Students
Creativity & Passion
Student work
s: Most student work was inspired by their own dreams and fantasies. What they have seen or done at Submerge will profoundly influence their cinema/photography art. The final project of the workshop is designed upon the students’ feelings and thoughts. We guide them and help them to make it real. From environmental education to underwater abstracts projects. It is all about submerge in your passion. Photos, videos and illustrations made by students that had never dive or handled an underwater camera before keep surprising us. Our work is just to guide and help you realize your full potential as a diver and as a human. Every year, we give to one of our students the Submerge Camera D’or Award to one of our students. The prize is a free divemaster immersion program. Awards are given based on techniques, safety, environmental behavior and leadership.
Sustainable community
Going local: Through our courses and workshops you will become aware of many of the problems facing the oceans around the world, and you will have hands on experience on our educational programs and learning from the local experts that collaborate with us: marine biologists, nonprofit organizations, teachers and dive professionals. Too often, schools try to inject knowledge without providing the experiences, which we believe are the most important source of true inspiration, love and protection for the environment.Focusing on programs for kids and teen leaders, Submerge intends to create true awareness on water environmental problems and to promote discussion and solutions. Through real exploration, adventure, art, fantasy, photography and digital mapping tools we aim to inspire love towards Nature at early childhood and support committed teen leaders with advanced training.
Endless excitement & perfect peace
Student Life: Students are provided with intense, attentive training. The student/instructor ratio is 4:1 for workshops classes, and 2:1 for underwater training. This provides a unique teaching atmosphere that leads to maximum knowledge gain and safety. We arrange the diving according to the tides in order to get the best water conditions for the day’s project, so we may start the day in the ocean, training in the swimming pool or editing our projects. We start the day early and usually finish at 17:00 allowing you time to rest, enjoy a margarita over the beach, practice yoga or take a walk along the ocean at sunset, explore the charming small towns where our workshops are located, and get to explore the culture and local people. It is hard to imagine a better way to learn and enjoy life at the same time.
The Classroom
Learning Environment: Out of the four walls whenever is possible is one of our education policy basics. However, a space to focus and developing skills in a safe enclosed environment is necessary. We have our own ideas on what a classroom should be. Pool and confined waters training is the underwater classroom where our students master buoyancy, camera handling, rig set up, lighting and safety procedures. In this space, we dedicate many hours to developing technical skills as well as freeing the imagination. While classroom management and rules are important in any learning environment, our “guided” self discipline system is based on and support student unique motivations. We aim to create a space where everyone achieves success as a result of their own efforts. Self control is an important skill to learn, fundamental for safety while scuba diving and in almost any life situation. Our Divers mantra: “Stop, Breathe, Feel, Think, and Act” guide most of our hands on activities.
Something to say
“I Discover a New World and open my eyes and mind into a new dimension I had never imagine before so many great possibilities of underwater video” -Esperanza Ortega
“If you asked me about the cost, I would say it is reasonable, even inexpensive if you consider the private dives, the high tech cameras and the beautiful location.” – Thomas Schinlt
“I was your open water and video workshop student last year in Similan Island, Thailand. I never thought that I would involve in the underwater video production at this level. It is occur that after a few months I finish the course, I returned to my hometown in California and met Kathy, who works in an environmental project in Baja. We made good friendship and she offers me to make a promotional video of their activities including underwater images. My dreams become true and now I am thinking to start a small underwater video production business! I owe all this to your incredible team. Saying thanks just doesn’t cover it! Gratefully” – Andrew Machuca
“At the beginning I was scare to death to jump into the ocean, after one week I can’t live any more without it!” – Jennifer Hilfiger
“I felt like shooting for the discovery channel watching that huge turtle swimming toward me. The professionalism of the instructors and their patience, not to mention the paradise above and underwater, gave me a solid base and the enthusiasm to buy my own equipment.” – Carl Ftonssen
“At the beginning, even though I was a certified advanced diver, I didn’t have much experience and was not sure about my underwater abilities. Michel inspired me the confidence necessary to learn to dive safely and to hold comfortably the camera. I wished I would take the open water course with him, because I realized how little I did learn in my cheap course in Utila.” – Laurie Giacometti
“I wish I had received in my L.A. school the up to date information about digital technology that I received at Submerge School. Suddenly, Color theory made a lot of practical sense” – Dave Stuller
