SP350 settings

[CheddarChick]

Ok hope to get my brand new Sp 350 wet on Saturday. Since this will be the first time I have no idea what type of settings to try out. So I am shooting the UW modes first then,
So in the green pond water of Pearl Lake, with viz at 15' max. What settings would you recommend???? No strobe at this time to play with.......
Ok experts step up!!

 

[gert7to3]

Ahhhh, refreshing Pearl Lake, did my AOW there. My deep dive segment was during a rainstorm, 48 F. at 65 ft.

This will be one of several opinions you will probably see.........................

I would set the camera to its first close up setting.
[OK/MENU] [Down Arrow] select the first little flower symbol. The second macro setting can interfere with some of your basic controls.

I would use manual settings, skip the underwater settings because they are more for salt water. I would try an ISO of 200, not too grainy, but high enough to give you a reasonable shutter speed and a stop or two down on aperture. Take a slate or something white down with you. Adjust your white balance off that object. You may have to recalibrate your white balance at various depths. Another trick with the white object is to take a picture of it at particular depths. This can give you a reference to correct to in your image processing program, for pictures taken at those same depths after your reference shot.

You can reach your white balance control byressing [OK/MENU] [Rt. Arrow] to [Mode Menu], [Down arrow] to [Picture Menu], [Rt. Arrow] to the center column of choices, [Down Arrow] to [WB] or [WB+/-], [Rt. Arrow] to select your desired white balance.

Since this is sort of a test drive for you, I would strongly suggest shooting with RAW capture mode, but also select a jpeg duplicate to be captured at the ame time. This will facilitate review of your images without the delay of RAW conversion.

You can set your RAW capture mode by:
Pressing [OK/MENU] [Rt. Arrow] to [Mode Menu], [Down arrow] to [Picture Menu], [Rt. Arrow] to the center column of choices. Capture file selection is the top row in the center column, press [Rt. Arrow] then up or down to [RAW], press [Rt. Arrow] again to select the jpeg duplicate level desired (HQ would be fine for this purpose).

Better read the book, view the CD and try doing this topside, with the camera in your housing. Photographing a test subject under a fluorescent light will give you some white balance practice.

Try your flash on close subjects. To control your color balance in the background take a few test shots at different apertures, but with a fairly high shutter speed (1/125th sec., 1/250th sec.). This will let you achieve a warmer more pleasing background color, instead of a chalky green/grey which a metered shot would give you.

The flash will illuminate the subject and your aperture will control this part of the exposure.

Have fun. Be very careful to check the "O" ring seal in your camera case, after you have closed and latched it. Look for any debris, dust, fibers or a trapped hood or lens cover string. In fact, I wouldn't even bother with the lens cap.

 

[gary-ramey]

My underwater modes tend to disappoint me. I started from the beginning with my camera set in manual however I also configured the 4 mymodes for different manual settings. Here's how I would start.

WB - Manual...take a white slate and shoot a manual when you get to depth. You can practice this topside so when you're under its no big deal. If I were going into challenging viz and or lighting,
WA
f2.8
ISO 200
Shutter 60 to start and adjust as needed.
Mode - Manual

Macro
F5.6
ISO 100
Shutter 60
Mode Manual

Or try aperture mode with the same settings.

PS - Seems I was posting just as the fellow above finished. Just to add to his post about flooding. Make sure you can use the zoom feature before taking that leap of faith. If the zoom knob gets misaligned the housing will still close with the camera inserted incorrectly but it will flood. As long as you can zoom in and out with the housing it will be inserted correctly in the housing. Also take heed to his warning about those strings on the lens cap (I took it off after it caused a partial pool flood).

 

[CheddarChick]

So very nice to have experts...
Thanks guys

 

[ThatsSomeBadHatHarry]

I shoot in RAW and change the white balance later. Hopefully at the lowest iso setting, 50.

I also leave the flash off because i too, have no strobes. A significant amount of the internal flash gets blocked out anyway for macro shots.

In a lake with a lot of dissolved organic material and algae, you aren't going to get very good scenic shots, so stick with closer shots (not necessarily macro, but as little open water as you can.)

I don't use mymodes. I use manual.

 

[CheddarChick]

Yeah but thats 'cuz you know what your doing....
Any and all help is gratefully received...

 

[gary-ramey]

Hi Cheddar..me again. Just to clarify the Mymodes are 4 programmable modes...you can program them for different settings. While all 4 of mine are "manual" mode the 1st is set up for super macro, the 2nd is setup for regular macro, the 3rd is setup for WA and the 4 is WA with a higher ISO. This makes switching several settings underwater a snap....if you can remember which setup you need you simply select mymode then 1 through 4.

 

[CheddarChick]

Gary,
Did you program all the different f stops, and aperature, and speed stuff and everything in each more in mymode??? Thanks for all your help, it is a little daunting i the beginning...I never did more than point & shoot before...

 

[gary-ramey]

CC,
Yes. For example I programmed a supermacro setting of f8, iso 50, shutter 125, RAW ... when I first did it I went step by step via the manual. The hardest part was remembering how they were programmed...So I made it easy on myself by remembering the simple progression supermacro, macro, WA and WA with high ISO. So I'm in macro mode happily taking a photograph of a fish really close to me when I notice a shark or turtle or other larger animal swimming my way. I can switch to mode 4 rather quickly which still gives me full control over the settings but is now set for WA with a higher ISO in case I can't get that close. The best bit of advice I could give you right now is to get in a pool and practice, practice, practice. Fiddling with your camera while the moment of your life swims by is a terrible thing. Practicing in a pool will make you proficient with the camera before that happens. Anyway, I love the camera. Its probably the most versatile P&S on the market and I'm sure once you're past the technalogical overload, you'll agree. Cheers,

 

[CheddarChick]

Ok Crappy cold weather so no go on the first dunk. Thanks Gary so much for the lessons, do you travel to give personal lessons? Wisconsin is lovely in oh July...for 10 minutes...We have a pool so as soon as it clears (just started friday) I can at least try there. Though if I went in now it would be like the best day in history of Pearl Lake. But as it is only 58 degrees, I will play with it in the house....