Canon G12 settings (whale sharks, snorkeling)

[Cumbo]

I'm going to Isla Mujeres in August to take photos of whale sharks while snorkeling. Strobes are not allowed. What kind of settings would you use Av/Tv/M? What ISO?

What kind of settings when diving below them (for silhouettes)?

 

[Interceptor121]

Do you have a housing with a wide angle lens?
For snorkelling you can use normal land settings

 

[smellzlikefish]

I'd start with AV set at 5.6, exposure compensation -2/3, iso 100.

 

[Cumbo]

No wide angle (though I might get one from NY before heading to Mexico).

I mostly shoot P mode on land, so I don't have a good idea of the settings. There's not much time to learn either, since the boat is probably crowded and it's limited to 2 people snorkeling at a time.

Do you have a housing with a wide angle lens?
For snorkelling you can use normal land settings

 

[Interceptor121]

P will be fine you are at the surface or in shallow water
However without a wide angle lens the chances you can capture a silhouette of a whale shark as slim as you need to be 5+ meters away
I would recommend you actually use video

 

[Cumbo]

I fear that by using P mode I end up having motion blur on the photos. Well, if I managed to hold my breath and dive that deep, what settings would you start with for silhouettes? Manual mode or Tv (1/500 or 1/1000, ISO 80)?

P will be fine you are at the surface or in shallow water
However without a wide angle lens the chances you can capture a silhouette of a whale shark as slim as you need to be 5+ meters away
I would recommend you actually use video

Why would you want to control aperture instead of shutter? As I understand it, the damage you can do by not having the right aperture (given you don't under or overexpose the photos) is too small a depth of field. By not having the right shutter, you can end up having black backgrounds (instead of nice blue) or motion blur. Correct me, if I'm wrong.

Also, wouldn't ISO 80 be better than ISO 100, if there is sufficient light on the surface (sunny day, clear blue water)?

I'd start with AV set at 5.6, exposure compensation -2/3, iso 100.

 

[Interceptor121]

You are at the surface on a sunny day even in P mode the camera will select fast shutter speeds
The kids and pets program will work
If you go in manual start at minimum aperture lowest ISO speed 1/250 or faster
Again you will not fit the whole shark in the frame with your lens
Video instead will come out nice

 

[Gilligan]

As respects using the video be sure you know how to adjust the brightness BEFORE you start shooting.
The procedure is in the manual on page 121 (PDF Manual).
If you are using a Canon housing then you have to increase or decrease the brightness using two
buttons simultaneously since you have no access to the rear dial.

1. Put the camera in movie mode.
2. Press the shutter half way down and release it (do not start the movie)
3. Press button 3 and a shift bar will appear in the monitor.
4. Press and hold button 1 then press button 7 or 9 to increase or decrease the brightness checking the results in the monitor.
5. Press the record button
6. Press button 3 to unlock the setting unless you want to shoot the next video at the same setting.

 

[smellzlikefish]

As Interceptor was sort of saying, in such a bright environment and with the limited range of aperture values given by the G12 and no external strobe, you won't get a black background when shooting a whale shark. Nor will you likely have motion blur. The difference between AV and TV really depends on what you want to get out of it.

As per ISO, I forgot that the G12 allows for ISO 80. Generally speaking, you want to use the lowest ISO that your camera and conditions allow.

You should be able to fit the animal in the frame, just be prepared to swim like crazy away from the animal to do it. I had a similar zoom range the first time I happened across a whale shark and came away with some okay shots.

If you have the ability to shoot manual, do it. I usually start with ISO 100, shutter speed 1/120-150 and f-9 (aperture irrelevent because the G12 has a different set of aperture values than I usually use) and work from there depending on what I'm shooting under the given conditions.

 

[Gilligan]

I made a correction to the above video brightness setting steps :shocked2: