Underwater photography is one of the most popular diving specialties, and with so many underwater cameras to choose from, it has become easier and more fun than ever to capture images of your underwater scuba adventures. The PADI Digital Underwater Photographer course gets you going quickly, whether you use a point-and-shoot camera or a sophisticated dSLR like the pros.

PADI (Junior) Open Water Divers who are at least 10 years old are eligible to take the Digital Underwater Photographer course.

Because underwater photography is also popular with snorkelers, there is an option for avid snorkelers and skin divers to complete the course. Check with your PADI Dive Center or Resort if this interests you.

Through hands-on training during two scuba dives and guidance from your PADI Professional, you’ll discover:

• How to choose the right underwater camera system for you.
• The PADI SEA (Shoot, Examine, Adjust) method for getting great shots quickly.
• Principles for good composition of underwater images.
• Practical techniques to take great photos with your digital camera.

Get credit! The second dive of this PADI Specialty Diver course may credit as an Adventure Dive toward your Advanced Open Water Divercertification – ask your instructor about earning credit.

Beyond using basic scuba equipment, you’ll need a digital underwater camera and a computer or other device for downloading and viewing your images. Your PADI Pro may suggest additional equipment and accessories depending on your camera system. Visit your local dive center to get advice about everything you need for your underwater photography adventures.

Sign up for Digital Underwater Photographer Online – PADI’s eLearning option – to get started immediately. The web-based system guides you through the principles of great underwater photography, with a bonus section on underwater imaging (including video). You study at your own pace through an easy-to-use, interactive program. You also have access to an online version of the Digital Underwater Photographer Manual.

You can also choose to read the paper version of the Digital Underwater Photographer Manual. Stop by your local PADI Dive Center and Resort to enroll in the course, get your materials and start learning. Your PADI Professional will meet with you to schedule knowledge review sessions along with your dives

The PADI Drift Diver Specialty course teaches you how to enjoy going with the flow as you scuba dive down rivers and use ocean currents to glide along. It feels like flying – except that you’re underwater using scuba equipment. Drift diving can be relaxing and exhilarating at the same time. If this sound like fun, then the Drift Diver course is for you. If you’re a PADI (Junior) Open Water Diver who is at least 12 years old, you can enroll in the Drift Diver specialty course.

Along with drift diving techniques and procedures, you’ll:

• Receive an introduction to drift diving equipment – floats, lines and reels.
• Get an overview of aquatic currents – causes and effects.
• Practice with buoyancy control, navigation and communication during two drift dives.
• Learn techniques for staying close to a buddy or together as a group as you float with the current.

Get credit! The first dive of this PADI Specialty Diver course may credit as an Adventure Dive toward your Advanced Open Water Diver certification – ask your instructor about earning credit.

Along with your basic scuba equipment, you’ll learn to use various surface marker buoys and floats with lines and reels. Ask your PADI Instructor or local dive center staff about other equipment you may need to get the most of your drift dives.

Pick up a PADI Drift Diver Manual and the Drift Diving video to start learning immediately. Stop by your local PADI Dive Center and Resort to enroll in the course and pick up your independent study materials.

The thought of dipping below the surface at night seems mysterious, yet so alluring. Although you’ve been scuba diving at a site many times before, at night you drop into a whole new world and watch it come to life under the glow of your dive light. The scene changes as day creatures retire and nocturnal organisms emerge. If you’ve wondered what happens underwater after the sun goes down, sign up for the PADI Night Diver Specialty course.

PADI (Junior) Open Water Divers or higher, who are at least 12 years old, can enroll in the Night Diver specialty course.

Scuba diving at night teaches you to focus on what you can see in your light’s beam, on controlling your buoyancy by feel, on staying with your buddy and on paying attention to details you may overlook during the day. During three night dives, you’ll practice:

• Light handling and communication techniques.
• Entering, exiting and navigating in the dark.
• Identifying how plants and animals differ or change behavior at night.

You may be able to get college credit for the Night Diver course – ask your instructor.
Also, the first dive of this PADI Specialty Diver course may credit as an Adventure Dive toward your Advanced Open Water Diver certification – ask your instructor about earning credit.

Along with your basic scuba equipment, you’ll need a primary dive lightand want to have a backup light, too. Your PADI Instructor or local dive center staff may suggest other equipment options, such as wearing more exposure protection to stay comfortable after dark.

Visit your local PADI Dive Center and Resort to enroll in the course and get a PADI Night Diver Crew-Pak that includes yourmanual and video. By studying before class, you’ll be better prepared for the thrill of exploring the underwater world at night.

Excellent buoyancy control is what defines skilled scuba divers. You’ve seen them underwater. They glide effortlessly, use less air and ascend, descend or hover almost as if by thought. They more easily observe aquatic life without disturbing their surroundings. You can achieve this, too. The PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy Specialty course improves the buoyancy skills you learned as a new diver and elevates them to the next level.

PADI (Junior) Open Water Divers or higher, who are at least 10 years old, are eligible to take the Peak Performance Buoyancy course.

During two scuba dives, you’ll learn how to:

• Determine the exact weight you need, so you’re not too light or too heavy.
• Trim your weight system and scuba gear so you’re perfectly balanced in the water.
• Streamline to save energy, use air more efficiently and move more smoothly through the water.
• Hover effortlessly in any position – vertical or horizontal.

Get credit! The first dive of this PADI Specialty Diver course may credit as an Adventure Dive toward your Advanced Open Water Diver certification – ask your instructor about earning credit.

New to rebreathers? This course has many helpful tips to achieving good buoyancy control when rebreather diving.

It’s best to use your own scuba equipment, including a weight system, so that you fine-tune your buoyancy in gear you’ll use on every dive. Your PADI Instructor or local dive center staff can help you find the equipment that is best for you and your diving adventures.

Visit your local PADI dive shop to enroll in the course and get your PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy Manual and Peak Performance Buoyancy video. By reading the manual and watching the video before class, you’ll be ready to get in the water and start practicing your buoyancy skills when you meet with your PADI Instructor.

The PADI Scuba Diver course is a subset of the PADI Open Water Diver course. If you’re short on time but really want to become a diver, the PADI Scuba Diver rating might be right for you ̶ particularly if you expect to go scuba diving primarily with a dive guide. This course is an intermediate step for earning an Open Water Diver certification, if that’s your ultimate goal.
PADI Scuba Divers are qualified to:

• Dive under the direct supervision of a PADI Professional to a maximum depth of 12 metres/40 feet.
• Obtain air fills, rent or purchase scuba equipment and participate in dive activities as long as properly supervised.
• Continue dive training by completing the PADI Open Water Diver certification and taking certain specialty diver courses.

To enroll in a PADI Scuba Diver course (or Junior Scuba Diver course), you must be 10 years old or older. You need adequate swimming skills and need to be in good physical health. No prior experience with scuba diving is required, but you can try it first through the Discover Scuba^®Diving program.

The PADI Scuba Diver course consists of three main phases:

• Knowledge Development (eLearning, independent study or in a classroom) to understand basic principles of scuba diving – just the first three of five sections of the Open Water Diver course.
• Confined Water Dives to learn basic scuba skills – just the first three of five dives of the Open Water Diver course
• Open Water Dives to use your skills and explore – just two of four dives of the Open Water Diver course.

You learn to use basic scuba gear, including a mask, snorkel, fins, regulator, buoyancy control device and a tank. The equipment you wear varies, depending upon whether you’re diving in tropical, temperate or cold water. Your PADI Instructor will explain the equipment you need and may suggest additional educational materials, such as the required logbook.

Check with your local dive center to get advice about everything you need for your diving adventures.

Get started by registering for Open Water Diver eLearning (a mobileapp). There are also other home study options like the Open Water Diver Manual and Open Water Diver Video (a book and DVD package). Stop by your local PADI dive shop to enroll in the course, get your materials and start reading the book and watching the video. Your PADI Instructor will meet with you to schedule knowledge review sessions, confined water and open water dives.

Having scuba tanks on your back isn’t a requirement for exploring the underwater world. Many scuba divers have discovered the joy of mounting cylinders on their sides. Sidemount diving gives you flexibility and streamlining options. Plus, you don’t have to walk with heavy cylinders on your back – just enter the water, clip them on and go. Sound interesting? Sign up for the PADI Sidemount Diver Specialty course.

If you’re a PADI Open Water Diver who is at least 15 years old, you can enroll in a PADI Sidemount Diver course.

Along with learning about the many benefits of diving with a sidemount configuration, during one confined water and three open water scuba dives you’ll learn how to:

• Properly assemble and configure sidemount scuba diving equipment.
• Trim your weight system and sidemount gear so you’re perfectly balanced in the water.
• Manage gas by switching second stages as planned, if wearing two cylinders.
• Respond correctly to potential problems when sidemount diving.

Get credit! The first dive of this PADI Specialty Diver course may credit as an Adventure Dive toward your Advanced Open Water Diver certification – ask your instructor about earning credit.

You’ll want to use your own mask, fins, snorkel and exposure suit. Your PADI Instructor or local dive center staff will explain the sidemount equipment you’ll need, such as a BCD and harness configured for sidemount diving along with cylinders, each with a regulator and SPG.

Visit your local PADI dive shop to enroll in the course and get your PADI Sidemount Diver and Tec Sidemount Diver Manual. You can read chapter one before meeting with your instructor to review key points. By studying ahead, you’ll be better prepared to start using your sidemount gear.

If technical diving interests you, chapters two and three of your manual apply to the Tec Sidemount Diver course.

Have you always wondered what it’s like to breathe underwater? If you want to try scuba diving, but aren’t quite ready to take the plunge into a certification course, Discover Scuba Diving is for you. PADI dive shops offer this program either in a pool, off a beach or from a dive boat. You can try scuba close to home or while you’re on vacation at a dive destination. While not a scuba certification course, Discover Scuba Diving is a quick and easy introduction to what it takes to explore the underwater world. To sign up for a PADI Discover Scuba Diving experience, you must be at least 10 years old. No prior experience with scuba diving is necessary, but you need to be in reasonable physical health. Are you ready to try it out? Use the event locator to find and schedule a Discover Scuba Diving experience near you.

You learn the basic safety guidelines and skills needed to dive under the direct supervision of a PADI Professional. If you make an open water dive, you’ll practice a few more skills in shallow water to prepare for your adventure. Get ready to:

• Go over the scuba equipment you use to dive and how easy it is to move around underwater with your gear.
• Find out what it’s like to breathe underwater.
• Learn key skills that you’ll use during every scuba dive.
• Have fun swimming around and exploring.
• Hear about becoming a certified diver through the PADI Open Water Diver course.

Your PADI Pro will likely provide all the basic scuba gear you’ll use including a mask, snorkel, fins, regulator, buoyancy control device, dive gauges and a tank.

Visit your local PADI Dive Center or Resort to learn more about the gear you will need to start your adventures in Discover Scuba Diving.

Contact your local PADI Dive Center or Resort to sign up for a Discover Scuba Diving program and get a Discover Scuba Diving Participant Guide. Your Participant Guide explains the experience and lets you pre-study the safety rules and skill techniques your dive professional will review with you. You’ll also learn about opportunities to become part of the scuba community after you complete your underwater experience.

Bubblemaker is as fun as it sounds – a chance for kids to blow bubbles by scuba diving. Children who are at least 8 years old can use scuba gear to breathe underwater and swim around in shallow water. Have a party or celebrate a birthday by throwing a memorable, exciting Bubblemaker event with friends and family at your local PADI dive shop.

A child must be 8 years old or older. Kids must be comfortable in the water, but no prior experience is necessary. Parental approval is required.

Bubblemakers get a chance to:

• Experience scuba diving under the direct care and supervision of a PADI Pro.
• Take their first breaths underwater in water shallower than 2 metres/6 feet.
• Learn about and use scuba diving equipment made for children – not adults.
• Have lots of fun.

In the Bubblemaker program, participants get a basic introduction to how to use scuba gear, how to clear a regulator and mask, and an overview of breathing do’s and don’ts. Your local dive shop will advise you about anything else you need.

Contact your PADI Dive Center or Resort to schedule a Bubblemaker program or to organize a Bubblemaker party. The Bubblemaker Crew-Pak contains mementos of the experience and is full of fun surprises, such as a kid-sized beach towel, logbook, certificate, temporary tattoo, decal and the adorable and popular Bubblemaker water toy. Adults love them, too.

The PADI Seal Team is for young scuba divers who are looking for action-packed fun in a pool by completing exciting AquaMissions. Have you ever wondered what it’s like to dive with flashlights, take digital pictures underwater or float effortlessly like an astronaut? Beyond learning basic scuba skills, there are specialty AquaMissions, such as wreck diving, navigation, buoyancy, environmental awareness and more. PADI Seal Team includes doing some cool stuff in the pool, meeting friends and sharing in the adventure of the underwater world. To join the PADI Seal Team, a child must be 8 years of age or older. No prior experience with scuba diving is necessary, but kids should be comfortable in the water. Parental approval is required.

The PADI Seal Team program teaches responsibility and respect for the aquatic realm. It’s broken into two parts.
Part one, AquaMissions 1 – 5, covers basic scuba diving skills, such as breathing underwater, clearing a mask of water, recovering a regulator and swimming around experiencing the sensation of being weightless. Each session takes about an hour. Complete these AquaMissions and become a recognized PADI Seal Team Member. Your experience may also count toward the PADI Open Water Diver course when you’re old enough to participate in the course.

Part two, 10 specialty AquaMissions, includes adventures like creature identification, search and recovery diving, and skin diving. Complete all of these and you’ll become a PADI Master Seal Team Member – joining an elite group of young scuba divers.

In the PADI Seal Team program, you learn to use basic scuba gear, including a mask, snorkel, fins, regulator, buoyancy control device, dive gauges and a tank.
Visit your local dive center to ask about gear and get advice about how to prepare from your PADI Seal Team Leader (a.k.a. PADI Instructor).

Contact your PADI Dive Center or Resort to enroll in the program and get started with a PADI Seal Team Crew-Pak. Your pak includes everything a PADI Seal Team Member needs to prepare for AquaMissions including a fun video, activity book with puzzles, and log book pages to track your adventures.