We find that Parisians look way cooler with local wooden goggles. Photo by Valerie L.

These curious squids have become our regular spectators.

Antso the tightrope walker. ‪#‎Freediving‬ ‪#‎Romblon‬ ‪#‎Philippines‬ ‪#‎DumagatFreedive‬

When it’s so glassy that there isn’t a ripple on the surface, you can look up from under and see the clouds.

Told them there was a bottle of beer at the bottom. Of course, Louis bolted down the fastest. Romblon misses you already, Louis. See you next year.

Niels working on his form and technique during his #SSI Level 1 course.

Island style freediver with wooden goggles and bamboo noseclip vs. the modern style freediver. I think it’s pretty obvious who has better style, no? ‪#‎Freediving‬ ‪#‎Philippines‬

Part Five: The Farewell.

Perfect conditions.

And with a bit persistence, you learn to run it eventually.

Well done on an easy and clean morning dive to 57 meters, Mikhail.

Play more. Have an epic weekend, everyone!

Natural born freedivers. It’s the only way I can describe these two.

Too late for the Aquaman lead role audition. ‪

Raced them to the bottom. They won. ‪#‎Romblon‬ ‪#‎Philippines‬ ‪#‎DumagatFreedive‬

One of the resident schools of fish you might encounter during a training session

It is said that dairy products and alcohol increase mucous production which may make equalization difficult, but we say consumption of both to celebrate a perfect dive is certainly good for you. Congratulations on a new personal best of 50 meters (164 feet) on a single breath, Kyla. And thanks, Sylvain of Omniblue Freedive, for the celebratory wine and cheese.

Erwan working on his constant weight no fins (CNF) technique. This depth discipline is considered to be the most challenging because the freediver performs the dive without pulling on the rope, without fins, and without variable weight to help with the descent.

Two things we have plenty of: fresh air and clean water.

Team smiley :) Thanks for the photo, Denen!

How to be a real badass at 55 years old.

And so we begin the season with smiles and epic water conditions.

Hanging at a relatively shallow depth is one of the usual warm-up routines freedivers use at the beginning of a freediving session. Hanging helps trigger the mammalian diving reflex which helps the body adapt to each dive. And, if you’re lucky like on this session, you might find yourself amused by a turtle that’s even more amused by you. Maybe next time we’ll get the turtle in the shot too.

When mother nature decides it’s not a day for depth training, working on improving your breath hold is always an option in our natural static pool. Holding your breath underwater should never be attempted without proper training and supervision.

Naomi Gittoes’ beautiful artwork made it to the island of Romblon in the Philippines!

We hardly ever use a boat for training sessions; but when we do, our boat men join in the party.

Benjamin of team Omniblue Freedive looking epic on a dive with skandalopetra. Skandalopetra diving is a breath-hold dive aided by a stone tied to a rope. It dates back from ancient Greece and was used by sponge fishermen. Photo by Sylvain Bes.

Part Four: The Ascent.

Exploring the waters around surrounding islets in search of more places to play in. ‪#‎Romblon‬ ‪#‎Freediving‬

When the sea is as glassy as it’s been lately, you learn to walk just under the surface. ‪#‎Romblon‬ ‪#‎Freediving‬ ‪#‎Philippines‬ ‪#‎DumagatFreedive‬

DumagatFreedive

Proper breathe-up before every dive relaxes the body and the mind making each dive easier, safer and more enjoyable. This fundamental relaxation skill is just as important on shallow dives as it is on much deeper dives like this one. ‪#‎freediving‬ ‪#‎philippines‬

Dominique while training in 30°C water temperature and 30m visibility.

Perfect conditions.

When it’s glassy… with Dominique & Sander.

Probably the closest thing to being in space.

David working on his form during an SSI level 1 course.

Breathing and relaxation exercise with Michal & Karl. Both held their breaths for nearly 4 and a half impressive minutes! Not bad at all for first timers!

So we recently just learned about this hipster thing, collective global art project, another silly internet craze, or whatever you want to call it, here we are snail planking it. ‪#‎Romblon‬ ‪#‎SnailPlanking‬

We don’t like classrooms so we decided to visit another island to do the freediving final exam. Here’s Janis completing the exam at Tuburan Community, perhaps the coolest and most chill place in the province. Congratulations, Janis! Welcome to freediving! And big thanks to Tuburan for welcoming and hosting us.

And just like that, freediving season is here. Have a great weekend everyone!

Team Omniblue with a little bit less jet lag. :)

We may be a bunch of lazy freedivers here, but Kyla is still so ready to take on the freediving instructor course. New personal best of 44 meters with many more training days to go. Way to go Kyla!

Karel when he’s somewhat serious.

These three guys were being too friendly so we abandoned our training line and just played with them for a while. ‪#‎Romblon‬ ‪#‎Freediving‬ ‪#‎Philippines‬ ‪#‎DumagatFreedive‬

With scrap plywood fins and wooden goggles, our boatman shows us how it’s done.

Friday goof around session.

Coffee and all things sugary – some of the things freedivers do without for the love of the sport. But it’s Sunday and we’re going wild. ‪#‎DumagatFreediveSunday‬ ‪#‎FreediversGoneWild‬

The party the night before continues underwater.

Sita & Aline practicing constant weight and free immersion dives during an SSI Level 1 Freediving course.

Kyla making small adjustments with her fins as she freefalls into Romblon’s deep blue.

Part One: The Swim.

Bubble ring blowing training to end an epic freediving session just makes it even more epic.

Playtime with Mathilde & Sof.

When a spadefish hijacks your training line and shows you how it’s done.

Sometimes a lone fish, a passing turtle, a school of sardines, or a pack of very curious squids, we freedive for moments like this.

A properly executed duck dive allows you to dive down without much effort.