July 12 PNWUPS Meeting

[danclem]

For those of you interested in photography, below is a meeting schedule for the Pacific Northwest Underwater Photographic group, along with topics through October, meeting locations, and the July macro shoot-out at the Keystone Jetty.

July 12 Meeting
The central topic for our July meeting is macro photography. This is in preparation for the Keystone photo shoot. We will talk about what macro photography is, some tools and tricks, and also brief the dive site. There is quite a bit of kelp along the jetty, so pilings may offer better photo opportunities.

Also, if you are planning on attending the Keystone event, please let me know so we can get a head count.

We will also have the standard Photo Comment & Review and Dive/Travel Up-dates.

Photo Review
If you have a photo you would like reviewed or commented on, please feel free to either bring an approximately 8 by 10 sized print to the meeting, or e-mail a medium format JPG that is approximately 800 by 600 in size to PNWUPS Photo Review. Please limit to three per meeting.

Macro Shoot-Out
Don't forget that we will be getting together Saturday afternoon, July 18, at the Keystone Jetty for a macro-photography shoot-out and barbeque. The August 9 regular meeting will be devoted to a review of photos and a discussion of how we might be able to improve our macro photography.

Meeting Logistics
PNWUPS meetings are held 2:00 PM, the second Sunday of each month, in the banquet room at Sean O'Donnells Restaurant, 122 128th St SE, Everett 98208, 425.338.5700. The location is half a block east of I-5 on the 128th Exit. Click the Directions Link for a map. If you have any questions, feel free to call 425.418.8755.

Meeting Calendar
Below is a meeting calendar with up-coming topics for the next few months.

Date/Topic​

July 12 (Sunday) 2:00 PM
Macro Photography, Keystone DIve Briefing, Plus
Photo Comment & Review
Dive & Travel Reports


July 18 (Saturday) 3:00 PM
Keystone Jetty: Digital Macro Shoot-Out
Meet at the Keyston Jetty around 3:00 PM for a 4:15 PM or so splash down. Should be good tides!


August 9 (Sunday) 2:00 PM
Keystone Picture Review and Comments, Plus
Photo Comment & Review
Dive & Travel Reports


September 12 (Sunday) 2:00 PM
Digital Photography Work Flow, Plus
Photo Comment & Review
Dive & Travel Reports


October 11 (Sunday)
2:00 PM Equipment Maintenance & Insurance, Plus
Photo Comment & Review
Dive & Travel Reports

 

[danclem]

For those of you planning on attending Sunday’s get together, you may want to bring your cameras (and manuals?) if you are not familiar with how to modify some of the settings. Below is an excerpt of some of what we will be discussing both for Point and Shoot and DSLR photographers. This is extracted from Scott Gietler's excellent site www.underwaterphotographyguide.com.

Digital Compact Camera Users:
Put your camera in macro mode. In auto-mode, with the macro-mode on, the aperture will usually default to F8. Turn the flash to forced flash mode. Keep the zoom in the widest setting. Use base ISO (usually ISO 100, sometimes lower). If your camera has manual mode, use F8, 1/1000th shutter speed. The fast shutter speed will block out ambient light. Once you are comfortable, try zooming in half-way on some shots.

Auto vs Manual Mode: On a compact camera, when using the internal flash, auto-mode can work fairly well for macro photos. But give full manual mode a try if it is available. For people using an external strobe, manual mode is highly recommended. For people who haven’t shot in manual mode before, it often sounds difficult, with lots of settings to worry about. In reality, it’s very simple. Make your initial settings, and then start off only worry about changing one parameter. It’s actually quite simple!

Unless you are an advanced user, if you have full manual mode, consider not using aperture or shutter priority modes if you are using strobes.

DSLR Camera Users:
Manual mode, Base ISO (usually ISO 100 or 200), F13, 1/200th (or whatever your maximum shutter sync speed is); single-spot focus; center-weighted metering.

Aperture may need to be lowered to F7-F8 or a larger aperture for fish shots. When shooting small objects, shoot at a smaller aperture (up to F29) for more DOF.

Macro, TTL Converter: Adjust your f-stop as needed for greater DOF or blurred background. Your TTL converter will control the strobe power.

Macro, Manual Mode: When starting out, leave your strobes on 1 power setting (full power or half power, depending on how strong your strobe is). Adjust your f-stop depending on the distance to the subject, and other factors. For example, F22 for very close up, F11 for 1ft away, F8 for 2 ft away, etc.

Important: you need to get used to changing your f-stop (aperture) for different kinds of shots. It is very important how the aperture effects your shot, depth of field, and the background. Make sure you review the aperture & depth of field section.

Note on settings: people will give different opinions on the best initial setting for macro with a DSLR. Some will say shoot at F22, others will say F14, etc etc etc. The truth is, you should learn the difference between these apertures. I'm constantly changing my aperture on different shots, depending on what I want to accomplish, changing from F2.8 to F32. If you haven't read the aperture section, please do.

Cheers,

Dan