Growing up I would anxiously wait for our subscription to Skin Diver and National Geographic (particularly for those issues that featured underwater photography). Of course National Geographic had a much higher standard than Skin Diver and over time - looking at divers with SCUBA gear on above a coral getting blasted with a flash was just boring.
For a short while there was Ocean Realm Magazine with absolutely stunning images - unfortunately this publication no longer exists. There were a few others that focus on Freediving and sharks but they definitely are definitely not top tier.
Freediving with sharks featured in HSD...
Enter Hawaii Skin Diver (HSD) - by far in a class of it’s own. Not only does the publication focus on spearfishing and freediving - the quality of the photos, design / layout of the magazine / articles are world class and award winning.
HSD became what it is today thanks to Sterling Kaya and Clifford Cheng. In 1999, Sterling bought the magazine and brought on Clif as a partner. Clif has an exceptional eye for design (he studied graphic design at the University of Hawaii). The team is extremely small and the magazine relies on help of photographers and writers that contribute articles from all over the world. And while the name of the magazine has “Hawaii” in it…it covers spearfishing / freediving from all over the world.
Manuel Menendez on cover of HSD
The magazine is published on a quarterly basis - if you do not have a subscription yet, I encourage you to subscribe.