A few questions:
-My sis and dad keep arguing over stiff fins or flexible fins as being better. Is there really a difference or is it just personal preferrence? I’ve been happy with my US Divers flexible ones, but should I consider going stiff finned?
-What do you think about the fins that have holes in them? When I first saw these, I thought it was a joke and that it would increase drag, but they seem to be booming on the market.
-What brands do you use? What brands do you like/prefer or would want if price didn’t matter?
-What are some of your favorite dive sites? I prefer snorkel because it’s cheaper and easier to move in the water. The Caymen Islands has been my favorite place for diving so far, but I’m going to Hawaii in a few days, so it may change.
-What can I do about fins that are a little too big? They are shoe style (no strap) and stay on ok, but I almost lost them to a big wave once(Yeah I made the mistake of judging the size in the store). I want to lose the extra space.

Hey, if you’re happy with your fins then those are the right ones for you! I don’t personally like vented fins, I like a good stiff blade like the tusa tri-ex, but that’s just me. I live if Florida and really like the diving off of Jupiter. You can get rid of the extra space in you fins by wearing neoprene socks beneath them. Hopefully that covered everything.

ok I signed up to get scuba certified, but I have trouble swimming to the bottom of a 12ft pool without my head hurting from the pressure… will I be able to do 35ft?! does the scuba equipment help alot with this?

Your head hurts because of the increase in pressure (weight of the water) as you descend. This is normal.
When you SCUBA dive you will be taught to deal with this by "equalising" your air spaces in your head (ears and sinuses). This should mean no pain.
You will find that you have done this previously on an aeroplane (though the pressure is less) while it descends to land.

Try it the next time in the pool. As you descend, pinch the end of your nose and blow GENTLY against it. Try it now, you will feel your eardrums move!

I am going scuba diving in a month and need to take some underwater photos. I am considering buying a hard plastic case for a digital camera which run around $250. Or I am thinking about trying these soft plastic cases that run around $30. Has anyone used either of these before? Did the photos turn out okay? I will be going in shallow water, probably no deeper than 60 feet. Do you think I need an extra flash to take good pictures?
Thanks.

You get what you pay for. It’s your camera. Personally I’d spend whatever it takes to keep that camera safe and able to take decent shots.
As for a flash, you’ll probably find that you’ll want to put a piece of tape over the flash if there’s no option for turning it off. Most of the time, a flash will produce back scatter in images ( looks like a snow storm) as the light from the flash hits suspended particles in the water and bounces back. If your camera and housing allow it, the use of what’s called a strobe will be better. It’s a type of flash that’s mounted and pointed off to the side, reducing back scatter.

Video taken with a Sony SR5 inside an Ikelite underwater housing. The best color was in less than 30 feet of water. The Beqa Lagoon Resort is a great place to go for a scuba diving vacation. We loved the private beach house buras and the locals were very friendly. I recorded the music from the local villagers who sang ALL the time.

Duration : 0:8:41

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DiveScape Productions presents underwater footage of SCUBA Diving in Cozumel Mexico. This is a sample of the DVD “Diving Cozumel” available at www.divescape.com.

Duration : 0:4:52

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