Night Diving with Action Cam

[dflaher]

I recently purchased an action cam (Insta360) and want to take it in a trip where I will be doing some night diving.

I plan to purchase 2 video lights and a tray for better lighting and color during the day. My question is: For night diving, do I use my video lights for illumination or would I also carry dive lights (primary and backup)?

Apologies if this is a noob question, but I haven't seen it addressed anywhere.

 

[johndiver999]

Your video lights should provide more than enough illumination. You may want to have a third normal dive light with you for emergencies.

Also, if you shine a normal dive light anywhere in the field of view of the camera on a night dive, it will ruin the image because the light will be too focused and hot- that is my experience anyway.

 

[dflaher]

Thanks jd999.

Also, if you shine a normal dive light anywhere in the field of view of the camera on a night dive, it will ruin the image because the light will be too focused and hot- that is my experience anyway.

Yeah I am even finding that out during the daytime -that normal dive lights tend to wash out the subject.
I just hope the normal lights from other divers during a night dive don't impact the image.

 

[TroubleBalko]

I would repeat the above, use the video lights primarily, carry a backup on your person.

As for the other diver's lights, well, I would say not to worry about that. You can't control where they'll shine their beams. And unless they are right up next to you shining their lights right where your camera is pointed, chances are any stray beams you catch will be pretty diffused by the time it lands on the surface you're capturing.

 

[johndiver999]

Thanks jd999.

Yeah I am even finding that out during the daytime -that normal dive lights tend to wash out the subject.
I just hope the normal lights from other divers during a night dive don't impact the image.

If you are diving with a buddy, make sure to ask them NOT to help you illuminate any subjects you are filming/lighting up. For some reason, I think our eyes have much better exposure latitude, so to the naked eye the additional spot light doesn't look too bad, but it always blows out my gopro night video.

 

[hellhole]

if you have some budget... get a tray or some kind to mount the cam and the light... prefer 2. one left and one right.. unless you are only night diving for small critters...

if u use the tray. you can use those lights or carry a dive light for looking around

 

[rongoodman]

Thanks jd999.

Yeah I am even finding that out during the daytime -that normal dive lights tend to wash out the subject.
I just hope the normal lights from other divers during a night dive don't impact the image.

You would be better off considering the impact of your video lights on the other divers and the critters they're there to see. Night dives with the group on my recent trip were awful because the video lights had the reef lit up like a football stadium, much worse than just clueless divers wildly waving their flashlights around.

 

[dflaher]

You would be better off considering the impact of your video lights on the other divers and the critters they're there to see. Night dives with the group on my recent trip were awful because the video lights had the reef lit up like a football stadium, much worse than just clueless divers wildly waving their flashlights around.

I hear ya. I have been on night dives like you describe and they were not very pleasant.

 

[johndiver999]

You can get some cool images, just shut the video lights off and go a little high and try to capture all the spot lights moving around (wide angle view) in the dark. I think it looks cool anyway.