First time with UW Camera, how did I do?

[Dr. Doug Ebersole]

I agree with everything that has been said so far. Basically, the three rules for underwater photography are (1) get low, (2) get close, and (3) shoot up. The close if for the reasons mentioned above -- basically the physics of light and selective color absorption by water at depth (which can be corrected with a strobe) and to limit the "backscatter" from particles in the water. By getting low and shooting up at subjects you make them stand out from the background which is pleasing to the eye. Most beginning photographers shoot down at their subjects and they tend to blend in with the coral, rocks, etc.

Artificial light is very important in underwater photography because of the selective absorption mentioned above and is almost mandatory to get really good photos unless you are REALLY shallow with REALLY clear water. Save up your money and get a strobe when you can.

Remember with digital photography there is about a 1.5 magnification on your lens so that a standard 35 mm lens is the equivalent of a 53 mm lens on a film camera; i.e. a standard 35 mm lens on a digital camera is somewhat of a "macro" lens. Also, what would be a "wide angle" lens on a film camera, say a 20mm, is about a 30 mm for digital -- not really wide angle. When and if you really get into photography you are going to want a "wide angle" lens for reef scenes, divers, large marine life, etc. and a "macro" lens to take shots of the really small stuff.

While speaking of photo composition, I agree with other posters above that you want to wait to have the fish facing you rather than the perverbial "tail shot" that we all take from time to time. Also, there are a few other basic items to consider.
1. Fill most of the frame with your subject is important.
2. The "rule of thirds" means that the focal point of your photo should be on one of the intersection of lines if you were to draw a "tic-tac-toe" board on your photo.
3. Always have "eyes" in focus whether it is marine life or divers.
4. Diagonal lines are more pleasing to the eye than horizontal or vertical ones.
5. Fish at about a 45 degree angle facing you are more esthetically pleasing than the standard horizontal "fish ID" shot.

Just a few suggestions from a rank amateur who has made almost every mistake in the book and is discovering more and more of them every day. Keep working at the photography and you'll be hooked like the rest of us (addiction is such an ugly word) very soon! Check out my website (www.debersole.com) for some examples of the above. And then, for some really professional work and suggestions go to www.wetpixel.com and www.digitaldiver.com which are dedicated to underwater digital imaging. Good luck!

Doug

 

[gerardnealon]

I agree with everything that has been said so far. Basically, the three rules for underwater photography are (1) get low, (2) get close, and (3) shoot up. The close if for the reasons mentioned above -- basically the physics of light and selective color absorption by water at depth (which can be corrected with a strobe) and to limit the "backscatter" from particles in the water. By getting low and shooting up at subjects you make them stand out from the background which is pleasing to the eye. Most beginning photographers shoot down at their subjects and they tend to blend in with the coral, rocks, etc.

Artificial light is very important in underwater photography because of the selective absorption mentioned above and is almost mandatory to get really good photos unless you are REALLY shallow with REALLY clear water. Save up your money and get a strobe when you can.

Remember with digital photography there is about a 1.5 magnification on your lens so that a standard 35 mm lens is the equivalent of a 53 mm lens on a film camera; i.e. a standard 35 mm lens on a digital camera is somewhat of a "macro" lens. Also, what would be a "wide angle" lens on a film camera, say a 20mm, is about a 30 mm for digital -- not really wide angle. When and if you really get into photography you are going to want a "wide angle" lens for reef scenes, divers, large marine life, etc. and a "macro" lens to take shots of the really small stuff.

While speaking of photo composition, I agree with other posters above that you want to wait to have the fish facing you rather than the perverbial "tail shot" that we all take from time to time. Also, there are a few other basic items to consider.
1. Fill most of the frame with your subject is important.
2. The "rule of thirds" means that the focal point of your photo should be on one of the intersection of lines if you were to draw a "tic-tac-toe" board on your photo.
3. Always have "eyes" in focus whether it is marine life or divers.
4. Diagonal lines are more pleasing to the eye than horizontal or vertical ones.
5. Fish at about a 45 degree angle facing you are more esthetically pleasing than the standard horizontal "fish ID" shot.

Just a few suggestions from a rank amateur who has made almost every mistake in the book and is discovering more and more of them every day. Keep working at the photography and you'll be hooked like the rest of us (addiction is such an ugly word) very soon! Check out my website (www.debersole.com) for some examples of the above. And then, for some really professional work and suggestions go to www.wetpixel.com and www.digitaldiver.com which are dedicated to underwater digital imaging. Good luck!

Doug

I highly appreciate your well written and helpful response. It was very nice of you to take the time and input your suggestions. The pictures on your site are very impressive. I have gotten many hints from this thread and much more from you.

Thank you all for your help, I look forward to trying these ideas.

 

[Gilligan]

As others have said your internal strobe is good to about two feet. For your other photos not to be blue you need to calibrate your white balance in the "Manual White Balance" mode off a white dive slate or the like while underwater at the depth you are shooting the photos. Then use Photoshop or similar software program to edit the photos.
I have an article on it here

 

[ScubaJoel]

As others have said your internal strobe is good to about two feet. For your other photos not to be blue you need to calibrate your white balance in the "Manual White Balance" mode off a white dive slate or the like while underwater at the depth you are shooting the photos.
[...]

Nice ones you showed. But if I do so shouldn't it be rather a grey slate?
And isn't it very disstressing to do it on every single shoot or at least when depth or ambient light are changing?
How long does it take to do a white balance calibration? I guess it doubles the time shooting / writing RAW on a 5050z / 5060wz on CF?

 

[Kim]

And isn't it very disstressing to do it on every single shoot or at least when depth or ambient light are changing?
How long does it take to do a white balance calibration? I guess it doubles the time shooting / writing RAW on a 5050z / 5060wz on CF?

If you don't adjust for depth then you will loose the benefit as light is filtered by the water differently the deeper you go. Once you know how to do it it only takes a few seconds to set and very small differences in depth won't have that much detrimental effect. Unless you are moving up or down a lot in the water you shouldn't have to do it before every shot - just every time you really change depth. Ambient light differences don't effect it as far as I know - although maybe someone will correct me on that!

 

[ScubaJoel]

If you don't adjust for depth then you will loose the benefit as light is filtered by the water differently the deeper you go.

Right. I know.
As said I learned it have to be done with a 17,68% grey slate to get the best results.

No question this are nice shoots from Gilligian, but after having a deeper look to the moray, I guess there was no manual balance close to it possible, because it still has a green tint. Try an auto-color with PS on it.

So the questions came up, is this because of the white slate or maybe because the white balance wasn't done with flash or too far away from the object?
Or is this from post-prcessing in PS?

Mentioning post-processing: I can't have a comparison like this. For comparison reason a shoot with auto and manual balance of the same object, without post-processing, would be nice.

[...]
Ambient light differences don't effect it as far as I know - although maybe someone will correct me on that!

Okay. I mean sometimes there might be different viz in one dive (same depth). Sunlight might be able to get deeper, and with this red and orange will be preserved a bit more as well (until a certain depth or distnace from object). So it have to be done again, even if I not change depth?

Don't get me wrong - I don't question this. Just a bit sceptical if its worth doing, or if RAW would give the same or better results, a post-proscessing have to be done in most cases anyway.
And in case I want to try out by myself, I would like to do it right.

 

[KidK9]

Just keep diving and firing. The learning curve on digital cameras for both topside and submersion photography is very steep. You'll have it down in no time.

 

[alcina]

Looks like you had a great time diving and you have some nice shots to remember it by! You also have some great images to play with in your software...not only will you learn some of the things that software can do, you can use that to help you visualize for next time.

I've only had a quick read, it's 5am and I just spent 30+ hours travelling so am a bit tired - but thought I would make a couple of suggestions beyond what has been mentioned already:

1) Go buy Jim Church's Guide to Essential Composition. Run, don't walk! This is an awesome book that many use over and over - it's based around film cameras, not digital, but the ideas are the same for both.

2) Shoot RAW if you can and if your software will handle it. I've said this a few times before (a search in UW Photo with my user name and RAW should find some references...I'm too shattered right now to rewrite!! PM me if you want me to later). WB is great, but time consuming UW and light changes fast sometimes. RAW gets around that and doesn't disrupt your primary objective of getting as many great shots as possible on a dive. And RAW gives you the most information possible to work with once back on land.

<yawn> sorry, gotta hit the hay for some more sleep...keep up the great work and I am looking forward to going through your gallery when I wake up again!