Douglas Klug is a SCUBA instructor, underwater photographer, and diving writer based in Santa Barbara, California. Since taking his first underwater breaths on certification dives at the Monterey breakwater over 35 years ago, “Diver Doug" has continued to explore California’s waters and tropical destinations around the world. Doug’s underwater photography has led him to bring his trusty Ikelite housings and camera gear to photograph the sea turtles of the Hawaiian Islands, the great white sharks of Mexico, the vibrant colors and underwater walls around the Caribbean, the soft-coral lined reefs and pygmy seahorses of Fiji, and even the humpback whales and sharks of French Polynesia.
Growing up in central California, Doug moved to Santa Barbara at the age of 18 to attend the University of California, Santa Barbara where he studied marine biology and environmental studies. While in college, Doug taught SCUBA diving and worked in a local dive store to pay college tuition. He fell in love with the easy access to California’s Channel Islands and made Santa Barbara his home. Doug’s favorite diving destinations are still the kelp forests of Southern California’s Channel Islands, where he enjoys photographing the majestic kelp forests, curious marine mammals, and tiny colorful nudibranchs throughout the year.
Doug’s experience includes being a recreational SCUBA instructor as well as diving with Nitrox and SCC Rebreathers. Doug holds professional level certifications from NAUI, SSI, PADI, NASDS, and TDI. Doug also participates in volunteer scientific diving for organizations like Reefcheck. Doug worked in the retail/instructional diving business for about a decade, owning and operating a dive shop in the Santa Barbara area. When he’s not taking underwater photos, Doug is still active as an underwater guide for divers not familiar with Southern California Diving. He still teaches SCUBA specialty courses, underwater photography skills, and even wrote a NAUI certification course for divers on Southern California nudibranch identification.
Awards + Achievements
- Photo-Essay Publications: California Diving News, DAN Alert Diver, Dive Training.
- Image Publications, print and digital: US National Park Service, US National Marine Sanctuary, NOAA, the national Aquarium in Baltimore, the California Academy of Sciences, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
