Alor Underwater Photo Workshop September 2025

Why Join This Trip?

• FREE daily underwater photography workshops
• Rich marine biodiversity, pristine reefs, and unique critters
• Luxury liveaboard accommodation
• Up to 4 dives/day 
• Small 4:1 diver-to-guide ratio
• 25% off rental photo gear from Bluewater Photo
• Fully refundable deposit until 18 months from departure. 

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Trip Overview

Alor, located east of Komodo and Flores, offers an exceptional diving experience, showcasing breathtaking coral reefs with remarkable diversity and occasionally drift dives, all amidst stunning topside scenery. The underwater world in Alor is a haven for macro enthusiasts, boasting spectacular biodiversity. This volcanic island is particularly renowned for its excellent muck diving opportunities and boasts one of the largest anemone fields.

Unlike more widely known Indonesian dive sites like Raja Ampat and Bali, Alor has remained relatively under the radar. However, this very aspect adds to its charm, as the diving here remains unspoiled and pristine. Surprisingly, Alor manages to deliver equally, if not superior, dives compared to its more famous counterparts. It's these unique qualities that place Alor at the pinnacle of our list for the best diving experiences in Indonesia.

Read about our 2017 Alor Underwater Photo Workshop.

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Marine Life to Photograph

Alor boasts a diverse range of marine attractions, with its primary highlights being exceptional macro life, stunning coral and benthic diversity, and the captivating sight of schooling fish. While the destination is renowned for its macro opportunities, there's also the exciting possibility of encountering larger photo subjects such as mola molas, sharks, turtles, and rays. Moreover, lucky divers might even be treated to the delightful presence of dolphins and pilot whales from the comfort of their dive boat.

List of some of the marine animals that you'll likely to see in Alor: 

• Rhinopias
• Variety of Nudibranch
• Ribbon Sweetlips
• Lionfish
• Scorpionfish
• Shrimp
• Variety of crabs
• Seahorses
• Black Snappers
• Moray Eels
• Sharks
• Rays

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Inclusions

• Full Board Meal (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and 2 time snacks) 
• Up to 4 dives/day 
• Tank, weight and weight belts 
• Water, Soft Drink, Juice, Balinese Coffee & Tea 
• Laundry 
• Wi-Fi - we use local mobile phone operator, so signal can be intermittent 
• Water Sports (canoe, paddle board, towable water tube) 
• Airport transfers on embarkation & disembarkation days. 
• Land-based hotel transfers on embarkation & disembarkation days from designated area. 

Exclusions

• National Park and Port Clearance Fees ($220)
• Nitrox ($15 per day)
• Alcoholic beverages & espresso 
• Flights and Hotel before and/or after the cruise check in and check out dates 
• Dive Equipment Rental 
• Dive Course 
• Massages 
• Crew gratuities 
• Fuel surcharge (currently not applicable, but subject to change)

Trip Type

This trip is a PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP. It will be led by one of our photo instructors who will provide daily instructional tutorials, in-water photography support (when appropriate), and one-to-one advice and guidance, as required. Each workshop offers a bespoke syllabus, crafted by the trip leader and detailed on the trip webpage. While our Photography Workshops are aimed at divers with an interest in underwater photography, anyone is welcome to join.

Learn more about what's included in this trip type.

Trip Syllabus

Storytelling Through Photography

There will be specific subjects, whether above or below the waterline, that will define various locations worldwide. Begin your research in advance and arrive prepared. Incorporate photographs of the people and the unique underwater subjects of your destination. The type of local fishing boats may be specific to the region, the method of fishing and more often than not there will be species that your destination is known for, and including those subjects will help create a story.

Workshop Overview | Underwater Photography Essentials

• Section One: Photographic Concepts - An introduction to the basic concepts of photography, the behavior of light, understanding and controlling exposure.
• Section Two: Equipment Selection - In this section, guests will gain an understanding of the gear and equipment used to create photos in the underwater environment.
• Section Three: Lighting - This section covers a wide range of topics that will help guests understand and control light in the underwater environment. Topics to be covered will include discussions on the tools used to create photography’s essential ingredient, light, and how to use lighting in various settings to achieve the objectives of both correct and creative exposures.
• Section Four: Composition - Guests will learn the ways photographers use composition to create stylized photographs. This will cover both macro and wide angle lighting techniques one may deploy in shooting different types of scenes or subjects.
• Section Five: Bring It All Together - Here we will use examples of images to help guests see how to bring various technical skills together to create images. These discussions will focus on the tools used, and the methods employed to create images in a variety of scenarios one is likely to encounter in the underwater environment. Whether shooting macro, wide angle, animal or human subjects, this section of the course will help guests understand how to bring everything together, before, during and after the dives.
• Section Six: Post Processing and Image Management - One or more sessions will be dedicated to working with your images after the exposure is made. Using Adobe Lightroom Classic, we will cover the process of image import, image management, and image editing to bring out the best in your photos. It is recommended that Workshop guests have a laptop which can run the Lightroom Classic application. Any other image editing applications are welcome, but guests should be competent on the use of those applications before attending the workshop.

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About the Tiare

The Tiaré is a luxurious yet traditional Indonesian phinisi that will take you on a journey of discovery to some of the most stunning diving spots in the world. Tiaré offers a spectacular experience for divers as well as non-divers.

More like a 5-star hotel than a boat, the 6 cabins on Tiaré, that caters to a maximum of 12 guests on this trip, are your home away from home designed with relaxation and the perfect sleep in mind. You’ll enjoy soft linens and well-thought-out lighting and plug placement as well as spacious ensuite bathrooms, hot water showers, and environmentally friendly body wash and shampoo.

Read more about Tiaré here...

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Flight Information

The trip will begin and end in Maumere airport (airport code MOF). From the US, guests should fly internationally into Jakarta or Bali and then book a domestic flight to Maumere airport. The flight will include a stop in Kupang which may be overnight. 

Guests should arrive in Maumere no later than midday on embarkation day. We recommend spending an overnight in Jakarta/Bali and planning to arrive in Maumere at least 1 day before departure to allow for delayed flights, missed connections, etc. For guests arriving early into Maumere, we recommend booking the Coconut Garden Beach Resort. 

The boat will return to port overnight on Sep 15th so departure flights can be booked any time on Sep 16th. However, guests departing before 9am will miss the final breakfast.

Domestic fight schedules can be found on https://www.nusatrip.com/en. Bluewater Travel can assist with your domestic travel arrangements if required.

Flight Package 

Our group trips attract guests from all over the globe and many of our customers prefer to book their own flights to take advantage of mileage points or credit card discounts. For these reasons, flights are not included in our group trip packages.

However, we are more than happy to work with you to find the best travel itinerary for your trip and will gladly give suggestions and advice, even if you make the final booking. We will check through your travel reservations at any time to ensure they fit with the trip schedule and can give recommendations on transit hotels and day tours where needed. 

If you would like us to book flights, hotels, and transfers for your domestic and/or international travel on your behalf, we are also happy to arrange this. Please be advised that there is a 10% fee for this service to cover our booking and administration costs. 

Contact Us for more information.

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About the Trip Leader

Erik Lukas is an active diver and photographer based in Los Angeles, CA. He is a volunteer scuba diver at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, CA. You can expect to find Erik diving many of the amazing Pacific Ocean sites of Southern California, camera in hand, at any chance he can get.

See more of Erik’s photography at www.seeundersea.com or on Instagram @seeundersea.

"I am passionate about underwater photography in general and have a special love for macro subjects. For me the things that are hardest to spot hold the most interest. Documenting the commensal and symbiotic relationships is for me the most interesting…the smaller and more bizarre the better. I also have a passion for sharing my knowledge with others. My goal with all of my workshops is to ensure each guest leaves with a group of images that they are proud to share." Read more about Erik here.

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Payment Schedule

• $1,000 deposit
• $2,000 due November 1, 2024
• Balance due March 1, 2025

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See Also:

Alor Dive Travel Guide 

Tiare Liveaboard: Amenities, Cabins, Reviews & More... 

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Photo Gallery 

Raja Ampat Underwater Photos from Previous Trips

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