question - strobe & snorkelling
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Hippocampus
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If you stay shallow in clear water you'll be able to get good results without an external flash. Now, if the water gets deeper or the sun is obstructed or the water has particles in it and your subject is farther than about 20 inches away then you'll be better off with an external flash.
So, for your first question, it is not neccessary to use a strobe.
As for the second, pictures will most likely always be better when you use an external strobe.
So, for your first question, it is not neccessary to use a strobe.
As for the second, pictures will most likely always be better when you use an external strobe.
diver 85
Contributor
In clear water shallower than 15 to 20', I would try to use ambient lite only(skip the ext. strobe & int. flash of camera) .....Deeper than that, a strobe would help but is not necessary(see some of my pics in my signature, none were taken with an ext. strobe, flash of camera only OR no flash at all...The squid & shallow turtle shots were taken with ambient lite only)........
Another factor arguing against use of an external strobe for shallow water snorkeling is how cumbersome it will be. I am an avid snorkeler (don't scuba), and I take quite a few pictures. To get good pictures, I almost always have to hold on to a rock (not coral!) with one hand, and then use the other hand to hold the camera and take the picture. This is because when you are taking a photo, you need to have the camera as steady as possible. When you are snorkeling, as opposed to diving, it's virtually impossible to achieve neutral bouyancy because of surge and the fact that buoyancy changes so much in depths <15 ft. If I had a strobe attached to the camera, I'd probably have to use both hands to hold the set-up, and I would have a tough time steadying myself to get a good picture.
As the others have said, in clear tropical water ambient light is usually sufficient to get decent photos without a strobe. I occasionally use the camera's built-in flash to take a photo in a crevice or overhang where the ambient light is insufficient, and some of these have turned out good.
One other thing I have found with snorkel photography is that in sunny shallow water in a tropical location, it can sometimes be hard to see the camera's LCD screen due to glare. One thing that helps, although it's not perfect, is a viewing "hood" that you velcro to the back of your camera housing. It can be purchased from a place called Photosolve:
Photosolve Home > Products > Xtend-a-View
The velcro that comes with the viewer is a cheap variety that comes unstuck when you use it in the water a few times. If you go to a hardware store, you can find "Industrial Strength" velcro that works much better.
Here are some pictures I took on a recent trip to Culebra and Vieques Islands, Puerto Rico. All the pictures were taken while snorkeling (almost all with ambient light and no flash), and I am happy with how they turned out:
Culebra & Vieques Puerto Rico underwater 2008 Photo Gallery by Dave_Clausen at pbase.com
As the others have said, in clear tropical water ambient light is usually sufficient to get decent photos without a strobe. I occasionally use the camera's built-in flash to take a photo in a crevice or overhang where the ambient light is insufficient, and some of these have turned out good.
One other thing I have found with snorkel photography is that in sunny shallow water in a tropical location, it can sometimes be hard to see the camera's LCD screen due to glare. One thing that helps, although it's not perfect, is a viewing "hood" that you velcro to the back of your camera housing. It can be purchased from a place called Photosolve:
Photosolve Home > Products > Xtend-a-View
The velcro that comes with the viewer is a cheap variety that comes unstuck when you use it in the water a few times. If you go to a hardware store, you can find "Industrial Strength" velcro that works much better.
Here are some pictures I took on a recent trip to Culebra and Vieques Islands, Puerto Rico. All the pictures were taken while snorkeling (almost all with ambient light and no flash), and I am happy with how they turned out:
Culebra & Vieques Puerto Rico underwater 2008 Photo Gallery by Dave_Clausen at pbase.com
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