There’s often more to a high-fashion model than meets the eye. In most cases, it’s grandiose dreams of being a famous actor or rock star. But, when it comes to Shaun McNatt, a 25-year-old who has walked runways for Gucci, YSL and Armani, and graced ads for Moschino, it’s a far less common pursuit: specifically, scuba diving.

For the last two years, McNatt has been breaching sea level worldwide in search of some of the best dives. Despite having grown up in Atlanta, and now being based in NYC, McNatt is as comfortable both in and on the water as anything with fins. In addition to doing dives just about as often as his modeling schedule will allow (and making plans to open his own scuba shop), the graduate of the European School of Economics in Milan keeps a newly-purchased French racing sailboat just north of the Bronx and sails (and sleeps) on the sea every chance he gets. Here, his take on the best spots to dive in:

How did you get into diving in the first place?
I’ve always been interested. Not to be too serious, but my father always wanted to get into it, but with him in Atlanta and me in NYC we could never find a way to do it. Then, after he passed away it was something I thought I should start doing. I’ve probably done 70 or 80 dives. I’ve got my Master Diver certification, and now I’m studying to be an instructor.

How would you characterize a stereotypical scuba diver?
They’re pretty laid-back … very conscious about the environment and the oceans. Some of us are kind of nerdy when it comes down to it. I’m in a Divers Club in NY [laughs]. We'll meet up at a lounge, look at slides of different dives, talk about what it’s like to dive different places, where you’re going next…

What’s the best place for aspiring divers to start?
Go to your local dive shop. They’re people who have done over 1,000 dives. I go to the Scuba Network on 19th Street and 6th Avenue. They really care, and know what it’s like to be a beginner. Do an open water dive and just see if you like it. Find your niche and go from there.

What are your five favorite places to dive and why?
The Dutch Springs Rock Quarry in Williamson, Pennsylvania; I’m going there on Sunday. It’s an old quarry where, after they got all the rock they needed out, a natural spring filled it up with water. They sunk airplanes, ocean liners, and school buses to make a training place for divers. It’s where a lot of certification dives happen. They also have a water park and rock-climbing wall, which is cool for friends that don’t dive. It’s like a diver’s playground.
The Bahamas; it’s the easiest. It’s very diverse, and really cheap to fly there. It’s a mix of wrecks, coral reefs, tropical fish, shark dives – pretty much everything diving has to offer. It’s not too intense. When I’m there I dive with Stewart’s Cove Shark Dives- it’s a great company, a bunch of bohemians. I usually stay at the Atlantis. You can get a cheap room there every time.
St. Thomas is really beautiful and has a lot of easy, shallow reefs. A lot of boats have hit them, so there are a lot of wrecks. There’s this thing there, the Lobster Hotel. I remember seeing it for the first time and 30-40 lobsters all poking their heads out. The stingrays and the man-rays are huge. There are sharks, reef sharks... they have beautiful night dives there. The amazing thing about night dives is that everything comes to life at night; that’s when the coral opens up. It’s incredible.
Cozumel is really beautiful. It’s pretty resort-y, with crystal-clear water. There’s 70-80 feet visibility. There you have to wear gloves when you dive so that your oils don’t ruin the coral. They’re very into preserving it, which is great. And, the sea turtles there are amazing.
Key West is fantastic. There are a lot of eels. It’s protected under the Florida Environmental Protection Act, so you’ll see a lot there that you won’t see other places. It’s a very, very special place. I used to have a condo in Hollywood, Florida so I’ve always just driven down for the day. They’re also starting to sink old navy ships to help build the coral, so all the little islands down there have this big beautiful coral. They put a lot into preserving the diving community. A lot of people don’t do that.
Another great way to do it is to take a cruise. It’s the best of both worlds. I did a Caribbean cruise last year and it stopped in St. Thomas, St. Martin, and Key West. It was a last-minute cruise deal off Orbitz for like $1,200. It’s great because they offer diving excursions and if it’s really bad weather with low visibility in one area it can be great weather with high visibility in another. And the food is included.

Where would you like to dive that you haven’t yet?
Andreadoria: I’m going there next summer. It’s the pinnacle of diving for me. It’s where an Italian ocean-liner sank off the coast of New Jersey. It’s the Everest of scuba diving. It’s 250ft down. The seas and the weather are really unpredictable. It’s a super-technical dive, which I find really alluring. You can see Italian artifacts, china, dishware… it’s one of the most advanced dives you can do.
I’d also like to go into ice diving. It’s in very cold waters so it’s clean and clear. It takes a lot more training as a lot more can go wrong. There’s also cave diving in Mexico and in Florida. In caves you can see animals and species you wouldn’t ever see otherwise.

Would you say you’re more into the technical aspects and the challenge?
Sometimes I like to go see the fish; sometimes I like to do the big technical wrecks. It depends on the mood.

Do you know many people in the fashion industry that dive?
I know two or three models that actually dive. One model, Noah Knipe, and I may open a dive shop together. He’s a rescue diver, and we’ve talked about maybe in two years opening a place in Key West. I may do a little more modeling and make a little more money first.

Do you think scuba diving is becoming more popular?
Definitely. More people are doing it. A lot of people are scared of sharks, but mostly they just need to be educated. More people are killed every year by pigs than sharks.

~Alisa Gould-Simon

Go There:
Looking to get your scuba diving feet wet (and maybe meet McNatt beyond the the interweb)? Stop by McNatt's local scuba shop, Scuba Network.