Another round of pictures from my A620

[huskychemist]

Well, the photography addiction continues. I still have a long ways to go, as I still haven't experimented with manual settings (other than turning the flash on/off and using Macro mode). So far, I've just used the "Underwater" setting... Soon, I hope to start experimenting with manual.

So Friday I had a great day of diving and picture taking...


CoachRenz and I had the day off yesterday, so we headed out to two of our favorite spots for a full day of diving. We started at Redondo (where we ran into Valerie) for our first dive. We spotted a small bluish fish that we've never seen before (I started a thread in Creature Feature to help ID it...) A small gallery is linked here...I didn't get as many pictures from this dive, but a few of them turned out.


http://scuba.huskychemist.org/Galleries/Redondo-LT-5-26-06/Index.htm


Then we got our tanks filled and went a bit north to Three Tree Point. We were going to head to the junk yard, but we never made it, as we just slow-poked our way along taking pictures of stuff as we went. Here's my gallery:

http://scuba.huskychemist.org/Galleries/ThreeTree-LT-5-26-06/Index.htm


After filling our own tanks with a small dinner, we headed back to Redondo. We saw Valerie again, returning from her second dive. This has been a very reliable night dive spot for us. It's been a long time since we haven't seen at least two or three octos each night dive here...this dive was no different. We also spotted lots and lots of a fish we thought was a Northern Ronquil. After looking in my book, I'm wondering if it's a blackbelly eelpout. Not sure yet... But this was a great dive, even with poor vis. At the end, I spotted a nice big red octo at the base of one of the pilings. It is the biggest red we've ever seen. Fun stuff! Here's the gallery for this dive:

http://scuba.huskychemist.org/Galleries/Redondo-LT-5-26-06-Night/Index.htm


Thanks. Happy diving.

Lowell

 

[Jamdiver]

Hey Husky,

Nice shots i'm seeing an improvement with your photos and glad to hear that you're having a blast.

Some of your shots are nice and crisp while others a bit blurry, same thing happens to me occasionally. I find that the camera has difficult adjusting on objects like anemones, jellyfish or subjects of that nature.

Manual focus can do the trick sometimes or focusing on an object (half press the shutter) about the same distance as the subject and recomposing.

I love the Sea pen photo think it might be your best, great lighting and I love the colors.
http://scuba.huskychemist.org/Galleries/ThreeTree-LT-5-26-06/SeaPen-LT-ThreeTree-5-26-06.jpg
The green anemone is really nice also, next time try getting in closer so the anemone fills the frame and if that isn't possible try and crop out the dead space (substrate) around it.
http://scuba.huskychemist.org/Galleries/ThreeTree-LT-5-26-06/GreenAnemone-LT-ThreeTree-5-26-06.jpg

You've got great variety in your subjects, like the red octopus and the redirishlord.

When you say the underwater setting, do you mean the underwater selection in the special scenes mode or just the underwater white balance mode in 'Tv', 'AV' or 'M' mode for example..

The sooner you get away from auto, program and the special scene modes the better your photos will be. :14:
Anyway keep up the good work, the more you practice the better you will get .

 

[huskychemist]

Hey Husky,

Nice shots i'm seeing an improvement with your photos and glad to hear that you're having a blast.

Some of your shots are nice and crisp while others a bit blurry, same thing happens to me occasionally. I find that the camera has difficult adjusting on objects like anemones, jellyfish or subjects of that nature.


When you say the underwater setting, do you mean the underwater selection in the special scenes mode or just the underwater white balance mode in 'Tv', 'AV' or 'M' mode for example..

The sooner you get away from auto, program and the special scene modes the better your photos will be. :14:
Anyway keep up the good work, the more you practice the better you will get .

Thanks Jamdiver for checking out my pictures. I definitely appreciate the feedback.

In terms of settings, I've been leaving it on the "Underwater" selection within the special scenes mode. I haven't tried adjusting the white balance yet... I will admit that I feel a bit intimidated by having to make manual adjustments mid-dive. Two major reasons: As a newer diver, buoyancy is still an issue. In some ways, I almost feel like I need to get that down first, then delve into pictures, but I couldn't wait to start taking photos. So it's now a motivator for me to practice pinpoint buoyancy in order to take pictures. The other issue is cold water...wearing big gloves to stay warm, I'm having a hard time hitting the right buttons. I'm getting better. And I saw a tip somewhere on ScubaBoard about using a small wooden dowel to push buttons with cold water gloves...but I haven't tried it yet.

Anyway, thanks again. The journey continues!

Lowell

 

[ocrmaster]

are u using a strobe?

this is the best pic of the set in my opinion.

 

[huskychemist]

are u using a strobe?

this is the best pic of the set in my opinion.

Thanks for looking at my pictures. I appreciate the feedback. I like that picture as well. That was the first time I have been able to positively ID that fish. Having the camera sure helps with that.

No strobe yet... but I'm saving for one. It's a must for better pictures here in the particulate-filled cold water of Puget Sound.

Thanks.

Lowell

 

[Jamdiver]

Thanks for looking at my pictures. I appreciate the feedback. I like that picture as well. That was the first time I have been able to positively ID that fish. Having the camera sure helps with that.

No strobe yet... but I'm saving for one. It's a must for better pictures here in the particulate-filled cold water of Puget Sound.

Thanks.

Lowell

Am also saving my pennies for a strobe..., but I like what you're doing so far Lowell .
Read your other response, I see how it can be difficult manipulating the camera buttons in gloves, but I suppose with practice or improvising a little tool you'll get around that..

Next time leave the camera in 'TV' mode with a shutter speed of about 1/160s and put it in u/w white balance mode, you should notice a little difference in your pics...
Of course nothing tops manual white balance .

 

[sasscuba]

Good pics.

 

[StevenB]

Nice red octo at Redondo. He posed for you nicely! Keep working at it.

Steve B

 

[ocrmaster]

Jam

Get the Inon 240 ... it is calling out your name... it wants u!

 

[Jamdiver]

Jam

Get the Inon 240 ... it is calling out your name... it wants u!

All in good time ocr , i've sorta had my heart set on the Ike DS-50, but of late i'm not so sure. The Inon seems very good and pehaps more reliable?
I'd ideally want something that's bulletproof (with proper care and maintenance of course).

For my uses living where I do, I really would want something that I don't have to ship back for repair or something