Get ready for the 5th Underwater Festival™ - The Australasia Challenge

Contributed by Wandy Hochgrebe

2-11 September 2011 - 10 days to shoot!

The 2011 Underwater Festival™ breaks new ground in underwater shootout competitions. UF11 will feature a photo and video shootout competition that happens simultaneously all over Australasia.

25 countries spanning both hemispheres - every dive site you can imagine will be a shootout locality, every dive centre, liveaboard, dive resort in the area will be part this new kind of shootout. You can dive your local favourite spots, go out with your dive club or shore dive with your buddy - or travel and join in one of the many Underwater Festival Fringe Events that will be happening all over Australasia.

For a taste of fringe events that are already organised: Dive Fest at Heron Island Resort, Underwater Photography Workshops with Underwater Festival judges Stephen Wong & Takako Uno on Christmas and Cocos Islands. Underwater Photography Workshop with Underwater Festival regular Mathieu Meur at MATAVA - Fiji.

Underwater Photography Workshop with underwater photography legend and Violinist William Tan on a 11-day cruise on The Arenui to the Komodo islands. Diversity Fiesta at Fish 'n Fins in Palau. Manta Fest at Manta Ray Bay Resort with Tim Rock and others in Yap. Great Victorian Nudi Hunt with Dragon Mouse Diving - this is just the beginning, please check the festival website for details.

Which countries are part of Australasia for this competition?

Since the term Australasia is not very clearly defined, we decided to include all countries that are part of underwater australasia:

Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, Cook Islands, East Timor, Fiji, French Polynesia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Federated States of Micronesia, Myanmar, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Tonga, Vanuatu, Vietnam.

Become part of this huge event and not unlike an underwater 'Earth Hour' help to highlight the underwater beauty but also the underwater issues of this fantastic bioregion and help to show the world what we've got to lose.

There are nearly 20 categories to compete in including Behaviour, Sex, Freshwater, Big Stuff, Super Macro and very importantly 'Issues'. The top 100 images will be showcased at the new Australian Dive & Tavel Expo ODEX in Brisbane on the first weekend in October 2011. A whole hall will be devoted to the Festival and seminars as well as the Underwater Festival Awards will be held during the 3 days of ODEX 2011. This will be a dive show no one can afford to miss - more at www.oceaniadiveexpo.com.

Over $150,000 in prizes!

The long list of sponsors of the Underwater Festival includes: The Damai, Mares, Nauticam, Dive Evolution. Kungkungan Bay Resort, Tasik Ria Dive Resort, The Arenui. Eco Divers, Kima Bajo Resort & Spa, Manta Ray Bay Resort, Heron Island Resort, Matava, Christmas Island Tourism Association, Fish 'n Fins, Tawali Resort, ABWonderdive, Ikelite, Lissenung Island Resort, Mike Ball Dive Expeditions, Frog Dive Gear, Dragon Mouse Diving, Cocotinos, Lembeh Hills Resort and many more...

Festival celebrities

A massive number of well know photographers and diving legends are already committed as part of this event and the list continues to grow. This includes Neville Coleman, Mathieu Meur, Stephen Wong & Takako Uno, William Tan, Tim Rock, Bob Halstead, Tony Wu, Gary Bell, Dave Harasti, John Lippmann with many more to come.

so ... where will YOU dive at UF11? Tell us.....

About The Organisers

The main players behind underwater australasia (underwater.com.au), Tim and Wandy Hochgrebe are an active couple committed to promoting diving in the region - also running Planula Divers Retreat in Byron Bay as well as Planula Photo & Video, both established in 2000. Tim & Wandy have been active in the dive industry for over 15 years. The Underwater Festival™ started in 2006 as a local event in Byron Bay, then moved it around Australia in 2010 (Christmas Island) to now become an Australasia-wide shootout and Festival from and firmly placed established it as a 'must-be-there' event on any divers calendar. From 2011 to coincide with the first Australasia-wide Underwater Festival™, underwater australasia has become co-organisors of the annual Oceania Dive & Travel Expo (ODEX) to be held in Brisbane in 2011. Our mission as a whole is to promote the amazing variety of diving in Australia, Oceania and the Asia Pacific to the world. underwater australasia will always be up to date and be full of interesting content.

Contact Festival Organiser: Tim Hochgrebe - [email protected] - [email protected] - +61-266809410

To stay updated join the facebook page or follow us on twitter @UWfestival

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