Quick Details
Scuba diving is a way to explore the underwater world in new and different ways. PADI Specialty Diver courses teach you new techniques and give you the tools to enhance your exploration. If you have taken the PADI Advanced Open Water Course, you have been introduced to 5 of the specialties. There are so many more you can choose from and at Low Key Watersports, we can offer many of them.
Each specialty has different required learning objectives and different dive options. If you don’t find what you are looking for here or if you need more details, email our in-house PADI Course Director to discuss course details or for help setting up a plan to continue your diving education.
Standard Specialties Available at Low Key
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Learn about the advantages and ease of diving from a boat. You’ll practice boat diving techniques and learn:
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- Boat terminology
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- Boat diving procedures and etiquette, including how to enter and exit, and where to stow your gear
- Boating safety, including how to locate safety equipment
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Explore deeper dive sites with confidence at depths down to 40 meters/130 ft. Learn to manage your gas supply, go over buddy contact procedures, and buoyancy control.
The lure of the deep. There’s something exciting and mysterious about exploring deeper dive sites while scuba diving. Sometimes it’s a wreck that attracts you below 18 meters/60 feet, and on wall dives, it may be a giant fan or sponge. Whatever it is, to scuba dive with confidence at depths down to 40 meters/130 feet, you should take the PADI Deep Diver Specialty course.
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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.
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The underwater world changes as day creatures retire & nocturnal organisms emerge. If you’ve wondered what happens underwater after the sun goes down, enroll in the PADI Night Diver Specialty course.
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.
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Observe aquatic life without disturbing its surroundings. Improve the buoyancy skills you learned as a new diver and elevate them to the next level.
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.
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Retrieve lost items that have fallen overboard or over a dock. Learn effective swimming patterns and using a lift bag for heavy objects.
It happens: People accidentally drop things from docks, off boats or even while scuba diving. If you’ve ever lost something in the water and wanted to go find it, then the PADI Search and Recovery Diver Specialty course is for you. There are effective ways to search for objects underwater that increase your chances of success. And there are good and better methods to bring up small, large or just awkward items. Search and recovery can be challenging, but a whole lot of fun.
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Fine-tune your underwater observation skills and learn to use your compass more accurately. This course may count towards college credit, ask your instructor.
Be the scuba diver everyone wants to follow because you know where you are and where you’re going. The PADI Underwater Navigator course fine-tunes your observation skills and teaches you to more accurately use your compass underwater. If you like challenges with big rewards, take this course and have fun finding your way.
Conservation Specialties
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Get a better understanding of the local ecosystem and the differences between terrestrial and aquatic worlds. See new things, even in the most familiar dive sites.
Take the PADI Underwater Naturalist Specialty course and you’ll see new things, even on the most familiar scuba diving sites. Why? Because when you know more about symbioses, underwater ecology, and aquatic plant and animal habitats, you notice behaviors and see creatures you may have previously missed. Learn more about the local ecosystem and take a closer look at your next scuba diving adventure.
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Enjoy dives, even more, when you can recognize and identify fish families and their characteristics.“What was that fish?” is a common question heard after a dive. If you want to be the scuba diver with the answers, instead of the one asking the questions, then take the Fish Identification Specialty course. You’ll enjoy your dives, even more, when you recognize the creatures that you see and can identify the main fish families and their characteristics.
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This course helps you appreciate the complexity of coral reef habitats and teaches how you can help conserve these vital systems.
Everyone likes to scuba dive or snorkel in warm, clear water on a vibrant coral reef, yet many people know little about what they’re seeing or the importance of reef ecosystems. The Coral Reef Conservation Specialty course helps you appreciate the complexity of these habitats and teaches you how you can help conserve these vital systems.
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Uniting scuba divers and water enthusiasts to make a difference. By earning this certification, you’ll learn how you can make a difference for ocean protection every time you dive or travel.The Project AWARE Specialty course is an introduction to Project AWARE as a global movement for ocean protection. It focuses and expands on the 10 Tips for Divers to Protect the Ocean Planet. Through interactive discussions, you’ll learn how you can make a difference for ocean protection every time you dive or travel. A dry, ‘fins off’ course, this specialty is ideal for divers and non-drivers alike to gain insight into how decisions above and below the surface impact our water planet.