shark Conservation

Renowned marine artists Wyland & Guy Harvey recently spent time in the Bahamas to document the beauty of sharks in an effort to help raise awareness about the plight these magnificent predators face, with the strong prospect of a commercial shark-finning operation being introduced there. Also involved is Jim Abernathy, a legendary shark diving tour operator. George Schellenger, of Status Productions put it all on film! Gentleman, we both applaud and support your efforts!

Here's a sneak peek of the film project they are developing:

This is Your Ocean: Sharks from George Schellenger on Vimeo.

Adams River Sockeye Salmon Run October 2010

I spent this past weekend up at Adams River, BC. with Kathryn and Alex.  This year's salmon run is the dominant year of the sockeye's four-year cycle; with an unexpected 34 million sockeye returning to the Fraser River watershed this year, the biggest run since 1913!  By comparison, an estimated 1.5 million returned to spawn in 2006 and 3.7 million in 2002. 

On Saturday, October 16, we spent about four hours in the river with fellow photographers Stewart Sy and Nick Lawlor.  The river's current gave us a bit of a workout and the underwater visibility was silty at times, yet we made the best of it. I shot some topside images on Sunday morning before heading back home. 

For more information about the Salute to the Sockeye festival, visit the Adams River Society’s web site at www.salmonsociety.com

Words of Wisdom

"You will never find the right person if you do not let go of the wrong one..."

Browning Pass HideAway Dive Resort~ Set Adrift On Diving Bliss!

I spent the past week diving at the Browning Pass HideAway Dive Resort, just north of Port Hardy, BC.  Captain John deBoeck never ceases to amaze diving guests with Browning Pass and all its diving wonders!

For more information, go to: www.vancouverislanddive.com

These are just a few images I captured...

Number 9 ~ Happy Birthday, John Lennon!

October 9th, would have been John Lennon's 70th birthday.  Today we remember the man, husband, father, musician and peace activist that was John Winston Ono Lennon. 

I can recall when Double Fantasy was released in 1980, Lennon stated the album cover would feature Yoko & him kissing.  At the time, they intended that any pictures of them in the media would only show them kissing.  A protest of sorts against war and I suspect negative vibrations in general.  After all, what image could be more disarming than two people who are in love, kissing?

I came across a quote today by none other than Dr, Seuss, "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."  I think, Mr. Lennon would have liked that...

"Think peace. Act Peace. Spread peace and Imagine peace."

Decorator Crab ~ Master Of Disguise

A master of disguise, this bizarre-looking "decorator crab" demonstrates the fine art of undersea camouflage by attaching various detritus to to its exoskeleton.  These crabs use their sticky saliva to attach items they find to their body making them sometimes difficult to spot on an invertebrate encrusted reef or wall.  Photo taken in Browning Passage, British Columbia.