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Scuba diving in Timor Leste with underwater casing for Casio Exilim FR100

Writer Jyn explored scuba diving in prisitine waters of Timor Leste.
Writer Jyn (bottom) explored scuba diving in prisitine waters of Timor Leste.

Right up Casio’s alley of travel and adventure, Team ToughAsia embarked on an exotic destination to test out the underwater casing of the Exilim FR100 (EXFR100).

The seas less travelled

We set out to explore the lesser known Timor Leste, on the far east of the globe, near Papua New Guinea and Australia. It was the perfect excuse to fly there via Bali, who doesn’t love the magical islands of the Gods, and more chances to use the EXFR100 to capture the culture and experiences.

Every adventure starts with we-fies in tight spaces of the airplanes, but EXFR100’s wide angle manages to capture everyone without having to squeeze together. On the boat ride, just when everyone has kept their phones for fear of getting it wet, you can still hold up the waterproof camera proudly to take we-fies with everyone. #wefieiscasio

We-fie in tight spaces made easy with wide angle on Casio Exilim FR100. #wefieiscasio
We-fie in tight spaces made easy with wide angle on Casio Exilim FR100. #wefieiscasio
Soft glows as the sun rises over Timor Leste.
Soft glows as the sun rises over Timor Leste.

Underwater selfie with a seahorse

Casio is keeping current by offering an underwater casing for the EXFR100 which can withstand up to 20 meters in depth. That’s quite average for scuba diving, and you get to witness a lot of beautiful marine creatures swimming in the pristine waters off Timor Leste.

We celebrated Malaysia Day with diving off the beach in the capital of Dili with Aquatica Dive Resort in Timor Leste. As we plunged into the cold waters and dived into the depths below, we spotted a seahorse and decided to try taking a selfie with the wide angle on the EXFR100.

There was a lot of sediments floating from the soft sandy ground, so pardon our grainy picture and without a screen, it can get a bit difficult to line up your shot accurately, but it worked!

Underwater selfie with a seahorse.
Underwater selfie with a seahorse.
Magnificent underwater seascapes.
Magnificent underwater seascapes.

Underwater casing for EXFR100 goes 20m deep

We loved taking wide angle shots of the seascape, to capture a different range of photos on our travel. The underwater casing, EAM-6 kept the camera lense safe and dry underwater, so you don’t have to worry about any leakage. It would also be advantageous to have some form of lighting to aid in taking photos, as there is no light source underwater.

You can also use the EAM-5 with antenna cable attached to the camera lense in the EAM-6, but you can only use this when snorkelling underwater as it can only go up to 1.5 meters. It’s much easier to see your shots underwater, and once again, it’s selfie time underwater! My friends thought I was carrying a CCTV underwater when I attached both the EAM-5 and EAM-6 to my selfie stick underwater.

Casio Exilim FR100's underwater casing with antenna cable.
Casio Exilim FR100’s underwater casing with antenna cable.
Capture marine life like the Scorpion Leaf fish underwater with the EXFR100.
Capture marine life like the Scorpion Leaf fish underwater with the EXFR100.

Diving with the whales

Even on a day when I decided not to carry the underwater casing on a dive trip, we chanced upon blue whales swimming nearby our boat on the return from Atauro Island around Timor Leste. Richard from team ToughAsia and our dive master, Desmond dived in with the EXFR100 and managed to capture a video of the whales underwater!

The 15 second footage is priceless, as you see the whales up close at around 1.5m depth. And don’t worry, we rinsed the camera with clean water after all that sea water and it still works fine.

Separate the camera to get creative angles and landscapes.
Separate the camera to get creative angles and landscapes on a cloudy day.
Separate the camera, angle it, and trigger it remotely for the best wide angle we-fie shot at Cristo Rei in Timor Leste.
Separate the camera, angle it, and trigger it remotely for the best wide angle we-fie shot at Cristo Rei in Timor Leste.

Back on land, we visited the Cristo Rei statue – a gift from Indonesia to Timor Leste upon their independence and naturally, we wanted to take a group photo. So everyone was struggling to get the widest view possible on their DSLR but I just whipped out the EXFR100, separated it and angled it on the floor while viewing from the screen to get everyone into position, and everyone was impressed!

As we returned to Bali before our flight home to KL, we took amazing low light photos using the EXFR100 at Kudeta, our favourite bar/restaurant by the beach to relax and have some drinks after dinner.

Low light photos are best taken with the EXFR100 at Kudeta in Bali.
Low light photos are best taken with the EXFR100 at Kudeta in Bali.
Casio Exilim FR100 Timor Leste
Use the EXFR100 to take beautiful underwater shots at shallow depths on snorkelling trips.

The Casio Exilim FR100 has truly enabled us to capture our travel, adventure and explorations above and underwater on this magnificent trip. But don’t just take our word for it, get one for yourself and explore the joys of the EXFR100.

All photos are shot by Casio Exilim FR100 unless stated otherwise. For more information on the camera, click here.

Jyn

More about the author

Jyn Yeow loves exploring new ways to gain the adrenaline rush, covering places and meeting new people. #adrenalinejunkie Follow Jyn on Facebook or blog.