However, after sorting through the wreckage a smiling Gavin was soon able to report that, miracle of miracles, neither of the camera lenses had been scratched and almost all the components were working except the pan and tilt, which we hadn't been using anyway. After further fiddling the video camera stopped working, but as Gavin said, it's not a problem because we can run the video through the stills camera. The resulting video might be of a slightly lower quality but to compensate we will take more stills and rigging the system this way means when we take stills we have a better chance of framing the pictures properly as we will be looking through the same camera.

So with the configuration of the camera gear decided upon, it was time to rebuild the frame. A rummage round the ship produced the perfect circular tubes (spare rungs for the crane ladder), from which master-welder Remon was able to construct a protective cage for the delicate camera and lights. Peering into the workshop late at night, sparks spraying from his welding torch, I saw Remon hunched over a very different looking frame to that of drop-cam mk I. Whereas the first version bore a rather unfortunate resemblance to an anchor, drop-cam mk II reminds me more of a tank.

Right now we drifting above our next dive spot and drop-cam II is being lowered down to see how it 'flies'. Oh yes, and it now has a name, 'The Phoenix'.

- Richard