A.C.E. Wreck Revisited (Dana Point — 115 fsw)

Intro

I’ve been on the A.C.E. wreck out of Dana Point quite a few times. The last time I dove it was December 2022 and I built a photogrammetry model of the wreck. For a single dive, the model came out pretty good and involved a 90 minute dive (60 minutes bottom, 30 minutes deco) and I shot about 1700 photos for the model.

However, there were a number of “blank spots” that I had wanted to go back and try to fill in.

I noticed that they had an open slot on the Jan 20th dive so I took it.

The Dive

The conditions were not great. In fact, I wondered whether or not they were going to cancel the dive. We got to the site and everybody but me was on open circuit. I figured I would spend their surface interval diving the wreck so I let all of them get in the water and then I got in. The other divers were mostly finishing up as I got to the bottom and started working on the hull section of the wreck. I told the surface team that my run time would be an hour so after 40 minutes of bottom time I made my way back to the line, picked up my strobe, and did my 20 minutes of deco.

The conditions had changed rapidly during my bottom time. The Riviera dive boat was tied into the wreck and the swell had increased pretty dramatically. There was also a decent current and visibility was low so I couldn’t leave the downline on deco which meant I was thrown about a bit like a rag doll. The rain had also picked up along with the wind and swell. I was glad I had my drysuit and heated vest. 🙂

People often ask if and how I prepare for a dive when shooting photogrammetry. I definitely do and this time was no exception. I analyzed the previous model for blank spots, made screen captures and annotated them where I wanted to get additional coverage. I then laminated both screen captures and took it with me on the dive.

Photogrammetry Model

The visibility wasn’t great and there was very little natural light. Therefore, I had to get pretty close to the wreck for the camera to focus which means a lot more pictures. I took about 1,000 pictures and then went to work aligning them with the old model. I had some challenges that I won’t detail here but it wasn’t an easy “grafting” operation.

However, in the end, I got it to work and built a new model. It is definitely better, especially on the hull section. There are still some details missing in the nooks and crannies of the wreck, but it is definitely better.

Below are some screenshots of the old model vs new model to compare/contrast along with links to the actual model.

One other note: There is an “easter egg” in this model. It is on the hull near the bow. Some diver used a finger to trace a shape in the sediment on the hull. See if you can find it. You will likely need to look very close on the desktop version of the model — the mobile version isn’t high enough resolution 🙂

Here are some before / after screenshots:

Here is a collage of screenshots followed by links to the Desktop (8M faces) and Mobile (800k faces) models.

Mobile Version

Desktop Model

Next Steps

I don’t have a burning need to fill in the rest of the blank spots (or “fuzzy” areas); however, given how close the wreck is to my house and how easy it is to dive, at some point I’m sure I’ll make another trip back and do a final dive. I’d like to fill in the blank spot near bottom of the net barrel and also some of the fuzzy areas around the bottom parts of the bridge.

DJ might also be able to talk Drew into making a 3D printed model of this version. I can easily fill in the small gaps that exist for a solid model.