Fotofest 2025!

Following the success of our first Fotofest in 2024, we have decided to repeat this exciting workshop with our photo competition judge, Paul ‘Duxy’ Duxfield.

It doesn’t matter if you have a big, fancy DSLR setup, smaller compact camera such as Olympus TG camera or simply a GoPro or smartphone in a housing, Duxy’s goal is simple: to help you capture great shots. He will help you understand your equipment and get the most from it through a fun and flexible workshop program with an emphasis on getting in the water as much as possible to experiment, practice and improve. 

Have you heard about sunset splits, spins and pans or black backgrounds and wondered what they were and how to achieve them? Maybe you’ve been too shy to ask about them, or you’ve tried them and not had a chance to get some tips and pointers about where you’re going wrong. Duxy will cover all the photographic basics for those who need it as well as these more specialist techniques which are a lot easier than you might think! 

Duxy has a particular love of wide angle shots, which showcase the beauty of the underwater world so he will be leading some dives for capturing those incredible Red Sea coral reef scenes. He has also decided to bring in RSDS’s own marketing manager and macro maniac, Sarah, for some special macro dives to look for the ‘secret small stuff’ she has been seeking out over her many years diving the RSDS house reefs. Did you know we also have the Shaun the Sheep nudibranch in the Red Sea? She knows where he hangs out. She can also help advise on the very best dive sites to really put your newly-honed skills to use.

We have picked Marsa Nakari for our workshop location - with the same unlimited house reef diving concept operating in Marsa Shagra, you can maximise your time in the water. The house reef has wide angle and macro opportunities, swim-throughs, pinnacles, an anemone city and plenty of critters (including the infamous unicorn goby). It also has easy access to some of the most pristine off-shore sites including Dolphin House, Shaab Sharm, Marsa Tondoba, Habili Ghadeer and, Duxy’s personal favourite: Habili Nakari, just 5 minutes from Nakari’s jetty. 

The Fotofest is open for those with all levels of ability and any type of camera. It aims to be an easy-going, flexible, open, uncompetitive and friendly atmosphere with an emphasis on personal improvement. 

Duxy says:

“My primary goal is to help, advise and encourage people to expand upon their current knowledge of underwater photography in a holistic fashion.

It’s less about the equipment and more about maximising your individual potential, regardless of the UW photo kit you own. And I’m very pleased to have Sarah alongside me for this one as she is exceptionally good at understanding the marine life, which is a vital part of the skillset needed to get great underwater shots. You only have to see her regular Facebook posts about the weird and wonderful creatures she’s found , often less than a few millimetres in size to appreciate her skills at finding things to photograph.
I love to shoot close focus wide-angle and reefscapes so we’ll make a great team.

I have a bunch of easy tricks up my sleeve to show you how straightforward it is to shoot the marine life in fun and novel ways that go beyond simple fish ID pictures.
And I’m big on compositional skills to help you elevate your shots to new heights just by thinking a bit more about how you frame things and why you do this.
All easy simple stuff that can be done with any camera.
In contrast to other workshops, there will be less of an emphasis on classroom teaching to allow you guys to spend more time taking advantage of the unlimited house reef diving, so whilst we will have daily lectures they’ll be less than an hour long, and straight after breakfast, and they won’t be compulsory, so we can always repeat them at your leisure and I’ll be on hand to answer questions throughout the day, as and when you need."

All are welcome and we hope you will come and join us!

WORKSHOP LEADER

About Paul 'Duxy' Duxfield

From an early age, Duxy has been a fully card carrying photo geek. Duxy’s enthusiastic but relaxed approached for expressing his ideas and recording the world around him, has made him one of the industry’s most popular photo & video tour escorts.

Contact

Paul 'Duxy' Duxfield

Website:

www.paulduxfield.co.uk

Email:

[email protected]

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