Three Types
Near Shore (reef, kelp beds): water depth down to 100 feet
Deep Water (walls, edge of canyons): depth down to 300 feet
Blue Water (open ocean, off the continental shelf): depth down to many thousands of feet
Equipment
Low volume mask: especially
important to conserve air when equalizing the internal pressure
Snorkle: "dry" or open style, either is a good choice. Must have a large bore.
Fins: long blade, scuba fins, or split fins (see below)
Gloves: useful for protection
Knife: needed to cut kelp, reel line or to finish the kill of your catch
Fish stringer or float: used to keep your catch away from your body (danger!) [sharks, seal, sealions and predetory fish will attack your catch]
Wetsuit (hood and boots too): needed in any water condition for thermal protection and skin protection
Weights: optional for those in 3-7mm wetsuits. Not necessary for "skins" and possibly dangerous for weak or tired swimmers
Fins
Long blade--for strong leg swimmers and advanced divers
Scuba fins--for occational freediving and weaker legs
Split fins--for occational freediving and weaker legs, more efficient than scuba fins
Spearguns Three Types
Rubberband--surgical bands used to propel speargun or hand sling
Pneumatic--air powered (CO2 cartrige or pump action)
Spring loaded--spring powered
Information
For reliability, get the rubberband type (fewer moving parts). Riffe
makes excellent rubberband spearguns. When the rubberbands start to
tear, it is easy to replace the propulsion system. Keep in mind the kind
of fish being stalked, the terrain, and visibility. West coast
(U.S.) divers benefit from a 48 inche speargun. In low vis
spearfishing, only use a hand sling to avoid spearing your buddy or
other divers (better yet, don't spearfish is the vis is bad).
Stalking Basic
Move with the current and drift to conserve air and bottom time
Move gracefully with the ocean [be a Zen master :-) ]--sudden "out of sync" movements mean danger--sharks swim in a jerky side to side motion when aggrivated.
Never look your prey in the eyes watch from the corner of your eyes until ready to shoot--eye contact means danger to any prey
Move your head in a "NO" motion (side-to-side) to scan more area--do this in a slow and delibrate manner
Fish respond to sound and motion (both make pressure waves in the water that are picked up by the vertical line organs that run the length of the fish's body)
Sound carries 5 times faster underwater--creatures around you on any side will know of your presence
Clear your ears before you start your decent--this eases decent and saves a minimal amount of air and bottom time
Release no bubbles while you are stalking--seals and sealions don't blow bubbles when hunting so you shouldn't either
Don't bump or scrape anything underwater--fish don't so you shouldn't