The underwater trips of Mike Tripp

For pharmacist-turned-producer, director, cinematographer, and photographer Mike Tripp, the call of the sea proved more enticing than the idea of filling out prescription forms behind a counter.

A year after graduating with a pharmacy degree from the University of British Columbia in 1990, Tripp saw himself putting on scuba gear for his first dive in the chilly waters of Vancouver, Canada. That fork in the road led him to an abiding romance with the sea and a love for the secrets that wait to be discovered beneath the waves of the oceans.

He said he immediately got certified and, after four years, he became a member of the Professional Association of Diving Instructors. In the early ’90s, Tripp left Canada and his pharmacy career for the warm waters of the Caribbean, where he landed a job with Club Med, teaching at least 1,200 diving enthusiasts at that time.

Tripp’s obsession with diving brought him to beautiful spots in Turks and Caicos, St. Lucia, Cancun, the Bahamas, Haiti, and even the Pacific islands of Moorea and Fiji. He has also been to diving spots in Malaysia, Thailand, Fiji, Indonesia and the Federated Sates of Micronesia, enabling him to compile an ever-growing list of countries captured on film.

He said these underwater trips have developed in him an appreciation for all things aquatic and a passion for spreading the word about what lies beneath the deep blue sea.

“As a dive instructor there is no better feeling than watching someone take their first few breaths underwater and seeing their eyes light up with excitement —you know you have changed their life forever!” he said.

Tripp bought the first housing for his video camera in early 2001 in preparation for a trip to Australia. This started his new passion for spreading the word about diving, using dynamic and captivating images of the underwater world. Since then he has never gone diving without his camera.

After 9/11, Tripp had a chance to continue his pharmacy career, at least on the side, when PHI Pharmacy provided him the opportunity to come here to the CNMI. He worked for the company for two years.

He recalled that the first time he tried the waters of Saipan in 2002 at Obyan Beach, he was amazed at the clarity of the water. “The visibility is awesome. Outstanding!” he said, adding that his follow up dives provided him the same “crystal clear” visibility.

Tripp has made the CNMI his home base for four years now. “Saipan has been great. Not only have I been able to hone my skills in some of the clearest and most diverse waters in the world but I’ve also been able to dive all these other wonderful places without crossing the international dateline!”

As for his favorite dives, Tripp said he doesn’t have a favorite spot because all of his diving experiences in the CNMI have been very memorable and fun.

He said his dive at the Ice Cream Beach is always fun because the eagle rays never fail to enthrall him underwater. He regards the diving experience at Ice Cream very unique. In his latest DVD project, viewers can see why Tripp loves to dive on this side of Saipan.

Comparing it to other islands, Tripp said that Palau is considered the best for diving but, after several such trips, you would always see the same thing. On Saipan, though, each dive is unique, he said.

He conceived the idea of promoting the CNMI’s diverse diving spots through a digital video in 2004. With the help his cousin Bill Reill and musical scorer and friend Ray Walsh in Canada, the new DVD “The Underwater World of Saipan” was released this year.

He said the DVD is a strong medium where he could bring the beauty of Saipan’s underwater world to divers and non-divers alike.

“As a cinematographer it’s not enough to just shoot great images, you must tell a story. I believe we have captured what it is like to dive these magnificent waters and hope the DVD will inspire people to come and experience it for themselves. I know their eyes will light up when they do!”

A total of seven diving spots on Saipan are featured in the DVD. Tripp said his 105-minute interactive DVD provides a picture of the “incredible beauty and bio-diversity of Saipan’s underwater world.”

The DVD, under Mike Tripp Productions, is now available for $25 a copy. He added it is now being sold at the CNMI Museum of History and Culture, PHI Pharmacy in Dandan, CNMI Council of the Arts on Capital Hill, Joeten Susupe and Garapan, Hotel Nikko Saipan, and the Managaha Island Gift Shop.

Tripp plans to put together a second installment of “The Underwater World of…” but he wouldn’t tell yet what the next location would be.

For more information, visit his website: www.theunderwaterworldof.com.