BC good for photography?

[CLA]

Hi everyone. I'm thinking of getting into underwater photography and at the same time I'm also looking for a new BC. I am a small person (5ft, 95lbs) and I often have a hard time finding gear (especially BCDs) small enough for me. Some people have suggested getting a backplate with wings but my impression (correct me if I'm wrong) is that this tends to keep you in a horizontal position. Would wings or back-bouyancy BCs make it more difficult to take underwater photos in a vertical position?

My present bcd, a seac sub portifino jacket, is rather loose for me but I have learned to live with it for the past 4 years (since other bcds don't fit much better anyway). What I like about it are the big pockets which I can put my hands into to "pull" the BC snug around me when it gets too loose or when I get too cold. Plus you can store alot of gear inside them. Would it be handier for a photographer to have a jacket-style bc with big pockets for gear (in which case should I just stick with my old BC)

I only dive in our warm tropical waters (I live in Palawan, Philippines) and carry 6 lbs of lead on a weight belt. Would I still need weights with a backplate or will this already be too heavy for me?

I hope this is the right site for this post (should I have posted in the photography forum?). Please redirect me if its not. Would greatly appreciate any comments and advice.
Thanks!

Cathy

 

[fdog]

Cathy, I use a jacket style BC for photography. It is not weight integrated; I wear a weight belt. I have found that for my build and equipment, if I roll on my side, it holds me there. If I roll onto my back for those shots aimed at the surface, it holds me there. This stability-in-any-axis has made the jacket BC my tool of choice for photography.

Yes, I do have, and enjoy, backplate and wings. I use this for deco dives with doubles.

If I did pretty much exclusively macro, I might consider a backplate/wings as a BC, but I rarely do macro.

Given your size and current weighting (not sure what tank you're using), you would possibly need only a couple of pounds when using an aluminum plate and STA.

Decide what your needs are, and try before you buy.

All the best, James

 

[herman]

The BP/wing will work fine but try one before committing to buying one. There are some of us who have tried them and don't really care for them. I find then uncomfortable and a real pain to adjust. You might try looking at the Zeagle line. They have a harness system that is very adjustable and have an xsmall if I remember correctly. You will want to avoid any jacket style. Not so much for the trim aspects but for the fit. As the bladder on a jacket expand and contracts the fit changes a lot.

 

[Kim]

If you want to take good pics your main consideration has to be bouyancy control - you need to stay exactly where you want to be, easily, and without effort. This is always a skills practice but I think that a back inflate system tends to help. I use a DiveRite Transpac II - it works for me. One photographic principle is to try to get below your subject and shoot upwards - that's not always easy, and you generally won't make it in an upright position (unless you are wall diving).

 

[reubencahn]

My son is 4'11" and 100 lbs. Every bc we found was sloppy on him. We recently purchased a FredT short plate with an Eclipse wing for him. The perfect fit has made diving a lot easier and he likes having his front unencumbered. I had switched to a bp/w in October, but I've only brought my camera along on a few dives since then. However, there's nothing I can see about it that would make it problematic for photography. I don't carry anything having to do with the camera in pockets. The only removeable piece is my WAL and I keep that in a lens caddy.