The Underwater Photographer, Fourth Edition

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The Underwater Photographer

This book is dedicated to the memory of Arthur Rutter. A loving father, a gentle and caring grandfather and a great dad-in-law.

The Underwater Photographer Fourth Edition Martin Edge Edited by Judith Young

AMSTERDAM  BOSTON  HEIDELBERG  LONDON  NEW YORK  OXFORD PARIS  SAN DIEGO  SAN FRANCISCO  SINGAPORE  SYDNEY  TOKYO Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier

Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford, OX5 1GB, UK 30 Corporate Drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803, USA First edition 1996 Second edition 1999 Third edition 2006 Fourth edition 2010 Copyright Ó 1996, 1999, 2006, 2010 Martin Edge. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. The right of Martin Edge to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Details on how to seek permission, further information about the Publisher’s permissions policies and our arrangement with organizations such as the Copyright Clearance Center and the Copyright Licensing Agency, can be found at our website: www.elsevier.com/permissions This book and the individual contributions contained in it are protected under copyright by the Publisher (other than as may be noted herein). Notices Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and experience broaden our understanding, changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical treatment may become necessary. Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own experience and knowledge in evaluating and using any information, methods, compounds, or experiments described herein. In using such information or methods they should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility. To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or editors, assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Edge, Martin. The underwater photographer. -- 4th ed. 1. Underwater photography. 2. Underwater photographydTechnique. I. Title 778.7’3-dc22 Library of Congress Control Number: 2009941889 ISBN: 978-0-240-52164-0

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Contents Foreword ..........................................................................................................x About the Book ..............................................................................................xi Introduction ................................................................................................. xiv Acknowledgements.................................................................................... xvii Photographic Information...........................................................................xix Chapter 1: Principles of Underwater Photography ................................... 1 Introduction...................................................................................................................... 1 Understanding Apertures............................................................................................ 4 Understanding Shutter Speeds................................................................................. 6 How Aperture and Shutter Speed Work Together ........................................... 7 Understanding Depth of Field .................................................................................. 8 Understanding ISO.......................................................................................................12 Understanding White Balance and Colour Temperature .............................15 RAW v JPEG ....................................................................................................................22 Memory Cards................................................................................................................28 Understanding Bit Depth .......................................................................................... 30 HDR (High Dynamic Range)..................................................................................... 31 Refraction ........................................................................................................................34 Loss of Light and Loss of Colour ........................................................................... 35 Closer and Closer .........................................................................................................38 The Problems with Shooting Down ..................................................................... 41 Understanding Lenses................................................................................................ 49 Chapter 2: Digital Compact Cameras by Mark Koekemoer ................... 57 Understanding the Digital Compact Camera.................................................... 57 Choosing a Close-up Lens ........................................................................................ 67 Flashguns.........................................................................................................................67 Filters.................................................................................................................................72 Summary..........................................................................................................................74 The Compact Image Gallery .................................................................................... 76

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Contents

Chapter 3: SLR Cameras and Housings .................................................... 81 Introduction to SLR Cameras................................................................................... 81 SLR Camera Exposure Modes .................................................................................. 83 Understanding Exposure Compensation ............................................................ 94 Understanding Metering Patterns ......................................................................... 96 SLR Cameras and Auto Focus Underwater ..................................................... 104 Full Frame and Cropped Sensors........................................................................ 110 Understanding Histograms: The Basics ............................................................ 112 New Ideas about In-Camera Histogram ........................................................... 116 Image Overlay Feature ............................................................................................ 120 Live View....................................................................................................................... 123 Viewfinder Dioptre Adjustment Control .......................................................... 124 SLR Camera Housings by Steve Warren........................................................... 125 How do I Choose a System? ................................................................................. 126 Housing Construction.............................................................................................. 128 SLR Housing Viewfinder.......................................................................................... 129 Image Reducer ........................................................................................................... 130 Magnifying Optics..................................................................................................... 130 Viewfinders Come in Different Orientations................................................... 131 Check the Small Print .............................................................................................. 133 Ports................................................................................................................................ 133 Flashguns...................................................................................................................... 137 Other Features............................................................................................................ 139 The Future.................................................................................................................... 139 Chapter 4: Diving to Take Photographs ................................................. 141 Introduction................................................................................................................. 141 How to Take Pictures and Protect the Reef.................................................... 141 Pre-Planning ................................................................................................................ 150 F8 d 1 Metre d Be There! ................................................................................... 152 Accessibility ................................................................................................................. 155 Photo Body Angles................................................................................................... 160 Chapter 5: The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer .... 165 Introduction................................................................................................................. 165 ‘Think and Consider’ (TC) System....................................................................... 167

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Contents

Camera Preparation.................................................................................................. 171 Developing our Powers of Concentration....................................................... 174 Subject Selection, Negative Space, Potential — The Way in which we Choose what to Shoot ....................................................................... 177 Approach ...................................................................................................................... 191 Lighting for Underwater Photography ............................................................. 197 Composition for the TC System .......................................................................... 199 Visualisation................................................................................................................. 201 Patience......................................................................................................................... 204 Peak of the Action .................................................................................................... 206 Shoot, Evaluate and Work the Subject............................................................. 211 Chapter 6: All About Lighting.................................................................. 215 Light in the Sea.......................................................................................................... 215 Natural Light ............................................................................................................... 217 Using Flashguns......................................................................................................... 245 Blending Natural Light and Flash Together.................................................... 267 Chapter 7: Composition Underwater ...................................................... 275 Introduction................................................................................................................. 275 The Work of Other Underwater Photographers............................................ 276 Decision Making Through the Viewfinder....................................................... 276 Horizontal or Vertical — Landscape or Portrait............................................. 277 Focal Point: Attract the Eye of the Viewer...................................................... 279 Golden Rules: Law of Thirds ................................................................................. 281 Bull’s-Eye Approach: Centering the Subject ................................................... 285 Holding Your Camera Housing: Orientation................................................... 285 Dramatic Diagonals .................................................................................................. 286 Tilting the Camera..................................................................................................... 288 Enclosure ...................................................................................................................... 292 Curves and Circles..................................................................................................... 292 Horizon Line ................................................................................................................ 293 Depth Perspective..................................................................................................... 294 Complementary Colours......................................................................................... 295 Balance .......................................................................................................................... 296

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Baseline ......................................................................................................................... 299 Mergers.......................................................................................................................... 299 Amputations................................................................................................................ 300 Eye Contact.................................................................................................................. 301 Something to Swim Into ........................................................................................ 302 Simplicity Itself ........................................................................................................... 302 Big is not Always Better.......................................................................................... 304 Which Way to View .................................................................................................. 305 Breaking the Rules .................................................................................................... 305 In Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 305 Chapter 8: Close-Up and Macro............................................................... 307 Introduction................................................................................................................. 307 Blue Water Close-Up ................................................................................................ 327 Blue Water Macro Examples ................................................................................. 328 Close-Up Blur AKA Bokeh ...................................................................................... 332 Shooting Fish Close-Up .......................................................................................... 340 Abstract Art ................................................................................................................. 346 Super Macro Photography by Keri Wilk ........................................................... 354 Chapter 9: Wide Angle.............................................................................. 367 Shooting Wide Angles: Introduction to the Wide Angle Concept................................................................................................ 367 Close Focus Wide Angle......................................................................................... 381 Working with a Model............................................................................................. 387 Wide Angle and Slow Shutter Speeds.............................................................. 395 Schooling Fish............................................................................................................. 400 Split Levels ................................................................................................................... 408 Photographing Shipwrecks ................................................................................... 418 Shooting Pelagics by John Wallis ....................................................................... 429 SLRs................................................................................................................................. 432 Wide Angle Macro .................................................................................................... 437 The Wide Angle Wow Factor................................................................................ 440

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Chapter 10: Underwater Photography in Temperate Waters by Shannon Conway ............................................................ 449 Introduction................................................................................................................. 449 Green/Temperate Water Magic Filters by Peter Rowlands....................... 465 Chapter 11: Creating an Individual Style by Dr Alexander Mustard.....469 The Development of a Photographic Style .................................................... 470 Education Before Innovation ................................................................................ 470 Deciding to be Different ........................................................................................ 471 Vibrant and Inviting Wide Angle......................................................................... 472 Characterful Macro ................................................................................................... 477 Play-Time: Experimenting with Ideas and Dealing with Failure ............. 479 The Pitfalls of Being Different .............................................................................. 480 Editing is Crucial ........................................................................................................ 480 Conclusion.................................................................................................................... 482 Chapter 12: Developing a Workflow System by Stuart Gibson........... 483 Introduction................................................................................................................. 483 Software ........................................................................................................................ 484 Image File Management......................................................................................... 484 Organising the Images ............................................................................................ 493 Develop Module ........................................................................................................ 496 Collections.................................................................................................................... 497 Exporting Files from Lightroom .......................................................................... 498 Conclusion.................................................................................................................... 499 Internet Resources Suppliers .................................................................... 501 Glossary....................................................................................................... 505 Index............................................................................................................ 512

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Foreword Underwater photography has come a very long way since 1996, when Martin Edge authored his first edition of The Underwater Photographer. This was before the Digital Revolution swept marine imaging (and the rest of the world), yet many of the fundamentals of that book remain true today. Martin is never one be content with the status quo, and with the fourth edition of this seminal reference text he has updated the content to include the latest in digital capture and workflow technologies. One of the benefits to the continuity of this series is that Martin has taken the time to shoot very compelling instructional photographs. They have a presence and beauty as stand-alone images, but I suspect Martin knew, in his mind’s-eye, that if he shot a certain photograph a certain way it could illustrate creative lighting, or rule of thirds composition, or working with models, or any of the other myriad topics he covers in this amazing compendium of all things underwater photographic. This edition is very much an evolution over the first three, and reflects a mature and talented shooter and an extraordinary educator with the dedication and confidence to share his knowledge. The structure of the book is logical and comprehensive, presented in an almost conversational manner. There is no question that Martin is a master of the facts and techniques presented, but he doesn’t preach or pontificate. He has the rare ability to make you feel like you are learning from your dive buddy. It is probably his passion for diving in general that comes through first, but make no mistake, this book is all about underwater photography. The equipment it takes to shoot the photos, the pre-dive mindset and in-water visualisation, the science and physics of underwater image capture, and even the art of the underwater image are all integral components of The Underwater Photographer. My third edition is now dog-eared and worn from years of reference. No doubt my fourth edition will suffer the same fate, which is perhaps the highest praise I can offer any book of instruction. Stephen Frink, 2010

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About the Book The Underwater Photographer (fourth edition) is a wide-ranging guide to all aspects of underwater photography and to date is the most comprehensive book ever written on the subject. It’s exclusively digital orientated and contains 12 chapters: 1. Principles of Underwater Photography If you have yet to master the basics of photography such as f numbers, shutter speed and depth of field then look no further — they’re all discussed in Chapter 1. It also contains the fundamental principles and implications of digital capture underwater. I would encourage you to bookmark this as a sort of ‘advanced glossary’ should you need to refer back to these concepts in later chapters. 2. Digital Compact Cameras by Mark Koekemoer Compact cameras have fast become a standard accessory amongst divers. Whether it’s your first compact, upgrading from an existing model or down-sizing from an SLR, Mark will help you make a more informed decision. This chapter also includes a ‘compact photo gallery’ — a 12 month (2008—2009) photo project by my wife Sylvia, using a straightforward, no add on’s point and shoot compact camera. ‘I don’t know how well I should be doing?’ Is a frequent question from newcomers, and this is the idea behind the gallery. It illustrates an achievable standard obtainable with basic compact equipment. 3. SLR Cameras and Housings The decision to commit to a digital SLR camera and housing is a daunting one. Financial costs can be considerable and one’s aspirations as an up and coming photographer may fail or succeed depending on whether you acquire the right equipment or not. SLR cameras have numerous menus and features, but which ones are useful underwater? I’ll take you through these features and discuss how they can help or hinder your photography. We also need to keep the camera dry! Steve Warren from Ocean Optics in the UK discusses SLR housings and options to help you choose one that’s right for you. 4. Diving to Take Photographs Pressing the shutter and getting the shot we’re after is the ultimate, but how do we get ourselves into those nooks and crannies in the first place? The way in which we dive has a significant influence over the quality of images we shoot. An awareness and understanding of pre-planning, accessibility and

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About the Book

body angles will improve your skills. This may entail changing your dive style. Are you prepared to do this? 5. The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer The mindset is at the heart of the book and describes my entire philosophy on how we can fulfil our potential. Many years ago I learnt that to achieve great pictures we have to think about great pictures whilst we’re underwater. This can be quite a challenge. After all, diving is a hazardous sport! So how can we reduce our distractions and on any given photo dive, concentrate on what to shoot and how to approach, light and compose? It’s all in Chapter 5. 6. All About Lighting I answer more questions about lighting than any other topic. It’s split into three sections. Natural light, where we look at all the individual types of light we observe underwater and how best to record it. Flash lighting, where we look at angles, backscatter, flash arms and flash coverage. And last but not least, how we blend the two together, mixing flash with artistic natural light. It’s not difficult to do! It’s just knowing how to do it. 7. Composition Underwater Another in-depth chapter on composition relevant to many tips and techniques we can apply underwater. Although it is said ‘what you see is what you get’ it’s in your hands to ensure the picture you see in your mind and in the viewfinder comes out to the viewer exactly the same way. Composition is a skill that is ongoing and the more you practise the better you become. 8. Close-Up and Macro You may have dipped into the close up and macro chapter already, and if you have then you’ll know that it can be an obsession all of its own. I’ll look at different lenses for different subjects, various tips and techniques and shooting styles to enable your images to stand out from the rest. Can you imagine shooting something no larger than a grain of rice? No, neither can I but Keri Wilk does just that. He’s written a section within Chapter 8 on how to shoot up to 10 life-size and has some amazing images to prove it! 9. Wide Angle Perhaps the most popular type of photography, it contains many sections on all aspects of using wide lenses such as for wrecks, schooling fish, and split levels. It also contains a dedicated section by John Wallis on how to shoot big stuff like sharks and dolphins. 10. Underwater Photography in Temperate Waters by Shannon Conway For the last five years my photo buddy Shannon Conway has been shooting in the temperate waters of Western Australia and in so doing has built up an

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About the Book

impressive portfolio of images which has seen him excel in the prestigious ANZANG nature and landscape photo competition (Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and Papua New Guinea). He shares his temperate tips and techniques with you. 11. Creating an Individual Style by Dr Alexander Mustard Alex is one of the most exciting underwater photographers in the world with a unique style all of his own, but where did it come from? How did it develop? He shares his very own unique vision with us and provides a fascinating account of his ongoing and incredibly successful photo journey. 12. Developing a Workflow System by Stuart Gibson What do you do with your photographs once they’re on your computer? How do you organise them? Instead of paying ‘lip-service’ to a number of imaging options, in order to be seen as fair and impartial I’ve decided to take the liberty of recommending just one particular program to you. It’s called Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2. It’s designed specifically for photographers and (in my opinion) it’s nothing short of outstanding. During a Maldives workshop I noticed that Stuart had a very easy and understandable way of explaining Lightroom 2 to other participants. If you have yet to develop a workflow system then now is your chance.

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Introduction I learnt to dive in 1979 and became interested in photography two years later. The word ‘interested’ is an understatement. When I look back I would describe it as an all-consuming obsession! By 1983 I’d learnt the theory of f numbers and shutter speeds and could set the controls of my camera to produce an image on film, but that’s about as far as I’d got. To my family and friends I was the next Cousteau, but in my own mind I was quite hopeless and sadly lacking in something. The problem was — I had no idea what that ‘something’ was. I then found BSOUP (British Society of Underwater Photography) and began to attend their monthly meetings in London. It all then changed for me. I immediately noticed a clear distinction of quality between those images taken by BSOUP’s best and the rest of us. Such was my enthusiasm to become a better photographer; I became determined to find out why this was. How were the best photographers able to obtain such superior pictures to those obtained by wannabes like myself using the same equipment in the same location and on occasions shooting the same subject? At BSOUP, dive trade shows and seminars, I had the chance to talk to the most respected and well-known photographers of that era. My questions revolved around topics such as imagination, patience, and visualisation and whenever the opportunity arose to enquire, my favourite topic was ‘subject choice’. How were they able to get great shots of simple, everyday, common-place subjects? My persistence paid off and over a period of time I gained a valuable insight from these conversations. Using my own interpretations of words, I began to label what I had discovered and set out to apply this knowledge to my own underwater photography off the South Coast of England. It worked! And in a short time (months as opposed to years), I developed my skills and abilities significantly. At BSOUP I soon became ‘the person to go to’ and other beginners began to question me about my own techniques. From my own experiences I found a way in which to communicate topics that were less to do with equipment, f-stops and shutter speeds and more to do with how to think and apply ideas underwater. These question and answer sessions led to articles, which inevitably led to underwater photo courses and workshops. In 1996 The Underwater Photographer was first published. It’s been translated into numerous other languages, updated with second and third editions, and reprinted more times than I can remember. In 2005 I wrote

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Introduction

a combined film/digital edition to introduce underwater photographers to the amazing possibilities of pictures from pixels. Presently (at the time of writing) this edition is at the very forefront of underwater photographic education and coaching. It’s an encyclopaedia, an instruction manual and a photographic collection all in one but there is one, important thing to bear in mind — this book is underwater photography as seen through the eyes and mind of Martin Edge. It’s my own philosophy and outlook on the subject. Whilst it’s also the most comprehensive source of information currently in circulation, there are other books out there written by great photographers whose views may differ from my own, so I encourage you to also seek out other opinions. Oh and by the way, this book is entirely digitally orientated!

Before you Start I want to ensure you get the very most out of reading this book so, before you start, give me a couple of minutes to emphasise a few things. 1.

2.

3.

If you’ve read any of my other books you’ll know they are of the ‘jump in anywhere’ variety but I wrote this one in the same particular order of how I teach underwater photography to others. By ‘dipping in’ here and there, you could miss out on things which every underwater photographer needs to know and master. The majority of theses topics are contained within the first four chapters so my suggestion is this — go to what interests you most and what you need to know, but at the same time consider working through the book in the order it’s written. There’s one other reason for encouraging you to start from the beginning — I’ve always placed an enormous amount of importance on understanding principles of photography, i.e. apertures shutter speeds and ISO, etc. For those of you who have yet to master this then now is a good opportunity. Developing an understanding of how they all inter-relate, will, I assure you, improve your underwater photography. Chapter 3 on SLRs and housings is technically orientated. I make no apology for this, you need to know how your camera works but don’t get bogged down with all the technique and theory, you can always return to it after the wide angle and macro chapters. Avoid viewing the photographs in isolation. Every single shot can be scrutinised for tips and techniques from every section. For example, when you’ve read the chapter on lighting, flip through the pages and look at other pictures in other chapters and identify their lighting characteristics. Use as many of the photo examples you can and examine them for other traits.

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Introduction

4.

5.

A word about compacts! The majority of tips and techniques outlined in this book can be undertaken with a compact camera. Whilst I recognise their limitations in regard to precise focusing, LCD clarity and digital noise performance, do not be disheartened. When a compact is used in conjunction with a few basic add-ons such as a wide angle adaptor and an external flashgun you can achieve images of a comparable quality. This book contains many underwater photographs, the majority of which were taken with an SLR, however, don’t let that stop you pushing your compact and yourself to the limit. Think positive — ‘My camera can and I will!’ I’ve disposed of the word ‘digital’ in front of the expression ‘SLR camera’ and ‘compact camera’. The photo community cannot indefinitely continue to prefix every reference to a camera with the ‘D’ word. Should film ever make a comeback on the underwater photo front we can all use the term ‘F’ — ‘film SLR’. Martin Edge, 2010

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Acknowledgements When I was approached by my publisher David Albon to write a fourth edition I thought it would take just a couple of months and be relatively straightforward. But then I sat down, reread my third edition — cover to cover — and made a list of all the changes, up-dates, improvements and ‘digital’ progress which had occurred since 2005. As a result, my ‘just a few months’ turned into a year and imposed so much on family life. Without the love, support and understanding from Sylvia, Katie and Jamie, I would never have finished this book, so thanks guys, I love you lots. I’m so indebted to Judith Young, my own in-house editor. Judith has been inspirational at moulding my own words, ethos and imagination into a readable format. When you’re writing a book like this sometimes you can feel like you are all alone and you’ve hit the wall but Judith has helped me all the way with alternative ideas, positive comments and great coffee! Thanks Judith. A big thank you goes to our friends Shannon and Amanda Conway, Martyn and Sue Guess, Mark and Eugenia Hardy, and last but not least Bob and Carol Wrobel. I began my own underwater photography back in the 80s, side by side with Bob, and I’m delighted that he’s back in the water taking pictures again. Thanks mate and never ever forget that — we started in a shed! I’m grateful for additional photos from Martyn Guess, Leena Roy, Nur Pekin, Amanda and Shannon Conway, and Alex Mustard, and in particular to Kay Newman who gave up several dives to produce an HDR (high dynamic range) image for this book. Also to Danya Cohen who leant me her camera housing to shoot a Hawkfish I had found. Also to Alexandra Hayes who drafted my ‘TC’ flow chart in Chapter 5. I have written an underwater photo article for UK’s Sport Diver Magazine every month for the last 20 years and received constant support. My thanks to editors Mark Evans, Martin Bruce and the team. Thanks to all at Ocean Optics and Mavericks Diving in Basildon, UK; Cameras Underwater from both the Devon and London office; Chris and Angela Davy at Aqua Press; Robert White Photographic in Bournemouth; Chris and Dave Beale at AWC; Paul Williams Photographic; Trevor Foster at Bournemouth Photographic Repairs. I want to thank Louise Sanger for involving me in her Baby Splashers venture, several years ago Lou invited me to photograph young babies who had just learnt to swim and it’s become such a fulfilling and worthwhile pastime for me. I’m grateful to Jack Bird from Lighthouse Diving who has helped me over the years with a supply of the excellent Kowalski dive/video lamps. We work closely with three tour operators: Hilary, Lee and

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Rachel from Divequest. You are top-class Hils, thanks for your meticulous planning and organisation of our long-haul photo workshops. To Caroline Morley, Tony Backhurst and all his staff for our Red Sea trips, and Dan Lion from Longwood Holidays together with Larry Brown from Emperor Divers who introduced me to the delights of underwater photography at the Coral Hilton Hotel in Nuweiba in the northern Red Sea. Thanks to Mat Trim and all at Fuji for the Fuji F40 compact camera used by Sylvia Edge to create the compact gallery in Chapter 2. Thanks to Paul Morgan for projects yet to come. All the staff at the Carrington Hotel in Bournemouth; Lorraine Bateman for her friendship, wisdom and advice; David Albon, Lisa Jones and all the team at Focal Press. David and Lisa you have been so enthusiastic and helpful with this edition — I’m very grateful to you. Thanks also to the contributors from underwater photo forums www. wetpixel.com, www.digideep.com, www.divephotoguide.com and all our friends at BSOUP in the UK (www.bsoup.org). I’m very grateful to my contributors who have shared their expertise with you in this book. In particular Shannon Conway, Stuart Gibson, Mark Koekemoer, Alex Mustard, Pete Rowlands, John Wallis, Steve Warren and Keri Wilk. You have all given up your valuable time in producing new and innovative information and images for the underwater photo public. In the midst of your own career commitments you have all tolerated my persistence for rewrites and submission deadlines and I’m appreciative of your patience and understanding. Last but not least to my wife Sylvia. You have supported and encouraged my obsession with photography for almost 30 years. There would be no photographs, no books, no workshops if you had not been there beside me to help me do something I truly love doing. Thank you so much, I love you lots. Martin Edge, 2010

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Photographic Information All of the photographs in this book (with one exception) have been taken using digital cameras since 2005 and since the third edition was published. In other words ‘it’s all my new work’ since that time. I use Nikon SLR cameras including the Nikon D200 and currently the Nikon D300. My popular lenses are: 



Wide angle — Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye DX. The Tokina 10 mm—17 mm fisheye zoom, Nikon 12 mm—24 mm with a +4 dioptre DX, Nikon 17 mm—35 mm zoom with a +4 dioptre. Close-up and macro — Nikon 60 mm macro; Nikon 105 mm macro; Nikon 105 mm VR lens, Nikon 200 mm macro. When I need additional magnification I use Nikon’s ‘T’ series of dioptres.

Housings: I use Subal housings and ports. Whilst I have used other popular makes like Sea & Sea, Nexus, Aquatica and Seacam I’ve not had them long enough to become fully acquainted. I use a Subal fisheye dome port for all of my wide angle work, with the addition of a port extender on the fisheye port and flat port when using my Nikon 17 mm—35 mm zoom and my Nikon 200 mm macro lens. Flashguns: For the last five years I have used Inon flashguns. I prefer the Z220 model, which has never failed me during this time (famous last words). I also carry spare Inon Z240 models which have similar characteristics to the Z220. Flash arms: I have used a number of types over the years, but favour flash arms made by Ultralight and Inon for their strength, light weight and flexibility. Other digital cameras: I take every opportunity to try other cameras and housings and over the years must have taken a picture with every camera that I can think of. Ancillaries: I use a variety of 4 gig size compact flash cards and power my flashguns with energiser lithium disposable batteries. My workflow is Lightroom 2 on a Windows XP platform (I may be swapping camps to Mac) to fall in line with the rest of my family. I carry a set of Magic Filters which I utilise when shooting wide angle scenics and wrecks under natural sunlight. With the current limitations and restrictions on air travel I now pack as light as possible and use a hunter-fisherman-photographer’s vest to see me through check-in with as little stress as possible.

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THE MARTIN EDGE COLLECTION

LIMITED EDITION FINE ART PRINTS If you are interested in purchasing any of the photographs in this book, you can order them directly from my website at www.edgeunderwaterphotography.com

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CHAPTER 1

Principles of Underwater Photography Introduction

S

ince the last edition was released in 2005 I have spent most of my time teaching underwater photography both in the UK and overseas. It may sound cliche´d but I do learn more than I impart and one topic that is often misunderstood by the majority of beginners is the basic photographic essentials. In previous editions of this book I offered only a limited discussion concerning these basics. Therefore I have devoted Chapter 1 to a thorough ‘brush up’ on the basics of photography and other digital principles. I would encourage you to bookmark this chapter as a sort of ‘advanced glossary’ should you fail to grasp some of these concepts in later chapters. These topics are discussed frequently throughout the book but will relate to tips and techniques specific to underwater photography.

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The Underwater Photographer

Understanding Exposure Many underwater photo enthusiasts are eager to progress from the Auto/ Program mode on their cameras but don’t have the confidence to carry it through when they get underwater. Those who are unfamiliar with the basics may find it restrictive because:  

It takes control of the camera away from the user. You can never begin to understand and appreciate why good shots turned out well and why less favourite shots were disappointing.

Throughout this book I intend to discuss and explain in detail, the merits and dare I use the word ‘technicalities’ of using Manual exposure as well as Aperture priority and Shutter priority underwater. To do this we need to revisit the basics of apertures, shutter speeds and ISO settings. I’m aware that some experienced photographers are still confused by f numbers, stops and speeds, so if you feel that you can benefit from a refresher then please read on.

Camera Exposure Modes All SLR cameras and the majority of advanced compacts feature the following modes:    

Auto/Program, which works out all aspects of the exposure for you. Aperture priority, in which you set the aperture (f number) and the camera automatically works out the appropriate shutter speed. Shutter priority, in which you set the shutter speed and the camera automatically works out the appropriate aperture. Manual exposure, in which you set both the shutter speed and the aperture.

Many cameras have additional ‘auto’ modes which depict icons in the form of a landscape, portrait, sports/action, close up, night, etc.

FIG. 1.1 Program mode.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.2 Aperture priority.

FIG. 1.3 Shutter priority.

FIG. 1.4 Manual mode.

FIG. 1.5 Landscape mode.

Light and Time The two fundamentals of taking a photograph are light and time.  

Light comes in via the lens and strikes the sensor, and Time determines how long the light strikes the sensor for.

If you get these two aspects correct then you achieve an accurate exposure. If you have too little light or not enough time then you get a dark picture which is considered ‘underexposed’. Too much light or too much time results in a picture which is too bright or overexposed. The Time element is controlled by the Shutter Speed selected and the amount of time the shutter mechanism remains open for. The Light element is controlled by the size (diameter) of the Aperture.

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The Underwater Photographer

FIG. 1.6 Portrait mode.

FIG. 1.7 Sports/action mode.

FIG. 1.8 Close up mode.

FIG. 1.9 Night mode.

Tip I always encourage my students to remember: big numbers have a small hole — low numbers have a large hole.

4

Understanding Apertures The size of the aperture, iris, hole (it’s referred to in different ways) which light passes through to reach the sensor can be controlled by you to allow more or less light into the camera. The aperture is measured in f numbers (often referred to as a ‘stop’ or ‘stops’). The largest holes have small (low) numbers like f2.8 and f4 and the small holes have bigger (higher) numbers like f22, f16.

Principles of Underwater Photography

The full list of f numbers is as follows: f1.4, f2, f2.8, f4, f5.6, f8, f11, f16, f22, f32, f45, f64. Where this sequence starts or finishes depends on the lens in use. So, what do all these f numbers mean and where do they come from? Aperture is regulated in a 2:1 ratio so that each f number represents a doubling or halving of the size of the hole and therefore the amount of light which is allowed to pass though and onto the sensor. For example, f8 provides a hole which is twice the size of f11 and the f11 hole is twice the size of f16, which means that twice as much light passes through the aperture at f11 than it does at f16. Conversely, f8 receives half as much light as f5.6. Remember, big numbers like f22 have a small hole; low numbers like f4 have a large hole.

Origin The origin of f numbers is simply a calculation whereby the focal length of the lens is divided by the diameter of the aperture.

Note about compact cameras Digital compacts have an aperture control of some kind, but because compacts are physically smaller in size they tend to have smaller sensors and shorter focal lenses than the typical SLR. Because of this, the calculation is smaller. For example, on most compacts an aperture of f4 will provide similar characteristics as f8 on an SLR.

(large f-stop)

(small f-stop)

22

16

11

8

5.6

4

2.8

Maximum and minimum apertures differ depending on lens Note: The smaller the f number (e.g. f 1.4, f 2 etc.), the larger is the aperture, thus allowing more light reaching the film to compensate for the duration of the shutter curtain travelling time. FIG. 1.10 Each consecutive f-stop lets in half as much light as the preceding f-stop.

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The Underwater Photographer

Understanding Shutter Speeds The time element and the second way to control the amount of light entering the camera is to regulate the length of time the aperture remains open. This is done by controlling the shutter speed of the camera. When you press the shutter button, two curtains inside the camera body, just infront of the sensor, slide apart to open the shutter. After the proper exposure time the curtains slide shut to close the shutter.   

The amount of time the shutter stays open is measured in fractions of seconds and on certain occassions in full seconds. The longer the shutter is open for, the longer the exposure and more light enters the camera. The less time the shutter is open for, the less amount of light enters the camera.

Each shutter speed is twice as fast as the previous speed.  

Alternating from 1/30th sec to 1/60th sec halves the amount of time the shutter is open. Decreasing the shutter from 1/125th to 1/60th second doubles the amount of time the shutter is open.

Shutter speeds range from 1/8000th sec, 1/4000th sec, 1/2000th sec, 1/1000th sec, 1/500th sec, 1/250th sec, 1/125th, 1/60th sec, 1/30th sec, 1/15th sec, 1/8th sec, 1/4 sec, 1/2 sec, 1, 2, 4 seconds, 8 seconds, 15 seconds and finally, 30 seconds. Shutter speeds above 1/500th sec allow very little time to expose the photograph and are rarely used in underwater photography. Typically, 1/500th sec and above are left for topside action like sports photography, however there are always exceptions to this general rule.

Tip 1/15th sec can sometimes be momentarily confused with 15 seconds. The majority of SLR cameras indicate full seconds with inverted comas after the number, i.e. 4’’ indicates 4 seconds.

6

Shutter speeds in the range between 1/30th sec and 1/250th sec are considered the norm, but undewater there are many exceptions to this rule in that gravity is substantially reduced, which means we can hand hold a camera at shutter speeds much slower than we would choose to on land. Experienced photographers, including myself, regularly shoot both macro and wide angle photographs at 1/15th sec — but more about this later in the book.

Synchronisation Speed When a flashgun is used on a camera (whether built-in or external) there is a shutter speed which must not be exceeded in order that the flash and the camera can synchronise with each other. Most SLRs have a sync speed of 1/250th sec and 1/320th sec. For compact cameras refer to the instruction manual as they can often differ.

Principles of Underwater Photography

How Aperture and Shutter Speed Work Together In photography, the term Exposure Value (EV) is commonly referred to as a move, either up or down, of one ‘stop’. The difference between each aperture setting is one stop or one EV, i.e. f8 and f11 is a difference of one ‘stop’ or one EV. The difference in shutter speed between 1/125th sec and 1/250th sec is one stop/one EV. You will see that both f numbers and shutter speeds are sequenced in a series of 2:1 ratios, and this is where the two work in harmony with each other. A setting of f8, at 1/60th sec, lets the same amount of light into the camera as a setting of f5.6 at 1/125th sec, and f4 at 1/250th sec, and so on. You will see that the latter is one f-stop lower and one shutter speed higher than the former.

1’’ ½ f32 f22

¼ f16

1/8th 1/15th 1/30th 1/60th 1/125th 1/250th 1/500th f11 f8 f5.6 f4 f3.5 f2.8 f2

These combinations of aperture and shutter will all provide an identical exposure.

f-stops

F8.0

Shutter Speed Deep Depth of Field

F6.0

1/1000 sec. A perfectly exposed picture

Stops the Fastest Movement

1/800 sec. 1/500 sec. 1/200 sec.

F5.6

1/150 sec.

Stops Some Movement

1/100 sec.

F2.0

1/60 sec.

F1.8

FIG. 1.11

Very Shallow Depth of Field

1/30 sec. 1/15 sec.

Blurs with any movement

Tip You may recall numerous occasions when your Digital SLR camera has displayed various shutter speeds or apertures, such as f12 or f10. Likewise for shutter speeds, you may notice 1/45th sec or 1/180th sec for example. Take note that these are ‘stops’ in one third or one half increments, set as factory defaults when you purchase the camera. Many users think that they are changing shutter speeds and aperture by one full stop (EV) when they see these half and one third numbers indicated. This is not the case! These slight changes will make little visable difference to an untrained eye as to the state of your exposure. If you are new to the concept of apertures and shutter speeds then consider changing these settings to one full stop or half stop increments to aide your learning process. (changes can be made via the camera menu settings)

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The Underwater Photographer

Tip Depth of Field (D of F) is the portion of a scene that appears sharp in the photograph.

Understanding Depth of Field Changing the aperture number of a camera does two things:  

It controls the amount of light entering the camera. It determines the amount of Depth of Field (D of F) in the picture.

Although a lens can focus at only one distance, the decrease in sharpness is gradual both in front of and behind the focused distance, so that within the D of F, the un-sharpness is unnoticeable. This distance is approximatley onethird in front of the point of sharpest focus and two-thirds behind the point of sharpest focus.

FIG. 1.12 Depth of field.

Depth of field

For some pictures, such as underwater wide angles, a large D of F is appropriate, while for others opportunities, such as fish portraits, a small D of F may be more effective. Small apertures like f22 provide the greatest D of F, while a large aperture such as f2.8 provides the narrowest D of F. Compare the difference in D of F between Fig. 1.13 and Fig. 1.14. The shorter the distance between the lens and the subject the smaller the depth of field. Whilst the greater the distance between lens and subject, the greater the depth of field.  

If you want a large D of F with both foreground and background in focus, use a small aperture such as f11, f16, f22. If you want a narrow D of F with only a shallow focus, use a large aperture such as f2.8, f4 or f5.6.

After a little practice you will develop a feel for the effect for both sharp and out-of-focus portions of your photograph.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.13 This close-up study of a clam was taken with a wide aperture of f3.5 (small D of F) to emphasise detail and sharpness within the siphon compared with the pattern detail in the background. Nikon D200 Nikon 60 mm macro lens, ISO 100, two Inon 220z flashguns.

FIG. 1.14 Taken of subject at f22, 1/180th sec with a Nikon 105 mm macro lens. Notice how the subject is sharp throughout as it extends into the background.

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The Underwater Photographer

FIG. 1.15 Taken at the same time but with a wider aperture of f5.6 at

1/180. You can see how the D of F is significantly reduced, which has the effect of making the facial features of the subject stand out more.

FIG. 1.16 Typical wide angle scenic with the familiar characteristics of a huge depth of field. Tokina 10 17 mm at the 10 mm end, f8 at 1/250th sec, ISO 200, twin Inon 220z flashguns.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.17 Such is the D of F of wide lenses, some users pre-set the focus at about 2 m knowing that everything from 1 m to infinity will be in sharp focus. I locked off the focus of my 10.5 mm fisheye at about 2 m, confident that this classic wide angle of the Red Sea wreck Giannis D would be sharp throughout. Nikon D200, f6.7 at 1/45th sec, ISO 100.

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The Underwater Photographer

Understanding ISO At times it can be impossible to achieve the desired aperture or shutter speed to take a photograph. This usually occurs in low light situations where you need to use a large aperture, but, because it’s getting dark, you have no other choice than to use a slow shutter speed. This shutter speed required may well be too long to hand hold the camera without causing camera shake and fuzzy pictures. In these situations this is where the sensitivity of your camera sensor comes into play by controlling ISO. Even though digital cameras do not use film, the industry has retained the expression ISO (International Standards Organisation). ISO refers to the light sensitivity of a camera’s image sensor. Lower numbers like ISO 100 are less light sensitive and produce better quality images because ‘digital noise’ is kept to a minimum. Higher numbers such as 1600 ISO, whilst more sensitive to light, can suffer from increased digital noise. Digital cameras allow you to adjust the image sensor’s sensitivity by dialing in different ISO settings. This can be done between shots and for this reason a digital camera can rapidly adapt to changing light conditions. The practical use of ISO is this: 

Tip In these situations you’re better taking the shot with a higher ISO than not taking the shot at all!

 

If you use a low ISO setting you need more light in your photograph, which is controlled by your aperture, shutter speed or both. A low ISO setting results in better quality. If you use a higher ISO setting you will not need as much light in your photograph but you do risk a degredation in quality caused by ‘digital noise’.

Cameras have an ISO range from 100 to 1600 and several pro camera models go up to 6400 and higher! In a perfect world it’s best to shoot at the lowest ISO, such as 100 or 200, but this is not always possible.

Digital Noise — Types and Cause A simple explanation is to liken ‘digital noise’ to the ‘hiss’ of a musical sound system when you turn it up too loudly. Adjusting volume is an amplification of the signal. When you turn up the ISO number on your camera you amplify/ increase the electricity flowing through the circuitry of the camera sensor. As the ISO value is increased, so too is the flow of electricity and the more electricity which flows through the circuitry the more interference we get, which results in more digital noise. Digital noise is made up of two parts. One is luminance noise and the other is chroma or colour noise. Luminance noise has an effect on the grain structure of the pixels whilst colour noise appears as minute speckles of colour which are always more noticable in the shadow areas of a photograph.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.18 A small ‘as shot’ portion of the original colour version from the cave. Noise is quite obvious in the shadows and illustrates what the characteristics of digital noise are. High-end SLRs from both Canon and Nikon are virtually noise free at the highest ISOs, whilst compact cameras are particularly susceptible so ensure you use the lowest ISO setting in compacts.

For further reading go to: http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/ noise2.htm Another factor which compounds the problem is the length of exposure. The longer the camera takes in making the exposure, the more likely the sensor is to pick up background noise. (Be aware that using in-camera noise reduction features will increase processing time. It can take as long as the initial exposure for the camera to process the file.) Noise tends to appear in the darker parts of a photograph and shows up as tiny speckles of colour. Cameras with full frame sensors suffer less noise because their photo sites (pixels) are spread further apart from each other and are less likely to pick up background interference. Compact cameras are particularly susceptible to noise because their sensors are much smaller. The key is to use the lowest possible ISO setting which your camera will allow as this produces the least amount of ‘digital noise’. Many camera models have a facility within the menu to activate noise reduction programs at sensitivities of 800 ISO and higher. Another popular solution is to use a noise reduction filter in your image processing workflow. Picture Codes ‘Noise Ninja’ www.picturecode.com is a firm favourite, receiving excellent reviews. For noise reviews of your own model of camera go to www.dpreview.com

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The Underwater Photographer

FIG. 1.19 This image was taken within a cave system known as Jack Fish Alley in the northern Red Sea. I used my Nikon D300 camera and fisheye lens. To my eye the cave was pitch black with the exception of this single sunbeam which pierced the sandy floor like a laser beam. I experimented with various camera settings and choose an aperture of f3.5 with a shutter speed or 1¼ quarter sec. To stableise my housing with such a lengthy shutter speed I braced it on a boulder in ‘tripod fashion’. My Nikon D300 has a reputation of excellent noise qualities at ISO settings of up to and including 800. I sought to put this to the test but instead of playing safe with ISO 800 or 1600 I pushed the boundaries of my camera to its limit and set the highest ISO possible — ISO 6400. You can see the result. Whilst noise is clearly visible in the shadows, I do think that this image is acceptable. I shot it in RAW and converted it to mono (black and white.)

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Principles of Underwater Photography

Understanding White Balance and Colour Temperature We have all taken photographs where the colours of the scene are totally false. You download it onto the computer and it has a garish colour cast. The reasons behind this will be connected to the white balance function on your digital camera. All light has a specific colour associated to it, which is measured in degrees Kelvin (K). Take for example sunlight. Throughout the day the colour temperature of sunlight differs because of its position in the sky and the surrounding atmospheric conditions. During early morning and late in the evening the sunlight takes on a warm golden hue. Photographers refer to these times of the day as ‘magic hours’. However, around 12 noon the light is very blue and has a high colour temperature of around 8000 K. Warm colours at sunrise have a low colour temperature of around 1600 to 3200 K. Whilst our eyes may recognise changes in colour at sunrise and sunset, for most of the day our brain compensates and we fail to notice the colour of light. This is the purpose of White Balance. A digital camera has to take into account the colour temperature of a light source and we must remember that this is both indoors as well as out in the open air. Not only can we use White Balance to achieve a natural result, we can use also use WB to warm up or cool down an underwater photograph without it looking unnatural.

The Colour White The aim of White Balance is to ensure that a subject, which is white in reality, is reproduced as white in a photograph, not a shade of red or green. The colour white is made up of equal amounts of RGB — red, green and blue — which are the primary colours of light. In theory, once a camera knows what the colour white should look like for a particular scene it can then produce natural colours for everything else.

White Balance Settings Auto: Also known as AWB is perhaps the most popular setting as it uses thousands of algorithms programmed into your camera to best work out the white balance for your particular photograph wherever you may be. Auto setting as been developed over the years.

Tip Since the third edition of this book was published, and for underwater use, I use ‘Auto WB’ 70% of the time — for the other 30% I use Preset White Balance.

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The Underwater Photographer

Daylight: Has a symbol of the sun and is close to the colour temperature of traditional film; many of you will remember the ‘Daylight’ stamp on a box of film. Daylight has a colour temperature between 5000 —5600 K and is ideal for natural light and clear skies (on land not underwater).

Cloudy: Has a symbol of a cloud and a colour temperature of between 6000 —6500 K. It has the effect of warming up the colours.

Shade: Has a symbol of a house in shade; it is an increase of Cloudy WB setting. It has a similar warm-up effect but more accentuated than Cloudy.

Tungsten: Has a symbol of a light bulb denoting use indoors under domestic lighting conditions.

Fluorescent: Has a symbol of a fluorescent light and can result in a yellow or green cast. Try it indoors under fluorescent lighting but do remember to change it back to Auto when you have finished shooting.

Flash: Has a symbol of a bolt of lightning and the results are very similar to the Daylight setting.

A White Balance setting which I have yet to discuss is the preset function. Underwater, we have the most intense and predictable colour cast of all. You guessed it, the colour blue! As sunbeams pass through the surface, underwater colours are absorbed at different depths. Warm colours of red and orange are first to vanish and by the time we get to 25 metres the light spectrum is strongly biased towards blue. White Balance Preset: PRE has the symbol of ‘Pre’ or ‘Kelvin’.

16

Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.20 Preset function in camera menu.

With greater accuracy, you can control colour and limit the negative effect of the blue cast by using this function. Locating the custom preset white balance function varies from one digital camera to another so check your camera manual for specifics. The general idea is to point the camera lens at something white or grey such as a piece of white card or perspex. The camera takes a reading from this object and adjusts the white balance to the colour temperature at this depth. Take a few test shots after the custom white balance is set and check the colour cast of the thumbnail in your LCD to see how closely it resembles what your eyes see. To record a ‘preset’ measurement, the exposure has to be correct to within one EV (one f stop) for the viewfinder to indicate the word ‘Good’, or ‘Gd’, which confirms that the ‘preset’ has recorded successfully. I have found all the following techniques to be effective in recording a ‘preset’ measurement:      

A grey or white coloured scuba tank used by another diver. Grey or white coloured fins providing they fill about 70% of the lens. Neutral (grey or white) coloured sand, rocks or corals. The palm of your hand. White or grey card available from popular photographic outlets. When shooting a scene using ‘preset’ white balance you must turn your flashguns off or else a red/pink colour cast will occur from the colour temperature emitted by the flash. It’s not sufficient to point the flashgun in an opposite direction as it may still colour the water with a red cast. I emphasise that you should turn the flashgun to OFF!

Tips I tend not to bother with a white or grey card to set a preset white balance underwater. I have found that using the palm of my hand to fill the viewfinder works just as well. With certain makes of camera the procedure of setting ‘Pre’ does not record a photograph on the sensor, just the measurement, which is stored within the ‘preset’ menu on your SLR.

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The Underwater Photographer

FIG. 1.21 Natural light image taken with Tokina 10 mm—17 mm lens at the 17 mm end, f11 at 1/125th sec. My WB was set to Auto. I composed this Red Sea reef-scape from a downward angle with the sun behind my back.

Tip When I shoot natural light, I always shoot RAW and take a ‘preset’ reading off the palm of my hand or the subject itself, if it happens to be close enough. I have learnt from my mistakes that it is best to take a ‘preset’ at a similar depth to the subject. If I ascend or descend more than 1.5 m I will remeter the WB ‘preset’.

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FIG. 1.22 Using the WB colour picker (see Fig 1.23) in Lightroom 2 or Photoshop Elements/CS, I moused down to the white reflective stone in bottom left-hand corner of the photo and clicked to restore the colour as in this figure. See how the effect of the blue filtration has been reduced and restored the scene similar to how it looked to the eye.

Shooting in RAW A discussion about WB would not be complete without a mention of the RAW file format. When you shoot in RAW you can apply any white balance setting you wish to the picture in post processing. You can undo your change and experiment as much as you like without degrading the image quality in any way. A valuable tool found in the RAW converter of all good imaging programs is the ‘white balance colour picker tool’. You simply mouse over the tool, select it by clicking it and then click on an area of the image, which is meant to be white or grey. It’s a fascinating exercise to play with this tool to see the number of different results which can be produced.

Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.23 White balance colour picker tool in Lightroom 2 is identical to the same tool in Photoshop CS Raw ADR (Adobe Camera Raw). I have found that clicking with this tool on various areas of whites and greys can produce quite different results.

FIG. 1.24 Yacht wreck, Abu Shiwayya, Fury Shoals, Red Sea. I took a manual (preset) white balance setting off the encrusted hard corals on the bow of the yacht wreck. I used my Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens on a Nikon D200 in Subal housing. My settings were 250th sec at f5.6 with ISO 100. I used natural light only. My flashguns were not even attached to my housing. I took a total of 38 shots of the wreck in both landscape and portrait formats, both with and without a diver/model. The reason for so many attempts was experimental, with other members of my photo workshop doing likewise. This image is a typical example of what can be achieved using manual white balance settings whilst underwater and then in post production using the white balance colour picker tool in Photoshop CS to lift the colours.

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The Underwater Photographer

FIG. 1.25 Photographer at work; yacht wreck. Without taking a ‘preset’ reading or adjusting in ADR (Adobe Camera Raw) this is the effect of the blue filtration effect on the background watercolour. Whilst this can be adjusted if shot in RAW, it cannot be altered to any degree when shot in JPEG.

FIG. 1.26 Clown fish shot in Tungsten white balance. I made a mistake

and left my WB set incorrectly. Because I use RAW I am able to correct the error and reset the WB to Auto. See Figure 1.27.

< FIG. 1.27 (Opposite page)

White balance re-adjusted by one mouse click on Auto mode in ACR.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

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The Underwater Photographer

RAW v JPEG There has always been debate about the merits of shooting either RAW or JPEG, not just for underwater but over the entire photographic spectrum. A large majority of digital enthusiasts see the RAW format as the professionals approach to photography and this is regularly born out by current trends in digital photography magazines and Internet forums. If I was looking to advise someone on the pros and cons of shooting either RAW or JPEG underwater I would be looking to ask that person questions about the way they would like to approach their photography. For example:   

Are you determined to achieve the very best quality image? Do you enjoy sitting behind a computer and processing your photos with imaging programs? Do you have the hard drive disk capacity on both your home computer and laptop to sustain the typical size that RAW files generate?

After consideration of an individual’s circumstances it would be appropriate to offer a view — RAW or JPEG? Which one is best for you?

Lets see if we can determine this With your camera set to JPEG, every time you press the shutter the camera takes a picture and saves it to the memory card. A JPEG file is what’s called a ‘lossy’ format. This means that it discards data contained within the file in order to provide a substantially reduced file size. A RAW file is the exact opposite. RAW is a ‘lossless’ format, which means that it retains every piece of data captured, hence the name ‘RAW’. The result is much larger file sizes but with the added flexibility to produce images of the finest quality. A RAW file is not technically an image file at all. A RAW file has to be converted by a digital imaging program like Adobe Photoshop in order that it can be published or printed in a more recognised file format.

RAW and JPEG I still remember how aghast I was when I saw my first RAW files on computer. My digital camera was discarded and I reverted to camera and film. It took me three days to pluck up courage and shoot RAW again.

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Both RAW and JPEG files appear similar when downloaded from the camera. JPEG files have received some processing at the moment of image capture and they usually look better than RAW files, which can often appear quite dull and flat. Newcomers to digital photography are often quite disturbed the first time they see their RAW files looking so lacklustre, but one must remember that this is the effect of retaining all the data in an unprocessed format. It is a fact that the majority of professional and enthusiastic photographers both on land and underwater choose the RAW format over JPEG. From my experience the primary reasons are two fold:

Principles of Underwater Photography

1.

2.

To capture and retain the highest amount of data an image has to offer. JPEG image compression discards the majority of data in the picture, which means that we are unable to make any aggressive adjustments when editing the photo. In the event of errors being made by the user in relation to exposure or white balance settings, more aggressive corrections can be made without too much degradation of quality to the RAW file.

Tip For any serious photography both on land or underwater then shoot RAW. For snaps and practice shoot JPEG by all means.

Let’s look at some practical examples of my own. If I had taken these photos perfectly then I would have had no problem at all, but I didn’t — I made mistakes, which fortunately I could recover because I shot in RAW.

FIG. 1.28 These four Lightroom screen prints (Figs 1.28—1.31) illustrate why I use RAW over JPEG and why I recommend RAW to you. Whilst I work hard to get the best possible capture in camera at the time of shooting, I make mistakes. Everyone does! (As you can see from the exposure corrections which I have had to make in these four examples.)

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The Underwater Photographer

FIG. 1.29 When those mistakes relate to exposure (and white balance) there is a good chance that they can be rescued in RAW. Whilst not ideal, aggressive changes up to 2 stops (2 EV) can be made in the RAW converter. In the same under or over exposure circumstances, JPEG capture will not support such aggressive corrections and you will be unable to recover such errors in exposure and white balance. If using a compact camera which does not support a RAW format, ensure you work hard to achieve an accurate exposure in-camera.

File Comparison RAW v JPEG JPEG Files Pros 

 



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JPEG has been adopted as a standard and can be loaded in a variety of programs making display immediate, easy and simple. Everything about JPEG is very easy, convenient and straightforward to use. Takes up much less memory card space. All SLRs and the majority of compacts enable you to choose what size JPEG files (S, M, or L) to save to your memory card. This provides you with the choice to use smaller images that are easier to handle for email attachments and web display. Most SLRs offer the facility to shoot in both RAW and JPEG at the same time, producing two separate files to consider in the future.

Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.30

FIG. 1.31

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The Underwater Photographer

Tips Whereever you are in your photography, it is worth investing in photo imaging software like Photoshop CS, Elements or Lightroom 2. Flash memory and hard drive disk space is cheap enough nowadays that you can save all the data from your photos — especially if they are memories that you want to last forever.

Cons  

In-camera processing discards a significant amount of data, the impact of which can be a loss of colour saturation, colour range and sharpness. JPEG files reflect a one-time interpretation of your subject based on the settings of your camera (white balance, exposure settings and output resolution, etc.) at the time of shooting! Altering these settings to any degree, as you can with a RAW file, will result in a lower quality image.

RAW Files Pros It comes down to the infinite control which you have over the image.  



RAW is a digital negative which retains all data captured by your camera without loss of quality. When processing a RAW file you have a broad range of adjustments with a greater degree of control over the finished look. To name a few — exposure, white balance, saturation, sharpness, highlight, shadow detail and ISO noise reduction. All image processing is non-destructive.

Cons  



RAW files take up more space on your camera’s memory card. Require a degree of post processing via photo editing software in order to convert the image into an editable file such as a JPEG, TIFF or PSD (Photoshop Document). RAW file editing software does have a ‘learning curve’ in order to process and for the uninitiated this may be intimidating at first.

Many people choose to shoot in JPEG because it is a universal format that can be immediately downloaded from the camera and shared via email in less than a minute. RAW files require an additional step — they need to be processed in a RAW converter program like Adobe Camera RAW in Photoshop Elements or CS.

RAW files will not open I’m sure that all of us have at some time been frustrated to find that we cannot open our RAW files in our RAW converter. A pop-up box appears with the classic. ‘Could not complete your request because Photoshop does not recognise this type of file’.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

RAW files not only vary between camera manufacturers but also from model to model of camera. For example a RAW file from an early Nikon D100 camera will have the same NEF extension (Nikon Electronic Format) as any other modern Nikon SLR, but the file information and the way it is interpreted is different. That is why Adobe, and all other makers of RAW conversion software, has to update its RAW converter to support a new SLR when it is launched, otherwise the RAW files from the latest model cannot be read. All camera updates of this nature can be downloaded directly from Adobe’s website with Camera RAW 5.2 being the latest current update at the time of writing. This update offers a broad range of support for the majority of SLRs (and some compacts). It can be downloaded at: www. adobe.com/products/photoshop/cameraraw.html

The DNG (Digital Negative) File In an effort to standardise the RAW format, Adobe have created DNG as a universal RAW file. The effect of this is to convert your RAW file into a DNG file, which in turn saves all the camera’s RAW data without being camera make/model specific. This allows software makers to concentrate on tweaking their software rather than writing new RAW compatibility modules every time a new camera is introduced. The idea is that you only need one converter for each new RAW format. When you then convert a RAW to DNG, any software that supports DNG can use it. For further reading on DNG files visit the link below: http://reviews. photographyreview.com/blog/dng-format-for-the-future

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My thanks to Seth Resnick and Jamie Spritzer, authors of The Photoshop Lightroom 2 Workbook, for the following information regarding this topic.

Memory Cards Have you ever had a memory card corrupt on you? I have and whilst it contained in excess of 80 photographs, luckily it was a photo dive I was able to re-shoot. The data simply disappeared from the card, but what continues to annoy me to this day is that I have never been able to determine why this occurred. Was I at fault, was it a defective card or just bad luck? I’ll never know but I do believe that memory cards are taken for granted and frequently overlooked as an important part of digital workflow.

Choosing the Right Size Memory Card Flash memory cards have been increasing in size and are now available up to 32 GB. I recommend using 2—8 GB cards. Why? The memory card is likely to be the first place where you can encounter a problem. Any failure with the card can wreck a photo shoot. It’s wise to match the memory card to the RAW file size produced by the camera. In my early digital days I used to believe that more storage on a card was better until it was pointed out to me that a card can corrupt at any time for a variety of reasons. Better to loose a few hundred RAW files from a 4 GB card than thousands from a 32 GB. It’s been likened to putting all of your ‘digital eggs’ into one basket. The key is not to have too many images on one card in case of failure.

FIG. 1.32

FIG. 1.33

How Long will a Memory Card Last All cards have a lifespan, as is the case with all digital products. Whilst the manufacturers are reluctant to post specific numbers, all cards will eventually die, as the cells in the card start to expire. Do not assume that a card will last for 300,000 erase and write cycles. It is a good idea to introduce new cards, using your existing cards as back-up at regular intervals.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

Always format the Memory Card in Your Camera. Every Time Whatever make of card you choose, you must format this media in the camera. Do not delete the images on your card in your computer. This is the one main cause of data loss. The reason is that all cards run with their own operating system and have their own native file structure. This media typically needs to be formatted to a FAT16 file structure while many computers use a FAT32 file structure. If you manipulate the images on a card using a FAT32 computer, this information will be written to the card. So, you will have a FAT16 device with FAT32 information — not a good idea and such an easy problem to avoid.

Tips 





Editing in the Camera While it is generally safe to delete files as you shoot in the camera, there is an exception to this rule that can lead to data loss. 

Do not delete files at the end of the card to create extra space for more shooting. Data is most vulnerable when the cards are close to full. It is almost a guarantee that you will encounter data loss if you delete files at the end of the card.





Always format compact flash cards in your camera, not out of it! You should reformat the card every time you remove it from the camera. Do not take the card out of your camera, check the images on a computer and then put the card back into the camera and continue shooting. You risk data loss. As a general rule, never fill a memory card if there is not enough space to write the last file. Reason — the entire card may corrupt. Leave a few shots (3 or 4) at the end of each card. This greatly reduces the risk of card failure.

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The Underwater Photographer

Understanding Bit Depth In digital photography the expression ‘bit depth’ relates to the number of different tones or colour that can be represented by the pixels. These tones are also known as levels. JPEG images are 8-bit files which means they are 28 (2 to power of 8 or (2  2  2  2  2  2  2  2) indicating that they have a bit depth of 256 possible colours. So, one pixel of a JPEG file can represent 256 different tones or colours. FIG. 1.34 8-bit example.

With a 16-bit file you have an enormous 65,536 shades in each of the channels, so smoother tonal graduations are possible and more colours can be displayed. With the exception of a few high-end models, most SLRs are 12-bit files, so a RAW image will record 212 or 4096 possible colours. So, one pixel of a RAW image can signify 4096 different tones or levels. FIG. 1.35 16-bit example.

A disadvantage of shooting a JPEG file is that several thousands of tones available to us end up being immediately discarded due to in-camera processing with JPEG. This simply means that the higher the bit depth, the smoother and more continuous the tonal graduation will appear in a digital image. Scientific research has shown that only 200 tones are required for humans to believe they are looking at a continuous tone photo-quality image. For further reading go to: http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/about.htm

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Principles of Underwater Photography

HDR (High Dynamic Range) Dynamic range is the range between the smallest and largest values we can percieve. If we think of high dynamic range with sound, it is the difference between the lowest sounds our ears can hear and the highest sounds they can hear. In digital imaging terms dynamic range is the difference between the measurement of the range between the brightest and darkest parts of an image. Digital camera sensors have developed so much in recent years but as yet they are nowhere near as sensitive as the human eye. An aspiration of camera manufacturers is to increase the dynamic range of a camera sensor to match that of human vision, but at present this remains nothing more than an ideal. In digital photography the problem can be tackled using high dynamic range techniques. HDR allows you to seamlessly merge together a series of photographs by using different exposure settings. These techniques allow us to overcome the dynamic range limitations of a camera sensor, and produce an image with a greater range of tones than is possible with conventional methods. There is a range of HDR software packages available but the easiest soloution if you want to produce a high dynamic range underwater photograph is to use a RAW file and other tools in a RAW converter. During a recent workshop and for the purposes of this section I am grateful to Kay Newman who produced this HDR image for illustration purposes. After downloading the photo, the white balance was adjusted in Lightroom, then exported as a TIFF file (Fig. 1.36). The exposure of the same photo was then increased by þ1 EV and exported as a TIFF (Fig. 1.37). The third photo was produced by increasing the EV by þ2 (Fig. 1.38). The three TIFF files were then processed and tone mapped in Photomatix Pro 3.1. Final processing was completed in Photoshop CS3.

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The Underwater Photographer

FIG. 1.36 Taken with a Nikon D300 in Aquatica Housing, Sigma 10—20 mm lens at 10 mm, f4.0 1/30 sec, ISO 400.

FIG. 1.37

32

FIG. 1.38

Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.39 The finished picture! Photomatix Pro is a stand-alone program that creates and processes HDR (High Dynamic Range) images, and runs on Mac OS X and Windows 98/ME/2000/XP/Vista/7. A free Lightroom Plug-in makes it possible to access the program directly from Lightroom. Some of the features of Photomatix Pro are also available as a Filter Plug-ln of Photoshop CS2/CS3/CS4 and an Edit Plug-in of Aperture 2.1. Go to www.photomatix-pro.en.softonic.com. 33

The Underwater Photographer

Refraction

FIG. 1.40

Put on your mask, hold your camera in front of you and submerge. You will notice that, underwater, your camera appears larger and closer to you than it really is. This effect is called refraction and is the difference between the behaviour of light rays in air and water. Place a pencil in a glass of water and you will see it bend at the join between the air and water. The measurement of this ‘bending’ of light as it enters a medium (i.e. water) from another of different density (air) is known as the index of refraction. The refractive index of water is one and a third (133%) more than that of air, which is why objects viewed underwater appear to be one-third bigger than their actual size. This not only fools the eye of the photographer, it also fools the camera lens! For further in-depth reading directly related to water and light in underwater photography I recommend the website: http://www.seafriends.org.nz/phgraph/water.htm http://www.camerasunderwater.info/optics/Refraction.html

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Principles of Underwater Photography

Loss of Light and Loss of Colour Topics concerning the difficulty of light and colour loss underwater have become so hackneyed in recent years that it is a challenge to grab the attention of an audience. Let’s face it, most of you have seen and heard it many times before, both in pictures and words! Light and colour are absorbed at depth, blar, blar, etc, etc. However, my experience in reality is that although these basics are common place, sometimes they don’t really ‘sink in’. That is, until one is comparing one’s underwater efforts with another and on the same dive, same place, same time, same camera, a disparity is suddenly revealed. Their underwater photos are better than mine!

‘How can that be the case, we were using the same camera’?‘ ‘We were shooting the same subject side by side and what‘s more, I found it first.’ This is where I tend to become involved. ‘Martin, can you look over our shots, I don’t seem to be getting the colour and clarity like everyone else.’

From my experiencing of teaching you can be assured without a shadow of doubt that the reality of light and colour loss will one day catch up with you if you do not understand and work hard to remember the principles whilst you’re shooting. I find that beginners often forget that horizontal distance also reduces light and colour. If you are 7 m deep and 3 m from your subject, the total light path is actually equal to 10 m. For another example, cast your mind back to an occasion of good visibility in 10 m of water. Can you remember that your eye saw a much more colourful spectacle than your camera was able to record? This was because your brain compensated for the blue colour cast and effectively ‘saturated’ the warmer colours. Your camera cannot perform these tasks by itself, it needs some help from you, and by understanding the fundamentals of how light behaves underwater you will be able to take greater control of your underwater photography. The behaviour of light underwater is unlike the behaviour of light on land. For starters, the density of water is 800 times that of air. Such is this density that we can compare a picture taken in 1 m of water with a picture on land taken at 800 m away.  

As soon as light enters the water it also interacts with suspended particles, resulting in a loss of both colour and contrast. Particulates and water molecules react with the light entering the sea, and it immediately begins to be absorbed.

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The Underwater Photographer

FIG. 1.41 The filtration effects of colour according to

depth.

0m

100%

50% 10 m/33

20 m/66

25%

12.5% 30 m/100





Red goes first, then orange and yellow, until only green and blue are left. So rapid is the loss of red that within half a metre of the surface those red swimming shorts are muted and dull. Even in the best imaginable visibility, particulates are suspended in the water column. In a typical tropical diving destination with good visibility, these particulates tend to reflect and scatter light as they move through the water. Whilst you can reduce their effects, you can never eliminate them entirely.

It is also important for the underwater photographer to recognise that:    

The conditions on the surface have an effect on how light passes through the water. Calm seas allow more light to pass through whilst a choppy sea reflects light. The position of the sun in the sky and the time of day also have an effect on the amount of light entering the water. When the sun is high in the sky over a flat calm sea, most of the sun’s rays pass through the surface. As the sun arcs closer to the horizon the light loss due to the angle of refraction against the water surface increases dramatically.

The light which does penetrate at these times is usually soft and diffused and I find it the most inspiring and magical time of day to take natural light photos underwater, although if you want to take pictures when the sun is high in the sky the best lighting conditions are between 1000 and 1400 hrs.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

Rough waters reflect and disperse most of the sun’s light rays

Calm water allows greatest light penetration

High-angle sunlight penetrates water surface

Clouds diffuse and reflect light rays

Low-angle sunlight is reflected

Dappled light

Radial light FIG. 1.42 The behaviour of natural light underwater.

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The Underwater Photographer

Closer and Closer Throughout this book you will read and be reminded of the fact that: The reduction of the column of water between the lens and the subject is paramount. This point cannot be emphasised enough if you are intent on minimising the problems of colour loss, diffusion, refraction and backscatter. The choice of lenses makes it possible to reduce the column of water because of their close focusing properties. Macro lenses achieve considerable magnification and focus very close to underwater subjects. Wide angle lenses also focus extremely closely whilst their wide angle of view is able to take more subjects into the viewfinder.

FIG. 1.43 Taken with a wide angle lens it’s so easy to believe that you are

‘up-close’ to the soft coral branch and filling the frame, but it’s clear to see that the subject is lost in the distance. Also notice how dull the colour has recorded even though I am using a flashgun. 38

FIG. 1.44 Same subject and a little closer but I’m still too far away to make any difference.

Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.45 Now I am close! In this example I’m no more than 20 cm from the coral branch, which fills the frame. I’m now shooting at 180 to the way in

which I approached. Notice how sharp and colourful it’s been recorded because I have reduced the water column between my camera and the coral.

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The Underwater Photographer

Tips For any underwater photographer who is struggling to achieve pleasing results is — GET CLOSE to the subject and FILL the frame. Use this maxim at every opportunity. When you think you’re close, get closer!

40

This habit frequently affects beginners to underwater photography. They fail to get close to a subject and as a result take their photos from too far away. Not only does the subject look tiny in the finished picture, but also the distance involved reduces the effectiveness of flash, resulting in poor colours and sharpness. There is no point in blaming your camera and flashgun. Getting as close as physically possible is often all it takes to produce a significant improvement in results, as long as you can do this with due consideration for the underwater environment — a subject covered in detail elsewhere.

Principles of Underwater Photography

The Problems with Shooting Down The practice of shooting at a downward angle is the single most destructive fault in underwater photography (along with failing to get close). It is a common trait of 99% of all beginners and unless recognised and corrected it will blight your efforts for evermore.

Why and How it Occurs From the very first moment we fit a dive mask to our face and stare below the waves we develop a pattern of looking into the sea at a downward angle. Next comes the snorkel and fins. The very nature of us swimming in this way causes us to lie on the water at a horizontal angle and fin from point a to point b. Some continue and qualify to use scuba whilst others are content to snorkel. Whatever we choose, after our first steps into the sea we develop a pattern and habit of looking down. And why not? It’s comfortable and it’s

FIG. 1.46 Looking down! And why not? It’s the most effective way to move through the water but for underwater photographers it’s essential that you

break this habit!

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The Underwater Photographer

the most effective way to move through the water, and looking down is where the fish are! When I learnt to dive in the late 1970s I was encouraged to look down at a 30 degree angle towards the seabed in order to see what the dive had to offer. Everything about this position was simple and relaxing. Once in a while I would look up towards the surface but on the whole it was not until I made my ascent with my body in a vertical position climbing the shot line that I would extend my neck muscles to look upwards towards the surface.

Have you Ever. Cast your mind back to a recent occasion when you were escorted by your dive guide. A clink from his dive tank and his extended arm directs your vision upwards into the blue water column. Perhaps a turtle, napoleon wrasse or a white tip reef shark. You look upwards out into the blue and towards the surface but as soon as the sighting has passed you realign your body position to what is comfortable for you — horizontal, finning alongside the reef with your eye-line looking downwards.

Tips 









42

Get below a subject and shoot up towards the surface or at least at eye level — don’t shoot down! Remind yourself constantly to ‘shoot eye level or upwards’. Attach a ‘shoot up’ sticker to your camera housing. Look for subjects growing proud of the reef which can be approached from below. Practise approaching fish from below and shoot upwards.

When you first take your camera underwater it is the most natural and relaxing thing to look through the viewfinder at a downward angle. You can feel the controls between your fingers; see the LCD screen on the back of the camera and everything fits so snugly. Its commonplace to frame your composition and press the shutter because it is the easiest position there is to shoot pictures. But — this angle of view usually makes dismal pictures! Think about the photographs which you take on land. Would you stand tall and point your camera downwards to photograph a young child playing on the grass? For those of you who have at some time had a domestic pet in the house, again, would you shoot downwards from a standing position? I’m sure you wouldn’t. Human nature convinces us to crouch down at eye level. Neither would we shoot down on to the heads of friends and family when taking a portrait. The same principles apply underwater. But as I have already discussed, it is natural to look and shoot down underwater and it’s very comfortable, but we need to break this habit and, like other practices that are so common, it can be a challenge to put right.

Are you Prone to this Fault?  

Are you continually photographing subjects surrounded by unflattering rocks, sand and reef? Is your shot a bird’s-eye view of the subject?

Principles of Underwater Photography

   

Are these unflattering ‘backgrounds’ often brighter and more reflective than your intended subject? Do you have a stack of photographs with a cyan coloured sandy background? Do your pictures appear flat and two-dimensional or frequently lack a ‘sense of depth’? Are you in the habit of shooting subjects at downward angles?

By adopting these upward attitudes and angles on subjects, you not only achieve better separation against the background and a sense of depth but the subject also gains a greater sense of prominence in the picture frame. Placing the subject on the proverbial pedestal, above the eyes of the viewer, will always afford it greater attention.

A Little Psychology ‘Life is full of ups and downs’ Ups  things are looking up  thumbs up  are you up to it?  look up to parents or mentors Downs down in the dumps  feeling down  looking down on — belittling 

The most significant improvements to my own underwater photography occurred during my early days in the early 1980s. It came like a ‘bolt out of the blue’ when one day I realised that 95% of everything I shot but disliked was composed at a downward angle. However, I also had a small selection of underwater favourites, all, without exception, were taken shooting at eye level or upwards. I felt I needed some additional, professional-based verification, so I checked out back copies of National Geographic and the best underwater photo magazines and books around at that time. I found that 90% of quality images published, and those which were winning competitions, were also composed at eye level or upwards. I didn’t stop there! I then began to look at the exceptions to shooting down. Those shots which were successful and dynamic, but worked at a downward angle.

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The Underwater Photographer

‘Exceptions to the Rule’ — when it’s GOOD to Shoot Down There will always be exceptions to this general guideline and over the years I’ve endeavoured to document those situations and circumstances in which underwater downward angles can be dynamic, effective, and visually pleasing to the eye. However, I have not found many.

When there is no Visual Orientation to the Horizon In topside photography the horizon line is a way of connection to the orientation of subjects. We look at photographs and gain a sense of what is up or down. However, if there is no visual orientation to an underwater subject we have little or no idea of which way is up or down. Abstract

FIG. 1.47 Cucumber abstract. To look at, this abstract study of a sea cucumber gives no ideas as to which way it was shot so we tend to interpret the orientation as eye level. It was in fact taken looking directly downwards. Subal housing, Nikon D200, Nikon 60 mm macro lens, twin Inon Z220s, f32 at 1/180th.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

photos are an example: we can shoot detailed patterns of a parrot fish at a downward angle but unless we include background detail it is virtually impossible to determine the orientation so we tend to interpret it as an eye level angle.

Subjects which have a Dynamic Shape when Viewed Downwards During my workshops I refer this concept to marine life which have a great ‘back’. For example turtles, mantas and whale sharks are very photogenic when shot at a downward angle.

FIG. 1.48 Manta Ray. Looking directly down on this Manta provides a sense of scale against the diver. Nikon D200 with Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens. One Sea & Sea YS 120 flashgun, f8 at 1/30th sec, ISO 400, night dive Kona coast, Hawaii.

FIG. 1.49 Scorpion fish. It’s the dynamics of the eye contact and the open mouth which work so well in this image. He yawned at me but I missed the moment so I took my time and waited for him to repeat his behaviour. Thankfully, I was rewarded. Subal housing, Nikon D300, Nikon 60 mm macro lens, twin Inon Z220 flashguns positioned each side of the subject, f16 at 1/320th sec, ISO 200.

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The Underwater Photographer

FIG. 1.50 Having shot several hundred images of turtles off Sipadan Island in the 1990s I’m well aware that a downward angle of view accentuates their most photogenic feature. The carapace. How many other sea creatures could you successfully photograph whilst they are swimming away from you? Subal housing, Nikon D300, Tokina 10—17 mm lens zoomed to 14 mm, f8 at 1/45th sec, ISO 200, natural light. Auto WB adjusted in Adobe Camera Raw (ADR) with the WB colour picker tool.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

Whilst visiting Hawaii’s Kona coast I was fascinated by the number of paintings, sculptures and other types of art work which depicted manta and turtles from a downward angle. Even scuba-orientated T-shirt designs represented them from above. There are numerous subjects which suit this exception. Eagle rays, sea lions, penguins, sharks and dolphins to name a few can all look photogenic shooting downwards. There are also myriad of close-up and macro subjects: clams, shrimps and crabs, etc. Just think of subjects which have colourful markings and features. For example, Porcelain crabs look great from a slightly downward angle.

Subjects with Features, Eyes, Mouth, etc. on Top There are some subjects, like blue spot stingrays, scorpion fish and crocodile fish etc. which can be difficult to photograph from below. Their key features, i.e. eyes and mouth, are situated on top and offer the best view from a slightly downward angle.

FIG. 1.51 Ariel Jake seaplane. I shot this seaplane in Palau with a Nikon D200, Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f8 at 1/60th sec, ISO 100. I turned my

flashguns to ‘Off’ to shoot this downward angle and Auto WB adjusted in Adobe Camera Raw (ADR) with the WB colour picker tool.

47

The Underwater Photographer

Strong Eye Contact Eye contact with the viewer can win over the negativity of a downward angle. The absence of eye contact from a subject has the effect of leaving the viewer detached and indifferent.

Wrecks One of the most photogenic downward angles of all is when photographing shipwrecks. Wrecks look great from above and this angle is ideal for capturing the atmosphere and, from a practical point of view, it affords an angle in which the strongest features of the wreck can be emphasised.

Seascape Vistas and When Using Magic Filters In topside photography it is a popular technique to angle the camera downwards and from above to capture a landscape in a rural setting. UK land photographers Joe Cornish and Colin Prior are masters of this technique. The use of Magic filters in shooting underwater seascapes is not dissimilar. Magic filters work best when the sun is coming from behind the photographer and the camera is aimed at a downward angle. Aiming your camera in this direction is a prerequisite to achieving the best possible results using these filters. More about Magic filters in the ‘All About Lighting’ chapter.

Consider your favourite underwater coffee table books. It’s an interesting exercise to see just how many of the images you admire are shot at either an eye level angle or shooting upwards.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

Understanding Lenses The lens on the front of your camera is of paramount importance. It’s your vision to the underwater world and which lens you choose will determine the type of underwater photographs you will be able to capture. Wide angle lenses are ideal for shooting reefs, wrecks and large schools of fish because they are capable of focusing at close distances and have a huge field of view. Macro lenses are also capable of focusing very close to a subjects but have a narrow field of view and are best used for capturing small critters like nudibranch’s, seahorses and blennies.

FIG. 1.53 Canon 60 mm macro lens.

FIG. 1.52 Sigma 10—20 mm.

FIG. 1.54 Sigma 150 mm macro.

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FIG. 1.55 Tamron 10—24 m.

FIG. 1.56 Sigma 17—70 mm.

There are a variety of lenses for uw photography but which one do you choose? Will they all fit your model of DSLR? What do the numbers mean that are associated with each lens. What does a ‘fast’ or ‘slow’ lens mean?

Lens Basics Each SLR camera manufacturer has a specific lens mount design. For example, a Nikon lens cannot be fitted onto a Canon camera and vice versa. Fortunately for the photographic industry there are several independent lens manufacturers such as Tamron, Tokina, and Sigma. These companies make a range of top quality lenses to fit a variety of cameras.

Understanding Focal Lengths In simple terms, the focal length of a lens is the distance between your camera’s sensor and the optical centre of the lens. But primarily it indicates the field of view of the subject or how much of the subject you can fit into the frame. The shorter the focal length (which is measured in millimetres) the greater the width of coverage. Likewise, the longer the focal length, the more the scene will appear magnified and the less you will get into the photograph.

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Principles of Underwater Photography

Digital Focal Lengths and the Crop Factor The majority (but not all) digital SLR cameras have a sensor, which is reduced in size when compared to a frame of 35 mm film used in film cameras. The field of view you would see through the same lens will differ between the two camera bodies. Since a cropped sensor is smaller than a frame of 35 mm film, it captures a smaller portion of the area covered. The focal length and magnification of the lens retains the same engraving on the barrel of the lens, for example a 12 mm—24 mm. However, in view of the small sensor you get a ‘crop factor’, which produces an equivalent focal length. Nikon cameras have a crop factor of 1.5. So, apply this to the 12 mm—24 mm lens example and in reality it becomes a 18 mm—36 mm (even though it is still engraved with 12 mm—24 mm on the barrel. Confusing I agree!) Canon cameras have a ‘crop factor’ of 1.6 so their 50 mm lens in reality has a focal length of 80 mm. Camera manufacturers have designed certain lenses only for use with digital cameras so those ‘digital lenses’ work under the same principle. Notwithstanding that the Nikon Dx fisheye is labelled on the lens barrel with ’10.5 mm’ it still equates to a 15.75 mm lens (1.5  10.5 mm ¼ 15.75 mm) or 16 mm for short.

Exceptions to Crop Factor — Full Frame Sensors The exception to this rule is a series of full frame cameras made by both Nikon and Canon whose sensor is the same size as a 35 mm negative (from a film camera). FIG. 1.57

Focal Length Vertical Angle of View

f

Scene

Picture Angle

Camera

Lens

Camera Sensor

Horizontal Angle of View Field of View

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The Underwater Photographer

Crop Factors Explained

Black - Full Frame

Red - 1.3x Crop Factor

Yellow - 1.5x Crop Factor

Green - 1.6x Crop Factor

FIG. 1.58 Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye.

FIG. 1.59

Canon’s range of full frame sensor digital cameras to date are:   

Canon EOS 5D Canon EOS 5D Mark 11 Canon EOS 1Ds Mark 111

Nikon’s range of full frame sensor cameras to date are:   

Nikon D3 12.1 mega pixel Nikon D3x 24.5 mega pixel Nikon D700 12.1 mega pixel

Further discussion concerning full frame sensors is beyond the scope of this chapter. But for detailed discussion on crop factors, full frame sensor cameras and more Go to: http://digital-photography-school.com/blog/full-frame-sensor-vs-cropsensor-which-is-right-for-you

Lens Focal Lengths and Depth of Field Wide Angle lenses with short focal lengths (low numbers) offer the greatest depth of field and a larger picture area. A Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens has a very wide picture area and a huge D of F. These attributes make it an ideal lens to shoot seascapes, wrecks and other scenes with the potential for a wide field of view. Other popular wide angle lenses for underwater photography are the Nikon 12—24 mm, the Canon 10—22 mm and the Tokina 10—17 mm zoom lens. For an indepth review of the Canon 10 mm—22 mm lens by James Wiseman of Wetpixel.com go to: http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/canon-10-22-lens-andikelite-8-dome-port/

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Principles of Underwater Photography

FIG. 1.61 Nikon 12—24 mm AFS.

FIG. 1.60 Tokina 10—17 mm.

FIG. 1.62 Nikon’s 17—35 mm zoom. Whilst expensive, it’s an excellent zoom lens which ‘sits’ between a regular wide angle and a macro. This particular lens belongs to Alex Mustard. Notice how he has afixed black tape to reflective surfaces around the lens to minimise flare from sunlight.

FIG. 1.63 Nikon 105 mm AF-S Micro.

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The Underwater Photographer

Tip Do not confuse a 10.5 mm fisheye with a 105 mm macro lens. It is easily done!

Lenses with longer focal lengths (higher numbers) have the effect of moving the subject closer to you and increasing the size in the frame. In general they provide a smaller D of F which can be an advantage for the underwater photographer. This is due to the lens’s shallow depth of field which lets you blur the background whilst keeping the subject in sharp focus. A Nikon 105 mm lens has a typical narrow picture area which results in reduced D of F. However, this makes it ideal for small shy creatures and fish portraits, which can fill the entire frame. These lenses are known as macro lenses and allow the user to achieve a magnified view of a subject. A 105 mm lens is completely the opposite to wide angle lenses. Other popular macro lenses are:     

50 mm macro 60 mm macro 90 mm macro 105 mm macro 150 mm macro

Prime or Zoom Lenses? There are two types of lenses: prime and zoom. A prime lens has a fixed focal length like a 10.5 mm fisheye or a 50 mm macro. A zoom lens has a range of focal lengths, i.e a 12 mm—24 mm or 17 mm—35 mm. In the past a prime lens was always optically superior to a zoom but this is no longer the case. The advanced improvement in lens design has elevated zoom lenses into the same class and it’s difficult to tell the difference in optical qualtity when two similar lenses, zoom and prime, are compared side by side.

FIG. 1.64 Tokina 12 mm 24 m.

54

FIG. 1.65 Nikon’s AF-S 14-24 mm F2.8G ED zoom which offers a wide field of view on the FX (full frame) format for cameras such as the Nikon D700, D3 and the D3X.

Principles of Underwater Photography

For an in-depth review of lens performance, both prime and zoom, go to http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/

Image Stabilisation VR Vibration Reduction Explained Lenses are now available with Image Stabilisation built in to their design. VR (the Nikon brand name for this technology) stands for ‘Vibration Reduction’ whereby the lens electronically compensates for unsteady hands. VR is especially important at long focal lengths, e.g. 200 mm and above, because the lens magnifies camera shake at the same time it is magnifying the subject. A VR lens will allow you to use slower shutter speeds without introducing camera shake. The alternative to a VR lens would be mounting the camera on a tripod or using a higher ISO setting, which may reduce image quality but allows the use of higher shutter speeds. Anti camera shake systems (Canon use the term ‘Stabilisation’) boast the ability to hand hold a lens at two shutter speeds slower than the norm. For example, on land I use a 70 mm—200 mm lens. A rule of thumb is to set a shutter speed faster than the focal length of the lens to avoid shutter shake. I use 1/250th sec with this lens. VR now enables a shutter speed two EV slower, i.e 1/60th sec. Whilst I have yet to test the results of this claim myself, I am satisfied that Stabilisation and VR technology delivers on its promise.

Fast and Slow Lenses. What does it Mean? A lens is often referred to as ‘slow’ or ‘fast’, because of its aperture.  





The ‘faster’ a lens is, the more the aperture is allowed to open (the wider an aperture) and the lower the number can go in f-stops. Faster lenses let more light in to strike the camera sensor, which allows a slower shutter speed to be used. So a lens that can be set to f2.5 or f1.8 is considered very fast. Fast telephoto lenses, so popular with wildlife and landscape photography are expensive and can cost two to three times more for this convenience. A lens that has a lowest f-stop setting for example f5.6, is often considered ‘slow’. This lens will require a slower shutter speed to achieve a correct exposure.

Whilst there are numerous lenses to choose, I suggest you consider the above models for all your needs. Visit the reviews at www.dpreview.com and keep in mind underwater users’ comments from: www.wetpixel.com; www. divephotoguide.com

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CHAPTER 2

Digital Compact Cameras by Mark Koekemoer D

igital compact cameras have fast become a standard accessory amongst divers. With the advent of small niche companies developing accessories for underwater compact housings, the tools to help get these images are now readily available and affordable. Whether it’s your first digital compact, upgrading from existing digital compact or downsizing from an SLR, this chapter will help you make a more informed decision.

Understanding the Digital Compact Camera The camera basically consists of a lens and a sensor. The lens transmits light onto the sensor, which is then processed and recorded to memory as an image. Depending on the quality of the sensor, a camera with 6 to 8 million or ‘mega’ pixels is more than adequate for general purpose use and printing to A3 size.

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ISO Noise is heat generated from the sensor and appears as red specks in the image, which looks horrible! The amount of noise generated by the sensor depends on two things: the quality of the sensor and ISO. ISO is the sensitivity of the sensor inside the camera. When the ISO is increased the sensor generates more heat and becomes more sensitive to light, therefore the noise increases. ISO can typically range from 100 to 1600 and some 3200. Increasing the ISO is useful in low light conditions or when seeking more depth of field.

Depth of Field with Compacts Depth of field refers to the area of the image in front and behind the main focus point which appears in focus or ‘sharp’. The aperture has a direct influence on depth of field. Closing down the aperture means less light enters the lens, so increasing the ISO helps keep light levels up whilst maintaining depth of field. Depth of field is also affected by the focal length and sensor format.

Focal Lengths Focal length is the distance in mm from the optical centre of the lens to the focal point, which is located on the sensor. A focal length of 50 mm is called ‘normal’ as this is the way we see things with the naked eye, which yields a picture angle of 46 degrees. Wide angle lenses (short focal length) capture more because they have a wider picture angle, whilst tele lenses (long focal length) have a narrower picture angle. Lenses with shorter focal lengths produce images with larger depth of field. For instance, a 28 mm lens at f5.6 produces images with greater depth of field than a 70 mm lens at the same aperture. Compact cameras have short focal lengths and therefore have great depth of field throughout their range. A shallow depth of field can be used to isolate the subject from a busy background. On a compact you will have to use the Macro mode to achieve this.

Close-up and Macro Macro means the optical ability to produce a 1:1 or higher magnification of an object on the sensor. Digital compacts generally have a minimum focusing distance of about 30 cm; the Macro mode allows the camera to focus closer to the subject therefore filling the frame.

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FIG. 2.1 Inon close-up and flash (Mark Koekemoer).

Why not use the optical zoom you ask? By zooming in, the camera will actually force you further back from your subject before it achieves focus. The optical zoom is the range between the minimum and maximum focal lengths. Digital compacts have 3, 4, 5 or 10 optical zoom. This means that the size of the image projected on the sensor will be 3 larger at the telephoto end than at maximum wide angle.

Built-in Flash This works quite well in air but has a limited range underwater. It can help restore colours in subjects that are close to the lens. Depending on the clarity of the water, light can bounce off small particles causing bright specks to ruin your image. This is known as backscatter. To prevent backscatter you need to use an off camera flash to help position your light source in such a way that the light illuminates the subject and not

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the column of water in front of the lens. Flashguns are discussed in more detail later in the chapter. A small diffuser on the housing helps spread the light from the built-in flash, which is useful in preventing shadows with close-up photography. Another way of restoring colours is by using the Underwater mode. The Underwater mode electronically restores reds over short distances. A much more successful method of colour balance in natural light photography is manual white balance which I will discuss in more detail later.

Shutter Lag This is the time between pressing the shutter release button and when the camera is ready to take the next image. This process can be divided into three parts:  



Pressing the shutter halfway so the camera can achieve focus. Depressing the shutter fully and the camera recording the image to memory. The duration of this process varies between cameras and is inherent with compact cameras. There are a few techniques that can help reduce shutter lag. Prefocus by depressing the shutter halfway and anticipate the movement of the subject.

Alternatively, choose subjects that do not move very fast or do not move at all. Making use of fresh batteries and high speed memory cards also helps.

Video Mode Digital compact cameras are not exclusively stills cameras but can also capture video clips. By selecting the Video mode you can video anything from schooling Hammerheads to Clown fish. When using Video mode you may want to consider a constant light source such as a torch with a wide beam.

Choosing a Camera When deciding on a digital compact camera there is a number of important criteria that must be taken into consideration. These factors will play a big role in the potential of your underwater photography. The shear number of digital compacts available on the market can be bewildering; however the following points will help make this process less daunting.  

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It may sound obvious but picking out cameras which have housings will substantially narrow your search. There are a few compact cameras on the market that are already water resistant up to three metres and some even 10 metres!

Digital Compact Cameras by Mark Koekemoer

   

 

These cameras are not ideal for getting decent images underwater so investing in a housing that can accommodate accessories is essential. A factor that has a big influence on your choice of wet lenses in the future is dictated by the focal length of the camera. Wet lenses are discussed in detail later. Typically, cameras with 5 or more optical zoom are problematic to add wide angle lenses to the housings. The design of the front port to accommodate the lens causes vignetting. The barrel of the lens becomes visible resulting in dark corners in the image. The most accommodated digital compact cameras for attaching wet lenses are the 35 mm wide and 28 mm wide. Nowadays cameras are designed with 25 mm or even 24 mm wide lenses, which you will struggle to attach a wet lens to.

Exposure Control The camera must have some degree of exposure control. This usually comes in the form of Exposure Value compensation þ/EV which allows you to over or under expose either way by two f-stops. More importantly though is the ability to control the Aperture. Aperture Priority (Av) allows you to manipulate the amount of light that enters through the lens. If the camera does not have Aperture Priority, then the camera will choose its own aperture and the light from the flashgun may not reach the subject. If the camera has Aperture Priority, in most cases it will also have Shutter Speed priority (Tv). This allows you to select a fast shutter speed to freeze moving subjects or a slow shutter speed, creating motion in the image. Shutter speeds can also allow you to control the background colour of the frame. Fast shutter speed can give dark black background whilst slower shutter speeds give deep to light blue backgrounds.

White Balance Manual White Balance is another useful feature to have in a camera. White balance is a process whereby the camera is calibrated to understand what the colour white looks like under varying lighting conditions. A piece of white paper will differ in hue depending on the temperature of the light source. As colours are lost at depth, the white balance function helps restore a colour balance by simply using a grey or white object as a reference. White balance is a technique used for natural light photography and is suited to wide angle and fisheye lenses. White balance is also used in conjunction with colour correction filters, which are discussed later.

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FIG. 2.3 Canon G10 top view.

FIG. 2.2 Canon G10.

Courtesy of Canon UK.

FIG. 2.4 Canon Ixus 980 IS camera.

Courtesy of Cameras Underwater.

FIG. 2.5 Sea & Sea DX-2G Front.

Go to http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic¼25894 for further discussion on white balance.

Choice of Camera Popular camera brands include Canon, Epoque, Fuji, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Sea & Sea and Sony. At the time of writing the following cameras meet the minimum requirements: Canon Powershot G10 (Fig. 2.2), Canon Digital Ixus 980 (Fig. 2.4), Sea & Sea DX-2G (Fig. 2.5) and Sony DSC-W300.

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Choosing a Housing There is sometimes more than one housing on offer for a particular camera. The information below will help you decide which is the better housing for you and your camera. Housings for compacts are either manufactured under their own name, such as Canon or Fuji, or manufactured by third party companies such as Ikelite or Sea & Sea. Make sure the controls from the housing line up nicely with the controls on the camera and that all key controls are accessible through the housing. When choosing a housing for your camera, make sure it can accommodate accessories such as supplementary wet lenses and flashguns. Whilst you may not invest in these from the outset, they will become invaluable to your underwater photography at a later stage and you do not want to have to end up purchasing another camera and housing for that reason. If you already own a camera with 5 or more optical zoom, the front lens port of the housing may make it difficult to add wet lenses. Some housings have filter threads on the front of the lens port. These threads can accommodate lenses and filters with thread mounts. Not all filter threads are the same in diameter, therefore making them incompatible with some lenses. Even though a lens fits the thread, they are not always optically compatible so always make sure first. It is inevitable that you will one day also invest in a flashgun so it is important to make sure that the housing has suitable points for connecting a fibre optic or wire cable to it. This is to ensure reliable communication between camera and flashgun. Some housings will have built-in flashgun sockets whilst others require an adaptable fitting either to the housing or lens mount. Check that a tray for a flashgun can also be easily fitted to the housing.

Size, Weight and Depth Rating Size and weight may also be taken into consideration as well as how buoyant or negative the system will be underwater. Some housing manufacturers provide a small weight that attaches to the tripod mount underneath the housing, which help keeps positively buoyant systems neutral. Housings are typically rated to 40 m and 60 m. If you regularly dive deeper than 40 m then depth rating will play an important factor in your decision making process. Wrist straps are usually included with the housing, however as a safety rule I always like to have both hands free just in case so I tend to ditch these.

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Popular Housing Brands These include Canon, Epoque, Fantasea, Fuji, Ikelite, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Sea & Sea and Sony. At the time of writing the following camera/ housing combinations are suitable contenders: Canon Powershot G10 with Fisheye FIXG10, Canon Digital Ixus 980is with WP-DC27, Sea & Sea DX-2G and Sony DSC-W300 with MPK-WD.

Accessories for Digital Compact Housings Your preferred subject matter and the conditions in which you are diving will dictate where your next investment lies. Often the need for more equipment will derive from dissatisfaction with your images. Accessories generally include supplementary wet lenses, flashguns and filters.

Supplementary Wet Lenses Wet lenses are lenses that can be attached and removed underwater allowing you to photograph close-up as well as wide angle subjects on the same dive. You never know what may turn up and this is a huge advantage of compacts over SLRs. There are housings that support interchangeable lens ports for different lenses but you lose the ability to change lenses underwater. Lens holders are available that fit onto flashgun arms to allow you to safely store a lens when not in use. Although designed to get wet, they are not mutually exclusive to underwater use and can be used on land as long as you dry the water droplets off the lens first. There are generally three types of wet lens:   

Wide angle Fisheye, and Close-up.

Viewing Angles Water is much denser than air and light diffuses quickly resulting in soft hazy images over distance. To overcome this you need to reduce the column of water between subject and camera by moving in as close as possible. For example when photographing a Manta Ray overhead you may be close enough to get a sharp image but will only manage to frame a portion of its underbelly. You will need to move further away from the Manta to include its whole body, but then you are shooting through more water and the Manta will appear soft. A supplementary lens with a wide angle of view is required to get close and keep the subject in the frame. Contrast and sharpness will increase the closer you get with the wide angle lens.

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FIG. 2.7 Canon WPDC 27 housing front view.

Courtesy of Cameras Underwater. FIG. 2.6 Ikelite & Epoque DCL20 wide angle.

FIG. 2.8 Canon WPDC 27 back view.

FIG. 2.9 Canon WPDC 27 housing set.

Most digital compacts, 35 mm wide and 28 mm wide, have a maximum viewing angle of 44 and 53 degrees in air respectively. Upon entering the water you loose 25% of that viewing angle as a result of refraction. Hence, 44 degrees becomes 33 degrees and 53 degrees becomes 40 degrees. Wide angle must be exactly that, which is anywhere between 100 to 180 degrees underwater! Wide angle lenses can be attached using a bayonet mount or filter thread depending on the housing and lens of choice. Even though a housing may

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FIG. 2.10 Canon Ixus 980 and Inon

system.

have a filter thread, not all wide angle lenses are optically compatible with the housing. Incompatibly results in vignetting or softening around the edges. Always make sure the lens has been bench tested against a particular housing. Some lenses can push fit onto the housing — make sure that the lens cannot easily fall or be knocked off.

Choosing a Wide Angle Wet Lens Wide angle lenses to choose from include Inon UWL105 AD lens, UN PWC-01 and Epoque DCL-20, which all provide a coverage of about 100 degrees underwater, equivalent to a 20 mm lens on a 35 mm SLR. Shoot using the camera’s widest zoom setting to yield the sharpest possible image. The fisheye lens is perhaps the most versatile of all wide angle lenses and for compacts can cover 165 degrees underwater. This super wide angle lends itself to:     

Wreck photography Seascapes Large marine life Self-portraits Forced perspective images with point of interest in the foreground with secondary subject in the background and working in low visibility conditions.

It is also possible to take split-level images with the fisheye lens.

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FIG. 2.11 Epoque DCL20 wide conversion lens.

Make sure the water between the lens and housing port drains first before depressing the shutter, otherwise a dark band will lie across your image. This lens provides plenty of scope for being creative and often you can shoot one handed without composing through the LCD if the situation requires. Available on the market is the Inon UFL165 AD Fish Eye lens.

Choosing a Close-up Lens Digital compacts typically have a minimum focusing distance of 30 cm which can be reduced to about 5 cm in Macro mode. However, not all subjects will let you get that close, which is where the close-up lens becomes invaluable. Close-up lenses are also available in bayonet or filter thread fittings and can be stacked for greater magnification. Approach the subject from a distance with the optical zoom at its telephoto end and move in slowly until the camera finds focus. With enough patience and practice the results can be very rewarding. Popular close-up lenses include the Inon UCL165 AD (Fig. 2.13), Sea & Sea 125 (Fig. 2.14) and Epoque DML-2 (Fig. 2.15).

Flashguns Flashguns are used to bring back vivid colours underwater and can also act as a primary light source or to fill shadows and:   

eliminate backscatter from the built-in flash, freeze motion, and for creative lighting techniques.

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FIG. 2.12 Inon UFL 165 AD underwater

conversion lenses.

There are a number of important factors that need to be considered when choosing a flash.

Flash Power and Guide Numbers The power will have a large effect on the dynamics of your underwater flash photography. Power is usually given in the form of a Guide Number (GN) calculated in air (the power of the flash is reduced underwater). The exact amount will depend on visibility, particles in the water causing scatter, diffusion and blockage that affects the light reaching the subject and returning to the camera. For this reason an air guide number is your best guide when comparing flashguns with one another. They are used to calculate the aperture or f-stop required to enable the light to reach the subject at a given distance. The f-stop is calculated by dividing the guide number by the distance. Let’s take the example of photographing a Coral Grouper that won’t let you get closer than 1.5 metres. The aperture required for the light to reach the Grouper on full power using a flashgun with an assumed underwater guide number of 14 will be f8 (closest f-stop to 9.3). For a flashgun with an assumed underwater guide number of 24 the aperture required will be f16. As a result a gun with a higher guide number gives you increased depth of field, greater working range and the use of low ISO. The maximum working range of the gun is affected by adding a diffuser. Diffusers are used to spread the light with wide angle photography and to soften the light falling on the subject. When using a 1 diffuser, you lose one stop of light. For a flash with a guide number of 14 this means that the

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FIG. 2.14 Sea & Sea CU Lens 125. Courtesy of Sea & Sea UK.

FIG. 2.13 Inon UCL165 AD Close-up lens.

FIG. 2.15 Epoque DML-2 Macro lens.

Courtesy of Cameras Underwater.

aperture required for the light to reach the grouper on full power is increased from f8 to f5.6. This may require you to increase the ISO to get more depth of field, which may lead to more noise. Alternatively you need to get closer to the Grouper or use a flashgun with a higher guide number. How the flash communicates with the camera also plays a role. Some operate on a slave function, whereby the light bouncing off the subject triggers the flash. Depending on how it is positioned and the coverage of the light sensor,

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firing may be intermittent, which can be very frustrating. A more reliable way of connecting the flash is via fibre optic cable. Fibre optic cables ensure firing every time and can be positioned anywhere without losing communication. Fibre optic cables have wet connections therefore reducing potential for leaks. The built-in flash is used to trigger the off camera flashgun. To prevent backscatter a dark film is sometimes placed over the built-in flash allowing only short infra red light to trigger the off camera flash. Some flashguns and housings will allow for hard-wire cabling. In this instance the built-in flash does not fire and there is no need to mask it off. Hard-wire cables are often a weak point in the system and are susceptible to damage at the connecting ends. Spares are highly recommended.

Flash Settings There are several settings the flash can be set to: Auto, TTL or Manual. Not all flashguns will have all three. 

FIG. 2.16 Inon fibre optic cable set.

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Auto flashguns have built in meters that meter the light off the subject. The camera often has to be set at ISO 100 and the aperture on the camera matched on the flash. This mode is not particularly useful if you cannot manually set the aperture and ISO on the camera. It also requires you to aim the flash at the subject, which you will learn later is not always the best lighting technique.

Digital Compact Cameras by Mark Koekemoer



TTL mode is how the camera exposes through the lens. The camera calculates the exposure through the lens and the flash essentially copies it. The advantage of TTL is that you can position the flashgun any way you like — the camera will always expose for the subject in front of the lens. You also don’t have to have control over the ISO or aperture, only to remember that if the camera chooses a small aperture the working range of the flash will be affected.

There are some instances where TTL will under- or overexpose such as with a bright sandy bottom or a black suited diver. By tweaking the power manually you can get a more pleasing exposure. Some cameras put out a pre flash whilst others do not. Always make sure the flash is synchronising with the camera. Some flashguns have a built-in modelling light that can be used to practise aiming the flash, create contrast in low lit situations or as a torch, especially on night dives. Since the flash is not always directed straight at the subject, the use for focusing is not always practical and a separate torch is required for use as a focus light. Travelling with underwater camera equipment has become more and more difficult so careful consideration should be taken regarding the size and weight of the flash. It can also influence the balance of your system underwater. Float arms are available to offset the weight of the flash. Flashguns use either AA disposable batteries, or rechargeable battery packs; a spare is often

FIG. 2.17 Ikelite DS-160 Pre flash compatible

TTL strobe.

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recommended. This adds to the bulk and weight as well as cost. Sealed battery packs can also cause issues with flying. Always check with the airline before travelling. A tray is used to fit on the underside of the housing, which in turn will fit the parts required to attach the flash. Always make sure the tray and housing are compatible. Nowadays some trays are made with more universal fittings so they can be fitted on a wider range of housings. The flash is usually attached via a system of ball adapters, clamps and articulated arms. Whatever your choice, make sure the flash can be adjusted underwater easily with one hand. It should remain fixed in its new position until moved again. Tray and Arm systems are available from:   

Epoque Inon Technical Lighting Control (TLC) and Ultralight.

Popular flashguns for compacts include the Epoque ES-230DS auto (Fig. 2.21), Inon S-2000 and Sea & Sea YS-110 alpha (Fig. 2.22).

Filters Another technique used to restore colour balance is the use of a colour correction filter. Filters work by transmitting light of similar colour to that of the filter and holding back complementary colours.

FIG. 2.18 Inon S-2000 strobe.

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FIG. 2.19 Inon Tray.

FIG. 2.21 Epoque ES-230DS auto.

FIG. 2.20 Epoque 230DS.

FIG. 2.22 Sea & Sea YS-110a.

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Filters can either be made of glass, acrylic or optical quality polyester gels. Some filters have threads which you can screw onto the housing whilst others push fit over the front lens port; these filters can be removed during the dive, however they may not be compatible with some wet lenses. Polyester gels are used inside the housing between the lens and port and therefore cannot be removed during the dive. Whilst some may feel this to be a disadvantage, there is a good argument that if you really want to improve your photography stick to one particular technique during each dive. Filters can be divided into tropical blue waters or temperate green waters. Some filters are designed for shallow water and some work at deeper depths so always make sure to check. Filters are designed to work best with the cameras white balance function enhancing the results. Simply take a white balance reading every time you change depth by about 3 or 4 metres using a white or grey slate as a reference. Brands of filter include UR Pro and Magic Filters.

Summary Digital compact cameras have come a long way over the past eight years. You no longer need to spend a fortune for an SLR system or carry all that extra weight in equipment. The housing accessories available for the compact camera have divers all over the world taking to the waters. Choose wisely and your compact camera system should see you through many years and hundreds of photos. There are however certain situations where the compact camera just won’t cut it, such as shutter lag issues when working with fast moving subjects and superior image quality required by some commercial agencies. In either case you may be forced into an SLR system.

Tips 1.

2. 3.

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Sensors in digital compact cameras are smaller than those found in Digital SLRs and as a consequence the pixel size is substantially smaller and explains the higher noise levels found in compacts. As a rule of thumb I keep to the lowest ISO possible until I absolutely have to increase it. Never use the digital zoom function as this will degrade the quality of your images. It is fundamentally better to physically get as close as you can to your subject especially if you use the camera’s built-in flash.

Digital Compact Cameras by Mark Koekemoer

4. 5.

6. 7.

8.

9. 10. 11.

The 35 mm wide cameras give access to Inon’s highly acclaimed fisheye lens. I use a stainless steel lanyard threaded through an eye on the housing or tray and clipped to my BC. The lanyard has an intermediate clip and coil, In my opinion one of the best all-round digital compacts is the Canon Digital Ixus 980is & WP-DC27 housing with Inon accessories. An advantage of the digital compact system is that you can invest in the necessary accessories when the time is right. Not all camera housings will be supported by these accessories so it is always important to check first and make sure your camera and housing is forward compatible. The close-up lens allows you to keep your distance and zoom into the subject. The magnification of the close-up lens will ensure that the subject fills the frame. When using close-up lenses make sure to switch the camera’s Macro mode off as they conflict with each other, making focusing difficult. Manual power settings give you more control over lighting your subjects. Always use fresh batteries to get the best recycling time out of the strobe. At the time of writing, and for its all-round flexibility, my own compact camera purchase choice would be:     

Canon Ixus 980is with Canon WP-DC27 underwater housing Inon UFL165 AD Fish Eye lens and Inon UCL165 AD Close-up lens Flash choice would be the Inon S-2000 and Magic Filters for natural light photography.

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The Compact Image Gallery The concept behind this gallery is to provide a standard of quality for new underwater photographers, using a basic point and shoot compact. In 2008 my wife Sylvia embarked on a photo project using a straight forward, no add ons point and shoot compact camera. ‘I don’t know how well I should be doing’? ‘Can my little camera take this picture’ ‘I haven’t got any other lenses or flashguns’ These are frequent questions and comments from newcomers and this is the idea behind the gallery. It illustrates an achievable standard using basic compact equipment.

Equipment and specification Sylvia used a Fujifilm FinePix F40 fd in a Fuji FinePix housing set to the scene mode of Underwater and Auto white balance. The built-in lens is 8 mm— 24 mm, which in 35 mm camera lens equivalence is 36 mm—108 mm. Very few of the images in the gallery have been cropped and those which have, only slightly. What gives them their saturated colour is the ‘underwater’ scene mode. They have been downloaded to Iphoto (mac) with no other development. The techniques for achieving images of this quality is the purpose of this entire book, but Sylvia as used this basic set up with an emphasis on:    

Shooting from below or eye level. Avoiding cluttered and distracting backgrounds. An eye for dynamic composition. Minimising the column of water between lens and subject.

Study them, compare them with your own efforts and consider in which areas you can improve. Remember that these photographs were taken with a basic compact camera and built-in flashgun.

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CHAPTER 3

SLR Cameras and Housings Introduction to SLR Cameras

T

he decision to commit to a digital SLR camera and housing is a daunting one. Financial costs can be considerable and one’s aspirations as an up and coming underwater photographer may fail or succeed depending on whether you acquire the right equipment or not. Compared with compacts, an SLR offers a number of advantages, which include:

   

Complete elimination of shutter lag, perhaps the utmost frustration with compacts; flexible, fast and responsive auto focus; wide selection of interchangeable lenses; a more accurate and sophisticated sensor and superior noise reduction qualities at high ISO settings.

In addition, there is a range of shooting options and menu settings which allow you to fine-tune the camera for optimal performance. When selecting an underwater camera/housing system it’s best to start by thinking through the subjects you will want to shoot and under what diving

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conditions. For instance for a photo trip to Sulawesi to shoot small subjects you will need a macro lens. For a reef and wrecks tour in the Red Sea you’ll need an ultra wide angle (fisheye) lens. Keep in mind that a good quality SLR/ housing system will be of benefit for many years to come and will have the flexibility to meet future needs, not just your present ones. Make the wrong choice and you’ll be frustrated and limited by the equipment. In this chapter I explore those features of a typical SLR camera which from experience I consider to be significant to the underwater photographer. As a typical example let’s take the ‘depth of field preview button’. Whilst important to the topside photographer, it is of little significance underwater due to the inability to access this button through the camera housing, therefore it is not discussed. There is no order of importance to any particular feature so dip into those aspects which interest you the most. Don’t hesitate to skip back to Chapter 1 in order to reacquaint yourself with basic photographic concepts such as apertures, shutter speed, ISO, white balance, etc.

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SLR Camera Exposure Modes I will point out from the outset that there is no right and wrong exposure mode to use underwater. In the hands of an experieced user, shutter priority, aperture priority or manual mode can all be controlled and manipulated to produce the same desired exposure of an image. This mastery of exposure modes comes not only with experience, but with the mental agility of an uw phototrapher who is in complete control of their diving and concentration to the photo task in hand. There will be more about concentration in Chapter 5 ‘The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer’. All SLR cameras feature the following modes:    

Auto/Program, which works out all aspects of the exposure for you. Aperture priority or AV in which you set the aperture (f number) and the camera automatically works out the appropriate shutter speed. Shutter priority or Tv in which you set the shutter speed and the camera automatically works out the appropriate aperture. Manual exposure, in which you set both the shutter speed and the aperture.

Some SLRs have additional ‘auto’ modes which depict icons in the form of a landscape, portrait, sports/action, macro/close-up, night landscape, etc. For anyone other than a complete beginner or someone taking underwater photographs for the first time, I would dismiss the notion of using P program exposure mode underwater. Whilst Aperture, Shutter and Manual exposure mode all have a place in underwater photography, in my opinion P program mode does not. It is accurate and convenient for land use, but can be unreliable underwater. To some readers using the Program mode may sound ideal. But trust me. If you wish to achieve more than just a snapshot, it is essential to develop a basic understanding of how aperture, shutter speed, ISO and depth of field all interrelate. Getting to grips and experimenting with the three exposure modes will help you to achieve this. Casting your mind back to the 35 mm film era. You will remember that you were unable to view the result of your endeavours for days, maybe weeks so back then Program/Auto mode on SLR cameras was a popular and reliable method of achieving an acceptable exposure. However, in this digital age there are no worries regarding how many frames you have left to use up. Also, you are able to view the photograph in your LCD screen moments after you press the shutter. In this way your learning and understanding of exposure is instantaneous. So, have confidence, take that leap of faith and go for it! Forget about the P program mode and learn to use Aperture, Shutter and Manual mode. Here’s how.

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FIG. 3.1

FIG. 3.2

FIG. 3.3

FIG. 3.4

Which to Use Underwater It’s important to understand and accept that the application of exposure underwater is an inexact science. There is no specific quantity of light or duration of exposure required for a given underwater subject. There is no single way to expose an underwater scene, but more a case of numerous ways of how to interpret it. Liken it to a personal opinion: one interpretation is no more right or wrong than another opinion. Underwater photography is different than land photography in this sense. As a general principle, on land one looks to expose a scene so it appears similar to how it looks to the human eye. However, underwater we predominately have a blue water background (in tropical climes). An experienced underwater photographer will look to record this column of water to their own taste and partiality. We can choose to record the blue water column as light blue, dark blue, midnight blue or

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FIG. 3.5 I have selected P for Program mode and the camera has chosen both aperture and shutter speed. Whilst there is no doubt that this combination will produce an accurate exposure, the user has no control of either aperture or shutter speed and learns very little about how light works underwater.

black. For example, I like to shoot subjects with my 60 mm macro lens against a dark blue or black background. The way in which I do this is to find a subject which I can frame against the blue water column. Using either the shutter speed or the aperture or a combination of both, I am able to manipulate the blue water background to appear in my LCD as dark blue or black. Technically I am underexposing the ambient light in the background, which in reality is a light blue tone. Hence, there is no single way to expose an underwater scene, but more a case of numerous ways of how to interpret it.

Aperture Priority The photographer chooses the f number and the camera automatically works out the appropriate shutter speed. As the name ‘aperture’ suggests the emphasis is on the selection of the aperture by the photographer. The majority of underwater photographers favour Aperture priority as they can directly regulate depth of field. A general rule of ‘thumb’ is to consider the priority of the subject you have chosen. I will take this concept one stage further. Ask yourself this question: ‘What is my priority with this photo opportunity?’ Is the priority having sufficient depth of field for the subject? Or, is it to have control of the shutter speed in order to capture a moving subject in sharp focus? This is the decision of the photographer with each individual subject chosen — there is no right or wrong way. 

Aperture priority is an advantage when shooting both close-up and wide angle. In close-up photography it is important to achieve a good depth of field and by selecting an aperture of f16 a generous D of F is assured.

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FIG. 3.6 Ghost Fish Pipefish f27 at 1/250th, ISO 100, Subal housing, Nikon D200, 60 mm macro lens, twin Inon Z220 flashguns.

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FIG. 3.7 In this example I have selected f8 for an adequate D of F with

wide angle and the camera has chosen 1/125th sec as the correct shutter speed to expose the scene before me.







We are fortunate that wide angle lenses provide the largest depth of field possible, so when shooting seascapes and sunken shipwrecks it is better to set Aperture priority in order to maximise depth of field so that the resulting image shows sharp detail from foreground to background. Another advantage of Aperture priority is that stepless shutter speeds are automatically selected by the camera. This means the shutter is not confined to set increments such as 1/60th sec, 1/80th sec, 1/125th sec. The on-board computer selects speeds of 1/96th sec or 1/243rd sec. The camera does not display these intermediary speeds, just the ones that we are all accustomed to, and by using stepless shutter speeds we get the optimum accuracy of exposure. An advantage, which is often overlooked in Aperture priority mode, is the amount of corresponding shutter speeds available.

Set to Aperture priority the on-board camera chip has 13 — 13 shutter speeds to choose from as opposed to just eight — eight apertures to choose from when Shutter priority is set. Shutter Speed Range 4’’ 2’’ 1’’ 1/2 1/4 1/8th 1/15th 1/30th 1/60th 1/125th 1/250th 1/500th 1/1000th sec

Lens Aperture Range f2

f2.8 f4 f5.6 f8

f11

f16

f22

When using Aperture priority you do have to keep your eye on the display inside the viewfinder. If ‘HI’ appears on the LED display, you need to select a smaller aperture (higher f number) to avoid overexposure of the natural light. Unless we are shooting underwater in very bright sunlight and shallow water, it is not often that we see the ‘HI’ icon in the LED.

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FIG. 3.8 Aperture priority image.

Shutter Priority Consider the same underwater photographer who wants to capture a small school of fish shoaling around a coral head. Here shutter speed may be the influencing factor that controls whether the fish are in sharp focus or not. Ask yourself the question: ‘What is my priority with this opportunity?’ If it is the ability to freeze the movement of a subject, then Shutter priority mode should be considered. Let us look at some practical ‘in the sea’ examples of moving subjects such as dolphins, seals, jacks, and bat fish. Using a slow shutter speed such as 1/30th or 1/60th sec could record the subject fuzzy and out of focus. Unless this is the effect we are after then our priority is to freeze the movement — and the most effective way to do that is to select Shutter priority mode. The next step is to consider the shutter speed on the camera that we feel will adequately meet our needs. A rule of thumb for seal or dolphins is at least 1/250th. Slow moving fish may be in the region of 1/125th sec and other slower moving subjects may not require a speed that fast. So, let us make the decision and select an appropriate speed in Shutter priority mode. The camera will select an appropriate aperture in whichever direction we point the camera. In the direction of the sun the aperture may read f22 or f16. Point downwards into the blue and it may change to f4 or f5.6. What is so efficient about this is that we can concentrate totally on the composition through the viewfinder, safe in the knowledge that the computer in the camera is selecting an appropriate aperture in order to record the ambient light. Once again, when using Shutter priority you do have to keep your eye on the display inside the viewfinder. If ‘Lo’ appears on the LED display, you need to select a slower shutter (lower number) to avoid underexposure of the natural light.

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FIG. 3.9 In this example I have selected a shutter speed of 1/125th

sec to stop movement. The camera has chosen an aperture of f8 in order to correctly expose the scene before me.

FIG. 3.10 In this example I have selected 1/500th sec for extreme

fast action, however the camera has indicated ‘Lo’ Low for insufficient light to correctly expose. I need to reduce the shutter speed so a corresponding aperture can be made available.

FIG. 3.11 Shutter priority image.

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FIG. 3.12 I’ve now reduced the shutter speed to 1/125th sec and the

camera has selected an appropriate aperture of f8.

Manual Exposure Mode The options of Aperture or Shutter priority are useful because they speed up our decision making, which can be critical when there is little time to react to an unpredictable underwater event. In these circumstances the speed and accuracy of the camera to provide precise exposure is invaluable. However, there are many circumstances whereby taking control of setting exposure via the M ‘manual exposure mode’ option is preferable and offers greater opportunity for in-camera creativity. Light and colour have such different characteristics on land than underwater and this is where Manual exposure mode comes into its own. Underwater photographers can only really begin to learn about the light in the sea and how it influences our own individual image style when we take control of the entire exposure process. The concept of Manual exposure mode is as follows: you must select the aperture, you must select the shutter speed and, most importantly, you must ensure that the exposure is correct as you percieve it to be! This may seem obvious to many, but there are some who are accusomed to setting A, S or P modes and who, when faced with Manual exposure mode, will often set an arbitrary shutter speed and aperture and then shoot, not realising that they have to check the exposure meter on the LCD display in the viewfinder. As soon as you set the control dial to M and slightly depress the shutter, a small chart will appear on your monitor and/or inside your viewfinder. With Nikon SLR cameras it’s called the ‘electronic analog exposure display’. It acts as a light meter, and shows þ (plus) or  (minus) to indicate whether the photograph would be þ overexposed or  underexposed at its current setting.

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FIG. 3.13 In Manual exposure mode at 1/125th at f5.6 the internal light

meter indicates þ overexposure to the amount of one stop.

FIG. 3.14 By reducing either shutter speed or in this case aperture from f5.6 to f8 the overexposure is corrected and the display returns to 0 (zero).

If the analog display indicates exposure towards the þ (plus) side, then you may need to close the aperture or select a faster shutter speed; likewise, with a  (minus) indication you may need to open the aperture or decrease the shutter speed. Towards the middle of the analog display is a 0 (zero), which indicates optimal exposure. By manipulating either shutter or aperture, a series of small black squares appears and moves up and down the grid. The theory is that if the small square is in the middle, near to or on the 0 (zero), you have matched the exposure that the camera is advising. Consequently, if the small square is over to the minus side you are underexposing.

Advantages of Manual Exposure Mode If you wish to develop your digital underwater photography, then Manual mode will help you to understand exposure and how to use it to illuminate the sea. Going back to the disadvantages of Program mode, whilst it may be convenient, you never quite know for sure how you were able to get the result you did. The beauty of using manual is that you have a choice about how the image will appear. It’s a win—win situation, and don’t forget, with digital you have an unlimited amount of frames to work with. If it’s wrong, you can correct it, right there and then.

Manual Exposure Mode: A Personal Approach Do you have the time? This is the bottom line, whether I am shooting for myself or advising others. Do you have the time to read the information inside the viewfinder and make exposure adjustments? If you are following your dive

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group and falling foul of the dive guide who is always having to wait for you, you may not feel comfortable in taking even more time over your underwater photographs. Another example is if the subject is passing by. In this scenario don’t waste time by changing settings on your camera or else you will miss the passing manta ray, shark or turtle.

Example Six of us had just finished diving the Giannis D wreck in the Red Sea and were being returned to our live-aboard in a rib when two dolphins began to follow in the wake. We stopped the engine, grabbed our cameras (luckily all were fitted with wide angle lenses) and enjoyed an amazing 30 minutes’ snorkelling, with the dolphins teasing us, swimming around but just out of reach. One moment I was shooting into the afternoon sun, another, downwards towards the seabed as they played beneath us. I posed silent questions in my head: ‘What is the priority and do I have time to use manual exposure?’ Answer: ‘Keeping the dolphins in sharp focus, no time to determine settings, let the camera do the work’. I set my Nikon D200 camera to S shutter priority exposure mode and selected a speed of 1/250th sec, which I knew would freeze their motion. The aperture was continually changing to cope with the surrounding ambient light as I changed my direction of shooting. I left my flashguns switched ‘off’. Some of the others were continually fiddling with their cameras and paying little attention to the dolphins. They were shooting in M manual mode and were taking light readings in various directions. At the same time the dolphins were swirling around them. They were missing opportunities and became totally distracted by the camera settings! I offered some advice and they switched over to either S shutter priority or A aperture priority. The technique of using A aperture priority with fast moving subjects is to set a wide aperture, i.e. f5.6 or f4. The camera can choose a shutter speed to provide a correct exposure. In these circumstances, and with plenty of ambient light on the surface, the shutter speed determined in-camera was 250th and above depending on the direction of view. The trick is to keep your eye on the viewfinder and notice the shutter speed selected; if, in your opinion, it becomes too slow for the subject, open the aperture or increase the ISO setting from 200 to 400 ISO. In this way you can concentrate on the dolphins as opposed to being distracted by camera settings.

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FIG. 3.15 I set my Nikon D200 camera to A aperture priority exposure mode and f2.8 knowing that the depth of field would be plenty with a fisheye

lens and the shutter speed would be fast enough to stop the action. I was free to point the camera in every direction to follow the two dolphins. In this shot the shutter speed was 1/250thsec. Nikon 10.5 fisheye, natural light — flashguns attached but turned off.

In my own photography I use M manual exposure mode 85% of the time. For the other 15% I use A aperture priority mode in those circumstances where I feel I may be distracted by light readings, camera settings, etc. to the detriment of my concentration on the subject. I may start by setting f8 and maintain a close eye on the shutter speed chosen in-camera. When using Magic Filters (see page 241) I use Aperture priority exclusively as I find it provides the most accurate exposures.

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Understanding Exposure Compensation Exposure compensation is a feature of an SLR camera which allows you to adjust the exposure measured by its light meter. Usually this range of adjustment goes from between (plus) þ 2 to (minus) — 2 EV in one-third EV (1/3rd) increments. This means that you can adjust the exposure measured by the light meter within the camera by forcing it to allow more light in (plus þ exposure compensation) or to allow less light in (minus — exposure compensation). Depending on how your SLR deals with exposure compensation, it may adjust the aperture whilst maintaining the shutter speed or it may adjust the shutter speed whilst maintaining the aperture. On both Nikon and Canon SLRs, the exposure compensation button looks like a plus and minus sign (þ/). If you own a Nikon, press the exposure compensation button and turn the dial to the left to brighten up the image, whereas turning it to the right will decrease exposure and darken it. If you own a Canon SLR, it is the opposite of Nikon. Turning your main dial to the left will darken it and turning it to the right will lighten the image. There are a number of things you need to be aware of when you use exposure compensation:  



Exp comp will only affect the exposure of future pictures you take. It will not change a picture you have already taken. Exp comp will not reset itself automatically (even when you turn the camera off). After taking a picture using exposure compensation set the dial back to zero. This is a something to remember in order that you don’t make your exposures too light or too dark the next time you use it. You can use exp comp in P (for program), S (Nikon shutter priority), TV (Canon shutter priority), A or AV (aperture priority) There is no point in using it for M manual mode because you are able to adjust the exposures yourself, using aperture and shutter speed.

When is Exposure Compensation Useful Underwater? 



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When you are pursuing any opportunity or creative idea using one of the automatic exposure modes — A, S, P, Tv, Av, and you become aware that your camera is consistently over- or underexposing, you can use exposure compensation to correct for these particular inconsistencies. In my own work I favour Inon flashguns, which have an impressive selection of manual power settings. This provides me with fair degree of control over power output, however some other flashguns are limited to either two or three power settings and can be inflexible in certain circumstances. For example, if a flashgun is overexposing and reducing flash power or moving the flash further away from the subject is not possible, dialling (minus) 1 EV exposure compensation will often do the trick.

SLR Cameras and Housings

FIG. 3.16 In this example

(minus)  0.7 or 2/3rds one EV (exposure value) has been dialled into the exposure compensation facility on a Nikon SLR.



Another example is for subjects that have a tendency to either under- or overexpose when a TTL flashgun is used. I have discovered from experience that dark coloured moray eels soak up light from flashguns and often appear underexposed. In these circumstances a þ (plus) one EV exposure compensation can correct the TTL flash exposure.

Remember that using exposure compensation affects the entire exposure, both flash and natural light.

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Understanding Metering Patterns Having discussed the three preferable exposure modes of M manual, A aperture and S shutter, how do we begin to determine if the camera will provide an exposure to suit your taste? How do you know you’re not going to overexpose or underexpose the shot with the aperture and shutter speed you have selected? This is where your camera’s integral light meter becomes an FIG. 3.17 Matrix metering selected with advantage. Your camera meter will study the scene, take a reading and then ‘spot’ to the left and centre-weighted to calculate how much reflected light there is available. With this information the right. you can decide what kind of exposure is required and what aperture and shutter speed to set so that the recorded image isn’t under- or overexposed. I emphasise that a correct exposure is subjective; my idea of a good exposure may be a little too light or too dark for others and this is what is so unique about photography — it is all down to our own personal preference. In my opinion there is a difference in the way in which we use metering modes for our underwater photography when compared to on land, and I emphasise the declaration ‘In my opinion’. I believe my approach to this topic is so radical that some of my peers may not agree with me. Firstly, let’s look at concepts in general and then I will talk about my own way of doing things at the end. There are three types of metering modes associated with SLR cameras. The first is Matrix metering also referred to as Multi-zone or Evaluative metering depending on the manufacturer. The others are Centre-weighted and Spot. The oldest method, which has been in existence since the early 1970s, is Centre-weighted. Metering is biased to about 75% towards the centre of the frame/viewfinder with it falling off towards the edges. This works well when your subject is in the centre of the frame, such as a diver, fish or a branch of soft coral. The way to use centre-weighted metering underwater is to:  

Set CW on your camera and point it at the water column, do not point it directly into the sun. This doesn’t work, as all you get is underexposure. Choose an area of the water column which you feel will be prominent for the particular composition and idea you have in mind. I find that upwards at an angle of about 40 is preferable. As surface conditions change and the sun goes behind clouds, you may have to take a number of readings of the ambient/natural light. Centre-weighted is an accurate way of determining the exposure of the water column for wide angle and marine-life seascapes.

Matrix In simple terms Matrix, Multi-zone, Evaluative, call it what you will, takes a wide range of information from the entire scene in order to come up with the best possible exposure. It often includes other variables such as subject, distance, contrast, focal point and colouration into the assessment. Each camera

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manufacturer markets this sort of metering differently. Nikon refers to it as 3D Colour Matrix Metering 11, Canon calls it Evaluative, whilst Olympus calls it ESP. It’s not only the name which differs, each manufacturer will have a different number and arrangement of zones and the bias of zones will also differ. For the majority of shooting situations your camera’s multi-zone system will be reliable, allowing you to achieve consistent exposures. However, the very nature of how ambient light works underwater does not always bring about consistent exposures, which we have grown to rely upon on land. I will go as far as to state that underwater, matrix metering has a tendency to over-expose the ambient light more often than not. The reason is quite simple. Underwater photography in tropical locations can have a range of contrast through the picture frame can be so great that it is sometimes a challenge to control. Think about it! Shooting wide angle in the Caribbean in a vertical composition, there may be bright light at the top of the frame, a dark blue water column towards the bottom and a reef wall in shadow elsewhere. This range of contrast range can be up to six f-stops (6þ EV) or more. Matrix metering will do its very best to average out the scene but can be tricked into providing an exposure resulting in a photograph which in my experience is usually too bright. During the film era, this was only revealed once your transparencies or negatives had been developed. With digital we can instantly refer to the LCD screen to check the result, including the histogram and the highlights feature. FIG. 3.18 Canon

evaluative metering sensor zones.

Other common traits with Matrix metering underwater are:  



When you shoot directly into the sunlight, matrix has a tendency to underexpose as it is adjusting for all the bright light. When shooting horizontally, composing a reef wall against the blue water, Matrix takes in the entire scene and tends to overexpose because it is compensating for the dark tones of the reef at the bottom of the frame. When shooting wide angles, it’s best to take a meter reading into the water column away from the sunlight in order to reproduce the most satisfying colour and exposure possible.

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Matrix works well when the sun is coming from behind your shoulder and a slightly downward angle is chosen to capture a sunken shipwreck or a reef seascape. Matrix also works well when using Magic Filters because of the preferable downward angle of view. Whilst I find that matrix metering tends to overexpose for my taste, there are many uw photographers who prefer it. Their technique is to dial in up to minus one stop (1 EV) of underexposure via the exposure compensation button. This has the effect of correcting for the matrix tendency to overexpose.

For further information on exposure compensation on SLR cameras go to page 94.

Spot Metering For ultimate control in your metering of an underwater scene, I believe that Spot is the tool to use. Spot metering places 95% of its emphasis within the small 2 mm circle in the centre of the digital viewfinder. The underwater photographer does, however, need to be confident about exposure and how Spot metering works. The most vital element of using spot is having the time during a photo-dive to use it. Time is crucial to employ this technique. If I find myself rushing my photo-dive for whatever reason, perhaps having to follow the dive guide or tailing fast action such as schooling fish, I would be inclined to set Centre-weighted every time and just shoot, shoot, shoot. If I have time, I would select Spot metering and consider the light and dark areas of the frame, the colour of blue water both at the bottom and also in the middle of the frame, and what kind of exposure I am trying to achieve. The advantage of Spot is that we can take a reflected light measurement from a very small portion of the scene (normally between 1% and 5%) and base the entire exposure on that reading. The beauty of Spot metering is that it’s not influenced by anything else in the scene, just that single spot of reflected light. So why would an underwater photographer want to do this and not meter for the entire scene? The reason is control. It allows you to have complete control over the exposure. You are telling the camera what to meter, rather than getting the camera’s choice of exposure from an array of different zones, many of which are either too bright or too dark to make any sense at all.

Using Spot Metering Underwater Ideally you need to work in Manual exposure mode, setting both the aperture and the shutter speed yourself. There is no point at all metering off a reef wall hosting a display of colourful soft corals, which you have every intention of illuminating with flash. The reason why is because the flash will fill in the colour and the natural light meter reading (whichever pattern is selected)

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F

+

– + + AF-L – – AE-L

FL

FIG. 3.19 Spot metering circle.

becomes totally irrelevant because the light falling on the reef has changed into electronic sunshine. Let’s take the example of a wreck dive using a Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens set at 200 ISO with Spot metering selected. In order to reveal the texture and detail of a specific part of the wreck, by Spot metering on a specific area, precise exposure can be achieved. Assume that a Spot meter reading indicates 1/60th sec at f5.6. Manually set this combination into the camera, compose, and press the shutter. Check the LCD monitor for composition and most important, check the histogram for the accuracy of exposure. Take a good look at the tonality of the wreck and I mean a concentrated look.   

What is the actual colour of this wreck? Is it green, gunmetal grey, rusty brown? What colour does it look to your naked eye?

Detach your eye from seeing the wreck as a wreck. Look at it as a collection of tones. 

How bright or dark do they appear to your eye?

Now take another Spot meter reading towards the same composition but a lighter and darker area of the wreck. 

What is the difference between the Spot meter exposures of the two different views?

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FIG. 3.20 If you intend to fill in the shadows with flash there is no need to meter off the reef wall. Meter off the blue water instead. Nikon D200, Nikon 12—24 mm, 1/60th sec at f 5.6, Inon Z220 flashgun.  

How would you prefer it to look — a little lighter or darker? Which looks best to your naked eye?

Take another shot using 1/30th at f5.6. Now check the LCD and histogram again. 

Have you clipped the highlights of your histogram or is it still slightly underexposed?

So correct it.  

How does it look now? What other alternative compositions may work?

If and when you can access this heightened concentration of thought, it’s a sign that you are getting into that place we often call the ‘zone’ and photographically, the zone is great place to be. On page 104 I discussed my way of determining exposure underwater, stating that it may be quite radical compared with others’.

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FIG. 3.21 Tug Boat. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm lens, 1/60th sec at f5.6, ISO 100, natural light.

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My Way After six years of using a digital camera underwater I know that it has made everything so incredibly easier than it ever was before. As long ago as 2003 I began to ask myself the purpose of using metering patterns now that we could check the quality and accuracy of exposure at the time of pressing the shutter. All I need to do is check the histogram, check the highlights feature and if it’s too dark or too light for my taste I simply adjust my exposure. The difference between using either Matrix, Centre-weighted or Spot metering is the pattern of metering used and nothing more. The type of metering pattern chosen is of less consequence providing you can: 

Critically evaluate the LCD monitor, the histogram and highlight feature at the time of shooting in order to determine if:  Exposure is accurate for your taste and, if not, you can:  Make adjustments and re-shoot to correct the exposure.

I do concede that if you are intent on achieving an accurate exposure first time, you have a much better chance of getting it correct if you choose Matrix, CW or Spot from the outset. I appreciate that with moving subjects or a rare encounter you may get only one opportunity and in this situation I would always opt for Centre-weighted metering (if I had sufficient time to choose CW) and shoot as many frames as possible. My current techniques are as follows:   





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I leave my metering on Spot for 98% of my underwater work. When shooting close-up and macro I select manual exposure mode. When shooting close-up and macro I pay little if any attention at all to the indications of correct exposure in my viewfinder. When using my 60 mm and 105 mm macro lens I choose an aperture to provide the depth of field necessary for the particular subject I have chosen, i.e. f16 — f22 for a generous D of F or f5.6 — f4 to create a blurred (Bokeh) background. My shutter speed is usually in the range of 1/250th sec for black backgrounds or anything from 1/15th to 2 seconds when I’m looking to achieve a blue or green water background. I pay no attention to the electronic exposure analog display whatsoever, preferring to judge the background colour by eye in the LCD monitor in conjunction with the histogram and highlights feature. The exposure analog continually displays underexposure, which I always ignore. When shooting wide angle on a reef or in open water I may guesstimate the tone of blue water I require by selecting my favourite f8 @ 125th sec and proceed from there. My flashgun simply paints in the

SLR Cameras and Housings





colour of my foreground subject which has been lost due to the filtration effect of water. When shooting inside shipwrecks, caves or other locations which provide great natural light opportunities I use Spot metering and take a number of readings on highlight, shadow and mid tone detail and proceed from there. When shooting Magic Filters or using MF techniques (slightly downward angles) with White Balance pre-sets I do change to Centreweighted metering and Aperture priority exposure mode as I find it works well.

My topside landscape photography has become most important to me over the last two years and I shoot in Manual exposure mode using Spot metering to determine the reflected light in the shadows, highlights and mid tones. If I choose to take a tripod out with me I will use it for all my shots as I find it has the effect of slowing me down, providing me with a sense of heightened concentration which (hopefully) leads to greater precision of composition.

Photography Topside and Further Reading In land photography, Spot metering is the choice of professionals. Using either a hand-held Spot meter specifically designed for that purpose or the Spot meter setting on an SLR, they will measure the lightest parts of a landscape scene, the shadow areas and perhaps somewhere in between the two — the mid tones. A calculation is made as to which area deserves greater prominence and a series of shots are taken. Readers may have heard of the metering technique often referred to as ‘18% grey’. This concept is beyond the scope of this chapter but if you would like to know more, go to the following web link at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_card

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SLR Cameras and Auto Focus Underwater FIG. 3.22 Focus modes.

Focus Mode Selector In my opinion the most confusing and misunderstood feature of modern day DSLR cameras is auto focus together with all the various modes and menus that go with it. The late great underwater photographic educator Jim Church used the saying K.I.S.S — Keep It Super Simple. This is how I approach my own underwater photography and how I suggest you approach yours Keep It Super Simple! It’s the only way I am able to explain (the best I can) how AF works for the underwater photographer.

‘M’ Manual Focus This is available for lenses that don’t support AF or when auto focus is not suitable for a particular subject. In these circumstances the lens or the focus mode is set to ‘M’ manual and the focus ring adjusted until the subject appears in sharp focus. The shutter can be pressed at any time whether the subject is in focus or not. Up until 2005 I used manual focus on the following lenses for all of my wide angle work:   

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Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye Nikon 16 mm fisheye Nikon 20 mm lens.

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However, with the Nikon 12 mm—24 mm lens the manual gear on my housing became necessary to act as a zoom gear. I had only one choice and that was to use full auto focus. Since this time I have used AF with wide angle and not missed it in the slightest!

‘S’ Single Servo AF with Nikon or ‘One Shot AF’ with Canon Single servo/One shot AF is ideal for shooting still life or very slow moving subjects. This mode is often referred to as shutter priority for that very reason. Whilst on ‘S’ you cannot fire the shutter unless you have achieved sharp focus on a subject. To activate auto focus detection in this mode, lightly depress the shutter on your camera. The lens begins to focus and locks sharp in the frame. Retaining pressure on the shutter release continues to lock focus. Depressing the shutter fully takes the picture. All SLR cameras have a number of focusing areas which cover the viewfinder frame. By using the ‘multi selector’ buttons on the back of the camera, you can select between the focus areas depending on the subject’s position in the viewfinder or your own choice of composition. The most sensitive focus area in the frame tends to be the central area.

FIG. 3.23

A

B

C

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In my Own Work I choose ‘S’ for still life — macro and close-up for very slow moving subjects. My technique is to depress the shutter halfway to lock focus on the eye or the most prominent feature of the subject, which I need to be in pin-sharp focus. When I need to recompose the scene, I do this by continuing to depress the shutter button and just moving the camera to a more desirable composition. Go to: http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic¼24409 for interesting disussions from members on choice of auto focus settings.

‘C’ Continuous Servo AF with Nikon or AI Servo AF for Moving Subjects Canon In this mode when the shutter release button is pressed halfway the camera focuses continuously. If the subject moves the camera will track the subject and adjust focus as necessary. This is referred to as ‘release priortiy’. The advantage of this method is that the shutter can be released (the picture taken) whether or not the subject is in focus. This may sound very hit and miss but my view is this: I would rather capture the ‘peak action’ of the subject and risk the possibility of a shot being out of focus than to miss the ‘peak’ all together. In this way there is a very good chance that one of the several frames taken will be sharp. From my years of using SLR cameras, I know there is every chance that the majority of attempts will (hopefully) be within the depth of field.

Another AF Feature to Digest We have discussed auto focus modes, i.e. ‘S’ Single Servo, ‘C’ Continuous and ‘M’ Manual mode. Let us now look at the concept of Auto Focus Area Mode. These modes determine how the focus point is selected in auto focus. There are two main areas called:

FIG. 3.24 Single Area AF.

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FIG. 3.25 Dynamic Area AF.

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Single Area In this mode it’s your responsibility to choose the focus area. The camera will not choose it for you. This mode works well for still-life subjects and it is the area mode I use for macro and close-up; when in either Single Servo or Continuous AF. I don’t always choose the central point if I am shooting a moving subject, for example a Clown fish within an anemone. I may set the focus point close to the ‘thirds intersection’ and press the shutter when the subject is within this area to aid composition.

Dynamic Area This is most useful for shooting moving subjects. You use the multi selector to choose the focus area where your subject is located. If the subject moves out of that focus area the camera will switch to a different focus area to track the subject and keep it sharp. For the Dynamic Area mode to work effectively, the subject needs to stay somewhere across the middle of the viewfinder. By doing so the subject will be near one of the focus areas. I have recently started to use the dynamic area with both my Nikon 60 mm and 105 mm macro lens with moderate success on moving subjects. FIG. 3.26 AE AF

Lock.

Auto Focus Lock Using the AE-L/AF-L Button (Nikon) On all SLR cameras, there is a focus lock facility. I use this lock on every photodive I make with all my lenses. The auto exposure lock/auto focus lock (AE-L/ AF-L) button is usually located on the back of the camera housing but be aware that not all housings fit this facility as standard. It works like this:  

As normal — simply use the shutter release button to lock focus. Whilst holding the shutter release halfway down, press and hold the AE-L/AF-L with your right thumb.

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FIG. 3.27 Clown fish f16 at 250th sec. ISO 100. Auto white balance. Twin Inon Z220 flashguns. Subal housing. This shot of a Clown fish was taken on the

Liberty wreck, Tulamben, Bali. I visited a particular area of the wreck on numerous occasions over an eight-day period to check if one particular anemone had ‘balled’ up or not. On one occasion I noticed that a host Clown fish kept elongating its jaws in a type of yawning motion. It repeated this behaviour every 30 to 40 seconds. I considered this ‘peak action’ would greatly enhance an otherwise standard shot of a Clown fish. I had my trusty Nikon 60 mm lens fitted to my Nikon D200 and set my auto focus mode to ‘C’ Continuous. The Clown fish’s yawn was so fast that I missed it on numerous occasions but after five minutes or so I learnt to anticipate when it might happen. My AF ‘C’ mode continued to track the movement of the Clown fish and I pressed the shutter whenever I thought the ‘yawn’ might occur. My thinking was this: even though the clown was not in pin-sharp focus it had every chance of being within the D of F (depth of field) latitude. I pressed the shutter when I thought the peak would occur and my belief paid off. I captured the yawn on several occasions and every shot was in focus. The disadvantage with using ‘S’ mode to capture the ‘peak’ is that the shutter can only be released when the focus has ‘locked on’. With a moving subject it may not ‘lock on’ at all. In ‘C’ it can be released at any time. 108

SLR Cameras and Housings

  

You can now take your finger off the shutter release button whilst still pressing down on the AE-L/AF-L button. As long as you keep this button pressed down the focus will stay locked. Recompose and when you’re ready to take the picture just press the shutter release all the way down.

The advantage of using the AE-L/AF-L button is that you don’t need to worry about pressing the release button too hard and accidentally taking a picture. You may need 10 minutes practice with this technique but it’s worth the effort. I truly believe that the AE-L/AF-L button is an essential control when purchasing an SLR housing.Image with AE-L Technique An example of this technique is shooting a shy subject with a macro lens. Let us assume we are in close proximity to a blenny. We get close and focus on the eye, but at this short lens to subject distance sharp focus is imperative. Instead of continuing to auto focus for every composition, press the shutter button halfway for an ideal size of the subject. Now, hold down the AF-L button with your thumb to lock focus. You can remove your forefinger from the shutter release but keep your thumb pressed down throughout. At this point gently rock your housing back and forth until the blenny comes into sharp focus again. Continuing to press with your thumb at the same time, press the shutter to take the picture with your forefinger. Back off slightly to exhale your bubbles and then begin again. Thumb on the AF-L button — rock in back and forth — change the composition slightly — look for sharp focus, now press the shutter. Your focus has remained the same throughout. You’ve reduced the noise of the AF motor attempting to find focus and made it much easier to work so closely to a timid subject. Practise and practise this technique. It works even better with wide angle because the depth of field is so lenient. You can auto focus on a subject, then continue to use AF lock with your thumb whilst executing various alternative compositions.

Note AE-L stands for Auto Exposure Lock. When you use this button it also locks the exposure as well as focus. For use underwater I would recommend you disable the AE-L in your camera menu options. Control exposure yourself. Don’t allow your camera to take charge.

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Full Frame and Cropped Sensors When it comes to the topic of full frame or cropped camera sensors, there are two particular Wetpixel discussions which I draw your attention to. They are:  

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic¼27344 http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/nikon-d3-field-review-in-the-east-pacific-part-1/

They both discuss (and argue) the advantages and disadvantages between the two. At this time I have yet to use a full frame camera in a housing and I’m unable to comment on either performance so if you are looking to purchase a system then it would be wise to visit these two reviews/discussions. If the concept of full frame and cropped sensors is unfamiliar to you then read on. During the film era the format which captured an image on a 35 mm (film) SLR camera had the dimensions of 24 mm  36 mm. Period! In digital photography, there are sensors which vary in size. We refer to a camera sensor by its ‘crop factor’. If a sensor is 24 mm  36 mm in size, then there is no crop factor and it is referred to as ‘full frame’. This term is often abbreviated to FX. Nikon has two different sensor sizes: full frame (FX) and 1.5 abbreviated as (DX). Canon has three sensor sizes: Full frame, 1.3 and 1.6. Other manufacturers are similar with only Olympus being the notable exception, at 2. FIG. 3.28 Sensor Size Fan Coral, Bali.

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Crop Factors Explained

Black - Full Frame

Red - 1.3x Crop Factor

Yellow - 1.5x Crop Factor

Green - 1.6x Crop Factor

SLR Cameras and Housings

Taken from camera reviews, I will compare my own Nikon D300 and it’s full frame big brother the D700. Reviews indicate the Nikon D300 to be a good performer in low light, but nowhere near to the D700. A Nikon D700 provides at least two stops (þ2 EV) of useable ISO when compared with the Nikon D300. The upshot of this is whilst I am content to use my D300 up to and including 400 ISO, on a Nikon D700 one could use ISO 1600 and higher. This performance is all to do with the size of the sensor. Both cameras have 12 megapixels, but the individual photo sites (pixels) on the D700 are farther apart, which results in a reduction of the amplification of noise when high ISO settings are used. The downside is that full frame bodies are more expensive and there are situations where the crop factor is an advantage. For the underwater photographer this is most noticable with the longer lenses used for macro photography, i.e a Nikon 60 mm macro with a crop factor of 1  5 equates to a 90 mm lens. Many photographers including myself prefer this extra 30 mm of free focal length.

Crop Sensor vs Full Frame Sensor: Which is Right For You After you have determined the implications between a crop and full frame your next move is to determine which suits your needs. For the enthusiastic underwater photographer a smaller 1.5 or 1.6 DX sensor will be ideal. If like me you have kept many lenses from the film era, it might be worth looking into a full frame body. Modern Nikon bodies are compatible with many Nikon lenses. Canon bodies all work with Canon EF lenses. Underwater photographers who aspire to a professional client base, commercial work or large format, high quality fine art printing should consider the FX format. Full frame image quality and wide angle options are considered much superior than their cropped siblings. The great temptation for me at this present time is their low light, high ISO performance with natural light. Currently, my own underwater work is inclined towards low light projects such as wrecks and caves, etc. However, there continues to be much discussion on internet forums concerning the optical qualtiy of fisheye and dome ports required to complement these sensors. Some uw photographers who have already taken this route are dissatisfied with wide angle dome port performance. I’ll let this debate evolve before I make my own decision, For now (Aug 2009) I am more than happy with my Nikon D300.  

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic¼27344 http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/nikon-d3-field-review-in-the-east-pacific-part-1/

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Understanding Histograms: The Basics I have divided the topic of histograms in two:  

The first part discusses the general concepts and how to apply them underwater. The second part looks at current developments and ideas on the way in which histogram displays should be interpreted.

If you are already familiar with the concept of histograms, then please turn to page 116 for the current views. However, if histograms are new to you, then please read on. I firmly believe and advise that we use our in-camera histograms whenever possible underwater — at the time of shooting. For starters, we have a limited amount of time underwater. We may not be able to return to the same location and shoot a subject day after day. We contend with the challenges of water visibility, currents, tides, depth, etc. and we don’t have the luxury of our topside colleagues to hang around all day waiting for the right light to appear. Scuba diving is a hazardous sport in itself and we need all the help we can get from our SLR in producing great pictures. Both the histogram and the highlight feature will provide good information, and I advise you take every opportunity to use them whilst underwater. The histogram feature is the most effective way of quickly seeing if a shot is under- or overexposed. If you’ve yet to find this feature, it’s simple to access when reviewing shots — just refer to your instruction manual.

FIG. 3.29 Histograms explained.

Shadows

Highlights

Pixels increase

Mid tones

Brightness increases

Highlights Feature As well as a histogram display, SLR cameras also have a ‘highlights’ feature which can be activated so that areas of lost pixel detail flash on and off repeatedly on the LCD monitor. To correct this overexposure we simply

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SLR Cameras and Housings

FIG. 3.30 This is the shape we are looking for. Notice that the histogram ends at the bottom of the graph towards the right-hand side, which means there are no pixels that have been ‘burnt out’ resulting in lost detail.

FIG. 3.31 The luminosity of histograms which measures black pixels to white with lost detail 256 pixels.

Very dark

Dark

Medium

0

Light

Very light

255

reduce either the aperture, the shutter speed or the flash power so that the screen no longer indicates lost detail.

Height of the Histogram The height of the vertical line at each position across the graph indicates the amount of pixels at that value, relative to the rest of the pixels in the image. A tall vertical line indicates a large number of pixels, and a short line indicates a relatively small number of pixels at that level. Together, all the vertical lines make up the shape of the histogram. There are two common types of histograms: luminosity (or brightness) and RGB. Luminosity histogram is often the most useful type. It shows the averaged brightness values for all the red, blue and green values combined.

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FIG. 3.32 Lightroom 2 luminosity histogram.

In the RGB histogram the values are averaged out for the actual red green blue colours, and are displayed as separate coloured overlays on top of one another so you can evaluate each individual colour channel. Shape of the histogram. You may have heard that a good histogram has a smooth, bell shaped curve. Whilst this may be considered ideal in land photography, underwater there is no such thing as a ‘correct’ shape because of the alternative techniques used to expose underwater photographs. So, what does this mean to the underwater photographer? Use the histogram review on your SLR when you take underwater photos. Confirm your exposure with the histogram — it’s not exact but for many it will be significantly more reliable than your eye! I advise you to set your camera to display the histogram after every picture. It’s not necessary to check the histogram every single time you press the shutter but, if shooting a series, then glance down, check and correct (if required) before

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SLR Cameras and Housings

FIG. 3.33 A land based interpretation of this image and histogram would indicate too much shadow however underwater there are no such rules and shadow detail often enhances our photographs.

Tips 

continuing. Don’t push the housing in front of your eye to check. Think about this! All you’re doing is moving it towards your subject, which, if shooting macro, could have implications of spooking the subject or contacting the reef.



By using the histogram to determine exposure, you will begin to learn a lot about your images. However, it is important to remember to get the graph as far over to the right-hand side of the grid as you can, but more of this later in the chapter. 

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic¼26356

Remember to check the histogram whilst underwater, at the time. Don’t depend on the appearance of the LCD review monitor to determine exposure; instead, use the histogram. Test yourself. It’s fun to try and work out what shape the histogram of a photograph might look like. You can do this on land with everyday objects. 115

The Underwater Photographer

New Ideas about In-Camera Histogram When I moved to a digital SLR in 2003 I thought it was very easy to determine the exposure accuracy of my ‘in-camera’ photographs and judge whether they were correctly exposed or not. I simply evaluated the histogram and highlights feature and made the necessary adjustments. Even in my books, articles and workshops I encouraged other underwater photographers to do the same as me. But in recent years I have come to realise that the histogram/highlights exposure indications are not what I thought they were. For some time now I recognise that the histogram/ highlight exposure accuracy of the LCD thumbnail is different to the RAW file histogram once downloaded to an imaging program like Lightroom or Photoshop. Both my topside and underwater shots tend to indicate overexposure on the in-camera histogram when in fact they are not overexposed at all! My thanks to Seth Resnick and Jamie Spritzer, authors of The Photoshop Lightroom Workbook, for helping me to understand the science behind this concept and allowing me to use their words. Digital cameras have a dynamic range of about six stops (6 EV) and offer capture in 12 bits, meaning that technically they can capture (2 to power of 12) or 4096 tonal values. If you divided the 4096 tonal values (f-stops) among the potential six stops and if each stop is looked at as a zone, it would be logical to assume that each stop has an equal amount of data! This assumption is wrong and accounts for one of the biggest misunderstandings when it comes to exposing for digital.

FIG. 3.34 One half of the data of a 12-bit capture (4096 levels) or 2048 levels is in the brightest stop (highlights), 1024 in the next stop, 512 in the next stop and so on until one gets to the shadows that contain only 64 levels.

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SLR Cameras and Housings

FIG. 3.35

A RAW file is a linear file and the capture of data works much the same way as a traditional f-stops works, i.e. f2.8 allows twice the light as f4, and f4 is twice f5.6, and so on. So, what becomes important is the way in which these 4096 levels of tonality are distributed across the tonal range of six stops.   

A massive one-half (2048 levels) are all contained in the brightest stop — the highlights 1024 levels are in the next stop 512 levels are in the next stop, and so on.

Until one gets to the shadows which contain only 64 levels, think about this: the darkest stop (the shadows) of the digital file has the least amount of data. It is clear to see (no pun intended) why shadows reveal the greatest amount of digital problems, i.e. mainly digital noise at high ISOs.

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Since most of the information in a digital file is in the first ‘brightest’ stop, the act of underexposure reduces the quality of a digital file. From a technical perspective we should expose a digital file so that most of the data is present. As a general rule this means that a properly exposed digital file is slightly overexposed, we then reduce the exposure slightly during processing. If we underexpose in-camera we loose valuable highlight data in our RAW files. Underwater we need to make a judgement call on the amount of overexposure rather than the underexposure. For these reasons it is during the processing stage that we achieve rich saturated colours, rather than when we take the shot. These new ideas are not recommending to always slightly overexpose in-camera. Like I mentioned earlier, it’s a judgement call.

Using the SLR Histogram Underwater It’s generally accepted that the in-camera histogram does not represent any real information regarding how our RAW capture will look and as a general rule for most of the widely used pro SLRs, the highlights overexposure warning is incorrect by at least minus one f-stop (1 EV). The histogram’s there to prevent you blowing out the highlights but it has the effect of eliminating the brightest stop, which as discussed holds most of the tonal information. Manufacturers set the threshold level for this display about one stop too low.

My Way Underwater I continue to shoot in RAW and expose for the very brightest tones of 2048 levels. Shooting underwater wide angles, if the highlight warning blinks I make a judgement call on the nature of the overexposure, i.e. surface detail, sun shafts, specular reflections, etc. I will not necessary reduce exposure unless the highlights ‘blink’ excessively. If they do then I may reduce my exposure by one stop. When a scene is high key I will endeavour to expose for the highlights; if the histogram is ‘clipped’ slightly I no longer automatically correct this, but I do emphasise the word ‘slightly’. My change of mind has come about by my Nikon D200 and D300 ‘blinking’ when I know full well that the image is not overexposed. To conclude, I expose all my in-camera images to retain highlight details which the scene contains. When I process in either Lightroom 2 or Photoshop CS4 I can usually recover any blown highlights using the Recovery slider. Shooting at optimum ISO whenever possible I find that digital noise in the shadows is unnoticeable.

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FIG. 3.36 When I took this shot my in-camera highlights warning indicated that the sunbeams were grossly overexposed but I chose not to reduce exposure but instead use the Recovery tool, the RAW converter. Nikon D300, Nikon 10.5 mm, natural light, f3.3 at 1/15th sec, ISO 800.

However much care I may take with my exposures, there will inevitably be times when it will go totally wrong for me. Take heart though! This also applies to many other photographers.

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Image Overlay Feature Popular SLRs now have a really cool feature called ‘Image Overlay’. It’s akin to ‘in-camera double exposures’, which were very popular with underwater photographers in the late 80s early 90s. In those days we used SLR film cameras and marked the position of the ratchet wheel on the film with a white marker pen. When we loaded the film for the second time to record the second exposure we could perfectly align the film in the same place. Well that was the theory, which to my knowledge was devised by legendary UK underwater photographer Peter Scoones. The popularity of this technique diminished in the mid 90s but for a few ‘die hard’ enthusiasts who were avid uw photo competition players. Image Overlay works by blending two RAW images together in the camera, via the Menu options, in order to create a single picture that is saved separately from the original files. Note that JEPG files cannot be used for overlays. Refer to your own SLR user guide. On my Nikon D300, overlays are created within the ‘Retouch Menu’. This menu is only displayed when a memory card containing photos is inserted in the camera

Note In figures 3.37—3.40 I attempted an overlay using the Tokina fisheye on the Liberty wreck in Bali and then photographed the process for teaching purposes. This idea (ironic that it was the one I wanted to illustrate) didn’t work particularly well because the position of the soft coral foreground did not blend with the background.

(a)

(b)

FIG. 3.37 (a) Select ‘Image overlay’ in the menu and press >. (b) The dialog shown will be displayed with three columns. The first column will read ‘Image 1’. This column will be highlighted in yellow.

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SLR Cameras and Housings (a)

(b)

FIG. 3.38 Press ‘OK’ to select the thumbnail views (a), to choose a photo move into the column—‘Image 1’ (b), ensure it’s a Raw file. Repeat the same

process for selecting ‘Image 2’ in the second column.

FIG. 3.39 Now move along to your third column entitled ‘Preview’, press ‘OK’ to overlay.

FIG. 3.40 Check the appearance and if it looks good, press ‘OK’ to save or if it looks wrong then press to go back.

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FIG. 3.41 I’ve had good fun playing with this feature with the same lens on the same dive and overlaying them underwater. This figure was taken with

a 60 mm macro lens. I took the blenny on whip coral at f 16 at 1/250th sec and the background stark black reef wall with just a chink of sunlight popping through at f22 at 1/500th sec — 20 minutes after the first. Nikon D300.

FIG. 3.42 My first attempt at this technique in the Red Sea on a late afternoon ‘dapple dive’. I shot the hard corals with a weak flash power setting at f16, 1/250th sec using a Tokina 10—17 mm to ensure the background water behind was black. Fifty minutes later after the sun had set on the horizon I held my housing at arms length out of the water using 250th sec shutter in Shutter priority mode to capture the last sunlight of the day. I joined them together beneath the dive boat (simply to see if I could). What I did not anticipate was the faint indication of surface detail at the very top of the frame, which was a result of the bottom (hard coral) portion. Whilst it was accidental, I like how it plays with the senses.

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Live View Several popular SLRs are now equipped with a live view facility. In simply terms, live view on a digital SLR allows you to preview the photo you’re about to take using the large LCD on the back of the camera. It’s fair to say, however, that this new technology is yet to take off with SLR users both on land and underwater. The main limitation is that the reflex mirror inside the camera needs to be raised in order to expose the image sensor. This effectively disables the auto focus system. As a result, LV (on my Nikon D300 for example) has a very slow shutter response since the mirror must be lowered in order for the lens to focus. Live view function is popular topside for the photojournalist, holding their camera above a crowd in order to compose a shot. Photographers moving up from compact cameras are also very familiar as all compacts use live view. If you are looking to purchase for the first time or upgrade your SLR, there is every chance your chosen model will support LV. But take care that LV does not influence your decision. Since the introduction and my upgrade to a Nikon D300 in 2007, I have yet to find any meaningful use of LV in an underwater situation. That being said, LV capabilities are not created equally. Olympus, for example, appear to be addressing this and have gone some way to correcting some common faults. With the increasing capability of video recording on SLRs, we may soon see more use of LV. For further discussion on Wetpixel regarding the merits of live view LV go to: 

 

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?act¼Search&CODE¼ simpleresults&sid¼751dd99f6cd45b351005cfceb3b84046& highlite¼liveviewþslr http://wetpixel.com/forums/lofiversion/index.php/t23626.html http://www.bytephoto.com/forums/t6178.html

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Viewfinder Dioptre Adjustment Control Most SLR cameras are equipped with a þ/ viewfinder dioptre adjustment control to accommodate individual differences in vision. It’s a feature that is often missed! I knew of one photographer who was so frustrated with everything appearing blurry and out of focus within the viewfinder they had corrective lenses inserted into their dive mask just to be able to clearly read the shooting information display.

FIG. 3.43 Viewfinder dioptre adjustment

control.

When you begin to adjust the dioptre control with a lens fitted to the camera, it’s very easy for your eye to automatically check to see if the image is in sharp focus. This way of setting your dioptre can be a little confusing by virtue of the lens being primarily concerned with controlling focus. If you have any doubts about this control then the best way to set up your SLR dioptre is as follows:    

124

Place a lens cap over the lens to block light and concentrate on the viewfinder display. Depress the shutter release button halfway. Adjust the dioptre control until these markings are as sharp as possible. Keep a note of the position of the setting should you accidentally move the dioptre control.

SLR Cameras and Housings

SLR Camera Housings by Steve Warren Introduction When selecting a camera/housing system it’s best to start by thinking through the subjects you will want to shoot and under what diving conditions. For instance, for a photo trip to Sulawesi to shoot small subjects you will need a macro lens. For a reef and wrecks tour in the Red Sea you’ll need an ultra wide angle (fisheye) lens. Keep in mind that:   

A good quality SLR system will be of benefit for many years to come and will have the flexibility to meet future needs, not just your present ones. Make the wrong choice and you’ll be frustrated and limited by your choice of camera and housing. Equipment shortcomings are most often only discovered in the field when pictures you really want to capture elude you.

An example of one particular limitation can often arise with the viewfinding facility of a housing. Whilst the view through the SLR camera itself may be ideal, the design of the housing viewfinder can be restrictive, making precise framing a challenge. This can be so very frustrating!

Tip A cautionary word! Before you purchase your SLR camera of choice, ensure there is a camera housing available for it.

FIG. 3.44 Sea & Sea MDX-D300 Front.

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A camera housing system will likely involve equipment from a number of manufacturers—the camera body itself, lenses that may be independent like Sigma and Tokina, the housing, and a strobe system. So it’s vital to check each step with your supplier to ensure that all of the equipment you intend to purchase will be compatible now and in the future.

How do I Choose a System? A good place to begin is to check the camera equipment credits in this book and others on underwater photography. Visit www.wetpixel.com. Every member has their camera/housing system detailed in the postings. Underwater photo competitions such as the Antibes festival in France and UK’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year comp are always a great source of information as well as inspiration — they too highlight makes of camera and housing. Begin with a short list of:    

FIG. 3.45 Subal CD3 designed to fit both the Canon EOS 1D Mark III & Canon EOS 1Ds.

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Cameras Lenses Housings Flashguns, flash arms.

SLR Cameras and Housings FIG. 3.46 Aquatica for Canon 1Ds MkIII.

Look at Canon and Nikon first. Don’t presume that because you own an SLR already there will be a housing for it. Not all manufacturers make housings for every SLR camera. Consider the price versus compromise options. As price increases, compromises tend to be reduced. For example, a fast flash synchronisation speed such as 250th and higher is important for balancing flash fill and strong sunlight — purchasing a camera with sync speed below 250th is a compromise. You’ll find that the best photographers have gravitated onto just a handful of semi-pro and pro level SLR bodies and housings, the vast majority of cameras being from Canon and Nikon. Despite the huge number of camera choices on offer, you’ll be hard pressed to find a professional photographer or successful enthusiast using low-end equipment. Underwater photographers tend to shoot anything and everything. The wealth of subjects on offer encompasses nudibranchs, half the size of a postage stamp, to sunken ocean liners that stretch out for hundreds of metres. As no single lens is a ‘jack of all trades’, it’s a requirement to have a range of lenses that are suitable for a particular type of subject. An SLR owner is likely to use:    

Fisheye lens for seascapes and wrecks Medium wide angle lens for subjects like mantas and divers A short mm macro lens for macro and close-up work A longer mm telephoto macro for shooting shy fish.

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Housing Construction Housings are usually constructed from polymers including carbon fibre, lexan and polycarbonate or aluminium alloy. Polymer housings are available for a wider choice of cameras than alloy housings. Polymer housing manufacturers often work with pre-formed stock casings that are large enough to accommodate a wide range of cameras. So, when a new SLR is released they can quickly install controls and have their housing on the market in quick time. No camera housing is ever cheap but Polymer tend to be the most inexpensive; however, they can weigh as much as 50% more than an alloy housing for the same camera and are usually larger in size. In part this is due to the thicker hull needed to resist pressure at depth and their increased volume, which amplifies their buoyancy. Aluminium housings are usually built for a specific camera model. For this reason they usually cost more than polymer housings, as only a comparatively small number of housings will be sold before the camera is superseded by another model and the housing manufacturer has to start over again. This custom approach offers some advantages. It allows more choice of placement for individual controls and, because the housing is designed for one specific camera, it fits tight and snug inside, which reduces size and weight. The smaller volume and greater strength of alloy means a thinner and lighter casing. I would emphasise that you check availability. An aluminium housing may not be available for an entry level SLR. Some manufacturers feel that sales will be too small for budget makes, where pricing is the predominant factor.

FIG. 3.47 Sea & Sea MDX-D300

Uncoated Body.

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Every make of housing feels and handles differently to each other. They all reflect the designer’s own priorities for the precise placement of controls. An individual’s ‘feel’ for a housing is subjective and it’s important to try different models to see which you are most at ease with. It may sound obvious, but the best way to assess how well a housing suits you is to try it in a swimming pool. Depending on the specialist dealer, this can be arranged, so if you don’t ask — you don’t get.

Tip It’s a good idea to take along your face mask, especially if you use corrected lenses, to evaluate viewfinders and, if you use gloves, wear these to test controls.

SLR Housing Viewfinder As you increase the distance between your eye and the housing viewfinder it can become difficult to see the entire camera viewfinder screen. When you wear a dive mask the problem is accentuated so you may have to change masks. Many shooters use low volume facemasks with a black skirt, designed for spear fishing and free-diving. They eliminate peripheral light which makes it easier to see through the viewfinder.

FIG. 3.48 Subal GS finder — example of viewing from a distance.

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Image Reducer You can understand why it is so essential to clearly see your subject through your housing viewfinder. Usually the viewfinder optic is built into the body of the housing, which enables you to see the entire viewfinder simultaneously. The simplest type of housing viewfinder optic is called an image reducer. This reduces the image size of your camera’s own viewfinder by as much as 35%. Whilst it enables you to see the focusing screen it will be more of a challenge to compose the picture, or read the information display. This is especially true of cropped frame cameras that tend to have smaller viewfinders than full frame models. You may still need to have your eye pushed up against this type of viewfinder in order to see into the corners.

Magnifying Optics Magnifying optics increase the size of view through your camera housing and make it much easier to use for composing your picture, easier to focus by eye and makes information displays easier to read. Usually you don’t have to have your eye right up against the finder eyepiece for a clear view. This makes these finders useable with full-face masks and bulky mouthpieces. You can also look through these finders from a distance while scanning the horizon for approaching subjects.

FIG. 3.49 Subal GS magnifying

viewfinder.

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Viewfinders Come in Different Orientations  



Some are eye level, like your camera’s own reflex finder. You hold your housing up to your eye in the normal way. Others may be set at 45 degrees. Like the right angle finders used by land photographers for shooting with their cameras on the ground, these can let you place your camera low to the seafloor. Angled finders allow you to look down and compose from above. This also helps with split-level photography as the eyepiece can remain above the surface.

Some makes of angled finders can rotate around 360 degrees to allow composition in a portrait orientation. Seacam and Subal, and Inon, are among these manufacturers offering all three types of viewfinder. Inon supply their 45 degree swivel finder to several housing manufacturers, including Sea Tool and Nexus. There is a discussion on viewfinders in the ‘Wide Angle’ chapter called ‘Split Levels’, see page 408.

FIG. 3.50 Subal CD3 side view with GS

viewfinder.

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The Underwater Photographer FIG. 3.51 Nexus D200 45 degree viewfinder.

FIG. 3.52 Inon45 finder. Courtesy of INON.

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Check the Small Print Sometimes it isn’t made clear which type of viewfinder is provided with a housing. Check the small print. Viewfinders can usually be exchanged down the line if you discover limitations in your original choice.

Ports SLR housings accept interchangeable ports in much the same way your SLR camera accepts interchangeable lenses. Housings and ports impose limitations on which lenses may be used underwater. These limitations may be because a lens is too long to fit into a port. The port might appear in the shot or images might be soft. For macro, telephoto and certain zoom lenses, flat ports are used. Wide angle lenses require dome ports, which are hemispherical and largely correct for refraction. They are also used for split-level photography as the subject does not noticeably change size as it passes from air into the underwater. Dome ports create a virtual image—the camera lens must be able to focus onto this image, which appears much closer to the camera than it is in reality.

FIG. 3.53 Inon straightfinder. Courtesy of INON.

FIG. 3.54 Ikeport CMYK.

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3.55 MDX-PRO Compact Macro Port.

FIG.

D700

with

The exact point of focus depends upon the dome itself. Some lenses cannot focus close enough to achieve sharp focus on the virtual image and will require the addition of a simple close-up lens (called a dioptre) to work properly. The vast majority of underwater photographers get by with just one wide angle port, usually a fisheye, that negates the need to spend more money. They simply adapt it using extension rings to work with other midrange wide angle zooms like the Nikon 12 mm—24 mm. Port lenses are made from either glass or acrylic and optically, there is little to choose between them.   

Acrylic is easier to scratch, but light scratches are easily polished out. Glass is much harder to damage, but also much more difficult to repair. Glass ports, especially larger domes used with fisheye lenses, tend to be heavier than acrylic alternatives.

An extension ring is a port without glass, which is inserted between the housing body and the port. An example is when using a Nikon 17 mm— 35 mm wide angle lens. Using a Subal housing a 35 mm, extension ring is required, which fits between the body of the housing and the lens. The extra extension is there simply to accommodate the extra length of the lens itself.

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FIG. 3.56 Aquatica domeport.

When selecting ports for your system, some other considerations are relevant, especially for macro photographers. For example, some choose to use manual focusing instead of auto focus, perhaps because the AF cannot lock onto a subject or maybe to eliminate vibration from the auto focus motor, which can spook fish on occasions, or because you are using tele converters which can impair auto focus operation. Remember, you want to control the way your chosen lens operates and this depends upon the combination of camera body, housing, lens and port.

FIG. 3.57 MDX-PRO MIII with NX Fisheye Dome Port & YS-110a Strobes.

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When choosing your system keep in mind that:    

Not all housings can accommodate all lenses. A lens may need a gear to link focus and/or zoom functions to external controls on the housing. Gears are not made for all models of lenses. You may also want to add accessories to your port to make your photography easier and flexible. These accessories may include ring flashguns, flashgun supports, focusing light mounts and external close-up lenses.

A port is mounted onto a housing via either a screw or bayonet fitting. Bayonet mounts can be an advantage if you use more than one housing because bayonet mount ports always locate in the same position, so focusing controls and hoods always line up correctly. They are quicker to mount and dismount. Threading and unthreading screw mount ports takes a little longer and separating ports from housing bodies and extension rings can be a problem if the thread jams up.

FIG. 3.58 Sea & Sea MDX-40d with NX std Flat Port & YS-110a.

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Underwater photo equipment continues to evolve and if you change your camera body for an upgrade, you’ll have to change housing bodies as well. There is a huge financial advantage to stay with the same brand so you can continue to use your existing lenses for an upgrade of a camera and the same ports for an upgrade of a housing. The majority of housing manufacturers endeavour to make new housings compatible with older ports.

Flashguns Flashguns can be connected to the housing in a variety of ways. There are a considerable number of contact points from the flash itself to the hot shoe on the SLR and all are essential in order to convey the triggering signal to the internal camera circuitry. The popular electrical firing connections include the Nikonos type socket, Subtronic’s S6 connector and Ikelite’s propriety socket. These systems cannot be unplugged underwater. The type of connector chosen will depend upon the camera, housing and flash combination you intend to use. TTL (through the lens exposure) is not always straightforward to achieve with hard-wired flash systems. TTL protocols used by modern cameras keep changing and it’s hard for small-scale underwater flash manufacturers to keep up with demands. One easy way to achieve reliable TTL is to use a dedicated land flashgun inside it’s own housing. This normally requires a socket with five connections for Nikon cameras and six for Canon.

FIG. 3.59 IkeliteSLR CMYK.

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Ascertain if your choice of camera housing supports this type of socket. Alternatively, you can choose to use conversion circuitry. Sea & Sea offer this for their camera housings and Ikelite offer a TTL system dedicated to their line of flashguns, which is built into their Ikelite housings. Another popular method is the Heinrich converter. This converter can be connected to the majority of popular flashguns to achieve TTL but ascertain that both flash and housing are compatible before you purchase. Go to www.wetpixel.com and insert ‘Heinrich converter’ in the search option for numerous topical discussions re. TTL compatibility and problem solving. Also visit www.uwpmag.com to download an article on Heinrich converters from issue number 42, page 33. Some housings offer an alternative to traditional electrical cables depending on the manner in which the built-in flash in the SLR camera can be fired whilst it is inside the housing. A window in the housing lets the light from the flash pulse through a fibre optic cable. This triggers an external strobe to fire. This system is extremely reliable and allows the benefits of TTL to be utilised. There are no contacts or leak points associated with this design and it may be disconnected underwater and the flash passed between camera systems or to other photo divers for flexibility or creative effect. This system is being seen increasingly on Japanese-made housings like Inon, Sea Tool and Nexus, and couples well to flashguns such as Inon’s S-2000, D-2000 and Z- 240. DSLR housings may have multiple flash ports. Sometimes each port can fire a flash for multiple flash photography or can be used as a back-up in case of a primary socket or housing circuit failure. Subal housings for Nikons are equipped with Nikonos type sockets which can be individually user set for TTL with housed strobes and TTL converters or to manual for use with non TTL strobes. Nexus housings offer as many as four flash ports combining a pair of hardwired sockets with two fibre optic fittings as well. Other housings, like Sea & Sea, may have multiple ports but these are dedicated to a specific type of flash protocol, such as manual or TTL, and cannot be used interchangeably as back-up sockets. Special dual cables or multi socket adapters may be needed to fire multiple strobes from this type of connector. If a housing has only one strobe connector as standard, like Aquatica, a second socket may sometimes be installed as an optional extra.

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Other Features SLR housings offer other features that can benefit you. These include mounting points for focusing lights, which help provide illumination to assist your auto focus to lock-on, and leak detectors, which provide an early warning of flooding. A good underwater photographer needs exceptional buoyancy control skills and whatever system you choose it will have its own particular buoyancy characteristics. Your buoyancy will be affected, of that there is no doubt. These characteristics will alter with lens and port changes and strobe positioning. Few systems are as finely balanced as we might like out of the box so it may be necessary to add floats or weights to get neutral or near neutral buoyancy to suit you. Careful placement of flotation and weights can also improve the trim of your housing. A heavy or badly balanced system will strain your wrists, making it hard to accurately frame your shot, and will be a challenge to shoot one handed. Off the shelf underwater camera equipment, at its best, is very good indeed. But you may still benefit from having modifications made to your personal system. These can include adaptations that improve handling such as alterations to hand grips or control levers. Other custom work can revolve around special lighting arrays, such as the ring flash developed for Martin Edge, pole cam equipment for shooting underwater while the shooter remains on the surface, or ports that can support lens systems such as a super macro outfit that may incorporate a 100 mm macro lens, 2 tele converter, close-up lens and manual focus. A handful of housing manufacturers can create equipment to meet specific needs and a small number of individuals, including the UK’s Ken Sullivan and Peter Ladell, design and build underwater equipment to order. Underwater imaging is highly equipment dependent and pushing forward the frontiers of the art often means developing new equipment to realise the ambitions of the imaginative photographer.

The Future DSLR technology has reached a point where one can legitimately question whether one really needs to keep upgrading. This means that a system bought now might be used for many years. The current popularity of underwater digital photography has led to many new companies setting up to manufacture and sell underwater camera equipment. A concern for the underwater photographer looking to invest in an SLR system must be the

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Tip Ask around, do your homework, search wetpixel for housing discussions and download back issues of uwp mag for in-depth housing reviews. We can help you choose a suitable system for you—so don’t hesitate to contact us at www. oceanoptics.co.uk

longevity of the brand and the long-term availability of support needed to provide routine servicing and repairs. Housings will require routine servicing from time to time. The housing will be disassembled and sealing surfaces cleaned and O-rings renewed. Once in a while, your housing may need minor repair work to deal with the rough and tumble of the diving environment. If you are unfortunate and flood your housing, it may need an extensive overhaul that includes replacing strobe wiring looms and viewfinder optics. All of this means you need access to a competent technician and spare parts. After sales support varies among housing manufacturers and suppliers. A good indicator is to see how long a housing line has been with a particular supplier. Those that ‘do the rounds’ may have a questionable track record for back-up. Steve Warren www.oceanoptics.co.uk

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CHAPTER 4

Diving to Take Photographs Introduction

O

ver the years I have come to realise more and more that the manner in which we dive has a significant influence over the quality of images we are able to produce. I firmly believe that topics such as accessibility and body angles are inextricably linked to the abilities of each underwater photographer. I have been coaching these topics since 2005 and have seen the benefits in both my own work and the work of others.

How to Take Pictures and Protect the Reef STOP! I know that it’s so tempting to turn this page with the intention of returning to it at a later date but I ask you to Stop, Read and Absorb. Please. Whilst you may know what this chapter is all about, many others won’t. You will be diving with these ‘many others’ in the near future. Their diving photo habits may be somewhat lacking and may damage the reef. It may also

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damage the reputation of other responsible photographers who are diving with them and you may be one of their group. You may feel the need to challenge their dive/photo behaviour or, at least, you may be expected by others in the group to challenge their behaviour. If you have ever been in this situation — or, if not, when you are faced with this situation in the future — the following words of advice might be of help to you in passing on to others some tips about how to photograph the reef in a responsible way. Many codes of conduct and environmental articles about photo-diving emphasise the need to avoid touching the reef as much as possible, and to take care with ‘this and that’. Rarely do they tell you how you should achieve this in practice. Here are some of my own tips for obtaining good shots without risking harm to the reef and its inhabitants — tips that I would like to share with you. Some of the following may be ‘old hat’, but have protected many an underwater environment and made many friends around the world.

FIG. 4.1 This Pygmy seahorse was in residence on a fan 28 m from the Liberty wreck, Tulamben, Bali. I’d like to say I have a better shot than this but I haven’t. When I went in with my 105 mm macro to shoot him, he was having none of it. He was easily accessible but not enough to shoot him front on. I had no intention of poking him to face my way and whilst I was patient, patience is not always rewarded. I just did the best I could in the circumstances. Nikon D300, one Inon Z220 flash, f 32 at 1/180th sec, ISO 200.

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Subject Accessibility Around three-quarters of the subjects who live on, in, or very close to the reef, cannot be photographed, even by experienced photographers, by virtue of their inaccessibility. There are two choices to get round this: 1.

2.

Shoot the subject from a distance whilst hovering above or to the side of the reef. Although this is unlikely to produce underwater photos of quality, it is an option, and may allow you to record a subject for the first time. Dismiss the possibility of taking this particular shot in favour of finding a subject you can approach, get close to, and photograph safely without any risk to the environment. Conscientious underwater photographers do this all the time.

Being shown numerous photogenic subjects by the dive guide is by no means a direct route to a successful photographic outcome. The concept of subject accessibility is paramount and in my experience can often make the difference between an average and very good underwater photographer. I will discuss this in detail later in this chapter. FIG. 4.2 Such a colourful Frog fish from Kona, Hawaii, I tried hard to get

a lower angle from a more frontal position to capture more of the blue water background but the location beside me to achieve this was just not accessible. This was the best I could achieve. Nikon D200, f16 at 1/45th sec, ISO 100, twin Inon Z220 flashguns.

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The Two-Finger Technique This is something which I encourage in other photographers, and I have found it is appreciated by dive photo resorts and dive guides everywhere. It is simply the practice of making acceptable contact with portions of the reef consisting of non-living rocks or sandy areas. It has to be done carefully, however. If you have good buoyancy control and a correctly configured and balanced camera set-up, you can hold the housing in your right hand whilst using two fingers of your left hand to lightly steady yourself on non-living rocks, not the living reef. This is an excellent way in which to get close but without the risk of making contact. With practice, you will be able to steady yourself at close range with the minimum of effort required to stay still. When the picture opportunity is ended, then lightly pushing away from the reef with one or two fingers is all that’s necessary. FIG. 4.3 By Nur Pekin. Nur captured her buddy Stuart Gibson

displaying excellent wide angle buoyancy by using the alternative ‘one finger technique’.

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Pointers My pointer is a permanent feature of my dive kit. It allows me to extend the distance of my body away from the reef when using two fingers. They’re also useful as a reef hook in unpredictable currents, but ensure you use them on non-living parts of the reef.

FIG. 4.4 Shannon Conway with his

free hand using a pointer to extend his distance from the reef. By Mick Tait.

FIG. 4.5 Pointers are available from

numerous scuba diving outlets but it’s just as easy to make your own customised version to your own length and thickness.

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Avoid Collisions Most collisions occur when people move away from the reef in an undisciplined way. They may be excited over what they’ve just shot, itching to check the digital LCD, and simply lose concentration for a moment. Forgetting about your fins can bring on that ‘sinking’ feeling in your stomach, when you are aware that your fins have caught on something and you know it’s the reef before you even turn to look. This usually occurs when you turn around too soon and too closely to the reef. If you do find yourself in that position, stop finning! Use the air in your lungs or your BC to lift you clear of the reef. Whenever you move in to take a picture close to the reef, just take a second to consider how you intend to make your exit. It’s a sickening feeling to see a huge chunk of fire coral tumble down the reef after a retreating shooter has accidentally kicked it. If you have any doubt about getting close to a subject, then stop! Back off and find something you can shoot comfortably.

Flash Hand-Held Techniques As discussed above, I believe that more damage is caused by fins inadvertently kicking the corals than by any other camera-related carelessness. As a result, I only advocate the use of hand-held flash techniques when there is no risk to being off-balance (as a result of hand holding) in an area where damage can occur. On sand or rubble in a wide open space is ideal for handheld flash but not when conducted on or close to the reef. The reason is that holding the housing in one hand and the flash in the other, you immediately have less control over your buoyancy. Versatile flash arms have been available for a number of years, and these can replicate most hand-held positions. With two hands on the housing, or using one hand and the two-finger technique, you’ll be more aware of your stability.

Underwater Camera Set-Ups The 105 mm macro lens has a longer working distance to subjects than does the 60 mm macro. At life size with a 60 mm lens, and depending on the length of the 60 mm port, minimum focus need be no more than a few centimetres from the subjects. If you have a penchant for small, shy subjects, invest in a 105 mm macro lens. Flash arms are often too long for close-up and macro work, so strip down to the bare essentials. Use only the smallest flash arm to do the job. If there are items attached to the housing that are not required for the task, then remove them. This will minimise the chance of inadvertent contact with corals and allow you to get closer. The ergonomic balance of your rig will improve, which will make picture-taking easier all round.

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Give Subal Elbow the Elbow! Ever heard of Subal elbow? Some of you may know it as Nexus, Seacam or Sea & Sea elbow. It occurs in the right or left elbow, and is caused by the weight and strain of your camera rig over a period of time. By reducing the length of your flash arms, you reduce the weight of your rig d and in turn this will reduce elbow strain.

Buoyancy Arms Consist of sections of buoyant arms, which counterbalance the negative weight of the camera housing. Not only does this help to eliminate Subal elbow, it also provides a more balanced camera system for both close-up and wide angle use.

Note My flash arms for wide angle are quite short which negates the need for me to use the buoyant variety.

Touching, Poking and Moving Prodding the nudibranch to ‘help’ it climb a little higher up the finger coral to get a better background, persuading the Scorpion fish to look your way with a light poke of a flash arm — if your dive guide acts in a similar manner in an effort to please you, then politely indicate with a shake of the head that you don’t want to take photos in such circumstances. He will get the message but until all of us acting as responsible photographers take a stance, this practice will continue. Let us all stop doing it now, and encourage others to do the same!

Just too Many Shots There comes a time when a seahorse, octopus or perhaps a cuttlefish has been exposed to the flashgun going off just once too often. No one can be prescriptive about this, but we all have a sense of when enough is enough. Next time you feel this, indicate to your buddy or the dive guide that you want to move on to something else.

Buoyancy and One-on-One Buoyancy Refreshers For the underwater photographer who may have been out of the water for some time, or purchased a new wetsuit or BCD, a formal buoyancy refresher course is an ideal way to build technique and confidence all at the same time. During my photo workshops abroad I have ‘invited’ a number of photographers to take a buoyancy course with a dive guide. It’s a simple procedure at any dive resort in the world, and the student returns with the confidence and more importantly the ability to approach a subject with care and a greater sense of responsibility.

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FIG. 4.6 In a genuine effort to please me the guide began to nudge this lacy Scorpion fish towards a better background; I indicated a polite ‘no

thanks’ and carried on. Whilst this is nothing more than a recording shot with a busy background, I know it was all I could achieve. Nikon D300, f11 at1/250th sec, ISO 200, twin Z220s.

Check-Out Dives Some resorts advise trimming your buoyancy on a check-out dive with your normal camera equipment. Others will encourage a buoyancy check without your camera. Whatever the case, and with the exception of compact users, the majority of camera set-ups tend to be negatively buoyant and you need to fine-tune yourself whilst carrying the equipment you intend to use on a photo trip.

Your Weight is Paramount Dive tanks differ in size and weight from one resort to another, so adjust and trim your weight accordingly on each photo trip. You will know when your buoyancy is correct, as you should be neutrally buoyant at your 3 m decompression stop at the end of the dive. I recommend a pouched zip-up weight belt or, if preferred, an integeral system as part of your BCD. These systems allow weight to be removed or added quickly and efficiently for those

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photo dives when you want to reduce or increase weight for different depths. Leg weights should not be used on a reef. If you have a problem with your legs floating, then an adjustment to your tank and or your weight belt is usually the answer.

Position of Tank and Buoyancy Control It’s a generally held view that if you fix your tank so that the strap of the BCD is towards the lower half of the tank, then your legs will tend to float more when hovering or swimming in the horizontal. It’s trial and error with each person, but it works for me — so give it a try!

Towards a Better Underwater Environment There are an infinite number of photo opportunities, but many are simply unphotographable by virtue of the subject’s location in, on, or around the reef. Make an assessment. If it looks problematic, then forget it and continue your search. You will find the same species in another photographer-friendly situation, perhaps not during that dive or at the same location, but you will find the opportunities. When you do, take advantage and enjoy the experience. You will be content in the knowledge that you have behaved with integrity and at the same time done your bit for the environment of the reef and the life around it.

Note The tips and techniques shown here may be reprinted for your own use or for distribution around your club, for instance. Any reproduction must, however, display the copyright symbol Ó Martin Edge from www. edgeunderwater photography.com. They are made available on the strict understanding that no charge or fee is made.

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Pre-Planning Whilst conducting a photo workshop in Papau New Guinea I once dispatched a liveaboard dive boat to an area of reef suitable for late afternoon ‘dapple light’ photography. I failed to consult with the Captain and he moored on the wrong side of the reef. The light was excellent but the reef was in the wrong direction as a result of my mistake. Developing a sense for the pre-planning of a photo dive will ensure you are in the right place at the right time and shooting in the most preferable direction. Below are a few examples to illustrate how pre-planning may work for you.

Pre-Planning your Dappled Light Photography Shooting one hour after sunrise and one hour before sunset is an ideal time for dapple light but so often there is little subject matter to place in the lower half of the frame, therefore an element of pre-planning is required. For example, at a dive site called the Alternatives near to Ras Mohammad in the Red Sea there are seven coral pinnacles. The two middle pinnacles come to within one metre of the surface. They are excellent potential but you have to shoot towards the direction of the setting sun to include within the frame the dappled shafts of light with the photogenic foreground of the shallow reef. If you are on the wrong side of the reef, you’re at the wrong angle to the sun and it won’t work.

FIG. 4.7 Giannis D, Red Sea, 3pm month of June. The sun is behind my back, which provides the ideal angle in which to capture this classic view on one of the

most photographed wrecks in the world. Nikon D200, natural light, f6.7 at 1/60 th sec, ISO 100. 150

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Pre-Planning your Wreck Photography In wreck photography there will be an optimum time of day to shoot the most photogenic sections and it’s all about the light — that’s why the time of day is so crucial. The Giannis D wreck in the Northern Red Sea is at its best between about 11am and 3pm when the sun arks overhead and illuminates the most photogenic angle of all.

Pre-Planning your Over/Under (Splits) Photography When shooting splits it is ideal to shoot with the sun at your back. This can become so frustrating when you’re shooting a lovely beach and palm tree scene and the sunlight is directly shinning into your camera lens. It’s just not do-able.

Pre-Planning your Magic Filter Photography In wide angle Magic filter photography it’s preferable to shoot at a downward angle with the sun directly behind your back. To take full advantage of this concept it is essential that the reef you choose to photograph can be photographed in this direction. If you are shooting towards the reef and the sun is visible in the frame you have chosen the wrong time of day for this type of photography. One of my all-time blunders was to drive 120 miles only to find the tide was far out and at an all-time low. Pre-planning can be as simple as copying some photo ideas to your memory card so you can refer to them in-camera whilst shooting or affixing a list of ‘ideas to try’ to your camera set-up. If something goes wrong with your uw photo shoot and you feel it could have been prevented then give it some thought on how you may avoid it occurring in the future.

FIG. 4.8 Lion fish, Nuweiba, Northern Red Sea, Egypt. Nuweiba is famed for the amount of Lion fish which can be easily photographed on the house reef. Towards late afternoon ten’s of Lion fish begin to congregate around the pier. There is a specific time frame, which lasts about 1 hour, to photograph them close to the surface and your entry — exit time needs to be planned to achieve this.

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F8 d 1 Metre d Be There! There is a well-known maxim in photography, which says. ‘f8 at 3 feet and be there’. Whilst many of us will remember 3 feet, for the purpose of this example I shall use the equivalent—one metre. With the latest digital SLRs and compacts cameras, sophisticated metering systems, and multi powered flash units, how can this adage be meaningful by today’s standards of underwater photography? Is it relevant? What does it mean? I for one believe it is extremely relevant, particularly to beginners. F8 at one metre is all about a ‘catch all situation’. Let’s look at it in detail.

F8 Using SLR cameras and lenses we have a number of apertures from the smallest aperture (least amount of light but widest depth of field) to the largest aperture (most amount of light but narrowest depth of field): f22 f16 f11 f8 f5.6 f4 f3.5. Modern SLRs show ‘in-between’ stops such as f18, f9, etc. Digital compact cameras confused everyone when they first hit the market. Being much smaller than SLRs in terms of lens and sensor size, etc., apertures have different values. For readers using digital compacts underwater, I would like you to relate a compact aperture of f4 as being comparable with f8 on an SLR. You will see that f8 is a mid aperture. The Quality Issue: It is a fact that the quality of a camera lens produces sharper photos at different apertures. Some professionals avoid using a lens where the aperture is wide open, i.e. f2, or closed down, i.e. f32. Many lenses tend to produce sharper images at the mid apertures of f11 and f8. Depth of Field: When using underwater wide angle, f8 provides a good depth of field, which is often sufficient for the majority of subjects encountered. When using mid range zooms, f8 is also very workable.

Why One Metre? One metre from the camera lens is a very comfortable working distance in terms of the photographer using the camera and the subject in front of the lens. As photographers we are often close enough to the subject to fill the frame but not too close to threaten the reef with our arms or legs. Good buoyancy is a must. One metre allows most subjects to enjoy their own comfort zone. Whilst the subject you are shooting may be aware of our presence, it will often let you get that close. Think about it. Many of us have all been within one metre of a turtle, a grouper, and blue spotted stingray.

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th

FIG. 4.9 f8 at 1/125 second, 1 m distance. This combination has resulted in so many successful grab-shot photographs for me.

Flash Travel and Backscatter: Flash photography continues to be effective at a distance of one metre and the result is good saturation and sharpness. Backscatter is kept to a minimum. To improve our underwater photography it is essential to get close and fill the frame thereby reducing the column of water between lens and subject. One metre is a catch-all situation when combined with a flashgun. Remember that the shutter speed selected has no effect on flash distance or flash power whatsoever. The aperture controls the range in which the beam from the flashgun will travel. Take a standard off-camera flashgun such as the Ikelite 125 mounted just above the camera housing. At f22 the flash beam travels a limited distance. At f16 that distance increases slightly, at f11, a little more. At f8 it is best placed to illuminate a subject at about one metre distance from the camera.

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Be There Simple! Be in the water. If you are not in the water you won’t get the shot. Successful photographers achieve as much bottom time as possible so they have a good chance of ‘being there’ when that magic moment appears before them.   



When I use wide angle I always set f8 at one metre before I enter the water — just in case of what I might see on my way to the photo site. When I start my ascent I again set f8 at one metre, just in case. Have a look at the meta-data on some of your best scenic or wide angle shots taken in the past. I know you will find the combination of f4 (compact) or f8 to be some of the most successful settings. Point your camera, SLR or compact, horizontally into the blue. Set your ISO to 200, your shutter to 1/125th sec and your aperture at f8 (f4 on compacts); take a shot of the water column. Check out the LCD monitor, see how pleasing the blue water background is recorded.

I still have the occasional few who contact me the day before leaving for their first trip to a blue water dive resort asking ‘I’m a complete novice, which settings shall I use?’ My answer is always ‘f8 — one metre and be there’. This combination of f8 at one metre really does work.

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Accessibility Accessibility is a concept which is closely related to ‘Subject Selection’ and ‘Potential’ which I discuss in Chapter 5 ‘The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer’. Underwater photography can often result in two things:  

Those subjects we choose to stop and photograph, and Those subjects we choose to reject!

I’m of the opinion that the ability to choose subjects which will photograph well, is a key factor between the skill levels of one underwater photographer and another. Accessibility, simply put, is how we, as scuba divers, have a necessity to ‘get into’ and access a particular spot on the reef to photograph a subject. If accessibility is difficult, take the shot by all means but there will be a limit to how good it ‘turns out’. Likewise, if accessibility is easier and you can get into a position without harm to the reef, appreciate that this subject could make an excellent picture. Accessibility can often determine how good a subject will photograph or not! Several years ago whilst running a photo-workshop, I was approached by a couple, frustrated with their results. I critiqued their laptop and as a result of my findings I proposed a practical solution. I asked them to choose and shoot a small number of subjects to the very best of their ability; I would accompany them and shoot the same subject in the same place in an effort to ‘better’ their result. However, on the second dive I would choose the subjects, I would shoot first and they would replicate what I had done. The upshot of this was that whilst their chosen subjects were all worthwhile subjects, they were to be found in locations which were totally inaccessible. It was impossible to get near to them, not because they were shy but because their location on the reef was difficult to get to. Without exception, I was unable to access one single subject which they had selected and my own shots were no different to theirs. On the second dive I selected our subjects. I did this by choosing spacious sandy patches, close to the reef where we could lie on the sand and pick off various creatures at eye level or at an upward camera angle. I shot just below an overhang and used the ‘two finger technique’ to get within close proximity. They followed on and achieved some pleasing results. After a short debrief my couple could see that they had become totally subject fixated. If they found a good subject their mindset was that they could take a good photograph of it, simply because it was colourful or exotic or perhaps quite rare. The reason behind my choice of subjects first and foremost was because they were very accessible to us. Close and comfortable access could be achieved and interesting compositional angles could be explored without harm to the reef. These subjects were worth shooting and worth spending time on—not because of their species but because of where they were located. They were easily accessible. 155

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I’d like you to cast your mind back to an occasion when the dive guide is pointing out to you a particular creature. At first you may not be able to see what they are pointing to, you study the space, your eyes intent on finding the critter—and there it is, thumbs up, the OK signal, ‘I see it now’. You want to photograph it but it’s awkward to get at. Your eye can clearly see it but you cannot get your body into a position on the reef so that your camera lens can see it. You are a careful and responsible diver and have no intention of harming the reef in any way. The creature is nestled between the branches, you point your camera in the general direction, take three or four shots and then move on. On reviewing your results you’re disappointed, you believe that with such good subject matter you should have taken much better pictures. Dive guides throughout the world are skilled at locating rare and exotic creatures. A good number are well aware of what we are looking for. I have met some who’ve been trained by other underwater photographers to spot subjects which are located in ideal positions in which to get great pictures. But, in general, a guide will find a creature for you to watch and observe regardless of whether or not it will photograph well. Think about blending this concept of awareness of the accessibility of underwater subjects into your photo repertoire. Ask yourself: ‘Is it possible to obtain a decent photo in its particular location or shall I just shoot it as a record shot?’ FIG. 4.10 This blue spot stingray is easily

accessible. Notice the sandy channel, wide enough for the photographer to move in close to get a tight composition on the ray. A subject such as this, whilst easy to approach, is often obstructed by the contours of the reef. Notice the low, eye level camera angle being adopted.

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FIG. 4.11 Whilst it’s accessible, it doesn’t mean that it will always allow you this close. Far from it! They usually spook and flee but if you’re slow, methodical and patient you may be rewarded. This opportunity allowed the photographer to move in and capture a tight composition of the eye and blue spots. Canon D20 in Ikelite housing with Ikelite flashguns, f16 at 1/90th sec, ISO 100.

FIG. 4.12 My son Jamie noticed this anemone and Clown fish near the cave entrance at St John’s reef, southern Red Sea. This particular anemone as been photographed many times and the reason for this is because of the way in which it can be approached from below with either a macro or a wide angle lenses. It’s easily accessible, which makes it simple to shoot. See Fig. 4.13.

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FIG. 4.13 The result is quite predictable given its ease of access and colour. Excellent potential for the underwater photographer. Picture by Jamie Edge, Subal housing, Nikon D70, Nikon 16 mm lens, f 8 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200, subtronic flashgun.

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FIG. 4.14 Easy accessibility! Muck diving. Muck locations where the sand is dark in colour are very productive because subjects stand out against the black background.

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Photo Body Angles Continuing on from the topic of ‘accessibility’ and how important it is to make every effort to select subjects which can be (for want of a better word) got at! It is fact that the large majority of decent photo opportunities found on the reef are best shot at an eye level or upward camera angle. Over time a competent underwater photographer can learn how to adopt their body angle underwater to enable these preferable eye level and upward angles. During my UK photo workshops, an aspect of my pool tuition is to help participants to discover these alternative camera angles for themselves. I take a shot, perhaps lying on my back or side and then encourage my client to do the same. The trick in being able to copy the shot is nothing to do with camera settings but has everything to do with adopting the same or similar camera angle as myself. Recently, one participant, a Padi instructor with over 700 dives to his credit, had difficulty getting into a number of positions, i.e. lying on his back, his side, flat on the swimming pool floor, etc. His response and reasons sparked a conversation. My instructor declared that he now realised that, to date, he had spent his entire dive career ‘leaning to look cool underwater’. So simple but quite profound! He explained that to be a credible instructor and leader he needed to display perfect poise at all times. He had never attempted any of these positions before, not even whilst having fun and messing in a pool or the sea, and felt uncomfortable and clumsy attempting to replicate with a camera in hand. We set out to alter this way of thinking and within 10 minutes he had mastered all the awkward body angles I could throw at him and he ended our photo session lying on his back shooting through the under surface of the swimming pool towards the architecture of the ceiling above. As a result of this realisation, I now build into my pool tuition an appreciation of several vital camera body angles to perfect underwater.

Comfortable Positions As discussed above, the upmost improvement that can be made to your photography is to shoot at eye level or upwards, but the reality of achieving this is a challenge without making the effort to work the muscle memory of your neck and upper body angle. The reason it is so easy and natural to shoot down is because it is the most comfortable angle to adopt when scuba diving. Think about it for a moment! Our dive equipment, fins, weight belt, BCD, face mask and tank are all ergonomically designed to encourage us to move in a horizontal position through the water. It feels so familiar and comfy to direct our eyes at a downward angle and adopt this same position when we look through our camera. Try to break this habit by experimenting in water with body angles, which will enable you to achieve eye level and upward angles of view.

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FIG. 4.15 BSOUP member Joss Woolf impressed me with an astonishing display of buoyancy control whilst shooting a photogenic (but challenging to get at) Clown fish in a red anemone.

FIG. 4.16 Don’t take it for granted that you will be able to adopt these body positions without a little practice. Experiment in a swimming pool with your camera. Imagine that the pool bottom is the sand, relax and practice shooting at eye level and upwards by adopting low camera angles. If you feel your legs floating away just cross them.

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FIG. 4.17 Shannon Conway is hugging the bottom on this ‘muck dive’ off Scuba Sereya, Tulamben, Bali. Notice how his housing is horizontal whilst is eye is behind the viewfinder.

FIG. 4.18 It’s shallow and looks simple but when you shoot directly upwards a trickle of water can sometimes leak into your mask. On this occasion a juvenile batfish was circling around a mooring line just beneath the surface.

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Angle Finders Housing manufacturers now design viewfinders which can be rotated around 360 to provide alternative viewing techniques than just ‘straight on’. (see Figure 4.19). Last word. If you have any doubt about your position in the water and harm to the reef then move away and look for a subject which is more accessible.

FIG. 4.19

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CHAPTER 5

The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer Introduction

W   

hilst having every intention of enjoying a photo dive, do any of the following scenarios sound familiar to you?

An escorted dive around a route with little time to stop, concentrate and take photos. Your dive group, constantly changing dive sites, never returning to the same place twice. Reef dives, which start in 20 m or more, leave you little bottom time to find subjects and take pictures!

Would you appreciate the chance to drop below the dive boat with your buddy for a slow and relaxing dive, looking for subjects to practise your new found photo skills on? Whilst many resorts and liveaboards are sympathetic to the needs of photographers, we all have to appreciate that they do have a business to run which caters for the majority and in most locations this represents newcomers

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and non-photographers, who may not care to stay in one place for a long time or to remain at a particular dive site for the whole day. If you find yourselves in this situation and have difficulty getting your ’mindset’ into your underwater photography, then I can offer you the consolation of knowing that it’s always difficult to apply your mind. In these circumstances, try not to get too frustrated. If this scenario is your reality, then you may have a few decisions to make. I would like you to consider and answer the following questions:  

Are you a diver first and foremost who likes to take a camera along on the dive to record what you might see? Or Is your primary objective to improve your underwater photography and take great pictures?

If the first question rings true and your primary aim is to dive and see many new dive sites then I would encourage you to continue diving with your group, accept the restrictions and enjoy your photography the best way you can. Appreciate though that you may not have the time or opportunity to give a subject the photographic attention it deserves. For many readers the second scenario may be nearer to the mark, but try to avoid frustration when:  

Your dive leader and rest of the group go just a little too fast along the reef for your liking. You get left behind a little way, have a pang of guilt, abandon your subject and swim off to catch up with the group.

If the latter two strike a chord and you are enthusiastic to improve your pictures, then you need to consider the prospect of changing the way in which you dive to a method more suitable for underwater photography. Fundamentally, it’s a change of mindset.

Tip Every aspect of consistent photography requires a clear and calm un-hurried state of mind to develop skills so that real improvement can begin.

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All over the world, numerous diving trips cater exclusively for the needs of enthusiastic underwater photographers of all standards. The manner in which the diving is conducted, be it shore-based or a liveaboard, provides the conditions, stimulus and environment for photographers to do their thing. Only by creating the right environment will you fulfill your potential and consistently perform at your best. The solution could be nothing more than:   

Hiring a boat to visit a particular photogenic dive site, or Joining a photo group who dive together, or Signing up for a dedicated photographic workshop.

The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer

‘Think and Consider’ (TC) System In 1984 when I was a complete beginner I was prone to silly mistakes and all the photo frustrations one could imagine. I recognised that I needed to change my photo mindset when diving but I had little idea of what methods to adopt or which direction to take. I was obsessed with underwater photography and passionately hungry for knowledge on how the top underwater photographers obtained the stunning shots they did. Quite by chance I identified that it was the person and not camera equipment that made the image. I set myself the task to ascertain as much as possible about the mindset and methods of those whose work I most admired. Fortunately for me, a few BSOUP members (British Society of Underwater Photography) were, at that time, the worlds’ best talent. I questioned, pestered and badgered them into explaining to me how they got the shots which I so admired. Over a period of time I found a commonality in method and mindset of those who I had questioned. The terms they used to describe these methods differed, but each philosophy had remarkable similarities with others.

My Way of Doing Things I call ‘my way of doing things’ the TC system, which stands for Think and Consider. It’s nothing more than a check-list to be considered when taking a photograph underwater. It’s the means of explaining to those I teach, the way in which I approach my own photography and the thought process that other successful underwater photographers use.

The TC system is at the forefront of my whole approach and is fundamental to my teaching, coaching and mentoring philosophy.

My thirst for this knowledge has never subsided and I’m still eager to learn more. To this day, I listen to everyone and continue to discard those things I do not feel to be pertinent. I know that the TC system works. In the last 25 years, I have witnessed thousands of enthusiastic underwater photographers employ these techniques for themselves. Within a short period of time they have developed from complete beginners to competent, skilful and imaginative photographers. Several have become world class.

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So, How do we Use The TC System?   

Study each feature of the system until you are conversant with it. Relate it to your own photography and previous experiences underwater. It may assist you to affix these features to your camera housing.

The analogy I use for the TC system is that of driving a motor-car. Throughout the journey we make numerous and often instant decisions — when to pull out, to overtake, to brake and to accelerate. We consider many scenarios and in an instant come to a decision. The TC system is no different. Consider the features, remember the features and use your experience, intuition and perception of an uw photo opportunity to progress your photography to the next level and then the next level after that.

< FIG. 5.1 (Opposite page)

Readers of my other books will recognise this photograph. I have used it in the last three editions and I make no apology for using it once again. Of all the underwater photographs I have taken, this particular shot has the most significance. I could describe it as the moment when, photographically, the ‘lights came on’ for me. At that time I was a very happy snappy scuba diver, but I knew I wanted more out of my photography. During an Easter weekend dive trip to Cornwall, UK, I came across a jellyfish which had been stranded in a large 1 m deep rock pool. I instinctively knew that the circumstances would provide an opportunity to take a very good picture. I surprised my fellow divers and ‘excused myself’ from the afternoon boat dive on a well-known wreck. They thought I was crazy to miss a dive in favour of snorkelling in a rock pool. That weekend, jellyfish were in abundance. So, why not shoot one in the sea after the dive? My gut feeling indicated that the rock pool was the right decision. The word that continually came to mind was ‘potential’ — this opportunity had great potential! My buddy Bob Wrobel and I spent an hour or so in the pool, and I came out with this natural-light shot taken on a Nikonos 111 with 15 mm lens. It was soon after this picture that I first labelled the features of the TC system. It all fell into place, and I never looked back. Shallow water environments have always been a strong feature of my photography since that time.

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Topside pressure Weather Sea state Dive plan Camera preparation Current Swells, depth, times

Concentration

Subject Selection

LCD Review Potential and negative space

Approach

Lighting

Composition

Visualisation

Patience

Peak of the action

LCD review Shoot, evaluate and work the subject By Alexandra Hayes

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FIG. 5.2

The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer

Camera Preparation Frustration is an emotion which can arise at any point of the photo process. Frustration towards an inflexible dive group, frustration with water conditions, frustration with your results but most of all, I find the feeling of frustration towards your photo gear is the main culprit. How many times have you been in the water and discovered?     

You’ve left the lens cap on. Your flash batteries are flat after five minutes. The camera will not turn on due to misalignment of the on/off switch. The auto focus will not work due to a misalignment of gears. The wrong port is fitted for your fisheye lens.

The list is endless, and you’re not the only one who suffers from these problems. Underwater photo professionals make the same mistakes.

I am not particularly proud of this achievement, but I once neglected to put my camera into my housing!

You must, and I emphasis the word ‘must’, establish a routine of preparing your camera, flash, housing, etc. for a photo-dive. If you neglect to establish a ‘prepping’ routine then sooner or later problems will arise in one form or another. Technical divers have a rule that:

No one should be distracted by another person whilst they are preparing their equipment.

If you can establish a similar system when preparing cameras for diving, the chances of flooding would be significantly minimised. In my experience, 95% of floods are caused by human error. More often than not it’s down to rushing to get ready and making simple mistakes. The design of modern camera housings reduces the chance of experiencing a flood; however, mistakes are sometimes made in the preparation stage which result in a flashgun not firing, a lens not focusing and a camera ‘packing up’ in the first few metres.

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FIG. 5.3 We all experience this familiar feeling when our rig plays up and it always seems to occur on a photo-dive which matters.

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Establish a Routine My own ‘prep’ routine may interest you: I challenge myself to get through a one or two week workshop without making a mistake that may effectively ruin a single photo-dive. It’s a mistake if:      

Either of my flashguns fail during a dive. My camera battery dies on me. I accidentally misalign my ‘limit’ switch on my 60 mm or 105 mm macro lens. My zoom gears are misaligned. Focus light fails on a night dive. Camera hot-shoe is out of line — flash won’t fire.

The list is long. My latest howler was forgetting to download a full memory card to my laptop before an afternoon dive.

Tips It’s good practice to develop a routine. Ensure that distractions during preparation are minimised. If you feel that you are rushing things, then slow down and retrace your steps. Having experienced all of these errors for myself, I know that distractions lead to floods — not because of faulty equipment, but from a lack of preparation and routine.

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Developing our Powers of Concentration Along with rock climbing, hand-gliding and skiing, scuba diving is one of the most hazardous sports there is. In order to capture great uw photographs, it’s essential for us to harness our own individual powers of concentration. When you think about it — photography and scuba diving are two totally unrelated activities! Research has been conducted into hazardous sports and concentration levels. Specifically, a number of expert skiers and their ability to concentrate in adverse conditions makes for interesting reading. Simple mathematical equations were piped through headphones to test their concentration levels whilst negotiating severely difficult ‘black’ runs. Their objective was to provide the correct answer in real time. Results showed that their ability to effectively concentrate on other (simple) stimuli was hampered. Relate this example to our circumstances. Scuba diving is a hazardous sport. Photography is a technical subject. Somehow, we need to blend the two together. It’s easy to understand why this is so challenging for us. Early during my journey into underwater photography, I recognised that if I was to improve, I had to master my powers of concentration once I was in the water, but my learning had to begin topside.

Topside Pressures Before we enter the water, we may be carrying around a whole bag of pressures and distractions. I have never completely developed my ‘sea legs’, and if it’s rough I can become nervous at the thought of being seasick. There are numerous reasons why we feel apprehensive at times, and this regularly accounts for why cameras are deliberately left behind on board the dive boat. Have you ever had that instinctive feeling just before you enter the water that maybe you should leave your camera behind? We are all prone to being apprehensive at times. In these situations, photography will invariably come low in our order of physiological needs and priorities. By instinct, very few of us could abandon these priorities for the sake of a few pictures. We can only begin to concentrate if we identify our own distractions and take steps to minimise them.

Concentration when you are Underwater How efficiently are you able to concentrate on your photography whilst underwater? Do you have a photographic task in mind but as soon as you are breathing from compressed air a couple of metres below the surface, your brain turns to mush and your mind goes blank?

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Do you enter the water with a certain shot to take and, once there, forget how to set your camera up to achieve it? Something stops working on your digital camera. You know for certain that you can fix it, but for some odd reason you seem unable to apply your mind and concentration to the job.

FIG. 5.4 ‘Where’s my buddy’? ‘Is my flash firing’? ‘Where is the dive guide’?

I work with many underwater photographers who recognise they have a problem with their ability to concentrate underwater. My first question is this: ‘What is distracting you?’ Often it’s hard to put a finger on it, so I give them a slate and ask them to write down (whilst underwater) the reasons they find themselves unable to think clearly. The most common (in no particular order) are:       

Paranoia about cameras and flashguns flooding. An item of your equipment is not working properly. Problems in keeping up with the rest of your dive group. A dive mask continually fogging-up. Feeling the cold. Fear of becoming separated from your buddy. Lack of confidence with buoyancy control.

Some of my own distractions and solutions may interest you: I’m sure you will relate to many of them.

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Tips Whilst I believe that our powers of concentration are fundamental to consistent underwater photography, I also appreciate that in a variety of situations underwater photography will come low in the order of our physiological needs and priorities. No one should abandon these priorities for the sake of taking good underwater photographs.

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The clarity of my dive mask glass is paramount. A fogged mask is the ultimate annoyance I produce little quality work when diving in a strong current. I just go out to enjoy the dive in these circumstances. Cold, rough seas and sea swell distract me. I now wear socks beneath my bootees, which prevent chaffing.

I produce my best work in shallow water, whilst diving with a buddy who shares my attitudes. We are able to dive together, but in such a way that allows us to place less emphasis on each other’s immediate well-being and more on our photographic aims.

The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer

Subject Selection, Negative Space, Potential — The Way in which we Choose what to Shoot Two of my favourite underwater photos of all time depict firstly a branch of Kelp (seaweed) lit by flash with a black background and, secondly, a wave, breaking over a coral reef in shallow water. They were taken by two individual underwater photographers from the USA in the late 1980s. What is so significant about these two pictures is the subject matter. Kelp and a breaking wave! It’s difficult to think of anything in the sea more commonplace than a wave and a piece of seaweed, yet these two images, to my eyes, are perfection. Many years ago these two pictures got me thinking. In that — if a piece of kelp and a breaking wave could be made to look so good, anything in the sea must be a credible subject! Think about this! Kelp must be one of the most universal and familiar subjects found underwater. So how on earth can we begin to choose what to photograph and what to ignore? This is concept behind subject selection. A number of subjects are quite obviously great to photograph — dolphins, manta rays, Pygmy seahorses. But in certain locations, the less obvious types of subject may be in such profusion that we tend to ignore them as quite mundane and ‘hardly worth the effort’. In my opinion, the potential of the subjects we choose to stop and photograph is the main factor that separates the best photographers from the rest. The best are skilled at spotting an opportunity, which the majority of us swim over without a thought; their innereye spots a photo opportunity and instinct takes over. For some it’s an intuitive talent, but I know that it is a skill that can be developed with practice. And the reason I know this is because I have done it!

Training the Eye to Recognise Great Subjects How can we train our underwater eye to recognise the potential in a commonplace subject? Let’s start by looking at some scenarios which may NOT make a good subject. 



As already discussed, subjects which live on, in or close to the reef may be difficult to shoot by virtue of their inaccessibility. We can take a snapshot through branches of coral, but in general they have little potential by virtue of their location. Remember, it’s not the subject at fault — it’s where or how the subject is located.

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Reefs that are horizontal, however pristine or attractive they look, may have little potential for the same reason. It may be difficult if not impossible to point the camera at any angle other than down, which is not the best way to compose subjects. Lying across corals to steady ourselves or disregarding the reef is totally unacceptable — don’t do it! So how do photographers obtain those great shots in books and magazines, which we all aspire to?

This is precisely what subject selection is all about.

Start Looking 

 



FIG. 5.5 Just off the Kona coast of Hawaii, manta rays are 90% guaranteed to appear just before dusk at shallow dive sites close to shore. In these circumstances the potential is plainly obvious. Nikon D200 with Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, One Sea & Sea 120ys flash, f5.6 at 1/8th (one eight sec) ISO 400.

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Look for an overhang or reef wall where it starts to drop away. You have a good chance of placing two fingers on a non-living part of the reef, holding steady and approaching a subject from below or at eye level. From this angle, you have a great opportunity to eliminate a cluttered background. Shoot a bottom dweller whilst it is resting on plain sand instead of rocks and boulders. It’s easier for you and will make a better picture. A great tip from the late great Jim Church is to shoot the strongest features of a dive site. A dive site may have a particular feature that is prominent to that particular location. Ascertain the strongest features from other photographers and locals before you even enter the water. Because the feature is common to that dive site, you will have a far greater chance of finding an opportunity that is situated in the ideal place to make an excellent photograph.

The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer

FIG. 5.6 At Loloata Island, PNG, on the wreck of the New Marine, two fan corals hosted at least five longnosed Hawkfish, which were forever present throughout our 10 day workshop. They were quite approachable and allowed us to fill the frame using a 60mm macro lens. It was the deep green colour of the coral branch background, which contrasted with their vivid red colour that most impressed me about this opportunity and I shot at least 50 frames to ensure I achieved several which pleased me. Nikon D300, 60 mm macro lens, one Inon Z220 flashgun (the other I turned off) f4.8 at 1/250th sec, ISO 200. I selected a wide aperture of f4.8 in order to blur the background to emphasise the fish. More about blur/bokeh in Chapter 8 on ‘Close-Up and Macro’.

LCD Screen to Check the Condition By using your LCD review screen you can make a critical review of the condition of your chosen subject. If it’s a poor specimen, you may choose to select another close by.

Negative Space ‘Everything in the photograph which is not the subject’ In my own work, successful underwater photography is more about the negative space than about the subject itself. It determines whether or not I shoot the subject. A fish may be interesting and colourful, however if it’s against a poor background it will surely fail!

Negative Space in Land Photography A sports photographer at the Olympics will focus on a specific area of the running track, awaiting and anticipating a subject — an athlete — moving into that area so he can press the shutter. Skilful underwater photographers do the same — choose an area of outstanding negative space and wait for something to swim into it before they press the shutter.

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FIG. 5.7

FIG. 5.8 Tubeworms are very common

and found in abundance so it was not these subjects which caught first caught my eye in Bali. What attracted me was a sizeable formation of corals which stood over a metre high from the seabed. It meant that I could position myself below the formation and photograph anything remotely interesting which protruded from it because the background (negative space) was plain and simple blue water. In Figs 5.7 and 5.8 I approached them from eye level with an aperture of f16 using a Nikon 60 mm macro lens on a Nikon D200 with two Inon Z220 flashguns. I shot Fig. 5.7 at a slower shutter speed of 1/60th sec which has recorded the blue water a slightly darker shade than it appeared to my eye. I shot this image also at f16 but on this occasion, and to illustrate the concept of negative space, I used a shutter speed of 1/125th sec, which has recorded the blue water as black. There is nothing difficult, challenging or creative about either of these two images but don’t they jump out at you! It is nothing to do with the subjects themselves. The reason is the background — the negative space, non-distracting, non-cluttered, non-busy — where they are situated. Try this technique when you next photo-dive. Look for good negative space and find subjects within that space.

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If the background is poor and the subject is quite ordinary, I may not bother to take the shot. If it’s a subject I have not seen before I will shoot it, but only enough frames ‘to get a ‘recording shot’. If the negative space is particularly good, then I will take more shots. Dive guides are specialists at finding critters. However, more often than not what they find is laying or situated around cluttered or distracting negative space. That’s not the guide’s fault (they are there to find the subject) and whilst it may be attractive, if the background is distracting, even the most experienced uw photographer would be hard pressed to improve it.   

Newcomers look for specific subjects. Experienced photographers look for good negative space and then make efforts to find simple subjects within their chosen negative space. My own favourite negative space is the water column which can be recorded at various shades between blue and black (in tropical climes). Green and black in more temperate seas.

FIG. 5.9 The resort of Nuweiba on the Gulf of Eilat (northern Red Sea) is well known for the amount of Lion fish which inhabit the house reef of the Coral

Hilton Hotel. They are in abundance at all times of the day but after sunset, attracted by the spot-lights of the hotel’s jetty, they rise to the surface. Not just two or three but 20 or 30. Because they occupy the water column and are not hidden within a reef crevice, this means that the potential to shoot dynamic pictures of them is huge, and in Europe and the UK they consistently do well in underwater photo competitions.

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FIG. 5.10 The very first time I shot the Nuweiba Lion fish I could not

believe the potential of what could be achieved. My first idea was to go for a reflection just below the surface. I accomplished this quite easily! There were so many to choose from, I just had to wait until one turned towards me to pose. Nikon D200, Nikon 17 mm—35 mm at the 35 mm end, f8 at 1/90th sec, two Inon Z220 flashguns, ISO 100.

Determine the Potential of the Subject You have found a subject with good negative space situated in an ideal position for you to photograph. How many shots are you going to take? How long are you going to stick with this opportunity? Could this be a really good shot? Consideration of the potential is necessary, so ask yourself:    

How good the potential could be? How long should you stay in that spot and shoot? How many shots might it take to get one that really works? Is the potential just OK or excellent?

There are no hard and fast rules. Only the photographer can make these decisions.

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FIG. 5.11 Whilst I was in the water, enjoying this encounter, I consciously considered the potential before me. If I could shoot one with a reflection then

why not a pair? What else could I include? I took in excess of 90 shots over a 60 minute period. Same equipment and settings as Fig. 5.10 At the time of writing I can think of no better place world-wide to shoot Lion fish pictures. 183

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FIG. 5.12 One of the most popular and

photogenic subjects found in the sea is the ubiquitous Clown fish so it’s no coincidence that it was depicted to star in Finding Nemo. Clown fish come with their very own outstanding negative space — the anemone itself — and these elements come together to create popular images with world-wide appeal. Let us consider this potential. A Clown fish in anemone tentacles photographs well but when shot against a colourful skirt they look even better. To me a ‘balled up’ anemone and Clown fish is always a must-shoot subject. When it’s a colourful red, blue or purple skirt on offer then the potential is even greater. I took this image on the wreck of the Shinkoko Maru in Truk Lagoon. I noticed that the anemone had ‘balled up’ at the end of my second dive but I did not have enough air to stay. Ninety minutes later I returned to the same spot with a 60 mm macro lens and fingers crossed in the hope it was still balled up. I spent 40 minutes concentrating on areas of the skirt and pressing the shutter when the fish swam into my chosen negative space. So, the next time you see a Clown in anemone, don’t follow the fish but focus your lens onto the anemone and when the Clown swims into your chosen negative space then hit the shutter button — not once or twice but as many times as it takes to fulfil its potential. Nikon D200, two Inon Z220 flashguns, f16 at 1/125th sec, ISO 100.

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FIG. 5.13 There was nothing particularly remarkable about this Moray in Hawaii until it protruded from its lair at an angle, which enabled me to shoot it against a non-distracting background. Because of this it’s potential to enable a successful result increased. The reef was behind it but more than one metre away, which was not in range of my flashgun. Nikon 105 mm lens, f16 at 1/125th sec, two Z220 flashguns positioned each side of my macro port in order to illuminate both sides of the subject. 185

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FIG. 5.14 I choose this patch of coral for a colourful wide angle simply because the small (anthias) reef fish were in attendance whereas some other areas of the reef had a stark blue backdrop without any fish action. A small detail but important to increase interest in the picture. Nikon 12 24 mm at the 12 mm end, f8 at 1/125th sec. Twin Inon flashguns.

FIG. 5.15 Jamie Edge adopts a low camera angle and hugs the sand to achieve an upward angle on yet another Lion fish in Nuewiba.

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FIG. 5.16 The result of Jamie’s efforts using a rented compact from the dive centre.

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FIG. 5.17 Near to the drop off at Ras Mohamed, Red Sea, there is a small cave situated in 7 m of water. For several years this cave has been home to

a small school of glass- fish. What excited me was that it’s home to five or more red coral groupers who appear to feed constantly on the fish. Being primarily interested in dinner, the groupers are always tolerant of photographers and allow close proximity. The cave is large enough for two photographers who can shoot either into the cave entrance or from within the cave, shooting out into the blue water. With the fish so at ease with my intrusion I recognised I had everything — good subject selection (grouper and glassfish); excellent potential (allowing me to get close); good negative space (blue water background or a dark background by shooting into the cave). After 10 minutes I appreciated quite a challenge in that every shot I took of the grouper were almost totally obscured by the glassfish. Over a period of three photo-dives I spent 90 minutes in the cave, shooting over 100 pictures. I returned because in my opinion, and for my own portfolio, I considered it worth the effort. I never captured a grouper taking a fish and so many frames were flawed with obscured features but I did achieve this shot which pleased me and made it worth the effort.

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FIG. 5.18 Nikon D300 in a Subal housing, Nikon 17—35 mm lens at the 35 mm end, two Inon Z220 flashguns, f8 at 1/90th sec, ISO 100.

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Tips

Digital Evaluation of Potential

1.

Before the digital age of underwater photography, the uncertainty of whether we had considered best potential was forever in our mind. Now, we are able to review, check and make instant decisions, before we even return to the boat. By careful evaluation of the LCD we should be able to decide that we have enough shots and move on — or — we need to revisit and re-shoot certain images.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

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Shoot the strongest feature of the dive site. Consider the accessibility of the subject; if it’s tricky, then move on. Consider the best place to look on your photo-dive. Look for subjects against good negative space. Check the condition of subjects in the LCD. Ask yourself what the potential is of your chosen subject. Take a snapshot and look for potential on the LCD review; if it’s not as good as you once thought, then move on to something else.

Consider your favourite underwater photographer in the world at this time: How do you think your underwater photography would improve if they could choose subjects for you to photograph? So when you’re next underwater take a moment to think and consider what they might choose to shoot if they were in your fins!

The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer

Approach

Tips 

The physical means of moving into and getting closer to the subject.

Together with my course participants, I work hard to improve their understanding and ability to get close to subjects. I know how frustrating it is when without the help of the dive guide you spot a rare and exotic subject just posing for you, waiting to have its photo taken then for some unknown reason it’s gone. It could be a shrimp, a hawk fish or a small blenny on some whip coral. In fact, anything that could potentially disappear is relevant to the technique of ‘Approach’.



You get closer, and closer, aim the camera, and ‘pop’ you have the subject on sensor — or do you? The concept of ‘Approach’ as part of the TC System is at its most crucial between:  

Your eye spotting the subject, and Your brain making the decision to move closer and your finger pressing the shutter.

It’s within this period of time that the decisions are made, which are crucial to achieving success. In fact what often happens is that the photographer spots the subject and, in the enthusiasm of the encounter, sometimes:   



Moves straight towards the subject, landing in a cloud of sand and creating backscatter. Approaches at the wrong angle then realises it is impossible to achieve a well composed image, or Gets to the subject before it’s spooked, and now finds a need to alter the camera controls because they weren’t set up for the shot before approaching.

With more adjustments, more movements and more chance of scatter, do you ever wonder why subjects swim away?

  



Look at surroundings; if you cannot approach without threatening the fragility of the reef, then don’t try. Don’t take the shot! Back off and find another creature in a location in which you feel comfortable. Consider the angle of approach. From which direction does the subject look best? Backscatter and buoyancy control are fundamentally linked; they can ruin many opportunities. Consider the best angle of view. Set your aperture before moving in. Adjust your flashgun. Do you need to adjust your flash arms if you shoot it in a certain format? Ask yourself: ‘Does the shot lend itself to a landscape or a portrait composition?’

I recommend the following: 

Make all the adjustments you need but not too close to the subject.

When we observe a creature and decide to take a photo, before approaching it, remember to think approach:

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FIG. 5.19 The first time I shot this great Barracuda on the Liberty wreck in Bali, I had no idea how tame and easy to approach it was. I set my flashgun into

position and moved in slowly, pressing the shutter as I progressed from 2 m away to less than 20 cm. Nikon D200, 60 mm macro lens, one Inon flashgun (the other turned off to prevent excessive reflection) f5.6 at 1/60th sec, ISO 100. 192

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FIG. 5.20 I spotted this Blue Spot Stingray in a cave on the Small Gota drop-off in the southern Red Sea. The cave had two entrances about 5 m apart. I indicated to Sylvia the potential for an ‘exploration shot’. Before I entered the other entrance I took a test shot out into the blue to determine a pleasant blue water colour and selected 1/30th sec with an aperture of f16. Once inside the second entrance and away from the ray I took a photo of plain sand to determine flash power, position and aperture. I knew I might only get one chance to move in before the ray swam off so my ‘approach’ preparation was to be ‘all ready to go’. I then moved in on the subject, Sylvia took up position at the first entrance, and I was lucky to take a series of shots before the Ray moved on. Nikon 12—24 mm lens on the 12 mm end.

FIG. 5.21 This screen print illustrates the progression of the idea at Fig. 5.20 above. Notice the three sand test shots and then 13 attempts with the ray, and the position of Sylvia in the background. Along the top row notice how I start shooting at a distance from the subject and continue pressing the shutter as I approach. 193

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Make these decisions before you start your approach: If you make your adjustments in close proximity to shy and timid creatures, you will spook them!

So what you must try and do is approach slowly, carefully and methodically. Your adjustments will be minimal, and you will have a greater chance of getting close. It is the movements and handling of the camera that cause the majority of approach problems.

A Word About Your Flash Position Be aware that if you choose to position your flashgun in front of your housing and out past your port, towards the creature, then you run the risk of it being spooked — not by your presence or your housing but by the intrusion of your flashgun into its comfort zone! The fish swims away, you become frustrated and you blame your powers of stealth, when all the time it was simply the close proximity of your flashgun to the subject. If you are approaching a shy bottom-dwelling subject:    

Set your flash, exposure and camera orientation. Simulate the opportunity by shooting a test shot along the sand to determine whether your flashguns are placed correctly. Do this a distance away from the subject — it will only take a moment. When you then move in on the real thing, you can be confident that your camera/ lighting techniques are sound.

When you take a shot, there is an overwhelming desire to view the LCD after every frame: human nature, probably, but believe in yourself — it can become a habit. Tip Don’t just swim straight in regardless; give it some thought beforehand.

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You know exactly how the shot will look, BUT curiosity gets the better and you take a peek. I have often seen the camera being lifted from the eye and moved forward a foot or so to take a comfortable look at the LCD. The action of moving the camera in this manner and the direction of movement is thrusting the camera rig directly in the face of the subject. I see so many subjects spooked by this action!

The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer

I still forget and do it now, even though I know I am pushing my housing towards the creature I’m trying so hard not to disturb. If like me you are prone to this then affix a sticker to the back of your housing with a prompt you will remember. Also, notice your buddy will do the same thing. The LCD review is like a magnet to our eye. I know I encourage constant review but spooky subjects are not the time and the place. You will find that when the action is fast, every other seven to 10 shots for review may suffice and satisfy your curiosity. I fully appreciate this is a very subjective observation, and whilst I do not intend to be prescriptive, it may just give you the edge the next time you are shooting a skittish subject.

Tip 





Set up your lighting and your composition, and If the action is occurring, keep your eye on the viewfinder. Trust your trigger finger and resist the temptation to review the LCD after every single shot.

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FIG. 5.22 By Leena Roy. Leena has

considered her approach before moving in to shoot this wobbegong shark and approached it from a photogenic angle. 1/250thsec at f8, Canon Ixus 980, an Epoque ES-230DS flashgun, UFL 65AD Inon wide angle lens.

FIG. 5.23 Hawkfish are plentiful in the Red Sea and make colourful images but they are very skittish and frustrate the most patient photographer. My tip is to consider your approach. Position your flashgun before you move in and keep your eye on the subject. Resist the temptation to review your LCD as any sudden movement will spook them. For every 20 that I approach, I may get this close once or twice. I doubt that I would have been able to compose this tightly using a 60 mm macro lens. Nikon D200, Nikon 105 mm macro lens, one flash Inon flashgun (the other turned to off). F16 at 1/30th sec shutter, ISO 200. I choose 1/30th to record the blue water background as blue as opposed to dark blue or black.

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Lighting for Underwater Photography Lighting underwater photographs is a huge topic. Here, I will discuss the techniques of:   

Natural/ambient light from the sun. Artificial light from our flashguns. A combination of each when we choose to blend them both together, a technique which is often referred to as ‘balanced light fill in flash’.

But how do we decide how much light to use and in what circumstances?    

Do certain subjects work better with a certain quality of light? How can we determine this? Where do we place our flashgun? How many flashguns should we use, one or two?

One thing is certain — there is no right or wrong way of using light underwater. But by taking notice of the light conditions for any particular photo dive and asking yourself questions on which types of light you may prefer, you can begin to enable options for your own style and taste instead of being a slave to both your camera and flashgun. It’s time to take control. Turn to Chapter 6 to learn how.

< FIG. 5.24 (Next page)

Twelve photographers visited this shallow cave system at ‘Jackfish Alley’ in the northern Red Sea over a period of 48 hours. The objective was to shoot the sunbeams at midday. Nine used flash and without exception — all were disappointed with their results. I and two others were the exception. We switched our flashguns to ‘off’, worked the available light and as a result the other two both went on to win photo competitions some time later. Fig. 5.24 is my result. With flashguns ‘off‘ I spent five minutes working this particular angle. It’s been nicknamed ‘Celestial Light’ and I used my Nikon D300 with natural light, f4.8 at 1/20th sec, ISO 800, 10 mm end of my Tokina 10 17 mm fisheye zoom. During the post dive debrief, we discussed the alternative lighting approaches and the entire emphasis of our discussions was ‘Why three of us had decided to use natural light’. My two colleagues declared ‘instinct, intuition, and gut feeling!’ But I was rock solid certain that my reason was the natural appearance of the shafts of light, which had inspired me. When light looks great to our eyes — why on earth do we change that appearance and use flash? It’s the natural light, which inspired us in the first instance! But it’s so common to overlook this fact and continuing shooting flash! It’s a habit but I hope after you have read Chapter 6 ‘All About Lighting’ you will learn to consider other alternative options.

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Composition for the TC System Deciding what goes where in a photograph is called composition, and good composition is key to taking great pictures. Essentially it’s an editing process. We alone decide what to leave in and what to leave out of the frame. Those elements we leave in we have to decide whereabouts to place them within the frame. There are no hard and fast rules; a good composition is one that is simply ‘pleasing to the eye’. Land-based photographers have a much easier time with composition than underwater shooters. On land we experiment with composition and try all the tips, techniques and guiding principles we’ve learnt. Underwater however there is a major difference! The problem underwater is developing the concentration necessary to apply these guidelines. Remembering that scuba diving is classed as a hazardous sport, the ability to concentrate on the viewfinder, i.e. what to leave in, what to leave out, can often be challenging. I have dived with many competent photographers who have a sound working knowledge of compositional technique but once submerged and diving on scuba, simple compositional guidelines disappear into thin air.

Tip When my concentration is heightened and I am in ‘the zone’, I am able to imagine that the image is being projected onto a screen in a darkened room. I ask myself, do I like what I have taken? And, more importantly, how can I improve on it?

Composition for the TC system is not about compositional technique — that comes later in Chapter 9. How the TC (Think and Consider) system works is concerned with how to apply compositional guidelines underwater.   

Initially we have to remember what those simple compositional guidelines are. Next, we have to determine how can we educate ourselves to apply them underwater. Discussing them over a beer with your photo friends is fine but thinking and applying this underwater is the main issue!

When coaching, my intention first and foremost is to enable students to think of as many compositional guidelines as possible. I’m not concerned how well they apply those guidelines, as long as they are remembered. When the mindset is working towards this aim, then we can begin to look at the decision making process of what goes where, what to leave out of the frame and how to balance the elements. This type of mindful consideration of composition underwater will improve the chance of getting what you want in-camera without extra work in Photoshop.

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The Underwater Photographer FIG. 5.25 Clown fish in anemone by Sylvia Edge

taken on Fuji f40, no attachements and internal flashgun.

FIG. 5.26 Subal housing, Nikon D300, Nikon 60 mm macro lens, f22 at 1/60th sec, ISO 200.

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Visualisation Visualisation is the ability that everyone has allowing us to form a picture in the mind. We all use this skill on numerous occasions each and every day. We constantly project our mind into the future. We plan our day and visualise a meeting, lunch with a friend, how we intend to spend the evening, etc. We do this subconsciously, and if we stop to think about our plans for tomorrow, we’ve probably visualised parts of the day already. Including visualisation as a feature of the TC system, I’d like you to:    

Consider the elements that make up the picture opportunity. Visualise the picture you would like to obtain. Learn to see the colour that will be recorded. Attempt to transfer that vision into camera.

On land we can see colour, but underwater it’s filtered out at shallow depths. Therefore, it is very important to develop the ability of learning to see in pictures, learning to see in colour, and to take into account the background as well as the subject matter.

Why Bother you may ask? Colour of the water, the angle of the lens, composition, lighting angles can all be confirmed and vindicated in the time it takes your eye to observe and evaluate the LCD. I take the view that the ability to visualise is still important to the digital user. My reasons are that both above and below water, there are some users who neglect to take proper care with framing, composition, lighting, etc. The beauty of instant review and unlimited frames continues the tendency to make some users a little sloppy. We’ve all done it at sometime:    

I’ll crop the composition in computer, I can adjust the lighting in levels and curves, I will boost the colour using the Saturation tool, No need to worry about backscatter, I will clone it out in Photoshop.

Tip I know you’ve heard this countless time before, but it’s good to get the best possible result in-camera and resist the attitude just to snap away and do all the corrections on computer at a later date.

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FIG. 5.28 This Lightroom 2 screenshot shows how the idea was progressed.

= FIG. 5.27 (Opposite page) Nikon D300, Tokina 10—17 mm at the 10 mm end, f11 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200, one Inon Z240 flashgun (the other turned to Off). Whilst this red balled up anemone was excellent potential, the problem I had was the inability to get my eye behind the housing viewfinder to compose the picture. It was inaccessible. However I was able to place the housing beneath the anemone and ‘shoot from the hip’. I took a few shots, checked the LCD and visualised what could be obtained from the elements of the scene, i.e the red anemone, the Clown, the background reef and the blue water undersurface 2 m above me. First I turned one flash to ‘off’ and positioned the second to light the anemone without illuminating too much of the background reef. Secondily I prefocused and locked off my lens to about 20 cm. I wanted to surround the anemone with the unlit shape of the reef behind to create a kind of layered effect. I worked the subject until I had perfected my ‘blind’ composition. I then pressed the shutter when the Clown appeared to be looking into my dome — the ideal ‘peak of the action’.

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Patience The three P’s:   

Patience in preparing camera and diving equipment, Patience in your approach, Patience in waiting for peak of the action.

You have selected your subject and positioned the flash. You approach and the subject disappears into a hole! Typical! At this point you need to consider patience. How long do you wait until the subject reappears? You are diving an excellent macro photo site. Colourful whip corals are growing from the seabed. You find a number of blennies moving up and down the branches. You frame one in your viewfinder, but it moves out of shot. There’s another and another! But after a couple of seconds they move again. You need to be patient in these circumstances, but how long for? How long do you persist? A colourful Mantis shrimp disappears into its home in the sand. You have a couple of shots in the bag and they look OK in the LCD, but you feel the composition could be improved. How long should you wait? In these scenarios, you have a conscious decision to make regarding the amount of time you are prepared to spend in your efforts to take the photograph. Ask yourself, whilst you are underwater, at the time: Does the potential of this shot justify the patience and time required to stick around? Only the photographer can make this decision but remember, you have to consider this at the time, underwater! It’s no use when you’re back on the boat, heading off to another dive site. Patience is essential within the TC system, not only for shooting marine life but also when you relate it to other features — such as potential, subject selection and peak of the action. Now is the time for you to retrace a mental path through the features of the TC system and consider the potential of the opportunity. Have you already taken shots like this, or is it a one-off, excellent opportunity? The TC structure is a means of prompting you to think and consider various options underwater. Once TC is habitual, passing over an opportunity will no longer be because of forgetfulness or the ‘I never gave it a thought’ attitude. In life, we make hundreds of instant decisions every day. The TC system is no different.

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FIG. 5.29 I shot this Mantis shrimp from a shore dive adjacent to Scuba Seraya, Tulamben, Bali. It was so inquisitive and continually popped out of hiding every two or three minutes. Directly behind it was its shelter. When it emerged at a certain angle I was able to light the mantis without a cluttered and distracting background. I captured it once so I knew my idea would work but the composition was flawed. So, how long was I prepared to lie on the sand, eye glued to the viewfinder to wait — not just for the Mantis to emerge but to emerge at a certain angle to capture a plain uncluttered background? Patience was required so I considered:  

Any other subject in the vicinity, that would be worth shooting instead? Answer — ‘Not at all’ How long was I prepared to spend on the intricacies of this particular Mantis? I checked my air, depth and buddy and knew I had at least 30 minutes.

I settled down for as long as it would take and in the end was rewarded with the Mantis emerging at an ideal angle. I pressed the shutter and knew I had the shot in the bag. It was just a matter of patience, nothing technically challenging other than investing time and tolerance. Nikon D200, Nikon 105 mm macro lens, f16 at 1/250th sec, ISO 100, one Inon flashgun, the other turned off to avoid too much of the background being illuminated. 205

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Peak of the Action A definitive moment in time when you choose to press the shutter and stop the action of the underwater world in your lens.

The concept of ‘the decisive moment’ was first introduced to photography by one of the all-time masters, Henri Cartier-Bresson. It’s also referred to as ‘the kodak moment’ but I have always taught it as ‘peak of the action’. It’s the bread and butter of sport photographers and often the reason why a picture sells. Think of the examples from the Olympic games, tennis, boxing and cricket. Moments in time which the photographer has anticipated and frozen the action. In underwater photography, to capture action and speed of this nature is rare. We recognise the obvious — dolphins swimming in formation, sharks taking a fish, sea-lion pups playing in the waves — but less obvious examples are sometimes neglected. Consider the word ‘action’ to be a loose definition, and ask yourself: 



Is the subject capable of moving, or has it any moving parts? For instance, these may be the tentacles of a sea anemone or the polyps of certain corals, which open and close to feed. If it has moving parts, is there a certain moment in time when pressing the shutter may achieve a better, more pleasing picture?

It does not have to be fast action or any action at all. However, consider the following situations and see the difference that stopping the action at the correct moment in time can make. 





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Clown fish in a sea anemone. The tentacles can often sway from side to side. Press at the wrong time and the Clown fish can be obscured. If you consider the peak of the action, you may improve the composition by shooting when the tentacles appear balanced in the frame. A turtle swimming in blue water. If you neglect to consider the peak of the action, it’s easy to obscure its facial features because a fin is in the way. Visualise a cleaning station with fish queuing to have parasites removed. As the mouth or gills open and the ‘cleaner’ pops inside, this could be the moment in time that will make a better picture.

The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer

FIG. 5.30 Spanish Dancer taken in Nuweiba, Gulf of Eilat, northern Red Sea. Considering ‘peak of the action’ is essential with subjects like a Spanish Dancer. They can so easily look like a blob of jelly dumped overboard. Think and considering the ‘peak’ does not guarantee you will capture it. With moving subjects it can take some time and effort. Nikon D200, Nikon 17—35 mm lens at 32 mm end, f8 at 1/180th sec, ISO 100, two Inon flashguns placed each side of my dome port facing outwards.

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FIG. 5.31 Taken inside the cockpit of the Betty bomber in Truk lagoon. This shot is all about ‘peak of the action’: the dense school of glassfish

complementing my diver model in the background. I took many shots of this idea but the majority were spoiled due to the glassfish covering the eyes of my model. I got two that worked but the other is flawed with too much overexposure on the fish scales. See Fig. 5.32.

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FIG. 5.32 Screen print of flawed idea at Fig. 5.31.

FIG. 5.33 Whilst I’m dissatisfied about the negative space, I do like the body angle of the Grouper and the ‘peak of action’ of the open mouth. Nikon D300, 60 mm macro lens, f19 at 1/30th sec, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns positioned each side of my macro port.

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Tip Before pressing the shutter, look at your subject. If any part is capable of movement, then consider whether there is a definitive moment in that movement that will make for a more pleasing picture? If there is, then compose, wait for the peak and press the shutter. Now may be a good time to revisit page 204 when we talked about patience!

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Where Does Peak of the Action Fit into Composition? The first thing is not to confuse the two. Composition, in short, is the arrangement of the subject matter in the frame, whilst peak of the action is when to press the shutter and ‘stop’ the action of the subject. Composing a distant diver within the frame is an element of composition; however, waiting for the diver to exhale a plume of bubbles may be the peak of action that will enhance the photograph.

Evaluation Review the LCD to determine:    

Have you captured the peak of the action? Does it work? Is it relevant? Can the picture be improved? Do you need to shoot more frames or can you move on in search of other things to photograph?

The Mindset of the Successful Underwater Photographer

Shoot, Evaluate and Work the Subject Imagine! You have found a good macro subject with ideal negative space, you’ve perfected the exposure, experimented with various compositions and remembered to consider ‘peak of the action’. The shot must be in the ‘can’ just waiting for the most suitable uw photo competition to enter.

What can go Wrong? Nothing — you’ve got a good shot already, but can you make an even better picture? The answer is ‘yes’ and it’s all about working the subject! Spending enough time with the idea in order to fulfil the potential of what the subject has to offer. It’s a very fine line, not easy to explain and often challenging to translate into words. A very good example of working a macro/close-up subject occurred on a workshop in the northern Red Sea on a dive site called the Alternatives.

My thanks to Stuart Gibson, a course participant, for allowing me to recount his story.

We moored over this dive site for an entire day of repeat photo-diving. During his second dive, Stuart found a coombtooth blenny poking out of a small hole with good negative space in the background. Using a Nikon 60 mm macro lens on a Nikon D200 DSLR, Stuart recognised the opportunity for capturing a very good image of this particular blenny. He took a number of shots and was pleased with the composition, exposure and the position of the blenny. However, in order to fill the picture frame with the 60 mm macro lens he needed to be nearer to the blenny. Stuart made several attempts to get close but, due to his proximity, the blenny became shy and dived back undercover to the safety of its home. After the dive Stuart invited me to critique his efforts with the 60 mm macro lens. He had taken between 20 and 25 shots and had good compositions of the blenny poking out and looking to feed. He was disappointed that the blenny was a little too far away. It would need to be cropped in order to fill the frame and do it justice. Stuart wasn’t happy with this. ‘What’s my options, what would you do if you were me?’ I offered him two choices:  

To settle with the results and crop them in computer to make the blenny stand out a little larger with impact, or Go back on the next dive with a longer macro lens in the 105 mm range, taking the chance of finding the location and hoping the blenny was still in residence.

Stuart chose to return and re-shoot and, not wanting to miss the prospect myself, I offered to dive and re-shoot the blenny with him. We both selected Nikon 105 mm macro lenses in order to fill the frame with the blenny quite large inside the viewfinder. The 105 mm would provide a greater working distance between the lens and subject. Fingers crossed, this time the blenny would tolerate our proximity.

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th

FIG. 5.34 Nikon D300, Nikon 105 mm VR macro lens, f22, 1/250 sec, ISO 100, two Inon flashguns placed each side of my macro port facing outwards.

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Second Chance: Working the Subject As luck would have it, the blenny was still at home. Stuart and I worked this subject with a variety of compositions, lighting angles and ‘peak actions’. The 105 mm lens allowed us to fill the frame and we were both happy that we had obtained the best possible photos of this opportunity there were to be had. Together we debriefed our efforts back on board and pondered whether we could have done any better. Stuart had worked the subject and obtained a picture which really pleased him; he had also learned a valuable lesson of how to maximise an opportunity.

Why Take Underwater Photographs? It’s often worthwhile to consider what stage of the entire underwater photographic experience you like the best — is it actually taking the pictures underwater, or seeing your results on the laptop after the dive? Is it enhancing your endeavors in Photoshop, or perhaps pleasing your friends when you give a picture show? Your answers may surprise you! Have you ever asked yourself who you take photographs for? When you are commissioned for a particular picture or portfolio you must obviously please your employer, and your opinion of the work you have produced for that person comes second. Editors usually decide which photographs they wish to publish, regardless of what the photographer may think. The vast majority of people take underwater photographs for a hobby. They indulge in techniques and methods because they want to, not because they have to. You begin to walk a very fine line when you try to please everyone — yourself, your loved ones, your peers, the public and, in competitions, the judges.

In Conclusion Everyone has personal opinions, personal likes and dislikes. I find it very difficult to please everyone with my work. I used to try, but I found frustration would take over, and I soon realised that I was putting myself under unnecessary pressures for no reason. Personally, I have always taken pictures for me — no one else. No one can take the blame for my failures. My attitude has taken away numerous pressures, but I still seek perfection. It’s what stops me getting bored. I never seem to get everything right. There’s a moment when I look at the LCD and I can see that things have worked out well. I just hope that it will look as good on my laptop. As I’m sitting at my home-computer, writing about the TC System, I’m very much aware that currently, little of what I’m shooting for myself, my own

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Remember: 



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Accept that there’s no failure, just feedback. Keep that thrill of uw photography alive — look, learn, and move on. ‘Experience is the name every one gives to their mistakes.’ (Oscar Wilde)

pleasure, my ego is good enough; it may seem OK, it’s what I was after, the composition is sound, exposure and sharpness is exact on but there is always something wrong:    

A small reef fish in the wrong place Diver model at the wrong angle Not enough personality or recognition from a fish portrait Even silly things like the sand being the wrong colour.

CHAPTER 6

All About Lighting Light in the Sea

O   

ver the next three sections my intention is to cover the following topics:

Natural light Using flashguns Blending the two together.

In underwater photography, lighting is by far the biggest and possibly the most complex topic there is. No matter how methodically I attempt to cover this in both words and pictures, it can never be complete. As an essential element of all photography and a fundamental part of the TC system, it should be considered as a feature to think and consider before you press the shutter. But how do we decide whether to light a subject with either one flashgun or two?

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How can we tell if it’s best to use just natural light alone or whether to combine it with a combination of the two? To these questions, there are no right or wrong answers, no formulas or blueprints to guide us. It’s a case of trial and error, personal preferences, inclination and most of all self-experimentation. My objective is to encourage you to experiment, play, amuse yourself and have fun with the light in any and every way you wish. In underwater photo circles I am known as a ‘light photographer’ in much the same way as a wedding photographer. I treat underwater light as a toy. Some would say that ‘the light’ is my hobby, probably because I am always fooling around with it. The next three sections contain techniques, ideas and many of my own perceptions about light in the sea and the way in which I use the light to achieve the style I’m after. I love the quote from photographer Derek Doeffinger from 1984. It’s a fitting way to begin this chapter! Teaser of texture, molder of form, bearer of colour instigator of sight — light makes photography. Embrace light. Admire it. Love it. But above all, study it. Glory in the fists of light exploding from a cloud covering the sun. Swing through the amber light of morning. Glide through the blue strata of twilight. Soar through the crystalline sky after a thunderstorm. See how one moment’s light chisels lines clean and purges colour pure and the next moment light buries detail in shadow. Know light. Know light for all you are worth, and you will know the key to photography.

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Natural Light Natural light is also referred to as ambient light, available light or existing light. You will hear all three expressions used. They all mean the same thing — light provided by the sun and not by the photographer. On a clear, cloudless day when the surface of the water is glass calm it pervades the surface in the form of sun shafts. On a cloudy day, this light is flat and diffused. As the sun arcs across the sky from dawn to dusk, the effects change. The position of the sun in the sky, the time of day, the clarity of water and your depth will vary, and this affects the appearance of the light. Study the wide angles in your underwater photo books. Notice how often blue water features in the background. Study the wide angle images you most admire. What is it about these that attract you? On many occasions, it will be the way in which the photographer has captured and used the available light. So, do you ever wonder how the light has been captured in such a way? Do you think it is a special technique for the chosen few or can anyone do it? I can assure you that there are no hidden methods to this, as long as you are informed how it’s done. So with this end in mind, let us take a look at some specific forms of underwater light and how anyone (with a wide-angle lens) can achieve this effect for themselves.

Blue water backgrounds Question: How do we get the water to look so blue in wide angle pictures? Answer: To record the colour of blue water in the tropics, or green water in more temperate regions, we use combinations of shutter speed and aperture. If we select an ISO of 200, a shutter speed of 1/250th second and a small aperture of f 22 and point a camera horizontally into the blue water at a depth of 10 to 15 metres, the outcome is a black or very dark blue background. All we have achieved with these camera settings is to allow too little light onto the camera sensor for us to record the water colour as it appears to our eye.

Exercise: Shooting into blue water Try this exercise in the sea. 

At a depth of 10 m with the sun high in the sky, using ISO 200 with a wide angle lens, turn your flashgun off and switch your camera into Manual exposure mode so that you can select both the aperture and shutter speed value for yourself.

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Set the shutter speed at 1/125th second. Point your camera horizontally towards the blue water column. Conducting this exercise on a drop-off, looking out into clear blue water, is ideal. Take a series of shots from your smallest (f 22) to your widest (f 4) aperture. If you are using a digital compact camera your smallest aperture is around f 8, which is closely equivalent to f 22 on an SLR. The blue water column at f 22 will record dark blue or black. Now adjust the camera apertures through f 16, f11, f 8, f 5.6, f4, f 3.5, etc. Check your LCD review and you will notice the colour of the water column will lighten up and record as midnight blue, dark blue, blue, light blue, and so on.

Which shade of blue water do you prefer? This is your decision! Black or dark blue can increase the impact when combined with a colourful foreground. On the other hand, exposing for the blue water as seen by the human eye provides a sense of depth perspective and locates a subject in its surroundings.

FIG. 6.1 Shutter 1/125th sec at f 22.

FIG. 6.2 Shutter 1/125th sec at f 16.

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FIG. 6.4 Shutter 1/125th sec at f8.

FIG. 6.5 Shutter 1/125th sec at f5.6.

FIG. 6.6 Shutter 1/125th sec at f4.

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FIG. 6.7 Shutter 1/125th sec at f2.8.

Note: These blue water examples were shot at 07.30 during the month of July on a Red Sea reef. As the sun rises higher in the sky these blue backgrounds become lighter at given apertures. For compact cameras read f 22 equivalent to compact f8. F16 equivalent to compact f7 and so on.

Rule of Thumb Using a digital SLR or compact in the same circumstances, I have found that a combination of ISO 200 and 1/125th at f 8 or f11 produces a most pleasing colour of blue water, realistic to human vision.

It’s about Having a Choice Colour preference in relation to the shade in which blue water is recorded is very subjective and at the end of the day it’s your choice, your partiality, it’s what you like. So, refer back to your favourite underwater photo books, work to develop an awareness of water colour you like and go photo-diving to replicate it. If you don’t have a foreground subject then just take pictures of the blue water until you’re able to duplicate this tone for yourself.

Blue Water Camera Angles My own preferred tone of blue water is taken pointing my camera with the sun directly behind my back. In other words at 180 to the location of the sun in the sky. I also like to shoot into the sun but this angle is more orientated to capture various moods of the sunlight, which I’ll discuss later on. Shooting the blue water towards the sun can result in a milky blue, which lacks vibrancy and contrast. A shooting angle which can produce some moody and edgy affects (no pun intended) is to shoot at an angle often referred to as ‘across the light’, which is 90 to the direction of the sun. Experiment, play with the light and study the wide angle work of other photographers.

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As a result of the power and flexibility of digital RAW capture, in particular the white balance tools, I am taking more and more natural light images with every photo trip I make. FIG. 6.8 The sun is directly behind my

back, taken with natural light at 4pm Red Sea. Settings were Nikon D300, Tokina 10 17 mm at the 10 mm end, f11 at 180th sec, ISO 200. I shot in Raw and then used the white balance colour picker selector tool in Lightroom 2 and clicked on the foreground corals to re-address the blue colour cast.

FIG. 6.9 The catch- all setting of f 8 at 1/125th sec. Natural light: the sun

once again was directly behind my back, taken at 10.45am in the Red Sea. Same RAW conversion as Fig. 6.8. I used the WB colour picker and clicked on the scales of one of the fish until I achieved a realistic colour.

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FIG. 6.10 Shot across the light at 5.30pm in the Red Sea at a slight downward angle 90 to the sun, which you can see top right. This dolphin was very playful and stayed with us for 30 minutes. With action such as this I would recommend you set your camera to Shutter priority. Set 1/250th sec and concentrate on the action instead of taking meter readings at different angles. Wild dolphin experiences do not occur regularly so ensure you enjoy the experience. This shot was only one of 60 and at this angle my Nikon D200 camera selected a corresponding aperture of f4 using a Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens.

Sunbursts Since the demise of transparency film in 2003/04 a large majority of the photographic community have been continually frustrated in their attempts to capture sunbursts on sensor. My own efforts with an early Nikon D100 were dismal. On introduction one year later of the Nikon D70 I was hopeful that the 500th sec flash sync speed would be a huge improvement. But it wasn’t! We learnt quickly to hide the sunburst away from the picture frame in order to block out its unappealing effect with a strategically positioned reef wall or diver in the distant background, however, it was always a demanding compromise, which caught me out more times than I like to remember. With the introduction of 14-bit files in the high-end Nikon and Canon DSLRs, the potential to increase the dynamic range of sunbursts and other highlights is significantly improved. For an in-depth discussion on the current state of sunburst photography I encourage you to visit a review I wrote for Wetpixel on the Nikon D300 camera and its capability to capture pleasing sunbursts. Go to: http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/subal-nd30-underwater-housing-fornikon-d300-dslr-review/ To learn more about 12-bit v 14-bit files and dynamic range go to: www. earthboundlight.com/phototips/nikon-d300-d3-14-bit-versus-12-bit.html Alex Mustard also talks about sunball and highlight issues with his review of the full frame FX Nikon D700. Go to: http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/reviewnikon-d700-in-subal-nd700/P6/

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FIG. 6.11 Whilst the sun is not present in the frame, I am shooting towards the general direction. You may notice that the colour of blue is a little ‘milky’. Whilst this could be improved in CS or Lightroom I have left it ‘as shot’ f8 at 1/250th sec with a Tokina 10—17 mm at the 10 mm end. I was going for a graphic silhouette but the sunlight towards the top of the frame has illuminated the diver.

Sunburst Exercise 





At a depth of 10 m with the sun high in the sky, using your camera’s default ISO of either 100 or 200 with a wide angle lens, turn your flashgun off and switch your camera into Manual exposure mode so that you can choose both the aperture and shutter speed values. Set the shutter to 1/250th sec. Look up into the sunburst and take a series of shots from your smallest f22 aperture to your widest, i.e f4 or there abouts. If using a compact your smallest aperture is around f8, which is closely equivalent to f22 on an SLR. The pool of sunburst at f22 will record quite small, with a rapid graduation from white, close to the centre of the sunburst, to midnight blue towards

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FIG. 6.12 Shutter 1/250th sec at f22.

FIG. 6.13 Shutter 1/250th sec at f16.



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the edge of the frame. As you open the aperture through f16, f11, f8, f5.6, f4, f3.5 or compact equivalents, the pool of light will increase in size and the graduation between the white light of the sun and the blue background diminishes. Apertures of f16 and f22 have a tendency to sharpen the rays of light but this effect diminishes and at f8 it is hardly noticeable.

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Next, descend to 20 m and repeat the process. If you wish, do the same at 30 m. Examine your results at different depths for acceptability of exposure.

Rule of thumb: As your depth increases, you need to open the aperture or shutter to compensate. A rule of thumb is 1 EV for every 10 m. The effect is that a pleasing sunburst taken at f16 at 10 m will require f11 at 20 m and f8 at 30 m.

FIG. 6.14 Shutter 1/250th sec at f11.

FIG. 6.15 Shutter 1/250th sec at f8.

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FIG. 6.16 Shutter 1/250th sec at f5.6.

FIG. 6.17 Shutter 1/250th sec at f4,

all the above taken at a depth of 10 m.

There is an interesting discussion by Eric Cheng of Wetpixel who has experimented with alternative RAW software programs in order to get the very best out of sunburst images. Go to: http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/the-mystery-of-raw-converters-taketwo/

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FIG. 6.18 To put these suburst examples into context I shot some hard corals at a depth of 20 m (10 m deeper than the examples above); you may notice that the sun is a little smaller in the frame. I used 1.250th sec at f8 and two Inon Z220 flashguns to light the foreground hard corals.

Dappled Light There is a wonderful quality of natural light present underwater, which I believe is very misunderstood. I and many other photographers refer to it as ‘dapple light’. Another popular term is ‘crinkles’. Just after sunrise or towards twilight time the sunbeams, which enter the surface of the sea, are at the most acute angle by virtue of the low angle of sun and surface. These sunbeams produce a golden light and this effect is amplified into strong golden shafts of light as the beams pervade the surface. Underwater photographers have been using this quality of light as a dramatic backdrop to their photographs for as long as I can remember. Doubilet’s wide angles from his photo books Light in the Sea and Water Light Time are superb examples.

Tip Capture the rays of the sun but leave the sunball itself out of the frame. I have seen so many wide angle sunburst photographs fail because the sunball overpowers the main theme despite the efforts of the author to compose the most photogenic and aesthetically pleasing subjects.

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FIG. 6.19 The author shooting dapple

light by Martyn Guess. We planned our evening dive to enter the water in plenty of time to catch the light as the sun dropped onto the horizon. Martyn looks to be at the optimum depth of 1 m or so. I’m at about 2 m checking out the effect of the sunlight. His settings were f8 at 1/250th sec, Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye, ISO 200, Nikon D300. He has lit the top of the reef with a touch of flash on low power — Inon Z240.

FIG. 6.20 The effects of dapple light

when you shoot too deep. In this case 5 m was enough to diminish the effect. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f8 at 250th sec, flash fill using one Inon Z220 on low power.

To catch the light, you have to enter the water just after sunrise and before sunset. Day-boat underwater photographers often miss out as they have to head back to base long before the afternoon light is at its best. On my photo workshops I set a number of early morning and late afternoon photo-dives aside to conduct a guided ‘light tour’. I do this to dispel any misunderstandings about dapple light and knowing how to shoot it. You see, the effect is only noticeable in shallow water — in my experience

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between one and four metres. You must ascertain as soon as possible the depth at which the beams are most dramatic. If the sea is glass calm the effect is heightened. You have to work quickly though to find a subject at the best depth to photograph against the sunlight. Remember, the sun sets rapidly in tropical locations and all too soon the effect of the sunbeams fades. The main reason why underwater photographers fail to recognise the light is because they descend past the optimal depth, which is determined by how low the sun is to the horizon. FIG. 6.21 It’s all about having the right

conditions. This session lasted for one hour after the sunrise over Kasai Village Dive Resort, Cebu, Philippines. The sun came up directly over the land and blessed with a glass calm surface and a quality, shallow-water house reef all workshop participants could have a go. The sharp penetrating rays are attributable to the perfect depth with the height of the sun. The way in which the rays are ‘stacked’ behind each other is a result of the flat surface. Nikon D300, f4 at 1/125th, natural light.

FIG. 6.22 The appearance of the

sunbeams when the surface is choppy. F5.6 at 1/125th sec, flash fill using two Inon Z200s on low power.

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FIG. 6.23 The best advice I can give is to find the optimum depth for the dapple sunlight and find something to put into it. You have to plan your photodive to find a site in shallow water with, if possible, interesting features.

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FIG. 6.24 I love to shoot this dramatic light and my favourite photo-dive site for this (at the time of writing) is Dangerous Reef, St John’s in the southern

Red Sea. There is a 2—3 hour window of awesome opportunities between the hours of 11am and 2pm when the sun is high enough to capture cathedral light in all it’s glory. Unlike dapple light, cathedral is not depth dependent. The sandy floors of these ‘swim throughs’ are between 6 m and 10 m. Take no notice of the name ‘dangerous’. These are not caves as such but narrow shallow passages which are open. F4 at 1/250th sec, ISO 500, natural light, 10.5 mm fisheye lens. 231

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FIG. 6.25 Processing tip! To remove the blue colour cast, which is evident in digital capture underwater, I just de-saturate the image slightly to portray the colour tone which my eye originally perceived at the time. This is not quite mono or colour but it’s accurate to my eye. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f4.8 at 1/30th sec, ISO 100, natural light.

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FIG. 6.26 It’s not just caves where cathedral light is present. Wrecks offer some excellent possibilities as long as you can dive them around midday. The Chrisoula K wreck at Abu Nuhas has several safe and easy ‘swim-throughs’. I’ve reduced this example to greyscale. Nikon D300, Tokina 10—17 mm at the 10 mm end, f4.8 at 1/30th sec, ISO 640, natural light. 233

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FIG. 6.27 I shot this radial light silhouette of a turtle with my Nikon D200 in Hawaii. When I saw the result I knew that the future of digital cameras and

their ability to record sunbursts were encouraging. Nikon 12—24 mm lens at the 12 mm end, f22 at 250th sec, ISO 100 flashguns turned off (very quickly). I did not want to record the bright underside of the turtle with flash. After much experience in Sipdan shooting turtles it’s not a ‘look’ I particularly like! 234

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Cathedral Light is Any Time Cathedral light and radial light are terms often used to describe the same effect. Cathedral light takes its name from the effect of sunlight bursting through high stained-glass windows in a diagonal orientation. The camera remains in a shaded area whilst observing the shafts of light from close by. An example of cathedral light is when you see the light penetrate a shallow cave system. The sunbeams contrast dramatically with the dark walls. If you point your camera into the sunbeams towards the surface, you cannot help but include the sun-ball.

Tip Move out of the light, remain in the shade, but aim your camera back towards the sunbeams.

Radial light is when the surface of the water is flat calm and the sun is quite high in the sky. The sunburst effect has tremendous potential because of the way the rays penetrate the water in a spherical pattern. These characteristics of natural light are very much about beams of light as opposed to the large round sun-ball in the sky.

Capturing Silhouettes To shoot a silhouette, you place a subject between the lens and the sunlight. The closer the subject is to the lens, the darker the subject is recorded and the more pleasing the silhouette! This is a relatively easy shot to take. A wide angle lens is preferable because it will allow you to get closer to the subject and fill the frame. If you do not place the subject close to the lens, the contrast will not be as effective and the particulates in the water column between lens and subject will diminish in both quality and sharpness.

Exposure for Silhouettes The exposure for this type of light is taken in exactly the same way as you would with the sunburst. Take a light reading to one side of the sun — not directly into it. Ensure that the exposure is not too dark. If the corners of the frame are reduced to dark blue with only the sun’s rays in the middle, then the edges of the silhouetted subject will be hardly visible. The water needs to be bright all around the silhouette, but not so bright that it is overexposed and burnt out in the histogram. If you are lucky enough to have flat water with clear visibility, then take advantage of these conditions. Shooting silhouettes in this light will result in your subject blocking out the sun, with sharp sunbeams radiating out in all directions. A faster shutter speed in the region of 1/250th sec will emphasise these beams to great effect, but again, ensure the corners are not too dark.

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FIG. 6.28 Silhouette opportunities tend to occur out of the blue (no pun intended). My trick is to:  

Guess-timate an aperture and a shutter speed. Place my left hand in front of my camera, take a shot and see how accurate it is. My settings were f11 at 1/250th sec with ISO 100 using a Tokina 10 mm—17 mm. Adjust the settings if you wish then move in for the silhouette shoot with your flashguns turned off, the subject blocking out the sun. The closer you get, the more contrast you achieve.

Tip For great silhouettes, get as close as you can to the subject.

Shapes in Silhouettes A silhouette is a subject that is devoid of colour. Visually, in the eyes of the viewer a subject photographed in this way is reduced to a shape. Consider sunset photographs taken on land — trees on the horizon against red skies are recognised only by their outline. It is therefore important, if at all possible, to select subjects with strong and graphic shapes, easily identifiable to the viewer.

Snell’s Window ‘Snell’s window’ was named after the Dutch mathematician, Willebrod Van Roigen Snell, who lived between 1580 and 1662. A professor of mathematics at Leiden University, he discovered the law of refraction known today as Snell’s law. In underwater photography, Snell’s window is portrayed as an arc or halfcircle through which the sky is visible. The area around the circle is a reflection

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FIG. 6.29 I took this image below the diveboat at about 20 m. The visibility was sandy and I knew that a decent flash-lit shot of this Napoleon would be a challenge so I specifically went for a silhouette. The bonus was the position of another photographer in the same composition, which was pure luck. F8 at 1/350th sec, ISO 200, flashguns turned off, 14 mm end of a Tokina 10—17 mm fisheye lens.

of the seascape, and as such is much darker than the sky. Many newcomers often claim never to have noticed it. Here’s how you do it:      



As you descend, look back towards the surface through a wide angle lens; it’s important to keep your vision directed in this way. You will see an arc or, depending on your depth, a half-circle. This window, arc or circle, call it what you may, is your only visual access to the world above. If the visibility is good and the surface is flat, you will clearly see the sky through the water. You don’t need to be in the sea to see Snell’s window; it’s clearly visible through the surface of a swimming pool. On a full frame sensor (FX) a 16 mm fisheye lens will capture the majority of the circle, but not all! I was once under the impression that the deeper you went the more could be included. This is incorrect! To photograph the full circle, you need a fisheye lens equivalent to a 12 mm lens on a full frame FX sensor. The best conditions are when the surface of the sea is glass calm and the sky is blue with (to be very pernickety) white fluffy clouds.

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FIG. 6.30 This Snell’s window study was taken in the hot tub at Mimpi Menjangan dive resort in Bali. I was taking a break, housing in hand when I

spotted the scenery directly above my head. I guessed the settings and held my housing parallel to the under-surface in no more than 30 cm of very hot water. I took a shot, checked the LCD, corrected the settings and played around for 10 minutes with this idea. F8 at 1/125th sec, ISO 100, 10.5 mm fisheye. Notice the settings! Remember, if in doubt try f8 at 125th.

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FIG. 6.31 Nikon D200, Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f11 at 250th sec,

ISO 100, flash fill on Jellyfish in Palau. Looking directly up from a depth of 2 m. The blue is the colour of the sky and overhanging trees are visible towards the right-hand side.

Natural Light with Magic Filters Finally in this Natural light section, I want to look at filters for blue water photography and in particular Magic Filters designed by the UK underwater photographer and marine biologist Dr Alex Mustard. Seascape shots are not the easiest to achieve. This is due to the filtration effect of the blue water column, which in turn results in a blue/cyan cast in the picture. Several years ago Mustard applied his photographic skills and knowledge of water filtration issues in order to solve this problem. As a result he produced a set of filters designed to remove this blue/cyan cast, which restores the available light to its natural colour of how our eyes perceive it to be. In short: these filters don’t add any colour, they subtract it. In essence, they restore natural colour by removing the unwanted blue/ cyan and green.

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FIG. 6.32 Children on the balcony. Nikon D300 housing, Tokina 10—17 mm zoom lens, f11 at 1/90th sec, natural light. This is not an under-over image.

My camera was submerged in very shallow water in a mangrove swamp in Loloata, PNG. Through Snell’s window, several children from a local school leaning over the balcony of their classroom — curious as to what I’m up too, wallowing about in mangroves less than 1 m of water!

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Getting the Best from Your Magic Filter (MF) Whilst conducting photo courses and presentations, I regularly receive questions about these filters and how to achieve the best possible results. I know there are many of you using the MF who are not entirely satisfied with your results. I too have struggled with my consistency to produce the quality seascape images that some other users do. During a photo workshop to Bali, I was determined to tackle this weakness and vowed to get it right once and for all! I devoted six photo-dives over two consecutive days to using the magic filter. My subjects were the lush, pristine coral reefs around Menjangan Island on the north west coast of Bali. It was no surprise to find that all of my own findings are documented somewhere in the instructions which package the filters. What made it more embarrassing is that I had read these instructions more than once and part of it must have ‘passed me by’. Here are my own key findings for the best results: 

 







 

You must shoot in a direction where the sun is directly behind you. Point at any direction remotely near to the sunlight and you will get a red/pink colour cast for sure. I strongly recommend that you shoot at a downward angle: 45 is ideal. They work in water from only 1 m deep down to about 17 m. I found that the positive effect of the filter began to noticeably diminish past 18 m. Choose ideas where the subject (coral reef) extends away from the lens. In this way you will see natural colour 10 m or more behind the closest subject. This effect is nothing short of amazing when you remember that light from a flashgun falls off so rapidly. The MF is designed to work with the camera’s white balance (WB). You will have to learn how to set your camera’s ‘custom/preset’ WB and to remember how to set/calibrate it underwater at the time. So practice and more practice. Most important of all: set/calibrate your white balance at the same depth and place you are going to shoot from. If you have table coral in the foreground, preset your WB as close as you can and onto the table coral without casting your own shadow — ensure that the table coral fills most of the frame. Shoot the table coral at this depth. For example, do not ascend from 10m to 8m to take the table coral composition. Don’t set your white balance in one direction and then shoot in another. It won’t work. If you change your depth by more than 1.5 metres then re-calibrate the WB.

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FIG. 6.33 Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f5.6 at 125 sec, aperture priority, ISO 280. Natural light — remember for magic filters you do not use flash.

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95% of the time I calibrated off the subjects (corals) which I was shooting and this worked well. Do not calibrate your WB off the blue open water. This doesn’t work.

Yes, I know — many of the above are in the instructions — but I cannot emphasise enough that by following these guidelines, you will get the most out of the MF. These techniques also work well for compact cameras which only record JPEG images. The mistakes I have made in the past were to set my white balance off the palm of my left hand at one depth and then to move into the subject for composition perhaps 2—3 metres deeper to actually take the photo. In Palau in 2007 I set my white balance at 5 m deep whilst the subject (sunken seaplanes from WW11) lay in 12 m. No wonder I was disappointed with my results! FIG. 6.34 Front mount attachment of the MF.

FIG. 6.35 Rear mount attachment.

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‘Shooting Magic’ is an instructional DVD, presented by Alex Mustard in the Red Sea, where he demonstrates and describes the unique techniques of available underwater photography with the Magic filters. For more information contact: PR Productions 020 8399 5709 Website: www.magic-filters.com

Natural Light: To conclude

FIG. 6.36 DVD on how to get the best from your magic filter.

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The qualities of light discussed in this section can dramatically improve your underwater images, but you need to practise them. Even though you may not have a strong subject in the foreground, practise achieving the light so that you can competently execute an idea when you are gifted with great subject matter.

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Using Flashguns I learnt my underwater photography in the 1980s using Nikonos cameras, macro tubes, wide angle adaptors and one or more flashguns. Back then I subscribed to the technique of: Flash away from the camera on a long arm in order to minimise the effect of backscatter. The general premise was that the particles (backscatter) would reflect back towards the flashgun and not into the camera lens. With the huge advantage of digital capture and instant review it is now generally agreed that this was misconception and in recent years I have radically changed my views on flash techniques. The following discussion and opinions are ‘how I do it’ and ‘how I teach these techniques to underwater photographers’ My ideas may not always reflect the methods recommended by other underwater photo educators, so, as always, I encourage you to consider alternative options.

Using One Flashgun I believe that to understand when and how to use two flashguns, you should, and I emphasise the word should, try everything with just one flash. There is no way in which to determine when it’s good to use two, where to place two, the effects of two, what power levels to set — until you have shot hundreds of photos with one flash. I’m not even suggesting you become proficient with one flash, I just urge you to get 500 flash-lit frames under your belt. To this end, and if you are new to underwater photography, here is a quick start.

One Flash with Close-Up and Macro When shooting close-up and macro, two flashguns often illuminate too much of the background, which emphasises the ‘cluttered and busy’ look you’re working so hard to avoid! Remember ‘negative space’ from an earlier chapter: ‘Everything in the picture which is not the subject’ Good underwater pictures require a background which complements the main subject. Too much flash can be a real killer! You glance at the result in your LCD, it looks awful so you dismiss your idea and move on. The reason is often because you have illuminated too much clutter in the background.  

Two flashguns fill in all shadow detail, which can leave subjects looking flat and 2D instead of 3D. Whilst you will see pictures in books and magazines of well-known underwater photographers with two flashguns, I cannot emphasise enough how often one of the guns you see depicted may be turned OFF.

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FIG. 6.37 Baseline quick-start position for one flashgun. Using one external flashgun on a flash arm I recommend the following:  

 

Position your flash from above in either a landscape or a portrait composition. This simulates the light from the sun and produces shadows where the human eye is used to seeing them. Aim the flashgun above the subject so that the bottom edge of the light beam cuts just in front of the subject and is illuminated with the outer edge of the beam as opposed to the centre. The idea is to avoid lighting the water column in between the lens and the subject. This reduces the effects of particles and creates images that are cleaner, sharper and more colourful. When shooting close-up or macro, if your flash protrudes in front of your housing you run the risk of alarming a timid subject. Locate a position for one flash (from above) about 8 cm above the housing pointing out at a slight upward angle of about 20%. If your flash is placed very close to the picture area that you are composing you run the risk of the hotspot appearing as backscatter.

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All About Lighting FIG. 6.38 This is the reality of this Christmas tree worm in Cebu, Philippines. I was drawn to

the vivid colour at the end of my torch beam. My initial attempt with two flashguns — dismal!

Flatter your Subject I’ve been teaching this concept for some years and it works really well: Look at the orientation of the subject you have chosen and imagine you have a torch/lamp/light in your left hand. Ask yourself, ‘Where would you place the torch to most flatter the subject?’ Visualise a fish facing left to right. If you held your torch somewhere on the left-hand side of your camera it would create a flattering photogenic rim of light. The trouble is, it’s providing pleasing illumination to the tail of the fish, when ideally you would like to flatter and emphasise its face! I want to encourage you to place your flash in a position which you believe will most flatter your chosen subject. The only caveat to this is to ensure that your flash is not protruding beyond the end of your port, be it either a compact or SLR. If it does protrude, you run the risk of spooking the subject or getting backscatter/flare in your shot. I encourage you to experiment with this concept: Use a flexible flash arm which can be adjusted into a variety of positions. Keep it behind your port and simply place it where you think the beam of light will most flatter the subject. After a little practice you will bend and shape your flash into various positions. You will develop a sense of when the light is harsh, unflattering and ugly and also you’ll become aware of the positions to avoid because of flair and backscatter. You will realise where it’s too close and overexposed or too far away and underexposed.

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FIG. 6.39 Ten minutes later and a degree of patience using one Inon flashgun angled away to reduce the distracting background (see Fig 6.39).

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FIG. 6.40 Put this visualisation exercise to the test. I have framed this blue ribbon eel at a 3/4 profile towards its left-hand side. Its body, eye and mouth are all important features which are important to illuminate. I rotated my housing into a portrait compositional format and used one flashgun. (I’d been using two but the background — the negative space — was too bright so I turned one off.) Question: In my situation and to illuminate the features in much the same way, where would you position your flashgun? Answers on a postcard. I joke — the answer is on page 260. Nikon D300, Nikon 105 mm VR lens, f16 at 320th sec, ISO 200.

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FIG. 6.41 My left flash is out at an

angle and my right side flash is close to the housing. This position would be adopted after looking at the shape and orientation of a possible opportunity, more likely to be wide angle than macro (flat port is shown for illustration purpose only).

When I’m Shooting. .I’ll choose a close-up or macro subject and make a choice (based on experience) whether to start with one flash or two. Before I move any closer I will look at the subject and the way it is orientated, I often consciously consider which side of my housing to place my flash. Top, right side, left side, beneath, etc. If I choose one flash I usually turn the opposing flashgun to OFF instead of turning it away. I place it at an angle, which I hope will complement the subject (I don’t always get it right first time, in fact I sometimes don’t get it right at all). I then move in, compose and shoot. I’ll glance down to check the result and I mean just a quick look to check exposure. If it’s a moving subject, which can be spooked, I may back off and change angles. If it’s still life, I will continue. I may turn my second flash to On and bring it into play or, depending on the result, leave it alone. I usually end up changing my

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flash angle on a subject, but there is no one precise close-up flash angle which I can say works better than another. This is important. There is no one flash angle which is better or more reliable than another. It depends on the orientation of the subject and the type of affect I want my flashguns to achieve.

FIG. 6.42 Two flashguns each side of the housing is a much-used set-up when shooting macro and close-up with either a 60 mm, 105 mm or 200 mm macro lens.

FIG. 6.43 Notice the way in which the

flashguns are angled out compared with Fig. 6.45. This is to illuminate a subject with the very ‘edge’ of the beam.

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FIG. 6.44 I would not anticipate any backscatter with this position either providing the water is relatively clear.

Some Theory When a flash is triggered underwater, a ‘hotspot’ is visible immediately in front. This extends proportionally, depending on the power output of the flash (inverse square law). Underwater, this hotspot has the appearance of backscatter. The hotspot cannot be completely eliminated, no matter what angle you place your flashgun.

Exercise: Hotspots 





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In a swimming pool, with either a compact or SLR, using the widest angle of lens you have available together with a flash on a flash arm, switch the flash to On and position it so it’s visible to your eye just inside the viewfinder on your camera. Select f11 on your camera, and the fastest shutter speed that will synchronise with the flash. Set the flash to manual full power and take a shot. Now review the LCD. You will see the appearance of snow/backscatter immediately in front of the flashgun. Whilst still leaving your flash visible in your viewfinder, position it at an angle at which, in theory, you would not expect to see backscatter.

All About Lighting

FIG. 6.45

FIG. 6.46 The fan coral is 1 m wide and was taken in clear water on a drop-off in the Maldives. I used my Tokina 10 mm—17 mm fisheye zoom on the

10 mm end. I have intentionally positioned each of my Inon Z220 flashguns within the frame. You can clearly see the hotspots emanating from them. 253

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I have now moved the flashguns 30 cm further away from the fan coral but maintained the same angle. The hotpots from both flashguns are no longer visible and the edge of the frame is clean. Backscatter, or the hotspot, is often caused by the flash being too close to the picture area as opposed to being at the wrong angle or in the wrong position.

FIG. 6.47

Take another shot and review the LCD. The flashgun must be visible in the LCD for you to see the effect clearly. I suspect this hotspot is still visible! 

Try once again, but change the aperture on your camera to f22 and see how the hotspot diminishes. Now set it to f5.6 and notice it increase.

Inverse Square Law This hotspot is related to the inverse square law, which states that: The intensity of light falls off or diminishes at a rate inversely proportional to the square of the distance it travels from its source. Thus, a subject two feet away from a light source receives one-quarter of the light of a subject at one foot away. At three feet away, the subject receives one-ninth of the light. This immediate intensity of light in front of a light source is always present. However, underwater, and with all the particulates water contains, when a flash is fired the hotspot is clear to see. If you examine the characteristics of the hotspot on a laptop or monitor, you will see that it falls off rapidly and within a few centimetres depending on the power setting on your flash or your aperture. It diminishes in relation to the distance it has travelled from its source. The flashgun used for these illustrations was an Inon Z220 with a diffuser, which provides a flash-beam angle close to 160 degrees. Notice how clean the edge of the beam angle is. The characteristics of flash illumination underwater make it beneficial to light subjects for both close-up and wide angle with the ‘edge’ of the flash beam.

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FIG. 6.48 The Inverse square law.

1 foot 0.3 m

2 foot 0.6 m

3 foot 0.9 m

FIG. 6.49 The particles are in the

middle of the beam. Notice how clean the edge of the beam is. This is the reason why we angle flashguns outwards to light subjects in this way.

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Many underwater photographers call this method of flash illumination ‘edge lighting’. Helpful as it is to have my surname connected to flash techniques, it is purely coincidental that it appears to have been christened in this way!

Tips  



 





 



I no longer believe that by extending a flashgun 1 m away from the camera the possibility of backscatter is reduced. However — I do acknowledge that placing a flash in the position described above can provide a quality of light which enhances the look of various (usually wide angle) subjects. With wide angle, try to position your flashgun so the light emitted comes from behind the dome port where there is some shade construction (if your make of dome or fisheye port has shade constructions). In order to prevent the hotspot from becoming visible in the picture area, keep the front of the flashgun out of the picture area. Using one flashgun, position it from above when shooting either a landscape or a portrait composition. This simulates light from the sun, and produces shadows where human vision is used to seeing them. Aim the flash above the subject so that the bottom edge of the light beam cuts just in front of the subject and is illuminated with the outer edge of the beam as opposed to the centre. The outer edge is a cleaner light with less scatter. The idea is to avoid lighting the water column in between the lens and the subject. This reduces the effects of particles, and creates images that are cleaner, sharper and more colourful. Even when using ultra wide lenses I no longer position my flash further than 90 cm from the housing; it’s just too unwieldy. If I wanted to flash fill over a larger area, such as in wreck photography, I would place it at an angle to which I think will compliment the structure I’m shooting. This is in order to illuminate quite a large area. Trust the width of your flashgun and ‘edge light’ the subject to reduce the illumination of particulates.

Adding a Second Flash Don’t get me wrong, I do regularly use two flashguns but not half as much as I used to. This is just a personal preference of mine.

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All About Lighting FIG. 6.50 Whilst this is a flattering angle of view of many wide angle subjects, you need to keep the flash behind the dome port to avoid flare in the corners of the frame.

I use two guns when I want to:  

 

Reduce harsh shadows caused by the use of one flash, perhaps when shooting macro and close-up. Increase and enhance the quality of light and achieve effects that appear to ‘wrap around’ a subject, making it ‘glow’ from within. This is a style which appeals to me and my own style but it’s not for everyone. Increase the area of coverage for wide angle photography, particularly when using a fisheye lens where the subject spreads large across the frame. Dismiss the notion that you have to flash light all four corners of your wide lens. The only time I have sought to do that was inside the wrecks of Truk Lagoon when I have interesting reflectivity in all the corners.

A Second Flash in More Detail The main flash is usually connected to the housing by a sync cord and positioned on the left-hand side. A second flash is then introduced in a number of ways:  Connected to a second flash bulk head connector on the housing in the same way as the first flash.  Connected to the housing by means of a ‘T’ connector or a dual cable. This dual cable connector attaches both guns directly to the camera, and it ensures that both fire at once.  Another option is a slave flashgun, which fires when its sensor detects a burst of light from the first flash. A slave can be unreliable, and the photographer can end up positioning the two flashguns so they ‘see’ each other instead of positioning them in order to provide the desired quality of light on the subject.  Connected by fibre optic cables.

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Balancing Exposures It used to be the case (in film days) that the left-sided flash should be the ‘main’ light and the right-sided flash be used as ‘fill-in’, but I suggest that you just consider the shape and orientation of the subject (both close-up and wide angle) and where the shadows will fall in relation to the shooting angle. It’s not the intention to eliminate the shadows completely; just to reduce and soften them. Another misconception is that the fill-flash should be positioned further away from the subject than the first flash in order to create the softness. This is a very general guideline. It all depends on the make, size and output of the two units. It also depends on your preference as to how you want the shadows to appear. I usually adjust the power setting instead of repositioning them — it’s less of a hassle.

Hand-held Flash Techniques My views have not changed on this topic. Whilst I used to be a fan of this technique, I now see the risk of damage to the reef. I will hand hold but only when I’m confident that it’s ‘reef safe’ to do so. For those of you who have great buoyancy control — then go for it. If you doubt your expertise in this area then leave them attached.

Flash Combinations It’s preferable to combine two flashguns of the same make. TTL flashguns are reliable but for my own style I like the flexibility to have as many manual power settings as possible, which provides me with infinite control over the quality of light produced. I have had circuitry problems combining my Inon Z220s with older film era Sea & Sea YS60, 90 and YS120.

Flash Diffusers A diffuser is an accessory which fits over the front of a flashgun in order to achieve two things:   

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Expansion of the beam angle. This is an advantage when using a wide angle lens, particularly a fisheye. ‘Softening’ of the light. Many photographers use them as a matter of course because they prefer the soft quality of light produced. With close-up and macro, some subjects may be highly reflective, which can create a reflection when lit by flash. Diffusers diffuse the light and reduce reflections.

All About Lighting

Disadvantages of Diffusers When water conditions are poor, diffusers can be a disadvantage as they can compound the problem of backscatter by increasing the angle of the flash. It’s a subjective decision whether to use them or not. I strongly favour diffusers and tend to leave them attached, but for the majority of the time I conduct my own photography in clear water.

Flash Arms These are essential prerequisites for producing superior and consistent photos. The primary requirements are flexibility, strength and lightness. There is a need to be able to move the flash to the precise position of choice easily, quickly and quietly. The most flexible arms I have used are the ball-joint articulated types from Ultralight, Technical Lighting Control, Aquatica and Inon.

FIG. 6.51

Underwater housings can be heavy, so consider a flash-arm system that is lightweight as well as versatile. Don’t make the mistake of purchasing sections of articulated arms which are too long for their intended use. Two smaller sections are preferable to one long section, and enable placement to be achieved quickly in any number of positions.

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Arms for Macro and Close-up I have found that for my own style and approach I don’t need anything longer than about 45 cm in total. Often I use less than that, depending on my intended choice of subjects on a given photo-dive. The full 45 cm consists of:   

The clamp which connects to the housing. The clamp which connects to the flashgun. An arm section in between of about 10 cm.

There is nothing more cumbersome and arduous than flash arms which are too long.

Arms for Wide Angle I extend the length to about 70 cm, however we need to move the arms in relation to how close the WA subject is. The further you are away, the further your arms need to be away from the lens in order to light the subject. As we move closer we can begin to pull the arms closer in to the lens. If we are shooting for example close focus wide angle at close distance we should reposition our guns beside but well behind the dome port. I want to leave you with two thoughts:  

Don’t make a hash of a shot with two flashguns when one would have been sufficient. have ruined so many opportunities by doing this! Practise, experiment and break the rules. We’re shooting digital — its free!

FIG. 6.52 .Answer: my Inon Z220 flashgun was beside my 105 mm macro port on left side of my housing eye level with the eel. From this position it was easy to illuminate the mouth as well as the left eye and the left side of the body. If the flash had been positioned on my right side then there would be no illumination within the mouth. With a still-life opportunity experiment in a pool or the sea to achieve the lighting you envision.

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FIG. 6.53 It’s a large formation of hard coral but I experimented with one flash and preferred this moody look, which compliments the snorkeler in the

background. My flash was located on the left-hand side, behind but close to my dome port. Even the most experienced photographer needs to take at least 10 or more shots, not only to achieve the subtle lighting but the chances of getting the backgound interest in the best position. Nikon D300 in Subal housing, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f13 at 320th sec, ISO 200, one Inon flashgun.

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FIG. 6.54 I got close to this formation of soft corals and filled the frame of my 12—24 mm zoom (at the 12 mm end) in the Red Sea. I choose

a landscape compositional format and after considering the shape of the corals I positioned my two Inon flashguns each side of my port with the front of the gun level with my face mask. In hindsight I should have chosen a formation with colourful reef fish but I liked the colour combination of blue against the red. Nikon D200, f5.6 at 125th sec, ISO 100.

FIG. 6.55 A popular ‘portrait’ compositional set-up of mine for close focus wide angle; notice how the guns are angled out slightly and positioned behind the top and side shade of my dome port.

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FIG. 6.56 The author demonstrating Inward Lighting techniques. By Shannon Conway.

FIG. 6.57 The author demonstrating Inward Lighting techniques. By Shannon Conway.

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FIG. 6.58 The author demonstrating Inward Lighting techniques. By Shannon Conway.

Inward Lighting Techniques You may not have heard of this term before, it’s a name I have given to an alternative lighting angle which I’ve been experimenting with since 2007. I’m always experimenting with all manner of things photographic and I’ve found that by turning my flashguns inwards, facing towards me and in the wrong direction the background immediately behind a subject can be intentionally underexposed. It works by using the very ‘edge’ of the beam angle.

FIG. 6.59

FIG. 6.60 In Fig. 6.59 you can clearly see the coral

background about 8 cm behind the fish fin. I used one flashgun and after about 20 attempts I managed to find the edge of my Inon Z220 (with diffuser fitted) flash beam. Nikon D300, 60 mm macro lens, f19 at 1/250th sec, ISO 200. 264

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FIG. 6.61 I used the same techniques in this example. The reef wall was no more than 10 cm behind the subject.

FIG. 6.62 Screen-print.

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FIG. 6.63 This technique works with all focal length of lenses. I recognised the potential with two formations of table corals. One in the foreground and the other, a similar shape, in the background. When I spotted this on a reef wall in Menjangan, Bali, the late afternoon sun was setting at a perfect angle and with a calm surface, Snell’s window was also quite pronounced. The challenge was to flash light the foreground and leave the background in a stark silhouette. I recognised that the two circular shapes of the corals would also complement each other. Look top left at the screen print above and you will see my progression in attempting to achieve the desired effect. My flash positions were pointing towards my face with the edge of the beam cutting just in front of my dome port to illuminate the immediate foreground. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye, f11 at 250th sec, ISO 100, two Inon flashguns on full power.

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Blending Natural Light and Flash Together The technique of ‘Balanced light fill-in-flash’ is a hugely popular form of wide angle underwater photography and these kinds of images are popular throughout this book and every magazine that depicts the underwater world. In essence you record the background in much the same way as the human eye sees it. Then, you simply paint in the foreground colour of the reef. Jacques Cousteau once called it Painting with light using a kiss of flash. It’s not a difficult technique to master but there are a number of pitfalls to avoid if you want to get this technique down to a ‘fine art’. Fig 6.52 is a typical example of blending flash and natural light together but I want to move on to more challenging mixed-lighting scenarios, which the majority of photographers have difficulty with.

It’s like a recipe I want you to think in terms of baking a cake. It’s an analogy I use to introduce these techniques to newcomers. We mix light together just as you would if making a cake, but instead of flour and eggs our main ingredients are natural light and flash in that order. 



 



First and foremost we record the available light of the scene. We are looking to expose the available light very similar to how it appears to our human vision. (If this technique is new to you or you have yet to really master it then my advice is to turn your flashguns to OFF whilst you record the natural light. The reason for this is when we leave our flashguns turned ON, we don’t actually take in, see and really appreciate the scene illuminated by just the available light alone. Next, look at your LCD review screen. Have a thought for your exposure: is it too dark, too bright or just how you would like it to be? Then: Turn one flashgun to ON. Shoot and fill-in the foreground subject with just a hint of artificial light. Point your flash at the elements of the foreground you would like to see illuminated, don’t just randomly point the flashgun in any direction. Start on the low power settings and gradually increase them. Resist the urge to use your second flash, there’ll be time for this soon. Review your LCD screen again and consider if you need more of less artificial light. Crank up the flash power setting to see what effect it has on the scene but turn it up gradually — in increments.

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FIG. 6.64

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If need be, use your second flash also but, once again, think about where to place it and where to direct its beam. This is a subtle technique and using too much flash can destroy the mood entirely.

Challenges can arise when you choose to include the sun-ball in the frame. This can sometimes overpower the foreground and all eyes move towards the sun instead of the subject of your intention. Shooting into the sun-ball will usually necessitate small apertures of f22 or f16 because of its intense brightness, which may prevent your flash beam travelling the distance to your foreground subject. I tackle this by capturing the rays of light but if at all possible leaving the sun-ball itself out of the frame. There is more about sunbursts in Chapter 9 ‘Wide Angle.’

FIG. 6.65 Wreck of the Chrisoula K tool room in the northern Red Sea is an excellent place to practise challenging mixed lighting techniques. These are two finished pictures which also illustrate compositional format options, i.e. landscape/horizontal as in Fig. 6.64 and portrait/vertical in this figure. To capture the mood of this opportunity it is essential to subtly blend the natural light with flash.

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FIG. 6.66 Alan Larson is in position inside the tool room and composing the scene in a vertical format composition. His flashguns are turned off and he’s taking a series of frames with alternative natural light exposures.

FIG. 6.67 He’s doing something that I suggest we should all do more often! He’s checking the LCD on the back of his camera and considering the natural light exposure, not for accuracy but for mood, feel and atmosphere. Next, its time to think and consider ‘Do we need flash?’

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FIG. 6.68 I shot the prop of the Chrisoula K in natural light silhouette before using flash. Whilst I used two on both sides of my port I preferred the soft lighting effect achieved with trial and error on low flash power settings. Same equipment as above, f11 at 1/250th sec.

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FIG. 6.69 The sunbeams illuminate an area of this enclosed space with a hint of the outside world just around the corner, which provides a great sense of depth perspective from foreground to background. I’ve added just a ‘kiss’ of flash on right and left side. I’ve increased the flash power a tad on the left side to emphasise the machinery. Is it too dark? It may be, so I played around with my flash settings for a while. Nikon D300, 10.5 mm fisheye, f4 at 1/15th sec (I braced my camera housing) ISO 400, two Inon Z220 flashguns on almost the lowest power settings. The only difference between the exposure in Fig. 6.68 and in Figures 6.64 and 6.65 are the power settings. It’s the baking analogy — I’ve just added an extra pinch of flash to improve the taste. Some of you will prefer Figs 6.64 and 6.65 others Fig. 6.68. There is no right or wrong but there’s a sense of mood and atmosphere in all of them.

FIG. 6.70 Upper bridge of the Fujikowa Maru Truk Lagoon. Whilst I dove the Fuji seven times in one week it took me until the last photo-dive to get the shot I was after. The view of the upper bridge was challenging. In the end I found the perfect view and composition and started work with the ambient light. I was trying to avoid burning out the top too much but retaining a realistic colour of blue water. That done I added flash-fill on various power settings and took another 10 or more shots. The small school of glassfish added a tad more interest to the idea. Same equipment, f4.8 at 1/30th sec, ISO 100.

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All About Lighting FIG. 6.71 By Leena Roy. A blue water

background with just a hint of flash on the fish. F4.5, 1/60th sec, Canon Ixus 980 compact camera, Epoque ES230DS strobe, Inon fisheye UFL 65AD.

FIG. 6.72 By Mark Koekemoer. A subtle hint of flash on the right side of these colourful crinoids is most effective. F3.2 at 1/100th sec, ISO 100, Canon powershot 570, Inon UFL 65 AD with an Inon Z2000 strobe.

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CHAPTER 7

Composition Underwater Introduction These guidelines are made to serve us, not the other way round!

C       

omposing a picture underwater is much harder than composing on land. There is so much more going on:

Buoyancy control Breathing from a dive tank Buddy safety Time limits Depth Safety stops Mask fog-up.

I know of some who choose not to bother at all whilst underwater, it’s too distracting. They take the shot, leaving some space around the frame so they

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can build up the composition on computer, long after the dive is over. This is not my way of doing things but if it works for you then so be it. Composition underwater can be a demanding topic to learn and to be honest there will never be any objective standard to judge whether a particular picture is ‘good or ‘bad’.  

Any composition which conveys to the viewer the author’s meaning has to be acceptable. Any composition which jumbles the meaning is not and the evaluation is entirely subjective.

The ‘rules’ of composition are not really rules at all but guidelines. They have been derived because they describe identifiable patterns that have recurred in the works of many different artists in bygone days. This is why having an awareness of these guidelines is crucial in order to develop an understanding. Understanding develops confidence and confidence will allow your creative talents to flourish. Composition is one facet of photography which usually separates the professional from the enthusiastic beginner.

The Work of Other Underwater Photographers To enhance your understanding look at the work of successful underwater photographers. A good place to start is the list of websites of other photographers. When you see images that impress, ask yourself what you like about them. Identify the compositional elements that have been used in your favourite shots. Use my subject headings as a ‘check list’ of guidelines. Search the web for underwater competition winners: www.bsoup.org or www. wetpixel.com or www.divephotoguide.com is a good place to start.

Decision Making Through the Viewfinder When I teach composition my first priority is to encourage decisions on what may or may not work:   

Portrait or landscape format? What is the centre of interest? Where should the centre of interest be placed?

At the beginning it matters not whether it’s right or wrong, as long as we get into the habit of considering the options we have. Certain elements of composition may be an intuitive thought process, but others won’t be intuitive — you will somehow have to take underwater with you a mental ‘label’ as a prompt to consider it and make a choice either way.

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FIG. 7.1

Horizontal or Vertical — Landscape or Portrait We view a seascape through the viewfinder either horizontally (landscape) or vertically (portrait), but which one do you choose? Often the subject or scene will suggest one or the other. Consider the lines, shapes and orientation of the elements. The format will often jump out at you. If you cannot decide, then shoot both. Many professionals will suggest that, if you shoot for publication purposes, you should develop the habit of shooting both vertical and horizontal so the editor can choose one or the other. The guidelines say that emphasising vertical lines adds tension and excitement to a vertical format, whilst the horizontal format is much more restful to look at because it suggests calm and, in land photography, echoes the horizon — hence it tends to be preferred by landscape photographers.

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FIG. 7.2 This idea fits both formats and as my model swam into the Carnatic wreck I orientated my camera as she came closer. Which one do you prefer?

Fig 7.1 provides more information about the wreck interior because it is wider. This figure provides more depth in view of the vertical orientation of the frame. You choose! Subal housing, Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f 5.6 at 1/45th sec, ISO 100, two Inon Z220 flashguns.

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FIG. 7.3 An example of the vertical format graduation of the water colour is evident in this shot of Phantom Cave, Cebu, Philippines. Notice how the blue tone is bright at the top of the frame, graduating to midnight blue towards the bottom. I positioned two divers with lights within the eye sockets of the mask to create an extra dimension to this fun five minutes of mine. Nikon D300, f 5.6 at 1/90th sec, ISO 400, natural light. Without a doubt there are more vertical than horizontal opportunities in the sea when shooting wide angle.

When shooting wide angle I believe there are more portrait opportunities in the sea than landscape. The reason for this is limited to the underwater world, and it is because of the colour of the water and the way in which blue water (or green) graduates in brightness from the top of the frame to the bottom. A vertical wide angle blue water shot can graduate from a very light tone of blue, through the blue spectrum to almost black. The feeling of depth that this creates is a powerful tool in creating wide angles with impact.

Focal Point: Attract the Eye of the Viewer When composing a picture, one of my own priorities is the focal point or centre of interest. The focal point is where the eye of the viewer first lands. The challenge is to unite what I intend to be the focal point and what the viewer is first drawn to!

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An excellent example is the eye. It’s human nature that the viewer will seek out the eye — we do it all the time. We make eye contact with others. Since auto focus cameras have become so popular, the instinct is to use the central focus area in the viewfinder and aim it at the focal point of your idea. Usually this reflects what the viewer would seek out. Another golden guideline of composition, and one that I agree with more often than not, is to place the focal point off to one side instead of in the centre of the frame. A picture will fail if the viewer cannot find anything of interest to look at. Eyes seek a resting place.

FIG. 7.4 This Hawkfish was so at ease with our intrusion it allowed us both to get close and for me to compose the focal point of the image — the centre of interest — ‘the eyes’ off to one side and in the area of the ‘thirds intersections’. Nikon D300, Tokina 10—17 mm at the 17 mm end, f16 at 1/45th sec, ISO 200, two Inon Z220 flashguns placed close in on each side of my dome port facing outwards. I had time to realign my flashguns to catch the two sets of eyes but I backed off and made these adjustments away from the Hawkfish. Shaab Claudio, southern Red Sea.

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FIG. 7.5 By Sylvia Edge. The Hawkfish depicted in Fig. 7.4 was with a Fuji finepix F40 fd zoomed to 24 mm 1/100th sec at f 5.1. Sylvia has composed with

a slight diagonal tilt and the centre of interest (the eye) off-centre and has included in the composition a little of the ‘base’, the orange sponge, which the fish was resting on.

Golden Rules: Law of Thirds A basic guideline of composition, and one that is used to create a visually balanced picture, is known as the law of thirds. I place significant importance on this technique. It proposes dividing up the viewfinder into an imaginary grid, using two horizontal and two vertical lines and the focal point is then placed on or near any one of the four intersection points created by the lines. It gives a feeling of tension, energy, balance and harmony, preventing the focal point from occupying the middle of the frame. The majority of SLRs and compacts have the option to preset a ‘thirds grid’ in the viewfinder via the custom menu. Artists frequently use this guideline. The next time you visit a gallery, notice the style of compositions. I guarantee that you will find numerous paintings and photographs with their focal points situated on or around these intersection points.

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FIG. 7.6 Law of thirds guideline.

FIG. 7.7 Amanda Conway composed this Clown fish off-centre using the ‘C’ continuous focus with the focus point within the viewfinder positioned on the left-hand side of the viewfinder. Subal housing, Nikon D2x, Nikon 105 mm lens, f16 at 1/250th sec, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns positioned each side of her macro port. Tulamben, Bali.

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FIG. 7.8 Leena Roy composed this coral grouper with her Canon Ixus in a landscape/horizontal format, which complements its orientation on the reef.

FIG. 7.9 Leena’s result — a balanced composition which sits well in the frame. When using a compact it’s a challenge to focus anywhere other than the middle of the frame and with the frustrating ‘shutter lag’, shooting moving subjects of any kind is rewarding. Canon Ixus, f 8 at 1/125th sec, ISO 200 with Epoque flashgun.

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FIG. 7.10 I shot this individual at the same time as Leena and I went for a vertical orientation. Like Amanda Conways’s Clown fish in Fig. 7.7, with the speed and accuracy of auto focus I too use the Continuous setting and, with moving subjects, I often place my focus point off-centre to one of the thirds. Nikon D300, f22 at 1/320th sec, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns each side of my macro port. I had a 60 mm macro lens on at the time and got lucky to get so close. Loloata, PNG.

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FIG. 7.11 This juvenile lionfish was tiny, I quickly moved my focus point back to the middle of my viewfinder, aimed at the bull’s-eye and pop! I got one, which was in focus. Nikon D300, f22 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200, Using a prototype digital ring-flash courtesy of photographer Ken Sullivan. Scuba Sereya, Tulamben, Bali.

Bull’s-Eye Approach: Centering the Subject There is a well-known guideline that says the focal point of the picture should not be placed in the middle of the frame unless it enhances the composition. The theory is that the ‘bull’s-eye’ effect can leave it looking flat and boring. The eye will lead into the picture, stay in the centre of the frame looking at the focal point, and will not move around to enjoy other aspects. We want the viewer to look at our pictures, to enjoy them. Whilst I agree with this generalisation, there will be occasions when placing the focal point in the centre is pleasing to the eye. From a personal point of view, when shooting extreme macro, where depth of field is minute, I tend to place the focal point in the middle to ensure pinsharp focus. I leave a little room around the frame to crop later on the computer (when I can clearly see what I am doing) in order to improve the dynamics of the picture. This technique has little to do with composition but more about my eyesight!

Holding Your Camera Housing: Orientation Hold your camera housing in a landscape format. Now turn it 90 degrees into a portrait. Which way did you turn it? Clockwise or anticlockwise? It matters not, but we all have a preference. I turn my housing anticlockwise most of the time.

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Why does this matter? Well, if you have a flash mounted on the left side of your camera, as with the majority of designs, you will notice the flash is now underneath the camera and knocking against your knees. Orientation of this nature is a personal thing, but you have to consider flashgun placement. If using one flash, I usually have it attached to the right-hand side of my housing so that when I turn into a vertical the flash is still positioned above the camera. For this reason, I have a flash shoe on each of the four corners of my housing to provide flexibility of flash placement in either format. The preferred compositional format can change in an instant, particularly with a moving subject; that’s why it’s essential to configure your housing to cope with instant alterations of format. I notice with some the habit to shoot only in landscape format. This occurs because camera housings are comfortable to hold and ergonomically designed to be held in a landscape format. One participant of a photo workshop had difficulty using his housing/camera in a vertical/portrait format. Whenever I forced a ‘vertical format’ upon him, he would soon lapse back into an unadventurous horizontal grip. There was nothing else I could do except remove the right-hand side hand-grip from his Subal housing. Whilst extreme, it did the trick and he quickly had to find a way of holding the camera differently. The problem was solved in no time by holding it vertically, with one finger on the shutter and both hands cupped around the housing body. We reattached the grip to his housing for the next dive!

Dramatic Diagonals There are very few straight lines in nature and even less underwater. Vertical and horizontal lines often cut a picture in half, but the diagonal line is strong and dynamic. It’s an excellent tool for the underwater photographer. Diagonal lines contrast strongly with horizontal and vertical elements, carrying your eye through the entire scene. By suggesting perspective, they also add depth to a picture. Lines leading from bottom left to top right are considered to work best, because that’s the natural way for the eye to travel. This direction happens to be the way in which we read in the Western world. Converging lines created by reef walls, corals and wreckage are ideal for adding a strong sense of depth, scale and perspective, due to the way they rush away to the horizon and seem to move closer together with distance. The dynamic diagonal will often lead the viewer’s eye to the focal point.

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FIG. 7.12 Nikon D300, f19 at 1/180th Nikon 60 mm macro lens, ISO 400 (I’d forgotten to change it back to 200 from a previous dive), one Inon flashgun

using inward light techniques, see the ‘All About Lighting’ chapter for various techniques on positioning flashguns to eliminate unwanted backgrounds. Whilst the following picture has little to do with composition, it may be of interest to see how this opportunity on a sabretooth blenny started out. Fig. 7.13.

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Tilting the Camera Underwater, I seldom hold my camera in either a rigid vertical or horizontal format. In fact I actually tilt my camera between portrait and landscape more than 80% of time. It’s a technique that would rarely work on land, by virtue of our conditioning to a horizon that is straight. You see, on land, we hold our cameras in either one format or the other because tilting the composition on land would inevitably disturb the eye of the viewer for countless reasons (there are some exceptions). The horizon is level. Trees, buildings and people stand tall. Land photography is orderly, and the viewer recognises the orientation of subjects. Underwater, the visual clues that determine orientation are not as strong. If there are no visual clues to the horizon, the viewer is unable to determine the original orientation of the subject. The reason for tilting my macro and closeup subjects is to achieve a strong, diagonally orientated composition in the viewfinder. I frequently tilt wide angles for the same reason — to achieve dynamic diagonal lines. Nine out of ten times I’ll get away with this disruption to the eye of the viewer because the topside ‘horizon line’ is absent.

FIG. 7.13 Taken exactly the same as Fig 7.12 but that figure was tilted into a diagonal to create a dynamic line. It was a narrow tube on the wreck of the New Marine off Loloata Island in PNG. For my own personal photographic style this is simply an ID shot. The background is distracting, discoloured and generally unappealing. I played around with one flashgun in an attempt to eliminate the background, which on this occasion worked to my satisfaction — see Fig 7.12.

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FIG. 7.14 It’s good practice to get into the habit of rotating your pictures to see which way they are best displayed. You may know which way is up or

down and which way you took it, but others won’t have any idea so experiment with the rotation tool in your imaging program. Nikon D200 with same equipment as Fig. 7.10 above, f11 at 1/60th sec, ISO 100 and one flashgun positioned just above my camera. Kona, Hawaii. 289

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FIG. 7.15 Same equipment, f19 at 1/60th sec, Nikon 105 mm macro (old style lens). Kona, Hawaii. The fact is, underwater, I tilt the vast majority of

everything I shoot if I can get away with it. I would not tilt something recognisable to all such as a wreck but if I can improve the composition and make an image more energetic in the eyes of the viewer — then I will. 290

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FIG. 7.16 An example of a wide angle tilt. I composed our dive boat in Cebu on a strong diagonal. I happened to be first in the water and looking up noticed the boat obscuring the sun. I took a few shots and on cue the rest of the party rolled overboard. I did not alter my composition of the boat but hoped that someone would just occupy one of the ‘thirds’ intersections. To my amazement they did; I waited for the ‘peak of action’ action in the fin-kick, which adds a little movement to the scene. Nikon D200, Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f8 at 1/320th sec, ISO 100, natural light.

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Enclosure This is my own expression, and it’s all to do with the edge of the picture frame and the way that the eye of the viewer can inadvertently be encouraged to run off. Compositional guidelines will advise that you check around the edge of the frame for distractions which lead the eye away. One huge distraction for me, and it’s more relevant in underwater photography than land, is extreme brightness around the edge of a composition. FIG. 7.17 This natural light image taken in Jackfish Alley, near to Sharm in the northern Red Sea, is a good example of ‘enclosure’. Whenever possible I avoid any bright highlights near to the edge of the frame from ‘spilling’ out of the picture. Notice how the strong sunbeam at top-middle is enclosed. In my opinion there is nothing more distracting than bright highlights leading the viewer’s eye out of the frame. Sometimes it’s unavoidable, but where possible enclose the edges. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f8 at 1/6th sec, ISO 400, natural light.

Curves and Circles Lines that curve through a composition lead the eye in a similar way that a shoreline, river or winding road does. The circle is made up of a continuous curve, and its movement keeps the eye in the picture frame whilst leading it around the composition. An Excellent example of this is ‘Snell’s window’, which is a powerful tool in wide angle. The circular curve of Snell also makes a soft frame in which to include the main centre of interest.

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FIG. 7.18 I was first attracted to this curve on a brittle star during a night dive. I composed it with a diagonal tilt and positioned the tight circle close to the ‘thirds’. Nikon D300, 60 mm macro lens, f16 at 1/250th sec, two Inon Z220 flashguns (could easily have been taken with one flash).

Horizon Line The discussion of horizon lines in underwater photography seems totally irrelevant, but there is a reason for me to include it. The Collins English Dictionary defines the term ‘horizon’ as ‘the apparent line that divides the Earth and the sky’. Underwater there are numerous examples of what I term ‘implied horizons’, and we should be aware that the presence of an implied horizon line in seascapes can also divide a picture in half, often to the detriment of the composition. On land, there is a guideline that advises against placing the horizon in the middle of the frame for the same reason. The viewer may not always recognise the photographer’s intentions, so where we place the implied horizon within the frame helps to define and emphasise the strength of the image. But less obvious examples may be the top of a coral reef against a blue water background, or perhaps the line of a sunken wreck silhouetted against the blue. The old adage and general rule of thumb in land composition is ‘avoid placing the horizon across the middle of the frame’. This technique only

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FIG. 7.19 Any chance I get to shoot reflections I’m there. I intended the undersurface to take on a greater significance than the reef. Consequently, I lowered the

implied horizon line and composed the reflection in such a way as to conform to the rule of thirds. I played around with this idea for 15 minutes and managed to get a point of interest on the lower left thirds. Nikon D300, Tokina 10—17 mm fisheye on the 17 mm end, f5.6 at 1/125th sec, ISO 200, natural light. serves to give equal emphasis to both foreground and background, which can result in a weak and static composition. The principle of implied horizon lines is simple to understand once illustrated, but it is a subtlety of underwater composition that often goes unnoticed. The moral is to build this awareness into your repertoire and use it to emphasise the content of your pictures. Question: ‘How will you remember to think of this underwater the next time you are shooting?’ A photographer who aspires to take more than a casual snapshot cannot hope to produce a standard of excellence without first understanding and seeking to master the art of composition. The rewards for this entire endeavour are certainly worthwhile!

Depth Perspective Depth perspective (or image depth, as it is often called) is the technique of creating a sense of depth within a picture. Take the analogy of the paintings

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inside the tombs of the Ancient Egyptians. For some reason, they had no sense of depth perspective. Their figures were always placed side by side to each other as if everything was the same distance away. They had a sense of height and width, but not of depth; their pictures were two-dimensional, not three. It can be confusing to talk about creating depth or a third dimension, because the sensor is flat. The only sense of depth that can be achieved is the perspective which is conjured up for the viewer. This can be achieved by using the foreground, middle ground and background.

Complementary Colours Different colours produce different emotional responses in a person. Red and orange evoke feelings of enthusiasm, warmth and power. Blue creates a sense of peace, calm and coolness. Underwater we have the primary colour of blue, which surrounds us on a tropical dive. Blue is a colour that signifies the sky, the sea and much more. It represents the world around us from space to the deepest ocean. Physiologists suggest that it is tranquil, self-assured and reliable. It conveys stability, truth, authority and loyalty. I have yet to meet a diver who is not drawn to the colour blue. Comments abound regarding the colour of the sea. The intense blue! We associate blue with the colour of the sky and fine weather. Blue is one of the primary colours and on a standard colour wheel its opposite numbers are yellow and orange. FIG. 7.20 Sylvia composed this blue sea squirts against the mid water background with her Fuji fine pix F40 compact at its widest zoom of 8 mm. Notice how the orange tips contrast so well with the blue sea.

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FIG. 7.21 The arrangement of the basic colour wheel illustrates relationships between

the complementary colour pairs. These pairs are directly opposite to each other. Red is opposite to cyan, green is opposite to magenta and, perhaps most importantly for the underwater photographer, blue is opposite to and complements yellow.

Underwater, the combinations of these colours work dynamically together. You will see excellent underwater images of yellow schooling fish against an intense blue water background. In my own photography I am constantly looking to exploit this combination. When I see a yellow or orange subject, I immediately consider how to combine it with a blue water background. Red stands out from all the rest. Go into a newsagent, stand 3 m from the stands and look at the magazines. Which colours do you see? You will find it is the reds. The word ‘red’ conjures up images of passion, sex, danger and anger. Red is the colour of blood, roses and fast cars. Red is also an excellent colour to combine with blue, and you will see many vibrant photos from the Red Sea in particular where the clear blue sea is mixed with a splash of red from the vibrant soft corals.

Balance The balance of a composition is more of a feeling than anything else. In my early days, balance in my own work was more ‘after the fact’ — I only looked for balance after I had taken the shot and viewed the results on a light box. Now I ask myself, before pressing the shutter: ‘Does this picture look good? Is it balanced?’ With the wonders of digital review, I can check for a sense of balance within an instant of pressing the shutter, but think to consider composition before you press. Look through the viewfinder to see what is included in the frame. Notice the direction and manner in which your eye travels across the frame as

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you scan the scene. Look at all four corners. Are there any distractions towards the edges of the frame? Do you like the way you have placed the subject? Is it ‘balanced’? When my concentration is heightened and I am ‘in the zone’, I am able to imagine that the image in the viewfinder is projected onto a screen in a darkened room. Do I like what I see? If the answer is yes, I press the shutter. I may take six or more shots, depending on the subject, before I make a point of reviewing the LCD on my housing. I then ask myself, ‘how can I improve on what I have taken?’

FIG. 7.22 Compare this with Fig. 7.23.

FIG. 7.23 Taken within seconds of each other, these are almost identical. Almost! But don’t you get the feeling that in this figure the naudibranch is about to slide sideward, towards the bottom left of the frame? To me it’s unbalanced and would always be a reject. 60 mm macro, f22 at 1/320th, two Inon Z220s, ISO 200.

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FIG. 7.24 I’ve composed just enough base to give this blue ribbon eel some context. Too much base will be interpreted as ‘wasted space or dead space’. Nikon D300, f16 at 1/250th sec, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns placed each side of my macro port to illuminate both sides of the eel as it moves around whilst I’m shooting it. My viewfinder focus point was set to top left of the frame. This image was the precise composition I was trying to achieve. This doesn’t mean it’s a great picture but it means that I achieved exactly what I was after.

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Baseline This element of composition is about the importance of giving subjects a ‘base’. Here, let us think of ‘base’ as ‘the bottom or supporting part of a subject’. There are many subjects in the sea that are anchored to the reef in some way. How much of the base we include can make or break the composition. If we do not consider the base of the subject before we press the shutter, it can appear that it has been ‘cut off ’. The eye often has a need to see the base of a subject to give it context. On the other hand, if we include too much ‘base’ it will impact on the viewer as wasted space. With a recognisable subject on land, such as a person, animal or motor car, if part of the subject is cut out of the frame our ‘inner eye’ subconsciously attempts to complete the part that is missing — we effectively ‘fill in’ the person’s legs or the rear end of the motor car because we know what to expect. Where a subject is not so instantly recognisable, our ‘inner eye’ has trouble filling in these missing parts. FIG. 7.25 This was at the start of this session and is a good illustration of too much ‘base’.

That’s OK, I was moving in gradually to determine its behaviour and reaction to me. Muck bottoms such as this make it far easier to move in and get close than a reef. Tulamben, Bali. Same info as Fig. 7.20.

Mergers A merger is where one subject blends into another. I find them most noticeable when shooting silhouettes. A distant diver can often merge into background and foreground coral. The tip is to ensure the silhouette is completely surrounded by blue water or a colour that will not merge into another shape.

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FIG. 7.26

FIG. 7.27 You only need the smallest part of a subject to merge into another when you are shooting silhouettes for an idea to fail as in Fig 7.26. A great compositional tip from the late-great Jim Church. His book called Jim Church’s Essential Guide to Composition is a must read for all underwater photographers. ISBN 1-881652-18-1.

Amputations When shooting divers, fish and other identifiable subjects, there is an element of composition to consider called ‘amputation’. In land photography there are guidelines which advise that you don’t crop a portrait of a person across the neck, just below the elbow or just above the wrist. If you want an upper body shot, it is usually best to stop at the waist

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with the hands and arms included. If you crop lower, it appears that the subject’s legs have been cut off. It’s no different underwater. Just remember the TC system — think and consider. If you are shooting a fish portrait, consider what to include or to leave out. If in doubt include a little more than you think — it can be cropped later on the computer.

Eye Contact When the viewer looks at a picture of a living human or animal, the focus of their attention will be directed towards the eye. Eye contact from a diver as a subject, for instance, is an excellent tool in order to guide the viewer’s eye to the main focal point or, if the diver is the main subject of the picture, to a secondary point of interest. If the diver is looking towards the camera lens with a blank stare, the image says very little other than ‘I am a diver’. Even when the main feature of the shot may have been a wreck, reef or coral formation, the eye will always dominate.

FIG. 7.28 This moody lit study of a naudibranc is composed with just the right amount of space between the right-hand side. Canon powershot A570 IS with close-up attachment, Inon Z2000 flashgun, f8 at 1/25oth sec, ISO 100. By Mark Koekemoer.

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Use the eye of a diver to lead the viewer to the focal point of the picture. If possible, include the subject in the frame. Good communication between the photographer and model is important and necessary. When Sylvia is modelling, I may place her eyes on one of the ‘thirds’ intersections and the direction of her gaze will direct the viewer to the main focal point. It can be used just as effectively with fish and other marine creatures that have the appearance of eyes. The viewer will focus their attention on the eye of the fish and with careful composition the direction of the eye may lead the viewer to other parts of the frame. One thing to bear in mind is that the eye must be in sharp focus, whether it is a diver or a shrimp. If the eye is soft, the picture will fail.

Something to Swim Into Another popular topside guideline is to allow space for your subject to swim or move into. A picture of a moving subject, i.e. a fish or diver just about to swim out of the frame, has the effect of ‘leaving the viewer behind’. The effect is unbalanced, and often results in a loss of interest.

With all aspects of compositions, there are exceptions which add tension and conflict. This guideline is one of them.

Simplicity Itself It’s about the isolation of a subject and providing a simple, single theme to photograph. Simplicity is an area of my own photography that I am very aware of and am constantly attempting to develop and improve.   

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Keep the composition simple. Choose a single theme and isolate that theme. The viewer should be in no doubt what the theme of the picture is.

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FIG. 7.29 This still-life study by Sylvia Edge is so simple. Blue and yellow, two complementarily colours, no distractions, ideally fits a vertical composition with an appropriate degree of base and breathing space. Fuji Finpix F40 fd. Fixed lens, internal flash, f3.5 at 1/60th sec, ISO 200.

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Big is not Always Better A tendency of my own is to shoot the widest, tallest and biggest fan coral, gorgonian or growth of soft coral I can find. I have the ‘big is better’ syndrome, but it doesn’t work! When looking for subjects, our eye is instinctively drawn to the largest specimen but there is a problem with this. Some subjects are too big! Which means:    

We have to back-off further to get it all in the frame. There’s more water between lens and subject. Flash illumination has further to travel. Sharpness and colour are diminished.

FIG. 7.30 No one knows how big this fan coral was, which I shot in Menjangen, Bali. I have to go and tell everyone — ‘It was this big! Massive it was. In my opinion, we should not have to tell the viewer anything about a picture. It was a challenge to light with two flashguns and using a 10.5 mm fisheye I was close to 2 m away. But for the challenge I should have picked a similar fan. It would have been sharper and easier. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f 5.6, 1/250th sec at ISO 100, two Inon Z220 flashguns: one positioned out left side behind the dome at 45 angle to the fan. The other flash was above my housing, pointing outwards to ‘rim’ light the right side of the fan.

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Which Way to View With macro and close-up, there is rarely ever a ‘right way up’. Images such as these should be considered and viewed in every format before deciding which orientation is the most flattering. Some of my best images are actually upside down, but underwater there is no horizon to form a perspective of up or down. There are eight different ways to view a picture. Using a program like Photoshop, open a selection of close-up photos. Rotate them sideways, upside down and back to front. I’m sure you’ll find images that pop out even more when an alternative perspective is considered.

Breaking the Rules Just as there are times when guidelines are helpful, there are times when they can be adapted or ignored altogether. Knowing when to ignore the guidelines requires some experience, but the results can be quite dramatic and cause a particular image to shine above the crowd. Some underwater photographers are able to blend their understanding of composition with personal style, interpretation, and technical experimentation. For others, this can be difficult. There are no formulas for achieving this creative ability; I believe it comes from understanding and practice. It is up to you to decide when to stick to the guidelines and when to break them. I have always taken the view that you cannot break or follow the guidelines unless you know what they are. There are photographers who do not concern themselves with composition guidelines at all. If they can produce solid images doing so, then so be it. The rest of us often need a little help, and guidelines are like having a photo coach in the water with you. They gently suggest and guide, but they do not and should not rule your photography.

In Conclusion The above guidelines represent those elements of composition which I think are relevant to underwater photography. I appreciate that it’s a tough order to go diving tomorrow and take them all with you. Some are more important than others, so here are my tips.

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Tips In my view the five most relevant compositional guidelines to remember when photo-diving are     

Horizontal or vertical — landscape or portrait Focal point: attract the eye of the viewer Golden rules: law of thirds Dramatic diagonals Tilting the camera.

If you already use these intuitively then choose some others from this chapter. If not — you need to find a method of remembering to think and consider them when your eye is behind the viewfinder and your forefinger on the trigger in 10—20 m of water. Recalling them when you’re out of the water is not the idea. Over the years, I’ve learnt them. Others stick them on their housing or a slate. Try and take a new idea down with you each day. Whatever camera and housing you use, ensure your viewfinder is clear and large enough to see what you are doing. If it’s a challenge to see through it, it will be a greater challenge to compose in the way you’d like to.

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CHAPTER 8

Close-Up and Macro Introduction

F

or some, macro is a passion beyond all other forms of underwater photography. It can be the only reason to dive. If this sounds like you, then consider the purchase of an SLR. The advantages are significant:

    

Via the viewfinder you get to see precisely what will be recorded They provide the highest quality of image The advantage of a fast and accurate auto focus system Absence of shutter lag A selection of dedicated macro lenses.

Getting Started The best way to achieve success and capture great macro photos is to let your flashgun light the entire frame. In other words — if the flash fails to trigger the picture will turn out black.

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Use a 50 mm or 60 mm macro lens or a digital compact camera. Turn your camera from Auto to Manual exposure mode (including digital compacts if possible). Select an ISO of 100 or 200. Select a shutter speed of about 250th second. Select an aperture of f 22 or f16 with an SLR and f 8 or f 7 if using a compact digital.

My reasons for these settings are as follows.  

       

Remember that with depth the colour of subjects rapidly diminishes. (That’s why we need flash — to restore colour.) Macro lenses provide very little depth of field (D of F) when focused close so you need to maximise it as much as possible to achieve sharp focus throughout the frame. Small apertures (high numbers) enable this but the trade-off is light. Using small apertures provides little light — that‘s where your flash comes in. The flash, whether it’s built-in or off-camera, illuminates the subject. A low ISO achieves the best quality, reducing digital noise to a minimum. 1/250th second is a fast enough shutter speed to prevent shutter shake. Position your flashgun above and over the camera housing pointing out. Make every effort to get as low as possible and position yourself below the subject and shoot upwards towards the water background. Whenever possible choose those subjects which you can approach from below and shoot upwards. Get close, focus your lens, compose the subject and take the picture.

Using this method you will have the best possible chance of achieving sharp focus. The position of your flashgun will minimise backscatter and light the subject evenly. Your low angle of view will enhance the impact of the subject and if you are able to find a subject with blue water behind — this will create a contrasting background and make your subject pop! ‘Why not use Automatic mode?’ you might ask. Automatic does not know you are underwater; it thinks you are in a dark place so it will try its best to give you as much ambient (natural) light as possible. Automatic will reduce the shutter speed to provide more light, which may result in shutter shake and a blurry photo if the speed is too slow and will reduce the f-number, which may also result in an out of focus picture if the D of F is too shallow. You can eliminate all of these potential problems by using manual exposure mode and letting your flashgun do all the work.

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FIG. 8.1 A typical macro lens set up with a small flashgun positioned just above the camera pointing straight out and slightly upwards.

Some Theory: The Difference Whilst it’s appropriate to discuss close-up and macro in the same context there are some differences, and it’s helpful to agree some mutual terms of explanation. The difference is all to do with magnification and scale. Think of magnification as being the actual size of the subject in reality compared to the size at which the subject is recorded on sensor. Macro is when a subject is the same size (or greater) in reality than it appears on sensor. When it is the same size, we often refer to this as being ‘life-size’, or as having scale 1:1 magnification rate (pronounced 1 to 1). A magnification rate of 2:1 gives an image twice life-size, i.e. twice as large on the sensor as it is in reality. Anything less than macro is technically called close-up, but both terms are often discussed in the same context. Close-up is when a subject is smaller than life-size. A 1:3 magnification rate image appears at one-third of the size on the sensor as it is in reality. I myself struggle to clearly see subjects much larger than life size and concede that super-macro may just be beyond me. See Keri Wilk’s section on Super Macro Photography later in this chapter.

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FIG. 8.2 I shot this boxer crab with eggs at Scuba Seraya in Tulamben, Bali. It’s difficult to tell what size this was in reality as there is nothing to give it scale. Additionally, it’s impossible to tell what focal length lens I used. The facts: this must be the smallest boxer crabs I’ve ever seen. I shot it using a 105 mm macro lens and focused near to 1:2 life-size. Could I have used a 60 mm macro rather than a 105 mm? Yes, but my 60 mm would have been so very close to the crab! It was luck that I had my 105 mm macro lens fitted when it was pointed out to me. I didn’t enter the water for this purpose. The 105 mm lens provided a little more working distance for me to compose and position my flash. Nikon D300, f 22 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200 with one Inon flashgun, the other I turned off.

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SLR Cameras and Lenses My own choice of lens is a dedicated macro lens in the region of between 50 mm and 60 mm. Why do I advocate this range? Well, the majority of SLRs have an effect of multiplying the focal length of a lens. (Canon by 1.6 and Nikon by 1.5). The effect is that a Canon 50 mm macro lens has an equivalent focal length of 80 mm and a Nikon 60 mm of 90 mm. Some retailers advise a first purchase to be a 70 mm—180 mm macro zoom lens to provide more versatility. I have a problem with this. For the majority of close-up subjects the 70 mm end ( by 1.5 ¼ 105 mm) is often too narrow. On land we can simply ‘back off’ to get more in the frame but underwater this doesn’t work and the water column becomes too much between lens and subject for so many of the close-up, commonplace subjects. That’s why I recommend your first choice ‘workhorse’ lens be a 50 mm or 60 mm macro. If your budget extends that far then also consider the purchase of the 100 mm—105 mm macro from the outset.

As much Depth of Field as Possible In close-up and macro f-stops are an important part of the process as they control depth of field. As the magnification of a subject increases, so the depth of field decreases. To enable as much depth of field as possible, apertures that provide the most depth of field (such as f22) are recommended.

FIG. 8.3 Once I have set my aperture I

simply adjust the power setting control on the rear of my Inon Z220 flashgun to achieve a good exposure. For those of you who use a TTL flash, it automatically discharges sufficient light to expose the subject correctly.

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Tips 









Consider the subject and its orientation within the composition. Next, consider the parallel plane of most importance. Using your left hand, reach out and place the open palm parallel to this plane. Draw your hand back towards the front port of the housing and align the port plane parallel to the angle of your hand. If you cannot use your hand in this way, just concentrate your eye on adopting a parallel placement.

This is another reason why a flashgun is always used, because in the majority of cases natural light has no influence. Whilst there are exceptions to the rule (see ‘Blue Water Close-Up’ later in this chapter), everything that is illuminated within the frame is generally lit by the flashgun. If the flashgun fails to fire, then the entire picture area will be black.

For Sharp Focus Learn to ‘Parallel the Subject’ To create sharp images at high magnifications, it’s helpful to understand how to maximise the depth of field you are working with. I call this technique ‘paralleling the subject’. I do this underwater by aligning the flat port with the most important part of the subject’s plane, so that the camera and the subject are parallel to each other. Selecting the critical part of a subject’s plane is your choice entirely. At around half life-size and greater, the importance of precise camera placement is a significant factor.

FIG. 8.4 Nikon D300, f 22 at 1/320th sec, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns each side of my macro port. From

a distance, and with my left hand, I paralleled the plane and endeavoured to angle the lens likewise to ensure depth of field through the frame.

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Focusing Midway between One Focal Point (Eye) and Another (Mouth) When shooting a fish portrait a good DOF is important to render both the eyes and the mouth in sharp focus, as they may not be on the same plane of focus as each other. It’s important to remember that (if visible) the eye will always be the centre of interest to the viewer, closely followed by the mouth. FIG. 8.5 On most occasions the eye will be the primary point of focus but with this opportunity I wanted both eye and siphon pin sharp. The siphon protruded towards me and was on a different plain of focus than the eye. Would it make a difference? I wasn’t sure but I took a shot focused on the eye, another shot focused on the siphon and one between both the eye and siphon. As it happened all three achieved sharp focus on both elements but it doesn’t always work out that way. Nikon D200, f16 at 1/250th sec, two Inon flash guns, ISO 100. I was using a 60 mm macro lens on this particular dive but it didn’t stop me from attempting this octopus portrait. It just meant that to get this composition I had to get closer than I would with a 105 mm macro lens on. I took my time and got the shot but on another occasion, particularly with a creature, timid as an octopus, I may not be so lucky.

Try This 

 

Focus the lens between the mouth and eye in order to let the depth of field capture both sharply. A good example is something with a long snout such as a Longnosed Hawkfish. Compose, but, instead of focusing on the eye, choose somewhere in between the eye and the mouth. Vary your focus locations a little and make sure you take enough shots. You should achieve a result where both mouth and eye are sharp because DOF has covered both.

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Depth of Field: Something you may not know If the aperture and the image size remain the same, all focal length lenses provide the same depth of field. This is significant! If you photograph a subject at life-size on a Nikon 60 mm macro lens, then move back and photograph it with a Nikon 200 mm macro lens at the same magnification ratio using the same f-stop, the depth of field will remain the same. The angle of view will look different as will the characteristics of the out of focus blur because of the perspective of each lens but, because the image size and f-stop are the same, the depth of field is identical.

Auto Focus Modes For still-life subjects I usually use ‘S’ single servo shutter release mode in which the camera will not allow the picture to be taken unless you have achieved a sharp point of focus. With any moving subjects I usually use ‘C’ continuous release mode in which the shutter can be released notwithstanding that you may have not achieved sharp focus. Some experienced photographers continue to use manual focus.

Predictive Focusing ‘Predictive focusing’ is a label I have given to a technique that assists in learning to see close-up and macro subjects in a different way. It’s fun to try and makes a change. This is how it works: 

  



Rather than looking for subjects and then focusing the camera lens on that subject, predictive focusing is when you preset your macro lens to a certain focus ratio — let’s say, for example, a ratio of 1:2 (half life-size). Switch off the auto focus however is best for your housing and camera. Next, set the flashgun(s) to a position suitable for a subject of this size (e.g. above the camera pointing straight out). Now use the viewfinder in the same way you would a magnifying glass to find a small object. Let your eye, via the viewfinder, wander around a subject until you find something that visually attracts you to it. It may be an abstract, or a certain colour. It could be the interplay between two areas of colour contrast, a particular texture or a cluster of shapes. If you are lucky, it may be a small crab or a shrimp! If it helps, attach a small spotting torch to the housing and position it to illuminate the frame.

This is another fun way of ‘seeing’ subjects and extending your macro techniques. Instead of finding the subject first, you use this magnification to explore and discover photo opportunities in your viewfinder which otherwise may have gone unnoticed.

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FIG. 8.6 An example of predictive focusing where I was able to find a subject in my viewfinder but did not notice it with my own eyes.

Nikon D200, Nikon 60 mm, f 22 at 1/250th sec, ISO 100, one Inon flashgun the other turned to ‘off’.

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FIG. 8.7 I was scouring this fan coral via my Subal viewfinder for anything of interest when I pressed the shutter by mistake. I quite liked this arrangement of lines and angles so I kept it but it was just lucky. Nikon D300, 60 mm macro lens, f16 at 320th sec, ISO 200, one flashgun above the camera, the other turned off.

Diffraction SLR macro lenses display a minimum aperture setting of f32, which is twice as much depth of field as with f22. So why not use it for macro? Many photographers do, but some prefer not to. The reason for this is a physical problem called diffraction. When light passes through the aperture of a lens, light waves are affected by the edges of the diaphragm blades. If you use a small f-stop, like f32, the more distinct the effect becomes, and as the light spreads out it begins to soften the image. The effect is unnoticeable unless the aperture is very small and the lens is being focused at high magnification. Ratios of 1:2 and 1:1 are high magnification, so my advice is to avoid f32 in these circumstances. The balance is to choose an aperture that provides adequate depth of field without causing noticeable diffraction.

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This is the theory but it continues to be subject to debate and if the topic of diffraction is of interest to you I would go to a 2008 thread of Alex Mustard. http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic¼25360&mode¼threaded &pid¼181972 I have started to use f32 more and more in the digital era and I see little problems with diffraction.

Effective Apertures When using macro lenses, the optics within the lens casing move further from the film plain in the camera. The consequence of this is the display in your SLR viewfinder of an effective aperture or f-stop. An effective f-stop is a higher number than the highest f-stop marked on the barrel of your lens. Those of you new to SLR cameras and macro lenses may be concerned when you see these numbers displayed. Let me assure you that this is quite normal when working with a macro lens at a high magnification.

A Thought About Metering Modes Having the choice of Matrix, Centre-weighted and Spot metering modes, I tend to leave it set on Centre-weighted. I have shot thousands of macro photographs with a flashgun using each of these three options and to be perfectly honest I cannot see a difference between any of them!

Choice of Lenses Macro lenses are optically designed and corrected to provide the very best quality and sharpness in the close-up range. They have the ability to focus close, and the majority provide 1:1 (life-size) magnification. The difference between a straight 50 mm lens and a 50 mm macro lens has nothing to do with quality or angle of view; it’s simply that the macro version allows high magnification. A popular question is, which focal length macro lens should be purchased for underwater use? There are basically four to choose from: 1. 2. 3.

4.

A standard macro lens has a focal length of between 50 mm and 60 mm. The next size up is a portrait macro lens of between 90 mm and 105 mm. Zoom macro lenses have become popular, and there is one that is particularly versatile — the Nikon 70 mm—180 mm macro zoom. It is highly corrected for close-up work, and is a popular purchase for beginners. A 200 mm macro lens provides life-size magnification. Whilst it does have its advantages underwater, it’s expensive and heavy, and I would not recommend it as a first choice of lens for macro.

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The 60 mm Macro Lens A 60 mm macro lens with its magnification ratio of 1:1 becomes a 90 mm when attached to a cropped sensor SLR. In these circumstances it has become extremely popular for shooting small subjects at life-size.

The 105 mm Macro Lens on a Digital SLR A 105 mm macro with its magnification ratio of 1:1 becomes an equivalent 153 mm macro when attached to an SLR with a reduced size of sensor. In my opinion, unless you are shooting subjects in the 1:2 or 1:1 ratio, or a particular creature that is skittish and hard to approach, the 50 mm—60 mm macro range is the preferable one to choose.

Zoom lenses: Nikon AF Zoom-Micro 70 mm—180 mm Macro zoom lenses are popular for macro photography as they take in a number of focal lengths. This model will focus to almost life-size at 180 mm, but only one-third life size at the 70 mm end. It comes with a tripod bracket attached to the base of the lens, which needs to be removed before it can be used in camera housing.

The 200 mm Macro Lens This is used by a minority of photographers for close-up and macro, but it has certain characteristics that I like. It has three distinct benefits, the third being the most significant to me: 1. 2. 3.

4.

The long focal length has a considerable amount of working distance (but not anymore so than the 180 mm end of the lens above). Small creatures not only let you into their comfort zone, often they don’t even know they are being photographed! The narrow angle of view restricts the amount of negative space that is in the frame; this is particularly helpful when the negative space is distracting, cluttered or unattractive. A particular characteristic of the long focal length is that the out-of-focus background appears as a soft pastel coloured blur, which land wildlife photographers use to such excellent effect in their photographs of birds, flowers and other animals.

This quality of blur in topside photography is called ‘Bokeh’. This lens is also sold with a tripod bracket attached to the base, which needs to be removed before it can be used in camera housing.

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FIG. 8.8 Taken with a Nikon 200 mm macro lens in Bali. Nikon D200 using f 22 at 1/250th sec. The out-of-focus ‘bokeh’ in the background is a pleasing

characteristic of this long lens. It is in fact a pebbled sea bed of Scuba Seraya, Tulamben, Bali. I have much affection for my 200 mm macro lens but it is so heavy to carry around in this day and age! See the section on ‘Bokeh’ later in this chapter.

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The ‘Limit’ Switch Numerous makes of SLR macro lenses have a ‘Limit’ switch situated on the lens barrel. With Nikon macro lenses, this switch is situated in the 10 o’clock position, 1 cm left of the distance scale window. Like me, I am quite sure that many of you have accidentally moved this switch into the ‘Limit’ setting when handling camera and lens or, even worse, when you have just placed the camera into the housing. What happened next? You tried to focus and found that the lens had a very limited distance of travel. Very frustrating, I know! The Limit switch on macro lenses is a method of presetting the focus range in circumstances where you want to shoot within a specified distance. This enables you to reduce the focusing time it takes for the lens to lock on. The ‘Full’ position allows the lens to focus from infinity to its closest focusing distance. With most macro lenses that is usually 1:1 — life-size. When you switch to limit, there are two focus zones. The distance of which depends on two things: 1. 2.

The focal length of the particular lens you have, i.e. 60 mm macro, 105 mm macro or 70 mm—180 mm macro zoom. Where the lens is focused to, when you move the switch to ‘Limit’. If you are below the 0.4 m range you will get the near limit, which extends to the minimum focus distance. If you are above it you will get the far limit of infinity. Whilst this feature has its advantages to topside photographers, who can alternate the switch at ease, does it have any applications for the underwater macro photographer? Is it of any use whatsoever?

In my experience, it is a constant source of frustration when you trip the switch by accident. For the most part I tape it into the ‘Full’ position and leave it. However, on a number of occasions I have used it underwater in specific circumstances — for example, repeat dives on a known dive site when I know that I will be shooting at a specific distance and magnification. The Limit switch avoids auto focus hunting. If you find a use for it in your own photography, then don’t hesitate to try it. However, if you don’t use it and you cannot see yourself using it, then tape it up into the ‘Full’ position to avoid any frustration! FIG. 8.9 The Limit switch on Nikon macro lenses. A photo buddy of mine (during the film era) unknowingly flipped this switch from full to limit and was unable to solve the problem for the duration of the trip.

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Using Flashguns for Close-Up and Macro If you position it in front of the port, you run the risk of invading a creature’s comfort zone. If the creature is timid, you may miss the opportunity. So often in these circumstances it is the position of the flashgun, rather than the photographer or the presence of the camera, that has spooked it and caused the problem. I always try to ensure that the lens and flat port combination is the closest piece of equipment to the creature. We all spook fish and other creatures at times; if your subject swims away, then at least you know it was the close proximity of the lens port that caused this. Spooking a subject due to the flash being too close is, in my opinion, ‘an own goal’.

Tips 





For practical results in the water, my advice to newcomers with one flash is what I call the ‘baseline position’. Keep the flash above the housing and behind the port, pointing slightly upwards regardless of the camera’s orientation. You will get good lighting regardless of which way your subject faces, and as a bonus most of the shadows will fall behind the subject. The light will be clean because of the edge-lighting technique.

A Recent Innovation of Flash Positioning with Macro and Close-Up



Whenever I work with enthusiasts in a coaching situation, either in the sea or practising in a swimming pool, I now encourage them to look closely at the subject they have chosen and to position their flashgun at an angle where they think it will most flatter it. So, instead of placing it in a ‘safe position’ they consider the direction of view, which way it may be orientated, where shadows may fall. They light the face of a fish instead of the tail end because they have recognised the eyes are key and light should be positioned where it will most ‘show off’ a subjects best features. 

Two Flashguns When using two flashguns, the orientation of the subject influences the positions of the units. A good ‘baseline’ starting point is to place them in similar positions to each other but a little above and to each side of the housing, pointing out and away from the subject, so that the edges of both beams cuts in front of the subject.

TTL Flash I’ve seen many excellent and consistent TTL flash illuminated images, both close-up and wide angle, to be convinced that TTL is an efficient, effective and a very practical way of lighting all forms of underwater photographs.

Given the narrow angle of lenses used, one or two small guns are ideal for the job. I advocate the use of short articulated flash arms like those manufactured by Ultra light and Inon. A general concept of close-up flash positions is to try and simulate the light from the sky, clouds and the sun, in the same way that we are used to seeing shadows in our everyday lives. A good exercise is to hunt for books, magazines or pictures on the Internet to view examples of close-ups and macro. By examining the shadows, you can often determine the position of the flashgun. If you’re intent in placing your flashgun in front of your port, between the lens and the subject, then ensure the flash is well away from the picture frame and does not scare the subject away. Don’t get into the habit of doing this as a matter of course.

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FIG. 8.10

Whilst my own preference is to use manual flash power settings, if you are considering a new system or moving from a compact to SLR do consider the TTL flash option. Visit www.wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic¼15695 and also http://www.heinrichsweikamp.net/blitz/en/index.htm?rsu.htm for TTL discussions. For information: I tend to shoot all of my close-up and macro images on Manual exposure mode with a setting of ‘A’ automatic white balance.

< FIG. 8.11 (Opposite page)

This blenny was tucked inside a hole on the wreck of the New Marine, Loloata Island. I used a 60 mm macro lens (I use my 60 mm most of the time) and set out to get a face-on shot. I used two Inon flashguns and placed them each side of the subject but pointing backwards towards my left and right shoulder. The idea was to ‘skim’ the features of the blenny to stand out against the shadows of his hole in the wall. F19 at 1/180th sec, ISO 200. I call this lighting technique ‘inward lighting’ and you can read about it in the ‘All About Lighting’ chapter.

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FIG. 8.12 60 mm macro shot of a very inquisitive Hawkfish who kept moving towards my camera. It was as though he could see his own reflection in my port. I tilted the composition for a diagonal angle of view and took three or four shots in this position. Nikon D300, f11 at 1/250th sec, ISO 200, two flashguns placed each side of the subject close to the port.

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FIG. 8.13

FIG. 8.14 Leena Roy has used her Canon Ixus with a single external Inon 2000 flashgun to capture these softly lit and subtle studies of a porceline crab Fig. 8.13 and orange cup corals Fig. 8.14. The use of dual flashguns would have filled in all the shadow detail and spoilt the mood. One flash on a flash arm can be angled in numerous ways to create light and shade in the most simple of subjects. Both taken at f8 at 1/250th sec, ISO 100.

FIG. 8.15 There are many alternative ideas for macro lenses apart from creatures. Nikon D200, f 22 at 125th sec, ISO 200.

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FIG. 8.16 I shot these Catfish on f32 at 1/90th

sec, ISO 200 using a 60 mm macro lens. I was not hopeful! Why? Well, I backed off to a metre away to get the formation in the frame. I choose f 32 for maximum depth of field and whilst the lens to subject distance is more than I would have chosen, it was a case of shoot and hope. I was pleased. I thought the shooting distance would have been too far.

FIG. 8.17 I repeated the same the following day but this time a 105 mm macro lens to capture features. F32 at 1/250th sec, ISO

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Blue Water Close-Up Whilst black backgrounds in close-up and macro are effective to some, they can be repetitive. So how can we expand our repertoire of these techniques? One idea to jazz up your photographs is what I can call ‘blue water macro’. Like so many other underwater photographic techniques, the concept of blue water macro is closely related to our selection of negative space.

Step-by-Step  



Using an SLR or compact camera, set a low ISO such as 100 or 200. Using your M manual exposure mode set an aperture with sufficient depth of field for the subject. Let’s say f16 with an SLR and f8 or f7 on a compact. Place your flashgun about 8 cm above the housing pointing straight out. You don’t have to tilt it downwards towards the subject! The spread of beam will provide sufficient light.

Remember, the key to this close-up technique is to select a subject which is situated against a blue (or green) seawater background, hence the term blue water macro. 

 





Select a shutter speed of 1/60th second and press the shutter. Your flashgun will illuminate your subject with the blue water in the background appearing quite dark. We are now going to change the appearance of the background by changing the shutter speed as opposed to the aperture! Open the shutter to record a slower speed. Try 1/30th then 1/15th, 1/8th and 1/4 (quarter second). Check the LCD monitor on the back of your camera and you will notice that the water background has changed from black to blue as the shutter has been slowed down to allow more light to reach the sensor. Go ahead and experiment to achieve what background colour looks best against your foreground subject but don’t forget to shoot whatever you have chosen against the water column. You can even experiment and practise this without a subject in the frame at all.

If your compact is only Auto exposure then you will still be able to try this technique but be aware that the camera may provide you with a wide aperture as opposed to a long shutter speed. If this is the case then take care with focusing because of the limited depth of field. Question: How do we prevent shutter shake at these slow shutter speeds? Answer: You can’t. Shutter shake will occur to some degree; however, the duration of light from a flashgun is in the region of 1/1000th of a second (one

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one thousandth) and this split second burst freezes any movements of the camera so the subject is recorded sharp and in full colour against the blue (or green) background of the sea. The ‘fuzzy’ areas are recorded much darker owing to the interval between the flash cut-off and the shutter closure. It may take several attempts to achieve one that works, but with immediate digital feedback experimentation is simple. It’s important to remember that you have to point your camera towards the water column for this to work, not towards the sand or the reef but into the plain blue (or green) water column. Different shutter speeds produce different colours of blue water. There’s no right or wrong colour of blue—you select which one you prefer.

Blue Water Macro Examples These eight blue water examples were taken in the Red Sea at a depth of 10 m at 8.30am in the month of July.

FIG 8.18 Example of blue water backgrounds with

FIG 8.19 Same settings at 1/125th sec.

Nikon D200, natural light only, ISO 100, Nikon 60 mm macro lens focused to 15 cm, f22 at 1/250th sec. Remember there are no right or wrong colours. You pick the colour which suits your taste.

FIG 8.20 Same settings at 1/60th sec.

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FIG 8.21 Same settings at 1/30th sec.

Close-Up and Macro

FIG 8.22 Same settings at 1/15th sec.

FIG 8.23 Same settings at 1/8th sec.

FIG 8.24 Same settings at 1/4 sec.

FIG 8.25 My thanks to Danya Cohen who allowed me to use her Nikon D70 in a Subal housing and Nikon 60 mm lens for this shot. I selected an aperture of f11 and opened the shutter to 1/15th sec to record the blue water background behind the branches of the fan coral. The flash was an Inon Z240 on a manual power setting. I took several frames of this Longnosed Hawkfish whilst it was in an area of the fan which had blue water directly behind it. I then returned the rig to Danya who continued to work the subject.

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FIG 8.26 This was taken with a

105 mm macro lens at f11, 1/30th sec, ISO 200. The resident school of Batfish at Scuba Seraya, Tulamben, are popular photo subjects. With a 105 mm lens, portraits can be made with ease. On the day, I choose to focus (no pun intended) my attention on this individual fish because of the ‘hitch-hiker’ alongside. I maintained the combination of settings throughout and saw the blue water change colour depending on the direction of shooting in relation to the afternoon sun. Two Inon flashguns on full power, about 30 cm away from each side of my macro port.

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FIG 8.27 This image was taken with a 60 mm macro lens at f11, 1/60th sec at ISO 200. The frame of these two small soft coral branches was about the

size of an A4 piece of paper. Same equipment as Fig 8.26, two Inon Z220 flashguns positioned each side and angled at about 45 degrees.

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Close-Up Blur AKA Bokeh Bokeh is a Japanese term used in photography to define the aesthetic quality of out-of-focus areas of a picture. The background is deliberately caused to be out of focus to reduce distractions and to emphasise the main subject, and it’s generally agreed that some lenses produce more pleasing out-of-focus areas that enhance the overall quality. The words ‘Bokeh’ and ‘blur’ are synonymous with each other and I will use them in the same vein. I discovered the attraction of Bokeh (although I didn’t know it by that term at the time) in 1999 and I’ve continued to experiment with it since then using all three of my macro lenses (60 mm, 105 mm and 200 mm) to achieve the pastel coloured Bokeh backgrounds. It may feel uncomfortable to stop down to an aperture of f4 or f5.6 when we are so practised at achieving the very best depth of field possible, but at f4 we can still obtain a precise point of sharpest focus — only this time with a greatly reduced depth of field. Not only does the negative space of the subject become a blur, often the entire subject does too.

How Best can we Use the Very Limited Depth of Field? The narrow band of focus must be reserved for the main feature. Without doubt, this will be the eye of the creature! If it’s a still-life study, then the area that in your view will be the main focal point of the picture is the key. When using large apertures, there is a need to control the amount of flash illumination. The way in which I tackle this in my own work is to use manual flash power settings in combination with the appearance of the histogram. Overexposure can often occur with larger apertures of f5.6 or f4. So when this occurs I reduce my flash(s) settings to low power and if that is still too bright I position them on the same line but further away from the subject. Since digital I’ve been experimenting with optimum settings for different lenses, so in order to get you started my own findings may help.

50 mm or 60 mm Macro Lens I find that an aperture of f5.6 or f4 produces a very photogenic quality of blur and when used around the magnification ratio of life-size up to 1 to 3 (1:1 to 1:3) there is usually sufficient D of F for the eyes to be captured pin-sharp. In my opinion, at f8 the out-of-focus areas look only a little blurred and it’s as though a mistake has been made. At f2.8 the depth of field is miniscule and with such a large aperture it’s a challenge to avoid flash overexposure even with my Inon Z220 on its lowest setting with diffuser. In the field I begin with f5.6 and bracket to f4. The f5.6 shots are usually more successful.

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105 mm Macro Lens An aperture of f8 is optimum for this lens! I have experimented with f5.6 and f4 but had a success rate of less than 3% when shooting at a magnification rate close to life-size 1:1.

200 mm Macro Lens This gives great Bokeh at f11 and f8, and when shooting at close to life-size f16 can work well. Shooting blur is great fun, challenging and a good discipline to learn but it takes loads of patience and a little practice to develop.

FIG 8.28 Nothing but plain white sand and little to photograph. I demonstrated the technique of Bokeh on the only subject we could find. Luckily it allowed me to get this close with my 60 mm macro lens. Nikon D300, 60 mm macro lens, f5.6 at 1/320th sec, ISO 200, one Inon flashgun on lowest power setting placed just above my port, central focus point.

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FIG 8.29 For this Moray Bokeh shot I was lucky to get away with an aperture of f4.8; the zone of sharpness just covers enough of the eyes, which have to be on the same plain of focus. Also, I was shooting at a smaller magnification — about 1:7 — which helped considering my chosen aperture. This is nothing more than a portrait with mouth closed but the colour and clarity of the white eyes in contrast to the blur of everything else adds a touch of menace. Nikon D300, 105 mm macro VR lens, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns placed each side of my macro port on a low power setting. I took over 20 shots: three were sharp in both eyes but only this one was looking into the lens.

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FIG 8.30 I was able to get side on to this same subject and use an aperture of f4, same settings as Fig 8.28. I have cropped this shot so the face fills the

frame.

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FIG 8.31 I have taken this type of

photograph many times before, so how can I make it look different? See Fig 8.32. Nikon D200, 105 mm macro lens, f22 at 1/250th sec two Inon flashguns.

FIG 8.32 Both Fig 8.31 and this figure

were shot on the house reef of the Coral Hilton Hotel in Nuweiba, Red Sea. When you spend six days photo-diving the same reef over and over again some may get bored. I get bored quite often but I know from past experience that if I can work through the boredom I will start to see opportunities in a different way. All my better ideas come from ‘play’ or just after ‘boredom’, you know the ‘there is nothing at all of interest to shoot down here’ kind of feeling! Peppered Morays were in profusion and very at ease with close proximity. I picked one where I could lie on the sand and shoot at eye level (see Fig 8.31). ‘What can I do different?’ It came to me in a flash: ‘Wide aperture and shoot a portrait with eyes sharp and all else blurred’. It took 10 attempts to get a pinsharp eye looking into the lens. Same equipment as Fig 8.31 but with an aperture of f8.

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FIG 8.33 I want you to get a sense of how a blur opportunity develops

in my head, how I execute the idea, and my mindset at the time. Photo-diving in Cebu on the house reef drop-off at Kasai village resort. Nikon D300 with a 105 mm macro lens. Nothing in mind other than looking for photo opportunities, I noticed this Longnosed Hawkfish nestled in an orange fan. This was my first test shot or Polaroid view taken at f16. FIG 8.34 I observed for a few minutes and noticed it perched upon a small branch which protruded from the side of the fan. It was curious and nosey as if eyeing me up. It would flit back and forth, all in one motion along the branch. Aperture of f16.

FIG 8.35 I realised the opportunity for a great shot if I could shoot it

against a pastel blur negative space, i.e. the fan formation in the distance. I changed my aperture to f 5.6 (to get the Bokeh) and went to work. The shape of the fish and its orientation on the branch was an obvious vertical format composition. I backed off at least 3 m to change the positions of my flashguns to set up for a vertical shot with guns close to and each side of my 105 mm macro port. I made the 3 m retreat so as not to spook the Hawk. I moved in and TC! (Think Composition)

FIG 8.36 Shot at f5.6. I was lucky to have the 105 mm macro lens on. I could fill the frame without spooking it. Think and Consider — peak of the action! The eyes: I wanted both eyes directed towards me. A sense of recognition into the lens would lift the impact of this opportunity. The Hawk was well aware of my presence and I saw both eyes spin round towards me on several occasions. Shoot! Had I got the shot? I had no intention of looking at my LCD so close to the Hawk. Any sudden movement could spook him. I knew my exposures were OK; I knew I had the Bokeh background, all I needed was a perfect peak of the action. I continued.

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FIG 8.37 Still on f 5.6 at 1/320th sec. For my own photo style and preference, such was the potential of this opportunity that I shot over 40 frames in

a period of 10 minutes just to get the peak action gaze of both eyes (not just one) looking directly into the eyes of the viewer. I backed away into the blue and reviewed my efforts with the ‘zoom preview’ facility on my camera. Yippee! I had what I envisioned in my mind’s eye. I momentarily considered any lighting, compositional, or focusing techniques which I could improve upon. Nothing came to mind and I caught up with my buddy along the reef. 338

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FIG 8.38 Think of using Bokeh on corals and abstracts as well as creatures. Taken close to life-size magnification the plain of focus is tiny so ensure you

take plenty of frames to get a few that work. Nikon D200, 105 mm macro lens, f 8 at 1/125th sec, ISO 100.

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Shooting Fish Close-Up When I set about photographing fish, my objective is to show the character of that particular individual. I try to get personal as if to develop an almost silent connection. The side view of a fish, though well lit, often looks static and flat, with very little impact. This type of picture is ideal for identification purposes, but not much else, and it’s certainly not for me in any way whatsoever. The alternative is the animal portrait — an image approached and captured in such a way as to breathe life and character into the subject. To appreciate this concept in a positive way is the secret of success. The photographer sees the subject and is able to apply his or her own set of principles. Certain techniques, however, can help you to achieve your goal. As soon as you see a potential subject stop and consider the following:    

The location of the subject The image you would like to obtain Possible lighting angles Your angle of approach.

Remember that you are invading the fish’s territory, and so your approach should be very gradual. If possible, stand back and observe its routine. To obtain that better picture you need to anticipate behaviour. This can only occur over a period of time and requires a good deal of patience. If a subject does something interesting once, it will do it again provided that it is at ease with your intrusion into its territory. It’s this behaviour that will help to capture a creature’s personality, and make it stand out as a special picture. The ‘peak of the action’ may be a fraction of a second, a moment to anticipate that point of interest in order to turn a good picture into a brilliant one. Where possible, camera and flash adjustments should be made prior to your approach to avoid, as far as possible, frightening the creature away. If this does occur, don’t chase it — it’s tempting, but it won’t work. Given time, the creature will return and, once familiar with your presence, may provide you with the opportunity you require. Various books describe how fish pictures should ‘speak to you’. They should be face to face, close, and looking at the eyes and mouth. Applying the rules of conversation, you don’t talk to a person while looking down or looking at the back of their heads. So why do it to a fish?

The Eyes In any portrait, if the eyes of the subject are visible then that is what the viewer will see first. The eyes must be pin-sharp, or the image will fail. Try to

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achieve sharpness in features in front of the eyes, such as the mouth. The depth of field usually takes care of this aspect of the picture. It matters not which features behind the eyes are soft, as long as the eye is sharp! A camera angle of 45 degrees looking towards the face from beneath the subject shooting upwards is often recommended. This is a general rule and works well but, after a fair amount of practice, I believe that every fish has a definitive angle of view that provides the potential for a great shot. Given unlimited time, you could explore these angles to your ultimate satisfaction. Occasionally, when looking at a cooperative specimen through the viewfinder and thinking that you have obtained the correct angle, a slight deviation or perhaps a movement of its head will jump out as being just right — but actually capturing that moment can be very challenging!

Lighting Angles Most of the time I use two flashguns positioned each side of the camera housing. These angles frequently change, according to the subject’s shape and features; however, I always attempt to achieve a catch-light in the eye. This can make a tremendous difference in a portrait, as opposed to a lifeless eye which blends into the head. As mentioned already, a fish picture should ‘speak to you’. When a person speaks they open their mouth, and a fish elongating its jaws or opening its mouth (however slight) may be that ‘peak of the action’ that you’ve been waiting so patiently for. If you can illuminate the mouth, then the picture really begins to talk and you can appreciate the tremendous photographic potential you have before you. The American photographer, Avedon, once wrote: ‘A portrait is a photograph of a person who knows they are being photographed’. Apply this concept underwater. You will see many good fish pictures that reflect this attitude. Catch the mouth open and illuminate the eye with a catch-light, and you could have a winner!

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FIG 8.39 For my own personal style a fish portrait is all to do with the fish. I prefer nothing else to distract from that. This Bigeye gave me an excellent

opportunity by just hanging in the water. I can clearly remember composing his eye on the bottom right-hand thirds and leaving enough space between the edge of the frame and his tail. That’s the beauty of using an SLR with a housing where you can see all four corners of the picture frame clearly through the viewfinder. Nikon D300 in Subal housing, Nikon 60 mm macro lens, f 11 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns positioned about 30 cm each side of my macro port. 342

Close-Up and Macro FIG 8.40 An early morning dive at Um Aruk near to St John’s reef in the southern Red Sea. I went in to photograph reef fish against a blue water background. Once in the water I placed the rising sun directly behind my back so I could shoot into the best blue water colour I could find. There was plenty of fish activity but I was intent on shooting them in my own preferred direction; I had no intention of swirling about in the water, shooting them against the cluttered negative space of the reef. I took many shots of lemon Butterfly fish both in pairs and singles. I was after some kind of movement but they did not want to turn in my direction: they always turned away from me. In my mind’s eye, this was the shot I was after but I would have preferred the blue water background a couple of stops lighter. Same equipment and settings as Fig 8.39.

FIG 8.41 I’ve never been particularly patient with small reef fish like Anthias, but they were in such profusion and so cooperative I decided to give them

another go. I was after more of a portrait style but preferred them on the turn. I got lucky with this shot. The position of the other small fish balances the composition and conveys a mood of frenzied activity. 60 mm macro lens, f 16 at 1/320th sec, ISO 200. 343

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FIG 8.42 The personal ‘eye contact with the viewer look’ which I often portray tends to lend itself to a vertical (portrait) compositional format, and when looking for fish pictures my flashguns are usually set up for this format. I like to shoot against the water column and I look for fish which I can shoot in this way and, depending on how cooperative the subject is, I will use f 22 or f 16 for a black background, bracketing either aperture or shutter speed down to f 4 for a blue background. I’ll shoot fish against corals and the reef but more often than not I know it’s not going to work for me and after two or three shots I tend to move on. This image was taken using 105 mm macro lens, f16 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200, two flashguns on full power. In Chapter 9 ‘Wide Angle’ I discuss slow shutter speeds and panning for creative effects.

FIG 8.43 Love them or hate them, I, along with many others, love to shoot Clown fish. They continue to be one of the most prolifically published underwater subjects of all and win their fair share of photo competitions. I believe that they make great pictures not just because of their cute factor but they come packaged-up with great negative space — their resident anemone. Think about it! How many shots do you see of them without a host? The majority of fish portraits can be photographed successfully in isolation of any particular background but some species benefit from it and Clown fish are an example. I have cropped this into a panoramic format because I shot it with that format in mind. I like to shot Clowns with viewer eye contact but with a strong composition and great negative space; a side on composition can be just as effective. This figure is a picture of a fish, but is it a fish portrait? Would you prefer eye contact with it? Develop a way in which to think of these concepts when you’re next in the water with your camera. Nikon D200, f 19 at 1/125th sec, ISO 100, two flashguns at angle of 45 towards the subject. I found this balled-up purple anemone on a wreck in Truk lagoon and went back in with a macro lens hoping that it would still be balled-up. Lucky for me it was. I concentrated on the negative space (a portion of the purple skirt) and waited for the Clown to swim into the frame. I spent 30 minutes shooting this idea and achieved 10 shots which I kept.

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FIG 8.44 This is the kind of look I’m after. Attitude! I look for it through the viewfinder but it’s a challenge to know whether or not you’ve pressed the shutter at that precise moment in time. Using modern day SLRs with a large LCD and zoom playback facilities it’s easy to see if you’ve captured the attitude, but ensure you check it underwater before you ascend. You may just have time to have another go. Nikon D300, 105 mm VR macro lens, f 16 at 1/250th sec, ISO 200, one flashgun positioned-right hand side to isolate the Blenny against a potential untidy background.

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Abstract Art Underwater abstract photography will present a recognisable subject in an unusual way.

Many of you who have followed the previous three editions of this book since 1995 will know I have a passion for abstract underwater photography. Now, I’m not attempting to convert all the sceptics amongst you but there are so many opportunities, wherever and whenever you photo-dive, to ‘give it a go’. You may enjoy it! Abstracts can fill the down time in your photo-dive when you:     

Cannot find anything to photograph. Are taking your deco stop on a shallow reef. Have chosen the wrong lens for the dive site. Are waiting for your buddy who’s taking too long to finish shooting a subject. Find that the dive site is devoid of anything worth shooting.

Underwater abstracts can also form a relevant part of your portfolio. Not only are abstracts popular in competitions, they can be very profitable when presented for sale.

What does it Mean? To me an abstract image is not a recognisable representation of a subject. To abstract we ‘take away’, and with abstract photography we take away the identity of the subject matter. This leaves more to the imagination and helps the photographer to concentrate on.     

Texture Line Shape Pattern Colour.

You will recognise these elements as the fundamentals of visual design. When studying an abstract the viewer is often too engrossed to figure out what exactly the subject is, and when I shoot underwater abstracts I play on these emotional responses. I use my camera not to represent a specific subject but to create a feeling or sensation through the use of the design elements underlined above.

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Tips   

  

Get close and fill the frame. Lenses capable of focusing close on both SLRs and compacts are ideal but I have also had recent success with wide angle lenses. For starters, look for three different kinds of subjects, those which have patterns, subjects which are colourful, and those with a sense of texture. You need to use a flashgun. Choose a small aperture f22 on SLRs and f8 on compacts. Remember, digital costs nothing. Experiment and take plenty of shots. Consider using the Cropping tool to make a stronger composition in an imaging program such as Photoshop Elements.

FIG 8.45 Shape and colour. This horned sea star was taken in Bali on a barren area of sand. My buddy and I had nothing to photograph during this dive.

I studied this sea star close-up through my viewfinder and it reminded me of the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California. I experimented with my lighting angles and exposures to create shadows and texture to provoke the sense of a parched, arid mountain range. Nikon D200 in Subal with 60 mm macro lens. F16 at 1/250th shutter speed. Two Inon Z220 flashguns.

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FIG 8.46 Line and pattern. Parrotfish

are one of the most popular abstract subjects by virtue of their body colours. I have shot them on numerous night dives and I’m always looking for alternative angles and ideas. Diving the southern Red Sea with my pencil beam night-light illuminated the mouth of this one. The idea jumped out at me to concentrate on the facial features, especially the mouth. Rock formations on each side cast a shadow around the eyes, which heightened the impact. For every abstract idea which works for me, countless others fail. Adding new concepts and innovative designs to my collections provides a sense of satisfaction. F22 at 1/250th second. Same equipment as Fig 8.45.

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(a)

FIG 8.47(a) Texture and colour. If you

are new to shooting underwater abstracts start simple. With a compact zoom or an SLR with macro lens, choose a formation of hard corals. It’s important that you fill the frame with the abstract. Avoid barren rock or sandy patches towards the side. It’s distracting and upsets the pattern. (a) has the visual design qualities of texture and colour, which were created by a side angle placement of my single flash to create shadow detail. Nikon D300, 60 mm macro lens, f 19 at 1/320th sec, ISO 200, cropped slightly in Lightroom to enhance the composition.

(b)

FIG 8.47(b) This example was frontal

lit with two flashguns, which has eliminated any sense of shadow and depth, which in my opinion looks flat. Details as (a).

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FIG 8.48 Pattern and texture. Since I damaged my forefinger from the spines of a Crown of Thorns starfish I’ve had a fascination with them and I set out by using light and shade to create a sense of ‘sharp’ from their spines. One flash, hand held from a variety of angles. I orientated the line of thorns across the diagonal. D200, 60 mm macro, f 22 at 1/180th sec, ISO 100.

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FIG 8.49 Colour and line. Whenever you encounter marine life which is easy to approach take advantage of the abstract opportunities. This time in Nuweiba, Red Sea, with the accommodating Lionfish. D200, 60 mm macro lens, f 4 at 1/60th sec, ISO 100. When choosing this image for illustration I noticed the f-stop setting of f4. This setting was unintentional. I had been shooting blur prior to attempting this abstract and forgot to change the aperture. I achieved sharp focus on the Lionfish body as it was parallel to the camera lens.

FIG 8.50 Colour and texture. The ubiquitous Parrotfish fins are iconic in the underwater abstract world. I’ve done the eye, the fin and the scales but I enjoyed putting these elements together in one image with a panoramic frame. Nikon D200, 60 mm macro lens, f 16 at 1/250th sec, ISO 100, one flashgun placed above my housing, the other flash turned off.

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FIG 8.51 Line and colour. Night dives are productive for abstract studies by virtue of sleeping fish, crinoids and, in this example, basket stars. As soon as your torch descends the basket begins to retract its lacy arms so ensure you work fast. Set up your flash, select an aperture of f 22 or f 16 and have an idea of composition before you position your night torch for illumination. Same equipment as Fig 8.50, f 22 at 1/250th sec, ISO 100, two flashguns positioned each side of my macro port.

FIG 8.52 Shape and texture. Many years ago when I first discovered my passion for abstracts I recall a similar image to this where the author had described the sensation of looking down over the balcony of a tall building to see pedestrians huddled together beneath umbrellas, sheltering from the rain. From that moment I was hooked on abstracts. Same equipment and settings as Fig 8.50.

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FIG 8.53 Colour texture, pattern, Bokeh. The merits of this image are a matter of opinion. I love to shoot clam patterns but with so many taken over the years, how do I make them different? Having shot some Bokeh macro on the Liberty wreck I finished my tank on a colourful clam mantle and decided to shoot it out of focus! I could embellish the idea and suggest I was experimenting with ‘soft focus’ effects, but at the time I wondered if I could get away with an abstract which was ever so slightly out of focus by using my 60 mm macro and an aperture of f 3.5.

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Super Macro Photography by Keri Wilk Introduction The definition of super macro photography is a subject of debate amongst photographers, but has generally been accepted to mean the in-camera capture of images that are larger than life-size. In other words, filling your 24 mm wide sensor with the image of a subject that is less than 24 mm wide qualifies as super macro. Whether we see it or not, we are surrounded by a world of miniatures, and getting a glimpse of this world is what super macro photography is all about. However, without the proper tools and techniques, this type of imaging would simply not be possible. Below, you will find some essential information to get you started down the path of super macro photography.

Tools Before entering this specialised field of photography you should become familiar with some of the most useful types of equipment that are currently available for this purpose. Of the many types available, the three that are most practical for underwater photography are: 1. 2. 3.

Extension tubes Teleconverters Supplementary positive lenses (wet and dry).

Extension Tubes An extension tube is a simple hollow cylinder that is inserted between the camera body and the primary lens in order to move the lens further away from the camera’s film/sensor plane. By doing so, it decreases the lens’ minimum focus distance and increases the maximum achievable image magnification. How much the magnification increases depends on the amount of extension added to the system. For each lens focal length worth of extension added, the magnification ratio increases by one. For example, the addition of 100 mm of extension to a 100 mm 1:1 macro lens will result in the ability to shoot 2:1. Since it does not contain optical elements, an extension tube will not degrade image quality and is a relatively inexpensive option for achieving reproduction ratios beyond 1:1. An extension tube does, however, have some disadvantages. One potential drawback of separating the lens from the camera body is the loss of auto focus capability — only some models/brands of extension tubes include electronic linkages between the body and the lens. Without that linkage you’ll be stuck at a single focus distance, unless your housing port has a manual focus control.

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Another drawback is light loss. For each additional lens focal length worth of extension, the light intensity at the film/sensor drops by a factor of two (one f-stop) due to the spreading of the same light over a larger area (the ‘bellows effect’). If f11 on a 100 mm lens gives perfect exposure, the insertion of a 100 mm extension tube will require the aperture to be opened by one f-stop to f8. Since the extension tube attaches directly to your camera and becomes inaccessible once it’s sealed inside the housing, you’ll have to commit to using it for the duration of your dive. This could be very annoying, since the decrease in the minimum focus distance sacrifices the ability to focus at infinity. When a barracuda swims by you can look but not shoot. A final point — the addition of an extension tube to your camera may also require the addition of port extension rings. For the above reasons, this super macro tool is far from ideal for underwater photography.

Teleconverters A teleconverter (TC) is also inserted between the camera body and the primary lens. Unlike an extension tube, however, it contains several optical elements which act together to diverge the light rays coming from the primary lens and ‘optically crop’ the image being projected toward your film/sensor, thereby causing an increase in magnification. The amount of additional image magnification achieved depends on the teleconverter’s multiplication factor (typically 1.4, 1.7, 2.0 or 3.0). This factor, when applied to the primary lens’ focal length, also gives the ‘effective focal length’ of the system (a 100 mm lens combined with a 1.4 or 2.0 TC becomes a ‘140 mm’ or ‘200 mm’ lens, respectively). I use the word ‘effective’ because the optical properties of the primary lens remain unaffected, even though the image is magnified. With teleconverters, high levels of magnification can be achieved from relatively large distances, making them excellent for particularly shy super macro subjects. However, a teleconverter also has several disadvantages, which collectively explain the dust that has accumulated on mine over the years. Like an extension tube, its use underwater requires the same level of pre-dive commitment, since you can’t remove it once you’re submerged. A teleconverter also diminishes the light intensity at the film/sensor, with the drop in intensity being a function of the teleconverter’s multiplication factor. For example, a 1.4 TC produces a 1-stop light loss, a 2.0 TC a 2-stop loss, and a 3.0 TC causes a staggering 3-stop light loss (one-eighth the intensity!). Combine these disadvantages with the degradation of image quality caused by the additional optical elements and the necessity to insert port extension ring(s) for the additional lens length, and teleconverters become somewhat less attractive as a super macro photography solution.

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FIG 8.54 2 teleconverter.

Supplementary Positive Lenses A supplementary positive lens, which is placed between your primary lens and the subject, functions in the same way as everyday reading glasses: it creates a virtual image far enough behind the object so as to be within the focusing range of the primary lens. This virtual image becomes the object for the primary lens, or more precisely, the virtual object since it only appears to be at that position. In effect, this ‘trick’ allows the real object to be brought closer to the primary lens while simultaneously providing it with a ‘virtual object’ that is erect, larger than the real object, and far enough away that it can be focused. The net result is a decrease in minimum focus distance and an increase in magnification. Commonly called ‘close-up filters’, ‘close-up lenses’, or ‘dioptres’ (a dioptre is actually a unit of measurement for quantifying the strength of a lens), these optical devices are usually constructed from either one or two lens elements, forming a positive dioptre lens system. ‘Multi-element achromatic’ lens designs are capable of producing much higher quality images by reducing/ removing optical distortions and colour fringing, so look for those words when researching available close-up lenses. With a supplementary lens in place, the farthest focus point (normally infinity) is reduced to a distance of one focal length (of this lens) in front of it, and the

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closest focus point will be correspondingly decreased by some amount. Although seemingly restrictive, this is of small concern when doing super macro photography, since minimisation of the lens-to-subject distance is often desirable. This narrowed focal range expands with weaker close-up lenses and contracts with stronger ones. But regardless of strength, and unlike the previously mentioned tools, this super macro tool has the advantage that it does not incur any amount of light loss. There are two main types of supplementary lenses to be aware of: ‘dry’ and ‘wet’. ‘Dry’ close-up lenses, which are manufactured by Nikon, Canon, Cokin, B+W, Hoya and several others, come in a variety of strengths/diameters that can be screwed directly onto the primary lens. Like extension tubes and teleconverters, once they’re on, they’re on for the dive. ‘Wet’ close-up lenses, on the other hand, are quite the opposite. These mount on the outside of your housing (in the water), either by means of a port adapter or by screwing onto the port’s threaded front edge. If a wet lens’ refracting surfaces are in contact with water, approximately two-thirds of its power will be lost underwater, so lenses which have the refracting surfaces sealed in contact with air are much preferred, since 100% of their magnification is maintained. A good example of an air-sealed achromatic wet lens is ReefNet’s +10 dioptre SubSee. This wet lens, combined with my old trusty Nikon 105 mm macro lens, makes up my super macro kit. The SubSee attaches to the front of my Ikelite modular flat port with an adapter ring, and has a hinged arm which holds the lens, allowing it to swing in and out of place as needed. When flipped into place over my 105 mm lens, I’m able to get approximately 2.2:1 image magnification (filling my Nikon D300’s frame with an 11 mm  7 mm subject), and yet I still have the freedom to shoot normal macro shots at any point. Additionally, the lens can be removed from its holder to be used as a normal hand-held magnifier if desired, so I can get a good look at what I will be shooting ahead of time. For beginners in this field, I would strongly recommend achromatic wet lenses (like the SubSee) as a starting point. Once you’re comfortable with it, making a switch over to the more limiting teleconverters and extension tubes will be a walk in the park. If you decide to push the magnification envelope even further, you can always combine this type of wet lens with one of the other types of tools. the results can be shocking!

Techniques Super macro photography can be tricky when you first start, but the following tips should help you get the hang of it in no time.

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FIG 8.55 Mounted on a Sea & Sea flat port, the dual element achromatic +10 dioptre SubSee and its corresponding port adapter makes super macro photography possible. The SubSee can be swung out of the way on a hinged arm so normal macro photography is not affected during each dive.

FIG 8.56 Ikelite housing with dual Ikelite DS125 strobes.

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Subject Choice You might be tempted to seek out primarily microscopic animals to photograph, but shooting abstracts and detail shots of typical ‘normal-size’ subjects can be rewarding and revealing. Keep the composition simple — try to limit the frame to a single subject, and minimise distracting objects in the foreground and background. Slow moving (or static) subjects are well suited for this type of photography, since tracking objects at high levels of magnification can be difficult. Also, since lens-to-subject distances are often very small, approachable subjects are preferable over skittish ones. Otherwise, be prepared to spend the majority of your dives trying to make friends with your subject.

FIG 8.57 Purple Goby, Komodo, Indonesia. While observing a small group of these Redeye Hovering Gobies (Bryaninops natans) above a patch of Acropora coral, I noticed that one repeatedly returned to the same perching spot. I set the camera and strobes up for the shot, waited for the small school to calm down, and, sure enough, my little friend sat down right in my frame — perhaps to show off her pretty eyes! D300 in an Ikelite housing with dual Ikelite DS125 strobes, 105 mm lens, ReefNet’s +10 SubSee, f 22 at 1/200 and ISO200.

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Finding the Subject through the Viewfinder While you might be able to easily see some subjects with your naked eye, locating them through the viewfinder is a task that’s sometimes easier said than done. I find it useful to take a moment to mentally map the area surrounding the subject, taking note of the positions of nearby brightly coloured objects or other distinguishable points in relation to the subject so that when you pull the camera to your eye and the subject isn’t in the frame, you’ll be able to use the directions from your mental map to find it. With a little practice, this technique will become second nature.

FIG 8.58 Flatworm, Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea. I noticed this flatworm making its way towards the edge of a small coral ledge, so I set the camera to Rapid Fire mode, waited for this eye level shot to materialise, then seized the moment with a quick burst of shots. D300 in an Ikelite housing with dual Ikelite DS125 strobes, 105 mm lens, ReefNet’s +10 SubSee, f 45 at 1/200 and ISO400.

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FIG 8.59 Octopus eye, Blue Heron Bridge, Florida. Peering out from a discarded beer bottle, this octopus remained motionless while I positioned my light in

such a way that only its eye was illuminated at the time of exposure. This was on a sandy bottom in around 10 feet of water, so I was able to empty my BC, sprawl out, get my breathing under control, and take my time setting up the shot. D300 in an Ikelite housing with a single Ikelite DS125 strobe, 105 mm lens, ReefNet’s +10 SubSee, f 20 at 1/250 and ISO250.

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FIG 8.60 Yawning Goby, Tulamben, Bali, Indonesia. I found this Goby on an uncharacteristically shallow whip coral, so decided to capitalise on the situation.

After a preliminary dive taking ‘standard’ pictures of it, I decided that it was necessary to go back to it with my super macro rig. After custom-making a floatation system for my housing, I went back to the Goby on two more devoted dives, spending around 5 hours waiting patiently for it to yawn. D300 in an Ikelite housing with dual Ikelite DS125 strobes, 105 mm lens, ReefNet’s +10 SubSee, f 32 at 1/250 and ISO200.

Focusing Methods For any given f-stop, depth of field is a function only of the magnification ratio of the image being produced. More magnification means less depth of field. Since super macro photography involves high degrees of magnification, it follows that the depth of field will be very small. How and where the narrow field of focus is positioned depends on your choice of focusing method. Method #1: Normal Auto Focus. It is tempting to simply ‘point and shoot’, trusting that the camera’s auto focus will select the correct portion of the subject to be in focus, but this can be a dangerous move — if the camera selects a plane of focus that is a fraction of a millimetre this way or that, the shot can be changed from treasure to trash. I do not recommend this method of placing focus. Method #2: Auto Focus with AF-lock. Once the image is properly framed and roughly focused, the focal plane can be locked in place by half-depressing the shutter release, pressing and holding the ‘AF-L’ (on Nikon bodies) button, or by switching the camera body into Manual focus mode. Using any of these methods, the camera can be rocked back and forth as necessary, to precisely place the plane of focus where you desire.

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FIG 8.61 Red Blenny face, Blue Heron Bridge, Florida. This tiny

Blenny was in a lone slab of concrete in just over 5 feet of water. Using a combination of super macro tools (teleconverter and achromatic wet lens), I was able to fill the frame with its face — which is not much larger than a grain of rice! That’s my thumb next to it, in the upper corner of the image. D300 in an Ikelite housing with dual Ikelite DS125 strobes, 105 mm lens, with a Kenko 2X Teleconverter and ReefNet’s +10 SubSee, f 25 at 1/250 and ISO 200.

Method #3: Manual Focus. Having access to the primary lens’ manual focus ring can be very helpful when trying to position the plane of focus. This is the most effective method, since your fingers are kept free from holding down any buttons, and minor changes in magnification and framing can be made with the turn of the focus ring. However, not every brand of port has a built-in manual focus knob, so your particular rig may not be capable of this focusing technique. Another helpful technique is ‘focus bracketing’. Once your image is properly composed, take several exposures while very slightly rocking the camera body back and forth. This will usually increase your chances of positioning the plane of focus precisely where you want it. You can further increase your chances by decreasing the size of the aperture (increasing the f-stop number) to get more depth of field. But this should be done sparingly since reductions in aperture size are inevitably accompanied by some degree of image softening from diffraction effects. This can do more harm than good.

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FIG 8.62 Blue Blenny Face, Eilat, Israel. This Blenny was the perfect super macro subject — very calm, unaffected by my presence, and full of expression and colour. I positioned my strobes in such a way that only the face of the Blenny and part of its tubular home were lit up. It was near the sand, so I was able to kneel while setting up the shot. D300 in an Ikelite housing with dual Ikelite DS125 strobes, 105 mm lens, ReefNet’s +10 SubSee, f 25 at 1/125 and ISO 200.

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Breathing/Buoyancy Keeping super macro subjects framed properly takes more than just a keen photographic eye — you’ll need solid control over your buoyancy (if shooting off the reef), a steady pair of hands, and a slow, calm breathing cycle. Coordinating your exposures with the pauses in your breathing cycle will usually give you the best shooting opportunities.

Conclusion Super macro photography is not for everyone. It takes great patience, good observational and scuba skills, and the right equipment. Without these it will likely be a frustrating uphill battle the majority of the time. But if you have the tools, both mental and physical, you may be surprised by how much beauty you can capture, often right under your nose. The above information is a good starting point for those who are interested in pursuing this type of photography. But, if you’d like a more thorough analysis of this genre of photography, please visit my ‘Guide To Super Macro Underwater Photography’ at www.DivePhotoGuide.com. For more information about the ReefNet SubSee, please visit www.ReefNet.ca

The Author Keri Wilk is a 24-year-old Canadian mechanical engineer with 14 years of underwater photography experience throughout the Caribbean and the IndoPacific. He published his first image in Sport Diver at the age of 16 and followed up with image and text contributions to numerous magazines, scientific journals, books, and museums. Keri is now designing and developing new products for ReefNet Inc.

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CHAPTER 9

Wide Angle Shooting Wide Angles: Introduction to the Wide Angle Concept

U

nderwater wide angles have the power to transport the young or old from the comfort of their topside existence to a world that few ever have the opportunity to see with their own eyes. Those close to me often compare my own underwater wide angle style with the type of landscape photographs which you’d expect to see in a magazine and on a post card. In recent years I have nurtured my interest for topside landscapes also. There are many similarities between the two, all of which are easily transferable, but it’s the underwater alternative wide angles which excite me most. Several of the more popular types include:      

Balanced light fill-in flash Close focus wide angle Working with a model Shooting schooling fish Shipwrecks Split-levels.

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I intend to discuss them all later in this chapter but first I would like to emphasise some key points to bare in mind if you wish to use your wide angle lenses to their full potential. I cannot stress enough that to take good underwater pictures: you must eliminate the column of water between the subject and the lens. Wide angle lenses do this to maximum effect. By reducing the distance, you reduce the amount of suspended particles in the water. The advantage of wide angle is the lenses we use. They all have one thing in common and that is they are all capable of focusing very close. This allows you to get close to the subject and reduce the column of water, but still include much larger subjects within the frame. It’s a win—win situation. Wide angle lenses are capable of focusing close, but they are not a closeup lens.

FIG. 9.1 The Liberty wreck at Tulamben, Bali, is home to a very large but tame king barracuda that I know as George. He can usually be found within the pillar house at about 15 m. Provided you are slow and methodical in your approach he will allow you close to within less than a metre. At the beginning of the workshop and in case I had the opportunity, I considered the best background to shoot George against within the pillar room and took this snap to remind me. We dived the wreck most days and I would always call in to see if he was in residence. Tokina 10 mm—17 mm (at the 10 mm end) on a Nikon D300.

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FIG. 9.2 I got lucky towards the end of the trip. I was in the pillar room when George swam up to me. I had an idea of the natural light exposure settings from the previous snapshot (Fig. 9.1). I gently adjusted my flash arms and moved them behind but close and each side of my dome port. Eye to the viewfinder I composed the pillar room as I had practised. I drifted towards him, tilted my camera anticlockwise slightly and was able to fire off three frames before he swam out of frame. The golden rule with wide angle is ‘you have to get close’ and on this occasion I managed to get inches away from George. Fortunately my flash power settings were accurate and I avoided a reflection from his shiny scales. F9.5 at 1/20th sec, I0 mm end of my Tokina zoom, ISO 200.

Which Lenses to Use? For SLR cameras there are a number of preferable lenses to consider. For Nikon DX cameras (remember DX is a cropped sensor of 15 or 16) they are:    

Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye Nikon 12 mm—24 mm wide angle zoom Tokina 10 mm—17 mm zoom fisheye. (Nikon fit) Sigma 10 mm—20 mm zoom fisheye

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For Nikon FX (full frame sensors) they are:   

Nikon 16 mm fisheye Nikon 17 mm—35 mm Sigma 15 mm

For Canon both full frame and cropped, the favourites at the time of writing are:     

Canon 14 mm Canon 16 mm—35 mm zoom Canon 17 mm—40 mm zoom Canon 10 mm—22 mm Sigma 15 mm. (Canon fit)

So, which one to choose on either full frame or cropped sensor? Unfortunately, an in-depth discussion to resolve the question is far beyond the scope of this section but I would urge you to visit wetpixel. com for two particular debates which discuss both Nikon and Canon options. For Canon go to: http://wetpixel.com/forums/lofiversion/index.php/t29387. html For Nikon go to: http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/review-nikon-d700-in-subalnd700/ and http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/nikon-d3-field-review-in-the-eastpacific-part-3/ Also, contact your local underwater photo retail outlet for further advice regarding wide angle lenses, ports, gears and dioptres. As for my favourite wide angle lenses: I currently use a Nikon D300, which is a cropped sensor. My first choice is the Tokina 10 mm—17 mm zoom fisheye. I like its flexibility through the zoom range, which takes in ultra wide angle ideas at the 10 mm end and more traditional wide angle at the 17 mm. If I know the Tokina will be too wide for a particular idea, I opt for either my Nikon 17 mm—35 mm zoom or my Nikon 12 mm—24 mm depending on the size of subject I intend on shooting.

Be Aware of Distortion When using wide angles, the relative size of subjects near and far is distorted. Nearer subjects appear to be larger and closer than they really are, and more distant subjects appear to be smaller and much further away. Wide angle lenses do, in effect, increase the appearance and scale of

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FIG. 9.3 Distortion is a challenge to avoid and is most prominent towards the corners of the frame. Wreck structures are problematic but when shooting the reef I find more often than not that I get away with distortion problems. The distortion still occurs but is less noticeable. You can clearly see how the post towards the right side is distorted.

underwater visibility because the background appears to be more distant. This can be used effectively to create huge fissures in areas where they don’t exist — for instance, using a small gap as a surround for a distant diver or seascape gives the impression of a huge hole, which frames the distant reef. Again, when photographing divers interacting with marine life, by composing the fish closer to the lens than the diver you can achieve a dramatic impression of a subject greatly oversized in proportion to the diver in the background.

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FIG. 9.4 This Hawaiian hard coral formation looks huge with the diver in the far distant blue. Excellent visibility abounds with clear blue water. Wrong! Perhaps not exactly wrong but an exaggeration. The hard coral is about 20 cm wide, the distant diver is 7 to 8 metres away, and the visibility was an average 20 m. Wide angle lenses are such a powerful tool in that they enhance the appearance of the seascape. Nikon D200, Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f11 at 1/30th sec, ISO 100, two small Sea & Sea flashguns placed left-hand side and above the housing to evenly illuminate the hard coral.

Huge Depth of Field Another element of wide angle underwater photography that offers a tremendous advantage is all to do with depth of field. The wider the angle of the lens, the greater the depth of field. This increase is so marked that with a full frame fisheye lens of 10.5 mm, when the lens is focused at 1 m, for instance, it will be in focus from 0.5 m to infinity at f8. When you shoot up towards the surface, apertures of f11 and f16 can often be indicated which almost eliminate the need to focus.

The key in choosing at which end of the lens to shoot is to consider the ‘ability to get close to’.

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FIG. 9.5 Although this appears to depict two divers swimming into a the mouth of a cave, the cave entrance is just a small hole in a rock which I could place my lens against and shoot through into blue. The other divers were exploring and they were about to enter a large Lava tube on Kona Island, Hawaii, and somehow I managed to communicate to them to shine their lights in my direction. Nikon D200, Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f5.6 at 1/125th sec, ISO 100, natural light.

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FIG. 9.6 This fisheye image depicts the anchor chains on the wreck of Chrisoula K in the southern Red Sea. The chain link is only 20 cm long. I had my

10.5 mm fisheye lens fitted and focused on the chain at about 8 cm from my dome port (you have to be careful not to dent your dome on subjects so close). The depths of field with wide angle lenses are huge and will easily provide sharp focus from a few cm to infinity. The dark shadow at top left corner is the hull of the wreck in silhouette. The curved circular shadow on the right is a part of Snell’s window (see Chapter 6, page 217 on ‘Natural Light’). Snell was so pronounced because the surface of the water was glass calm, which emphasises the effect of the window. I turned one flash off to avoid illuminating too much of the background as I just wanted to ‘fill in’ light on the chain and nothing else. I lay on my back and composed towards the surface 6 m above. I shot, viewed and altered my flash position — once, twice, three times — until I got the kiss of light I envisioned. I then turned my attention more to the composition, interplay and balance of Snell, the hull and chain link. F11 at 1/250th sec. 374

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Wreck photography and seascapes are good examples of subjects which you can get close to. Another would be a school of fish and other larger creatures (but I emphasise once more) that you anticipate being able to get close to! This is the advantage of using a fisheye zoom in that you have that flexibility to zoom in if you cannot get physically close. The Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye is an excellent performer but if I am unable to get close to my preferred subject then everything which I shoot appears to be too distant in the frame, and this is a killer for wide angle composition.

So Why Use Wide Angle Lenses at All? Why not just back off a metre or so and shoot the same scene through the viewfinder with a longer lens like a 20 mm or similar? That’s what our land photo cousins would do! But as you may know, it doesn’t work this way underwater. We have to reduce that column of water and shoot as close as we possibly can. Fisheye lens are able to do this more effectively than any other wide angle lens. As a result, the subject is comprehensively saturated with colour and silhouettes are sharper and more clearly defined. Another reason for using ultra wide lenses is for creativity. Because of the inherent bending of straight lines, the capability of ‘seeing’ an amazing 170 degrees, and sometimes more, makes this lens uniquely artistic and imaginative. In land photography these distortions are a disadvantage because of the many straight lines in man-made structures. Underwater, however, nature has blessed us with curves and spheres. The only straight lines we encounter are generally human intrusions such as shipwrecks and divers.

A Word About Shutter Release In topside photography with fast action sports we often shoot in both low speed and high speed continuous release mode (often referred to as motordrive). The need to use this underwater is limited but it may become necessary with wide angle techniques such as when shooting schooling fish and pelagic’s, so do keep this in mind. If you need to shoot high speed then do so. Yes, you will fill a memory card much quicker, and yes, some flashguns won’t have the recycle time to keep up with the speed but if you think it will achieve ‘peak of the action’ then don’t hesitate.

Training Our Eye to ‘See’ in Wide Angle For most of the year, the majority of underwater photographers indulge their passion from the comfort of their armchair, on computer perhaps, processing images taken on a recent photo trip. All of us become accustomed to

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seeing underwater photographs in a variety of strong and intense colour. We all do it; it’s human nature! However, the underwater world is not like that in reality. We often see the rich vivid colours of reef fish and corals in the fraction of a second it takes a burst of flash to illuminate a subject, but in reality we see the underwater world in varied shades of blue, grey and green! It’s common for those I teach to becoming quite dejected during the first few dives of their photo trip when the colour, clarity and saturation of their pictures back home seem just an illusion! When your facemask dips below the surface during the first day’s check-out dive, the stark reality is those muted and familiar shades of blue and grey. This is why digital photography is so impressive. We no longer have to imagine the colours of red, orange and purple! We can see them in the time it takes to review the LCD and that comfortable warm feeling of ‘colour in my photo’s’ comes flooding back.

Looking and Seeing Successful photographers train their eye (with practice) and develop the ability to ‘see in pictures’. They may stop and examine a formation of coral and view the scene with a completely different perspective than their buddy, who may be photographically blind to the creative opportunities that are all around. This type of photographer may have the technical ‘know-how’ and all the enthusiasm, but lacks that underwater inner eye so essential in recognising a subject’s potential in the first place. I have dived with photographers who swim over glorious opportunities because the corals do not appear to their eye to justify so much as a second glance! I work with them to develop this aspect of their learning more than any other part. If only they could view the scene through the wide angle viewfinder in their ‘inner eye’ and take a moment to visualise how things may be recorded, they would discover a wealth of possibilities right under their nose.

Tips 



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Get close to the subject — this is the most important tip for wide angle photographers. On your next trip, experiment for one day and, no matter what equipment you are using, try to get so close that the subject is bursting out of the viewfinder. When you view your results, you are likely to find that your distance is just right. If circumstances and subject matter require you to shoot in Continuous release mode then don’t hesitate to do so.

Wide Angle











 







Continuous focusing mode is also a popular technique with wide angle. If unsure of the difference between this and Continuous release mode then check out your camera user manual. Ensure that you shoot either at eye level or upwards towards the surface. Whilst there are a few exceptions, shooting down on a subject will almost certainly produce a flat result with little contrast. When the sun is low on the horizon, try swimming in that general direction. It is an effective way to ‘see’ in pictures more easily, when the spark of sunlight is in view. Always fire off a flash exposure before you enter the water. If your flash fails to fire, or the camera malfunctions, you have a chance to fix it before you get wet. Before you enter the water, set your aperture to f8 and your focus distance to about 1 m. Turn your flash on and position it to light a subject about 1 m away from the lens. The reason for this is that within seconds of entering the water you will often see opportunities that would make excellent pictures. So, be prepared for them! Being set at f8 at 1 m will provide you with the best possible chance of getting a quick snapshot in a hurry. Take a type of ‘Polaroid’ snap to check out the colour and condition of subjects before you compose them for real. If you feel a little obsessive in your quest for technical perfection, try to let go of it. If your results are not to your standard, it may be that your preoccupation with the technical aspects is getting in your way. I often find that this will cloud any artistic ability. Learn it on land and then trust it underwater. This will make room for increasing the amount of thought and creativeness regarding the image itself. Learn to use the histogram to determine correct exposure. If the ambient light is incorrect then alter the camera settings. If the flash exposure is incorrect, then alter the flash power settings. Of all the subjects we see underwater, 70% are un-photographable because of their location on the reef. If you cannot get to shoot your subject without fear of harm, then move on and find something located in an easier position.

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FIG. 9.7 By Jamie Edge. This colourful soft coral looks huge and imposing but it’s quite the opposite — it’s quite small, no more than 10 cm high! With a 10.5 mm fisheye. Jamie got close to within a few cm and composed the coral with the light shining through the shallow cave systems at St John’s in the southern Red Sea.

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Wide Angle FIG. 9.8 If you are confident with your buoyancy control then try hand holding your flashgun for creative alternative lighting angles. I took my flash off camera and held the flash arm in front of my camera but hidden behind the coral bush. It took 15 attempts to get both the angle of the flash and the power setting acceptable. Once those essentials were OK I then concentrated on the composition holding my housing with my right hand and adopting a vertical format with the balance and positioning of foreground coral and background cave slits. 10.5 mm fisheye, f 8 at 1/90th sec, ISO 100.

FIG. 9.9 My Tokina 10 mm—17 mm has become my first choice for fisheye because of it’s zoom flexibility. A popular technique is to compose the sun behind the subject (in this case the soft coral branch) or keep it out of the frame altogether. Tokina fisheye, f 8 at 1/125th, ISO 200.

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FIG. 9.10 Ideal use of the flexible Tokina with moving subjects like fish. The generous zoom distance of 17 mm is ideal for shooting more sizeable reef fish.

12 mm end of my Tokina, f 9.5 at 1/45th sec.

FIG. 9.11 A

fisheye dome and a compact dome. Both are suitable for wide angle photography but ensure you ask your dealer which one is right for your system.

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Close Focus Wide Angle

Tips

Close focus wide angle photographs are the shots which every aspiring photographer wants to capture. I would go as far to say they are perhaps the most dramatic, creative and popular shots taken underwater.



They are easy to achieve if you know how. The secret, as the name suggests, is to select and focus on the foreground subject with perhaps a diver hanging out in the blue water with sunbeams piercing the surface behind. Before I move on allow me to discuss these words ‘close’ and ‘foreground’. Close means really close! I’m talking about as near as your wide angle lens will focus. It’s this close perspective that is dramatised by the distortion properties of fisheyes and other wide angle lenses.



Try and include the entire subject in the frame. Although the subjects appear huge to the viewer, they can be quite modest in size. Don’t pick a fan coral which is huge (2 m across) as you will have to back off to get it all in the frame! No one knows how large it is in reality. It’s all about the size perspective in the viewfinder. By taking advantage of the extreme depth of field that fisheyes provide, you are able to capture all the elements in focus at the same time. What is essential is to balance the exposures of the natural light and the light from the flash, then select an aperture of f11, f16 or f22 in order to retain the required depth of field. We need a good depth of field. This is important to achieve pin-sharp focus from the very near foreground to the far background. In order to achieve this small aperture, you simple shoot upwards toward the lighter regions. Approach this type of shot by:  

  



Select the foreground subject, such as a fan or soft coral, which you can photograph at such an upward angle. To achieve the correct exposure with your camera (either compact or SLR) and flash, set a shutter speed of between 1/125 and 1/250 second. Point upwards, where you will achieve apertures with the best (greatest) depth of field. Position your flashgun(s) and select an appropriate power setting. Compose, take the shot, and review the histogram. If the background water is too overexposed, with a harshly clipped histogram, then close the aperture down or select a higher/faster shutter speed if your flash sync speed will allow. If the foreground subject is incorrectly exposed in any way, then reselect a manual power on your flashgun. You don’t have to include a sunburst within the frame; it’s not mandatory.





Compose and shoot only when a scene looks good through the viewfinder. Avoid trusting just your eyes — it’s the reason your pictures may look so distant! With experience, you can learn to ‘shoot from the hip’ accurately, guessing the angle of coverage of a wideangle lens and shooting without looking through the viewfinder. This technique is invaluable should an opportunity arise where cameras and diver cannot fit into the same space (such as a small cave). Ensure that the lens is capable of doing the job. Anything less than a fisheye or wide angle won’t do. On cropped sensors 18 mm wide angles are in reality 27 mm and are not wide enough. Shoot upwards towards the surface using small apertures for the greatest depth of field.

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Bracket both apertures and flash positions to give you some variety.



I use the technique of leaving the sun-ball out of the frame whenever possible to capture the beams of light emanating from the ball.

The critical exposure is the one on the foreground subject. Considerable latitude can be allowed for the distant blue water and the surface.

FIG. 9.12

< FIG. 9.13 (Opposite page) Look how this close focus wide angle shot began. In Fig. 9.12, I noticed our photo-dive boat above, silhouetted behind the sun. Thinking this would make ideal negative space and an interesting background I began to look around for something of interest to place into the foreground. In the immediate vicinity there were formations of fire coral growing on top of some pinnacles. I wanted to balance my foreground to echo the shape of the boat above. I framed a branch of fire coral at an upward angle but the boat was half in and out of the frame; no good, I moved on. I composed another coral with the boat behind, but it was hidden behind the coral foreground. I swam to another pinnacle a few metres away and recomposed. Excellent! This time I could compose a diagonal orientation of the boat lying across the surface and in the foreground I was able to compose the fire coral at the same angle as the boat, which left a pleasant CFWA shot with plenty of depth perspective. Subal housing, Nikon D300, Tokina 10 mm—17 mm at the 10 mm end, f 11 at 1/320th sec, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns placed each side of my dome to illuminate the corals.

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FIG. 9.15 A typical tropical close focus wide angle. A foreground of colourful fan corals and distant divers in the background for scale and perspective. I have hidden the sun-ball just out of the frame to avoid overexposure. Notice the graduation of light blue to dark blue from top to bottom. Notice the weak composition? Too much dead space just below the fan corals! I was so intent on pressing the shutter when the two distant divers were both surrounded by blue water that I forgot about the bottom half of the frame. I intend to crop this image for presentation purposes but it’s healthy to know how easy it is to get simple things wrong. Nikon D300, f 11 at 1/125th sec, ISO 100, 10 mm end of my Tokina 10 mm—17 mm, two Inon flashguns each side of but well behind my dome.

= FIG. 9.14 (Opposite page)

This small hole within the reef was ablaze with colour and at only 4 m deep just needed a small ‘kiss’ of flash to restore some red and yellow to the tones. Close focus was required. I selected f 5.6 but noticed that the shaft of light piercing through the top required a slow shutter speed of 1/30th sec to lighten up the sunbeam. I focused on the orange soft coral at centre frame and took a series of shots until I liked the balance of the colours and natural light combined. One Inon flashgun, the other turned to ‘off’. I emphasise throughout this book that I am always checking my LCD screen to see how my ideas are progressing, how I can correct them and, once corrected, how can I improve them.

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FIG. 9.16 For those of you familiar with the front cover of my third edition you may recognise this formation of soft coral. It can be found in the main swimthru at St John’s caves in the southern Red Sea. Every time I visit I am almost compelled to spend time photographing it. I like to see how it changes from one day to the next and from year to year. One part of the day it resembles a shrivelled-up, decaying vegetable and an hour later it can be in full bloom. Within these shallow and extremely safe cave systems the shafts of light around midday illuminate the sand and walls like a cathedral (hence the term ‘cathedral light’) and I always sense a glow of colour radiating from these vibrant branches. I’ve processed this image with a deliberate red tinge solely for my own satisfaction. The sand on the cave floor looks white to the eye but always records with a blue/cyan cast. The corals seem brighter and more vivid than those I see on other reefs so I’ve made it look how it makes me feel. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f 5.6 at 1/30th sec, ISO 100, two Inon Z220 flashguns.

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Working with a Model Few underwater photographers have the chance to dive with and photograph professionally trained models, but we all have the opportunity to shoot our dive buddies. During my workshops I encourage buddies to assist each other in the modelling department. The inclusion of a model may be used to add human interest, drama or scale to an existing scene. However, if you include a diver in a seascape which already stands up for itself, there’s a chance it will end up in the bin if they detract too much from the main subject. Before I embark on modelling, first and foremost it’s essential to agree some hand signals for mutual understanding.

Hand Signals I have no intention of describing various hand movements, you can agree these with your buddy, but there are a number of instructions you need to communicate to each other. For example:         

Come closer — move back Go up — go down Stay where you are — that’s perfect!! Move to the side Swim in this direction Align your body like. (to communicate this I lean my left forearm at an angle) Look at the subject — this direction Look over my shoulder. and most important Don’t look into the lens!

For the purpose of this section I’m going to separate different techniques into:   

In the distance Your model gets closer Eyes only.

In the Distance This is an effective way to add a sense of scale to an existing scene. Try and separate your model from any distracting clutter in the background, surrounding them with water is ideal. Achieve this by obtaining a low viewpoint and shooting up into mid water.

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Whether you choose a vertical or horizontal format, remember composition and the rule of thirds. In this way you direct the viewers’ attention to your secondary point of interest. Think about pressing the shutter when they are exhaling. Bubbles create further interest and the contrast in tone between their sunlit bubbles and the blue water background adds to the impact. Instead of just hanging out in the blue, have them fin slowly through the frame. A finning pose is a dynamic pose which creates a sense of movement and energy. In my own work I now try to avoid shooting them just motionless in the water. It lacks impact!

Dive Light or no Dive Light I used to equip my model with a light at every opportunity. In my own opinion I overused this technique and it became staid and repetitive. I still think divers and lights look good, I just did it too often. Now I include a dive light in circumstances where a dive light might in fact be used, i.e. in a wreck or a cave, etc. Make time to check out this type of photo and decide what you want. There is no right or wrong way.

Your Model Gets Closer As you position your model nearer to you and your camera, things begin to change. At distances of 3 m or less it’s important for you to appreciate that the light from your flashgun may fall on your model’s face. It may be diffused and underexposed but nevertheless it changes the entire dynamics of your story. Why? Well, their eyes will instantly become the centre of attention as eyes always are! The viewer, intuitively, will seek out the eyes and for the idea to work the eyes must complement your foreground subject. If the eyes are closed, looking away, screwed up, looking bored, looking at you for instructions — even if the mask is a little fogged-up — this is what the viewer will see first.

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Wide Angle FIG. 9.17 There are many pictures in this book of divers in the background so let’s fast forward to when your model gets closer. If you include a diver in your picture from this distance you have to get the face and eyes correct or the viewer will turn off. If it’s an interesting subject then shoot it with and without the diver to see which works best for you. This figure shows a simple idea of exploration. The eyes are directed towards the underside of the small yacht wreck at Fury shoals in the Red Sea. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f 5.6 at 250th sec, ISO 100, two flashguns each side of my dome port, Auto white balance.

FIG. 9.18 Just a slight incline of the head changes the mood entirely and the viewer is compelled to follow the line of sight of the diver whilst she studies the underside of the wreck. These two shots were ‘planned’ ahead of time to illustrate how the eyes and direction of view impact on the viewer.

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FIG. 9.19 Sylvia won’t thank me for this but it just goes to show that the eyes are crucial in portraying a mood. Friendly, happy and smiling are good. Bored, and frustrated rarely work unless there is a story or theme to the boredom.

Eyes Only Eye contact is a primary consideration whenever a model is close. A mask that allows a clear, undistorted view of the eyes is important. The model should look happy, interested and at one with the subject, whether it be a fish or a still-life study. Eye contact should usually be directed at the subject, and wherever possible the photographer should try to get light into the mask by means of either flash or natural light. Positioning the subject between the camera and the model can make the picture more dramatic, but take care not to overpower the picture by the model’s presence. Remember, the model should add to the scene and not detract from the main subject. Implied eye contact is when you cannot see the eyes of the model but the direction of view of their facemask continues to point the viewer in the intended direction. Even if your model is 5 m to 10 m away in the water column, direct them to view the subject of your intention and try to press the shutter when they are looking towards the subject and not into your camera lens for instructions. This is where clear communication is a must. The success rate with good model pictures is one reason why you need to take plenty of shots to get a few which work well.

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FIG. 9.20 Where is the model in this shot? The idea started out with a frame of encrusted metal on the wreck of the Carnatic (Red Sea), a small school of glassfish and an inquisitive and hungry snapper. I tried to get the combination of all three with the addition of a diver in the background. It wouldn’t work; there were too many moving subjects and I knew that the diver would have to be in a perfect position to get the shot I was after. I took 10 or more with diver and then concentrated on the other three elements. The composition, the upside down ‘V’ shape at the top and the dynamic turn of the snapper work well without the complication of human interest. Sometimes its knowing when not to include a model in the frame. Nikon D300, 10 mm end of my 10—17 mm Tokina lens, f 11 at 1/125th sec, ISO 200.

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Tips  



  



 

 

A model can look to see their own reflection in a wide angle dome port and should use the reflection to position themselves. Make a habit of taking a Polaroid type snap and showing them, in the LCD, the view that you’re composing. In this way, they will have a good idea of where to be in the picture and how to pose. Swimming slowly through a seascape tends to be more successful and natural than just hovering. When a model hovers, the fins drop and the suggestion of movement diminishes. A strong compositional ploy is for models to align themselves at a similar angle to the reef or the main focal point of the picture. It is the responsibility of the photographer to direct the movements and body angles of the model — not the other way round. Avoid mergers — where a silhouette has a leg or arm which merges into the shadows of the reef. This can completely ruin a shot when it appears that they have stag horn coral for legs. We all know that this is not the case, but it will continue to pull the viewer’s eye towards these anomalies rather than the intended focal point. If your buddy can see the flash then the flash can see their eyes. Your model should eye glance as opposed to turning the head (towards your flashgun). Features inside their mask will be illuminated. Give your models praise, praise, encouragement and more praise. They need to know they’re appreciated. If you want the model to gaze at a subject, it’s effective to also place that subject within the frame. This avoids the eyes of the viewer from leaving the picture. Sylvia and I have a signal for any ideas she may have. Show the finished picture to them, usually they will have their own ideas of an alternative composition or type of body position. Work as a team — not as individuals.

In Conclusion We use models to place a human element within the sea. We also use them as a ‘prop’ to occupy the blue water void in the background, which could otherwise appear to the viewer as empty space. I would encourage advanced photographers to explore other ideas to fill dead space in wide angles. I freely admit that I have become preoccupied with this, and perhaps, if I’m honest, a little lazy. It’s so easy to fill the void with a diver but I have been in search of other ideas to accomplish the same thing, i.e. filling the void — occupying the dead space — the far-off background. I discuss my ideas on this at the end of this chapter in the ‘Wide Angle Wow Factor’ section, on page 440. 392

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FIG. 9.21 Rule of thumb! When the shot is about the model themselves, direct eye contact with the viewer often works. In this example you are looking at

the reflection of a face in an airlock. Rotate the page 90 degrees to see which way it was taken. Nikon D300, 17 mm end of my Tokina fisheye, f 11 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200, one flashgun above the housing pointing out.

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FIG. 9.22 This shot is all about the personality of our liveaboard cabin boy. Same equipment as Fig. 9.21 aperture of f11 at 1/320th sec.

FIG. 9.23 When we’re not travelling I

get to photograph babies who are learning to swim. Without doubt, the most rewarding photography of all! Nikon D200, 12 mm end of 12—24 mm lens, f6.7 at 1/90th sec, one flashgun above the camera on very low power.

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Wide Angle and Slow Shutter Speeds It’s a cool idea, which has been around for many years, but I get so many questions and enquiries about how to go about doing it. Wide angle slow shutter speeds is all to do with the Rear Curtain Synchronisation on your SLR. Front Curtain flash Sync occurs at the beginning of the exposure. For long exposures with flash, the image recorded at the beginning of the exposure will be brightly flash-lit while ambient light continues to record subject motion for the remainder of the exposure. This can result in unnatural-looking movement in the image, as light streaks created by the subject moving through ambient light will appear to originate from the subject rather than trailing behind. Rear Curtain Sync, or Second Curtain Sync, is the name for a special effect where the flash is triggered near the end of the exposure, just before the shutter closes. In this instance, the ambient light on the moving subject is recorded first and the bright flash-lit moment happens at the end of the exposure, making for more natural-looking movement in the image. This process gets its name from focal plane shutter cameras that generally have two shutters or curtains: the first (front) curtain opens and exposes the sensor and then the second (rear) curtain closes at the end of the exposure. The majority of DSLR used in underwater photography have a rear curtain flash sync facility, and many digital compacts are now equipped with this feature. This technique was so incredibly hit and miss in the film era, but now the effects can be viewed on the LCD immediately.

How to Set Up   

 

Set your camera menu to ‘rear curtain’. Any lens from a fisheye to a mid range wide angle zoom is suitable. Set either Manual mode and adjust the shutter speed settings to around 1/15th or 1/8th second (these are ideal shutter speeds to start experimenting) or set Aperture priority or Shutter priority to achieve the same thing. It’s the shutter speed which creates this technique, not the aperture. Turn the flash on and press the shutter. The shutter opens, and the flash will fire at the very end of the shutter duration.

Definition of Panning The basic idea behind panning as a technique is that you pan your camera along in time with the moving subject and end up getting a relatively sharp

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subject but a blurred background. This gives the shot a feeling of movement and speed. It’s particularly useful in capturing any fast moving subject whether it be a racing car, cyclist or, for the purpose of this chapter, a school of fish. Read more about panning technique at: http://digital-photography-school. com/mastering-panning-to-photograph-moving-subjects#ixzz0EtJNnXR0&B

Ideas 



 

 

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Start playing with this technique just after sunrise or towards dusk when light levels are quite low. This enables a medium aperture of f8 or f5.6 to complement a slow shutter speed around 1/8th and 1/15th sec. Start shooting your dive buddy and pan your housing as they swim along beside you. Press the shutter, review the results, bracket apertures and vary the speed of your pan. You never know what results you might get but it’s fun, it’s different and just when you think it’s too dark to do wide angle the amusement begins. Progress to moving subjects such as fish and, again, use a panning motion to track their movement whilst you press the shutter. I also use a zooming technique as well as panning. I will start with my Nikon 12 mm—24 mm on the 24 mm setting, follow a subject, press the shutter and for the brief moment the shutter is open I will zoom back my lens from the 24 mm narrow end to the 12 mm wide angle lens. Sometimes it can look like an ugly mess but at other times it can really surprise and impress you and others. Next time you’re photo-diving give it a try.

Wide Angle FIG. 9.24 Start simple. Your buddy hanging off the shot line towards the end of the dive is a credible subject. This late afternoon dive turned into an early night one and hanging off the shot line I set a 3 second shutter speed with f 11, Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, ISO 200.

FIG. 9.25 Was taken in similar circumstances with a 4 second shutter speed at

f 16, ISO 200.

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FIG. 9.26 My settings were 1/8th sec at f6.7, ISO 100, Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens. I took this image before the Tokina fisheye zoom was released. Given

the option my first choice of lens for these techniques would be Tokina followed closely by Nikon 12—24 mm for the flexibility of the zoom.

FIG. 9.27 Motion blur and using slow shutter speeds will be either a love or hate relationship. I’m the former; I love the creative possibilities and the thrill of

having no idea whatsoever how they will appear on my LCD screen! This shot shows the schooling Sweetlips on the dive site ‘Susan’s Bommie’ in Loloata, PNG. I must have taken over 300 shots in the course of our 10 day workshop. The shutter speed is 1/8th sec at f 11, ISO 200, on the 17 mm end of my Tokina. I used a panning motion at the same speed as the fish school. The majority of frames were a chaotic disorganised mess but every so often I’d get one that inspired me to continue with my ‘play-time’. 398

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FIG. 9.28 There are no excuses now for not having anything to take photos of! Or perhaps this looks like a total disaster to you. The shot depicts a staghorn coral formation using slow shutter panning. I set my Tokina fisheye zoom to the 10 mm end at f22 with a shutter speed of 1/10th of a sec. I pressed the shutter and ‘panned’, the camera from left to right as fast as I could.

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Schooling Fish Whilst shooting schooling fish is one of my favourite forms of wide angle, it’s also the most frustrating. You’d think it easy to get great pictures when a sizeable school are happily posing right in front of your camera. I’ve been regularly shooting schools since 1995 and I’ve learnt many techniques through trial and error but I don’t find it easy at all! I will discuss my own personal frustrations as we progress, but first let’s look at some of the main challenges we face.

Chaotic, Jumbled and Totally Disorganised Schooling fish are usually chaotic, jumbled and totally disorganised! So, in order to make a pleasing picture we have to search for a moment of organisation within all the chaos. I use the analogy of underwater posters, drawings and most of all T-shirt designs. Every dive resort sells dive/photo orientated T-shirts to guests. Visualise these designs for a moment. The majority will depict various species of fish. At some time an artist has had to consider the design and composition of the fish — how many to include in the design, how to place each one so they all balance with each other, whether the eyes are visible or hidden from view, whether tails overlap, whether they are swimming in different directions, etc. The artist/designer is not confined to the reality of a camera — all colours, shapes, and sizes can be arranged to create the most impact. However, one thing that all artists have in common is a sense of harmony, order and balance in the design they eventually depict. If they were not pleasing to the eye, no one would buy them!

Take Notice of Underwater Art There is no better exercise to sharpen your uw photo perception than to study the design of fish on posters and clothing. Notice how many (in numbers) are included within the design; you won’t often see more than eight or nine fish. Notice how they overlap each other, and their orientation within the design. You’ll rarely see them swimming away and you’ll rarely see them sketched at an obtuse angle. For the majority, their eyes will be in view and they will be moving at a 3/4 angle towards you. Basically they are designed in an organised, tidy and logical way by choice of the artist. Any of you who have photographed fish will appreciate this is not the true reality of an encounter. Let’s face it, for the most part fish swim in a disordered, chaotic, jumbled mass and, in my experience, this is why we become dissatisfied with our own results.

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FIG. 9.29 How many fish do you need to make a school? As few as you can get away with! The less you have the more likely you are to achieve a pleasing and orderly composition. I spent one photo-dive on a huge school of goat fish close to Hurghada in the Red Sea. They were frustratingly chaotic. I concentrated my attention on the loaners who were lagging behind in an effort to get a tidy and organised composition. Natural light using the white balance colour picker tool in Adobe Camera Raw, f 8 at 1/125th sec, ISO 100.

When we carefully observe schooling fish over a period of time we do in fact perceive them as an organised entity. Unlike video, an SLR exposure is a fraction of a second, so it’s essential to look for, anticipate and recognise a split second of harmony and order within the school when it occurs. FIG. 9.30 On this particular photo-dive I was using a 60 mm macro lens in

anticipation of a fish portrait session. There was a school of seven in perfect formation. Equipped with such a narrow lens I was unable to ‘back off’ sufficiently to get them all into the frame so I focused on a trio and concentrated on the peak of the action, when they all came together in unison. I converted this to a monochrome in Lightroom 2. F8 at 1/125th sec, ISO 200, two Inon Z220 flashguns placed each side of my macro port pointing outwards.

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FIG. 9.31 Schooling Sweetlips on Loloata Island, PNG, were excellent potential providing the current was manageable. I spent some time on a tight composition of them packed together. Nikon 17—35 mm lens zoomed to 28 mm, f 6.7 at 1/30th sec, ISO 200, two Inon Z220 flashguns placed each side of my dome port pointing outwards.

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Lens and Techniques

Tips

If I have shot the school previously and know the size and approachability factor I will use either a Tokina 10—17 mm fisheye zoom or a Nikon 12—24 mm or 17—35 mm zoom. In circumstances such as these it is so tempting to use the zoom facility of these modern wide angle lenses to get close optically and save the hassle of moving close to the school but this should be avoided whenever possible.





Get as close as you can physically and use the zoom only when you’re unable to get closer. An exception to this would be when using Magic Filters. I’ve seen awesome results with the MF and schooling fish by using the alternative and unusual telephoto effect of a 105 mm lens.

Lighting In my experience, another problem to overcome is how to light such a large area in terms of both natural light and flash. Natural light on wide angle can be very effective with larger schools of fish. If possible, try to shoot the school so that the sun is positioned from behind you and shining onto them. This will increase both the colour and contrast of the school illuminated by the sun so they stand out against blue water. Try to get below the school and shoot upwards (with your back to the sun). Also try shooting them from above at a slight downward angle.

Flash





Adding just a hint of flash can give your pictures some punch. A wide-beamed flash is preferable, attached to a flash arm. Position a single flash so it comes in from the top in both a landscape and a portrait composition. Feel that you are aiming over the top of the school. This will enable the lower edge of the flash beam to cut just in front of the school, lighting the fish and not the column of water in between. 

Although you have the added burden of weight and drag in the water, the addition of a second flashgun can help A to spread a soft, even light at such an angle that it appears to wrap around the fish. Position twin flashguns so they are behind the shades of a wide angle dome port; this helps to avoid the presence of flare in the top left- and right-hand corners of your picture.

Dive key sites repeatedly to acquaint yourself with the habits of the fish. If you can repeat these photo sites, so much the better — you will know which lens to choose before you enter the water. Using natural light with wide angle can be very effective with big schools of fish, but adding just a hint of flash can lend your image impact. Don’t try to include all of the school in your composition. More fish mean less chance of a pleasing arrangement. Instead, look to pick off a few stragglers who’ve become separated from the main school. Like the T-shirt designs, they will be much easier to arrange within your composition.

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Try your hand at natural light with manual white balance settings. They worked well for me. Consider using C continuous focusing mode and Continuous shutter release in an effort to capture the peak of the action. I often switch to A aperture priority to avoid being distracted by having to set light levels. I want to concentrate entirely on the fish and nothing else. Take plenty of pictures to limit bad luck! Order, impact and harmony are the key, but have patience. Schooling fish photography can be very frustrating!

FIG. 9.32 The resident school of Jacks close to the Liberty wreck at Tulamben, Bali, are great potential. They can usually be located with ease by an experienced boatman. Early one morning, before the crowds, we dived the Liberty with the sole intention of shooting the school. The boatman located them just below the surface and I took this image holding my housing just beneath the glass calm surface with my legs and torso hanging out of the boat. My Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye was first choice of lens in view of the predictability of getting close. Diving with Jacks, you can often anticipate when they are about to ball up into a sphere. I like the downward angle, which is useful to keep the sun out of the frame to prevent overexposure. F5.6 at 1/180th sec, ISO 200, natural light using the white balance colour picker tool in Adobe Camera Raw, two flashguns attached but turned off for this shot.

FIG. 9.33 The Loloata sweetlips must have exceeded two hundred. I was constantly looking for a smaller group

which were more easily manageable. I try to keep the sun at my back to enhance both the contrast and the tone of blue water. Nikon D300, 17 mm end of my 17—35 mm zoom, f 9.5 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns placed each side of my dome port pointing outwards. 404

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FIG. 9.34 When the Jacks are schooling it’s possible to swim inside the circle and pick them off as they come towards you. I tend to use Aperture priority

in situations like this to avoid preoccupation with measuring the light. I try to concentrate on composition and peak of the action in whichever direction they may turn. This shot depicts a split second when they all looked in harmony, facing my general direction. For every shot looks orderly I have another 50 which are just the opposite. Tokina 10—17 mm on the 10 mm end, f 9.5 at 1/125th sec, ISO 100, two Inon flashguns, 50 cm each side of but behind my dome port. 405

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FIG. 9.35 Larger schools like Barracuda and Jacks photograph well from a slightly up ward angle but during the day the sun-ball is usually too bright for the camera sensor. With conventional wide angle we can hide the sun behind the reef or leave it out of the frame altogether, but it’s not as easy when shooting schools. An idea of mine is to hide the sun behind a diver. Jo Horricks agreed to swim a couple of metres above me and, by observing her own reflection in my fisheye dome, she swam in front of the sun, which reduced its intensity. Jo swam around the school and I pressed the shutter when the composition looked OK. The diver in the distant blue adds to the depth perspective but was unplanned. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f 5.6 at 1/180th sec, ISO 100. Whilst my flashguns are attached to the camera, I tend to leave them turned off when shooting a silhouette such as this.

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FIG. 9.36 There’s a story to this figure relevant to this section. Whilst sitting at home putting the schooling fish pictures together, Alex Mustard snapped a grab shot of me on my computer. I was searching for an illustration of T-shirt designs to depict the concept of an orderly fish pattern, completely oblivious to the fact that I was wearing one at the time!

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Split Levels This popular wide angle technique is also referred to as ‘under-overs’ and ‘half and halfs’. It’s a tricky technique to master and whilst the concept is straight forward it can take a certain amount of practice and patience to achieve a shot which will satisfy you.

Equipment The best way to capture this shot is to use:   

An SLR camera. Wide angle lens preferably a fisheye or fisheye zoom lens. Most importantly, the largest dome port available for your housing. A large dome port will always handle surface swell better than a smaller port.

Another tip is to use an underwater housing fitted with an angled 45 viewfinder which allows you to view the composition with your head and most importantly, your eyes out of the water (See further discussion at the end of this chapter.) For my split shots I use either a 10.5 mm fisheye or the Tokina 10 mm—17 mm zoom. Both lenses have a considerable depth of field, which copes with most focusing issues. If the underwater and land portions are too far away from each other, ensure you prioritise sharp focus on the foreground.

Focusing Another tip in order to create as much depth of field as possible is to consider the technique of hyperfocal distance. Try focusing just behind your foreground portion of the scene. In this way the D of F in front of the sharpest point of focus of the lens will take in the foreground portion and maximise the entire D of F range. One advantage of both the 10.5 mm and the fisheye zoom is that they’re both compatible with and designed to perform at their optical best behind large fisheye domes, notwithstanding the make of housing.

Problems with Water Droplets There are a number of ideas to prevent water droplets clinging to your dome port when holding it above the water line. I’ve tried most of them and still have a problem with water dispersal. I have used Rain XÔ, a motorcar product effective on window-screens. Another alternative is to lick your dome! A coating of saliva on the outside of your dome achieves the same effect. Neither is totally reliable, and this is where frustration with these techniques can set in.

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Choosing a day when the surface of the water is flat calm is more likely to result in success. Enter the water with every intention of keeping the top half of the dome dry. I know it’s a challenge but when the sea is glass calm it’s much easier to control and compose the water line across the surface of the wide angle dome port.

Tips When shooting the surface line in conditions less than perfect, I’ve developed a routine to keep droplets off the finished picture.   





Select a shutter speed of 1/250th second — as we’re going to freeze motion! Hold the camera/housing at the desired angle across the surface line. Prefocus as required. I use my right thumb on the focus lock lever — (Subal housings) to ensure no focus hunting. Depth of field is usually more than adequate and has never been a problem for me. Practise tilting and submerging the dome port downwards just enough to cover it completely with water and then in one motion bring the dome up to the level of the water line as per your intended composition. What you’ll find with a few minutes of practice is that it takes a few seconds after submersion for droplets to run down the dome into the picture area. The idea is to press the shutter in the one or two second window of a clear dome. The shutter speed of 250th sec is required to freeze action of the submersion to avoid shutter shake with the movement it entails. This works well for me and I no longer use a liquid detergent or Rain XÔ.

Dioptres There is much talk about the use of dioptres in split shots. In simple terms, the ideal focus on the water portion scene rarely complements the topside view, which often requires a lens to be focused towards infinity. The underwater portion is usually in the close foreground. So how can a compromise be achieved that will render both in focus? The answer is to use a split-dioptre filter. The optical glass is similar to a pair of bifocal reading spectacles; it occupies only the bottom half of the filter whilst the top half is clear. This combination has the effect of bringing the focusing closer in the bottom half, where the water portion is to be composed, while the topside view is focused as normal. The photographer can often have both the land and the underwater seascape in focus but, if we have to go with one or the other, always show a sharpness preference to the underwater portion.

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Having provided the explanation about dioptres I should point out that I don’t use this method. Two reasons why: 1. 2.

When using my fisheye or FE zoom lens the flexibility is such that I usually achieve sharp focus. With the growing number of SLR cameras with excellent noise quality, I don’t hesitate to increase my ISO (on my Nikon D300) to 400. At surface level this easily provides an acceptable exposure, including my required 250th sec shutter speed, together with a generous aperture of f11 to f16 to maximise D of F.

Exposure What may be correct for the topside view is normally a couple of stops too dark for the underwater view. I advocate shooting when the sun is directly overhead (there is rarely more than a one to two stop difference) or when the sun is a little way behind your back. This keeps the exposure differential at a minimum and by bracketing the combinations of aperture and shutter speed, acceptable exposure can usually be achieved. I like the sun coming from behind because of the quality of light which falls on the topside portion.

ND Filters Some underwater photographers have filters that have a neutral density value in the top half. This decreases the exposure on the topside portion by either one or two stops, depending on your choice, but does not affect the seascape portion. I used this type of filter with my 12 mm—24 mm wide angle but found that on too many occasions I captured the line of density in the filter across my finished picture, so I stopped using it. All my split shots are now taken with fisheye lenses. Whilst they have no filter thread on the front, they do have the facility to fit a small filter onto the rear of the lens. If you see this as the way forward then speak to your housing manufacture to ascertain whether one is available for your equipment. I personally don’t use filters on my fisheye lenses.

Lightroom 2 and Photoshop CS4 Graduated Filter Tool If you have yet to purchase a filter for split shots I would suggest you don’t bother. Lightroom 2 and Photoshop CS4 have a graduated filter tool which allows you to recreate the look of a traditional neutral density filter. The way in which Adobe have implemented this feature means it can be used for much more than just a graduated filter.

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FIG. 9.37

Composition and the Layers Approach When I shoot and teach splits I look to achieve as many layers of interest as possible. What do we mean by layers? For example, let’s take the sky portion. If the topside portion is a vivid blue sky, only then that is one layer of interest. If the sky is also punctuated with fluffy white clouds then that is two layers of interest. Read more about this in photo caption. See Fig. 9.38.

In a Perfect World We would have:    

An interesting underwater portion in the bottom half. An interesting topside view. A flat calm surface but with an ‘S’ shaped water line to provide a sense of energy. The sun behind us, illuminating both the over and under aspects equally.

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FIG. 9.38 A shallow water split shot on the house reef at Kasai Village dive resort, Cebu in the Philippines. Taken at 8.23am with the sun directly behind my back. I would take at least 10 shots of this idea to ensure that I got at least one without too much water dispersion on my dome port. Nikon D300, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f 11 at 1/320th sec, ISO 200, natural light, Auto white balance with the WB colour picker in Adobe Camera Raw. Manual exposure mode.

Who says underwater photographers don’t ask for much? This is where the challenge begins to bite us. You have to practise these techniques and the best place to start is the dive/photo resort swimming pool. Think laterally! Avoid the open sea by all means. Where do you find glass clam water and shallow under-surface subjects? Answer! In shallow water, so consider swimming pools, rock pools, shallow calm sandy beaches, mangrove swamps, inlets, and harbours, I’m sure you can add to the list. The difficulty is finding half a scene that will complement the other half! I am forever finding a colourful, photogenic shallow seascape with nothing on land to complement it, or a white sandy beach and palm trees topside with no interest underwater.

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Recently on the Island of Moen in Chuuk lagoon, whilst waiting to board the liveaboard, Odyssey, we had perfect conditions in terms of sun position, flat water conditions, topside scenery, shallow underwater reef and, to top it all, fluffy white clouds in a vivid blue sky. I took advantage of these perfect conditions but one thing I neglected to consider was protection from the sun and after two hours of shooting I knew I was in for an uncomfortable, sleepless and painful night. If you want to shoot splits, I cannot stress enough to take advantage of the conditions when they all come together. If you don’t take advantage — if you put it off till the next day — then either the sun will be behind cloud or the visibility will be murky or the glass calm surface will be choppy. Something will blight your efforts so don’t wait until tomorrow — as they often say, it never comes!

Viewfinder Discussion The Seacam housing with an angled viewfinder is preferred by some professionals, also the Inon 45 degree rotatable viewfinder, which can also be custom fitted to a wide range of different SLR housings. I appreciate that you rarely choose a housing based on one particular technique but these angled finders will benefit the underwater photographer in so many other ways, including macro techniques and other forms of wide angle as they allow the user to shoot lying prone on sand or rubble whilst still being able to easily view and compose. I have used an angled finder, albeit briefly and was very impressed with the flexibility of viewing and composing. I had a natural tendency to place the camera up to my eye and look straight ahead; of course it doesn’t happen in this way and you have to get used to looking for a macro subject (that you may have found already by eye) and relocating it in the angled finder. Furthermore, when you rotate the housing to shoot a vertical composition, you also need to rotate the finder by 90 degrees as well. Despite this initial learning curve, the large majority have adjusted to them quite well, but a further word of warning and I speak for many when I say there is a definite learning curve to using one and it may take more than a few photo-dives. The advice I have sought from others on this issue, and from their experience in the field, talk of the need to practice thoroughly for a number of days as opposed to a number of dives. A Google Internet search on ‘45 degree viewfinder underwater’ will highlight a number of companies who are producing these angled finders for other housings. Go to: http://www.wetpixel.com/forums/lofiversion/index.php/t29727.html for detailed discussion on these viewfinders.

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FIG. 9.39. An example of my ‘layers of interest’ theory. Let’s count them:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

The strong rectangle shaped rock in the foreground. The layer of green water between the rock and the surface line. The slick effect of the water surface. The white strip of sand on the right side at middle. The row of palm trees behind the beach. The blue sky. The wispy white cloud at left.

Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f 11 at 1/125th sec, ISO 200, natural light. 414

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FIG. 9.40 A typical example of nothing to place in the top half however choppy wave action can improve the dynamic and action of the surface line. Nikon D300, 10 mm end of my 10—17 mm Tokina, f 6.7 at 1/320th sec, ISO 200, one flashgun with low power fill on the foreground shallow coral reef. This image was taken at the end of the day: 7.30am in the northern Red Sea in the month of June.

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FIG. 9.41 I’ve turned my attention to shooting splits at ‘magic hour’: one hour before sunset and one hour after sunrise. When you are moored to a reef miles from anywhere, surface interest is limited to say the least but the last hour of daylight can make an alternative option. Nikon D300, 10 mm end of my Tokina fisheye zoom, f9.5 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200, one flashgun on low medium power to spill some light on the shallow hard corals.

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FIG. 9.42 Composing split-level shots is much easier with a angled viewfinder.

FIG. 9.43 By Martyn Guess. It’s hard to find a better subject than a crocodile. In this example Martyn has used the croc across both the under and over portions of the split and made a conscious decision to shoot away from the direction of the sun towards the blue sky for maximum contrast. Subal housing, Nikon D200, Tokina 10—17 mm lens at the 10 mm end, f 8 at 1/250th sec, ISO 100. Taken at Walindi, PNG.

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Photographing Shipwrecks You may have noticed by now that I’m totally infatuated with underwater photography. Every technique and every subject seems to be my favourite but shipwrecks are way out in front of everything else! Wrecks have everything which I love to shoot for myself — for my own work. First, there’s the history of the vessel and those who sailed on her. Tragic and heroic stories of loss, survival and the vessels subsequent rediscovery. Photographically — and from an aesthetic point of view — I’m captivated by the meandering corridors of light, the engine rooms, living quarters, the cargo and the diversity of marine life. For photo-divers there’s the obvious advantage that they’re all in situ. You don’t have to keep up as you would with a school of fish which are on the move.

Equipment Whether using a compact or an SLR camera, a wide angle lens is a necessity. Attempting to back off to get it all in will simply reduce clarity and definition. If you don’t have use of a wide lens, then take the shot by all means, but appreciate the limitations when you compare your shots with those of your buddy who has used a true wide angle. The majority of wreck photographers use either a fixed focal length fisheye or an FE zoom like the Tokina 10 mm—17 mm or wide angles in the 12 mm—24 mm range. Some use a rectilinear lens, which preserves right angles and straight lines at the edge of the picture frame and in the corners, but there are numerous issues regarding the performance of these lenses when used behind dome ports, so ensure you check out the numerous discussion on www.wetpixel.com before making a decision to purchase.

Pre-planning I have one piece of advice above anything else. It’s essential to consider the depth at which the wrecks rest, and the opportunities you have to repeat a particular dive. For example, a wreck of considerable size situated in 45 m of water presents a problem if you are unfamiliar with her and you have only one or two opportunities to dive and photograph her. On such a dive, your priorities are:   

your times your depth most importantly, yourself!

Can you really give the amount of concentration necessary to photograph the wreck to your satisfaction? I would suggest not; I certainly couldn’t. In such

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circumstances, I would take my camera to record the dive. If I obtained some good shots, I would consider it a bonus and evaluate my results accordingly, bearing in mind dive time limitations. However, if the opportunities to photograph such a wreck were plentiful and I became familiar with her then the potential for obtaining some exciting images would increase. Every year I run a northern Red Sea wreck photo-workshop with the intention of everyone capturing great wreck shots. I choose just one wreck per day consisting of three or four dives. The night before I show a DVD about the wreck and what she may have to offer both historically and photographically, so when my students dive her the next day they know:    

Some of the history The general layout The prime photogenic sections to consider throughout the day The position of the sun in the sky, and why this determines the best time to shoot various compositions.

Light and Time On most occasions the underwater photographer can choose subjects and shoot in any particular direction they wish, i.e. from the front, the back, the side, etc. However, in wreck photography the ship is positioned where it’s positioned — where it came to rest on the bottom — there will be some compositional angles of view which are more photogenic than others. If you shoot these angles at various times of the day you will get far different results, which will affect the overall look and quality of the picture. The reason for this is all to do with the position of the sun in the sky. FIG. 9.44 F11 at 1/125th sec.

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10.5 mm fisheye lens. Fig. 9.45 and Fig. 9.46 show good examples of how the position of the sun can alter the appearance of an idea. This bow shot of the Giannis D. Fig. 9.44 was taken at 7.00am, month of June in the northern Red Sea. This figure was taken 8 hours later at 3pm with the sun directly behind my back shining onto the structure of the bow.

Subject Selection and Recognisable Features Wrecks that are virtually intact, in shallower waters, offer the greatest potential. If you are unfamiliar, try to use one dive solely for exploration. You need to consider the most photogenic sections; the existing light levels at your particular depth; locations of the recognisable features of the wreck — winches, masts, the bow, the stern, for example — and the photographic potential of those features. You’re looking for the very best potential of that particular wreck. Your next two or three photo-dives will consist of shooting what you consider to be the best bits. By finding and shooting recognisable features of the wreck, you give the viewer something to relate to. The cargo spilling out of broken boxes is recognisable to both divers and non-divers; by including a diver in the scene you can also give the viewer a sense of scale. Be careful not to make the diver too obtrusive, or all the viewer’s attention will go that way. Make the wreck the centre of attention, and use the diver to reinforce it.

< FIG. 9.46 (Opposite page)

This example of a ship’s telegraph is recognisable to divers and non-divers alike. After a thorough search of the excellent Shinkoku Maru in Chuuk lagoon, I located the engine telegraph on the bridge. I took 10 to 12 shots but struggled with lighting angles to achieve a clean and well-exposed shot. My exhaust bubbles disturbed sediment on the decayed ceiling, raining rusted particles throughout the shot. I eventually succeeded in minimising the effects of backscatter by positioning each Inon 220 flashgun out to the side behind the shade construction of my fisheye dome. They were so far behind the housing that the front flash reflectors were level with my own facemask when composing through my viewfinder. I checked my LCD for exposure and composition. It was OK. I had captured what I had envisaged but how could I add an extra dimension to the idea? I left the confines of the Bridge and showed Sylvia my efforts in the LCD. Immediately she pointed to a window of blue water towards the right-hand side of my composition. Good idea! I arranged my camera to re-shoot the same but this time with Sylvia as a distant silhouette directing the eyes of the viewer towards the main focal point — the telegraph. Given the poor visibility and tight confines of the ship’s bridge, this was an ambitious shot. Whilst pleased with the outcome I have learnt many lessons over the years that in circumstances such as this you have to take plenty of shots to ensure just one or two are successful. I took an additional 15 shots. Whilst each composition was the same, the trick was directing Sylvia into position through the window. Nikon D200 camera, Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, two Inon strobes positioned as described above. Exposure was f 8 at 160th sec Auto white balance. 420

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FIG. 9.47 The air compressor on the Fujikawa Maru, otherwise known as R2-D2, is the ultimate example of recognisable features. Before you read this caption many of you will have unspoken the words ‘R2-D2 in Truk’. 10.5 mm fisheye lens, 12 mm end of my 12—24 mm zoom, f 5.6 at 1/250th sec, ISO 200, two Inon flashguns positioned each side of my dome port angled outwards.

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FIG. 9.48 I had only one opportunity

to dive the Helmet wreck in Palau so my strategy was to ascertain the best features, choose about four or five ideas, and get on with it. On the day visibility was a dreadful 2 m. I easily located the Japanese helmets fused together over time and moved on to a gas mask, which had obviously been positioned for ease of access. Using a 10.5 mm fisheye lens I placed my two Inon flashguns on each side of my fisheye dome port at a distance of about 10 cm. I pointed them outwards to illuminate the masks with the edge of my flash beam. With some trial and error I continued to move them back behind my housing to reduce the effect of the beam hotspot appearing in the picture. My flashguns resulted in being positioned behind the front of my dive mask. I have since measured this distance and I approximate at least 25 cm behind the rear of my Subal housing. F11 at 1/10th sec, ISO 100, Nikon D200. I used these settings in an attempt to hint at the water colour but clarity was abysmal.

Available Light, Flash and Blending them Together Wrecks are just as effective as caves to create natural light photographs with impact and the potential for black and white image conversions is also infinite. I’m sometimes critical of the way in which flash is used together with the available light in wreck photography, so before I rant on about this it may help to refer back to the section in Chapter 6, page 267 on ‘Blending Natural Light and Flash Together’. Trying to capture the size and bulk of a wreck with the use of flash alone is virtually impossible. After all, a wreck is the largest object in the sea that you will ever have cause to photograph. So, by all means use flash to fill in foreground features but use your flash sparingly!

Angles of View and Composition: the Intact View and Looking Down This is one of the few exceptions to the underwater rule of ‘Don’t shoot down’. Wrecks look interesting and dynamic when composed at a downward angle: you can depict shape, perspective and highlight their most interesting features when composed from above.

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FIG. 9.49 One of the most photographed wrecks in the northern hemisphere, but can you work out the angle of view of the Giannis D? I’ll give you a clue — it

was shot from over the side of our inflatable. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye, f 3.3 at 1/250th sec, ISO 200, natural light using colour picker in Adobe Camera Raw.

FIG. 9.50 Plane wrecks often lend themselves to downward angles so that the intact view is laid out before the viewer. I like to compose the wings on the

diagonal as though it’s moving from left to right. In this image I have introduced a sense of scale and exploration in the form of a diver who balances the composition from a right to left direction. The result is implied angles in the shape of a cross from corner to corner. Subal housing, Nikon 10.5 mm lens, f6.7 at 1/40th sec, ISO 100, Auto white balance which was adjusted using the colour picker tool in Adobe Camera Raw. 424

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Magic Filters and Manual White Balance At this stage it’s relevant to once again mention Magic filters and manual white balance (WB) techniques. Magic filters are excellent for wrecks located at depths between 2 m and 19 m. However, for MF to work well you ideally need to shoot at quite a close range so that the depth at which you shoot is similar to the depth of that part of the wreck. The top view of the Giannis D (see Fig. 9.48) was shot some distance away from the camera natural light; I would estimate in excess of 8m. In this instance I used ‘Auto’ WB. I always shoot in RAW and once in my RAW converter I use the WB colour picker from the top left of the panel and then mouse over and click on an area meant to be ‘off white’. I find that clicking the WB tool on various shades between white and grey can produce quite different results. I simply choose a result which looks the best.

In Conclusion Apart from the drama of the wreck itself, wrecks also play host to a multitude of marine life. Dramatic lines and structures will test your compositional skills to the limit. There is scope for everything from ultra-macro to marine life to diver shots and still-life studies. Find a wreck that suits your needs, is easily accessible and is preferably in shallow water. Explore it, get to know it and the creatures living around it. Research its most photogenic aspects and angles and then get to work with your camera.

FIG. 9.51 Recognisable feature of the

Shinkoku Maru. The urinals were located below deck and in total darkness. I used the ‘catch all’ setting of f 8 at 1/125th sec with ISO 100 and lit the entire frame with my two Inon flashguns and my 10.5 mm fisheye lens.

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FIG. 9.52 Fujikowa Maru corals and Kingposts. I’d recognised a good composition of the huge Kingposts but it took me a few dives to recognise a foreground interest which would complement the background. I’d swam over numerous options throughout the week without recognising them, which I didn’t until I swam around with the viewfinder close to my eye in an effort to see what the lens would see. I used Sylvia with a light and adopted a position which clearly separated the colourful girder in the foreground from the strong angular lines leading from the Kingposts. Eight to ten swim-pasts from Sylvia achieved the look I was hoping for. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm lens, f 9.5 at 1/20th sec, ISO 100, one Inon 220 flashgun on the foreground.

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FIG. 9.53 The potential for black and white image conversion is infinite in wreck photography. Fig 9.54 depicts a section of the Chrisoula K in the Red Sea.

The sun needs to be high in the sky for the sunbeams to pervade the hold. I have composed this scene so that the corners are containing the light which radiates from the middle of the frame. Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f4 at 1/30th sec, ISO 400, natural light.

FIG. 9.54

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Shooting Pelagics by John Wallis Whilst they are one of the most difficult subjects to shoot, pelagics are one of the most rewarding. After all, you don’t see a tiger shark or manta ray on every dive, and how many divers have really good pictures of them? By definition pelagics spend most of their lives in the open ocean and for many species little is known about their behaviour. If you are reading this book no doubt you have more than a passing interest in taking good pictures, rather than the odd snap or two. The first rule I learnt about photography, on land or underwater, is that the vast majority of great images were not lucky shots. Ask a professional sports photographer if they take their best pictures when they are at the local game with a few mates, or a landscape photographer if their best work is taken on a Sunday afternoon stroll with the family. They will give you the same answer. Not a chance! FIG. 9.56 Canon 5D, 15 mm fisheye,

f 7.1, 1/125th sec, ISO 100, twin Inon 240 strobes. Not what you’d expect to see on any ordinary night dive! This shot was taken on a specialist shark trip to the Bahamas, run by Jim Abernthy. Getting this close to sharks is not normally possible, or necessarily advisable. Specialist trips offer you the best chance to get close to your subject, safely.

The large majority of great shots are taken by photographers who have dedicated time specifically to the task. This is also true underwater, especially so when shooting pelagics. You have to be very lucky to achieve a great pelagic shot whilst on a comfy little amble around the house reef.

= FIG. 9.55 (Opposite page) Another significant feature of a wreck is the bow shot. Hover in mid-water with your eye to the viewfinder. For a wreck that is upright on the bottom a slight downward angle works well. Fin backwards whilst looking through your finder and consider how much space you’d like to see on each side; now adjust your position in the water so you get the precise composition you’re after. Don’t settle for the ‘that will do’ approach. The wreck isn’t going anywhere so take your time to be precise. If you intend to shoot with natural light my advice is to turn your flashguns to Off whilst you do so. Nippo Maru Truk Lagoon, Nikon D200, 10.5 mm fisheye, f 2.8 at 1/30th sec, ISO 100, natural light.

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Precisely because they are so elusive the best way to get good shots of pelagics is to book yourself on a trip that is dedicated to encounters with your chosen animal. Whether it’s great whites or mantas, whale sharks or humpbacks, there will be a trip somewhere in the world that will get you close to your subject with a high degree of predictability. Whilst these trips will never be cheap and can never guarantee encounters (I’ve have spent a week bobbing about off the coast of Tahiti in two metre swells in the pouring rain looking for humpbacks who curiously didn’t seem to like the bad weather either), they are by far the most reliable way of getting the encounter you’re after. Once you and all your equipment have made it to your destination you will be well over halfway to getting your desired image.

Equipment One of the first questions people ask about photography is what camera to use: compact or SLR? Several years ago I was lucky enough to spend a week in the Cayman Islands for a series of photography workshops followed by a competition at the end. The week was well attended and there must have been around 60 photographers and instructors diving from various locations around the island. As you might expect most of the blokes had large SLR rigs with multiple strobes and all sorts of paraphernalia, however one lady in our group had a top-end compact and a wide angle wet lens. In the competition at the end of the week her shots wiped the floor with most of the images taken on SLRs. Was her camera technically better? Obviously not. The difference was that she understood how to get the most out of her camera and went looking for the kinds of photos that would work best for the kit she had. Watching her work, and seeing the results, was a very instructive lesson. You do not have to spend a fortune on the best kit available, but whatever you use, spend the time to learn how to use it well and you will be able to get good results out of almost any equipment.

Compacts Shutter lag is largely irrelevant when shooting stationary subjects but it is a real issue when shooting creatures on the move such as great whites. Panning the camera to track your subject can compensate for this (and can produce some very nice creative results too). It is a good idea to read up on the specification of various compacts and select one with the shortest shutter lag possible. The second factor to consider is a wide angle lens. Whether shooting an SLR or a compact, the closer you are to the pelagics the better and, as they can get pretty big, you are going to need a wide lens to get the whole beast in the frame. On compacts a wide lens is normally a wet lens that attaches to the outside of the housing. Wide lenses vary in their angle of view and the widest may not

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FIG. 9.57 Canon 5D, 15 mm fisheye, f 7.1, 1/100th sec, twin Inon 240 strobes. Shots like this are not just good timing. On dedicated trips pelagic behaviour

can be more predicable. For this shot I chose a colourful section of reef wall, with the dive boat in the background, and waited for the shark to swim into the frame. 431

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FIG. 9.58 Canon 5D, 15 mm fisheye, f6.3, 1/125th sec, ISO 200, twin Inon 240 strobes, Fisheye led focusing light. Shooting dolphins at night off the Bahamas. Technically this kind of shot is pretty demanding on your equipment requiring near zero shutter lag and good low-light focusing capabilities, not to mention a good deal of luck spotting such a fast moving subject in the dark in time the take a shot.

necessarily be compatible with every housing. So talk to your retailer to understand which lenses work with which cameras, as you might have to ‘work backwards’ from the widest angle of lens to choose the camera that works with it. If you are considering attaching external strobes and a wide angle lens for a compact then you are getting very close to spending the kind of money you’d spend on an entry level SLR rig, so perhaps it might be worth looking at that option instead.

SLRs Lenses The two key factors here are zoom range, and a close focusing capability. There are some excellent choices available such as the Tokina 10—17 mm. I use a full frame Cannon 5D and whilst this lens is not compatible with full frame cameras I know I would own one if it were. It is effectively a fisheye lens which allows you to zoom in when needed. For the really big creatures this is just the kind of flexibility you need. For smaller subjects, or those a little further away, I use a 16—35 mm zoom. The alternative is to use a fixed focal length lens such as a 20 mm or 35 mm. Although fixed focal length lenses are unable to zoom they have the advantage of leaving you free to concentrate on composition. Fixed focal length lenses are often faster lenses (i.e. have wider apertures), which can be useful if you are shooting in low light or require a fast shutter speed.

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FIG. 9.59 Canon 5D, 16—35 mm zoom at the 35 mm end, f 5.0, 1/800th sec, ISO 200. Time to get a little further back! The flexibility of wide angle zooms

can have all sorts of attractions. Some pelagic encounters can be incredibly close! I’ve had tiger sharks and Australian sea lions lay their noses right on the dome port of my camera. If you are likely to be getting shots such as these it’s worth looking at the combination of a fisheye lens and a 1.5  tele-converter. It’s a relatively recent innovation which is often referred to as ‘wide angle macro’. Whilst this will trim your 15 mm fisheye to about 20 mm, it will be enable focusing on anything that is right on your dome port, providing some very dramatic images.

Lighting A lot of pelagic encounters can happen very close to the surface. Therefore you have more opportunity to shoot with available light rather than having to shoot with strobes. Whilst whales and whale sharks might look slow moving they are deceptively fast in the water, so not having the extra bunk of twin strobes can be a distinct advantage in trying to keep up with them. Shooting at relatively shallow depths also allows you to make use of filters, which can also give some very pleasing results.

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FIG. 9.60 Canon 5D, 16—35 mm at the 16 mm end, f 11, 1/320th sec, ISO 250, no strobes. A good example of what is possible near the surface. No need

for bulky strobes that will only slow you down when trying to keep up with such agile and playful subjects. Shooting with the sun behind you keeps the contrast under control and the subject well lit.

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When shooting pelagics it’s best to position the sun behind you so the light can fall onto the subject. If you shoot into the sun your camera may struggle with the high range of contrast. With the sun behind you the contrast will be less harsh, which will result in a more pleasing range of tones. Once you get below 15 metres a strobe is essential. If your subject is likely to be fast moving and you are not sure how many passes it will make, you will want to get as many shots as possible. Whilst some photographers may have invested in the mother-of-all-strobes with super fast recycle times you do not need to rely on outright strobe power to be able to shoot in motor drive with strobes. Most SLRs these days have extremely impressive high ISO capabilities. By setting your ISO relatively high, 400—600 for example, you can reduce the power, allowing them to recycle much faster (the paparazzi use this technique to shoot machine-gun style so they capture every drunken wobble of their unfortunate quarry). A few other key disciplines are also relevant to shooting pelagics: 









Turn your camera on, select aperture and shutter speed, extend strobe arms (and turn it ON) before you enter the water. You will waste less time and fewer valuable opportunities if you are ready to go right away. Research. Look at pictures others have taken. This will give you an idea of what to expect and the types of shots that should be possible. Think about the kind of shots you want to take and the settings you will need to take them. Pre-visualisation sounds very corny but it’s a useful technique for times when you might only have a few chances to get the shot you are after. Repeats. Many of the dedicated pelagic trips visit the same place several times allowing you to learn after each dive. Take your laptop, download your pictures and think carefully about what’s working for you and what’s not. Note the settings that worked well on one dive and dial them in to your equipment as a starter for the next dive. Don’t be afraid to shoot at arm’s length or by looking over the camera. This technique can give your images some interesting angles of view. You’ll be shooting wide angle and whilst you might miss a few shots the first time you will soon get used to the technique. You’ll find it a useful way of gently pushing away over friendly sharks without missing the shot! And finally, watch other photographers at work, the positions they get into, the camera angles they adopt on their quarry, strobe angles, etc. On a dedicated pelagic photo-workshop you learn so much from watching each other shoot.

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th

th

FIG. 9.61 Canon 5D, 15 mm fisheye, f 7.1, 1/40 sec, twin Inon 240 strobes. One of my favourite shots. I kept the shutter speed low (1/40 sec) to retain

the deep blue of the background as I wanted the shark against an empty blue ocean. To get a little closer, and to get just the right angle, I held the camera at arm’s length as the shark swam past. It took several attempts to get the framing just right but with 20 reef sharks swimming around me and the dive site all to myself I had the time to get the shot I was after.

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FIG. 9.62 Canon 5D fisheye, f 9, 250th sec. Just to play with the senses of the reader. Orientate 180 degrees to view as taken.

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Wide Angle Macro What is it? Using fisheye lenses in combination with teleconverters to create macro photographs with a wide angle perspective. To my knowledge this was first pioneered above the water by the renowned nature photographer Frans Lanting, however quite recently it has gained in popularity and Alex Mustard has brought it to the fore underwater. Mustard was looking for a technique which could provide a bona fide macro detailed view of a subject in the foreground, with the background clearly communicating the environment it is living in. I have very limited experience with this technique so at this juncture, and before I discuss my own efforts below, I suggest you visit these links for further information on how best to get started: 

Underwater Photography web magazine, page 24, by Alex Mustard. This can be downloaded free of charge at www.uwpmag.com

FIG. 9.63

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http://wetpixel.com/forums/lofiversion/index.php/t28556.html This particular wetpixel thread has many photographic examples and discusses equipment requirements, particularly in relation to which wide angle dome ports to use. http://www.divephotoguide.com/articles/a_fish_eye_for_critters_in_the_ lembeh_strait Article by Andrea and Antonella Ferrari.

For the price of a teleconverter, this rediscovered and innovative technique is great fun, especially if you are an experienced shooter looking for new ideas. I don’t believe it will take the place of true wide angle but it’s a very worthwhile tool in your proverbial box of tricks.

= FIG. 9.64 (Opposite page) I was astonished the first time I tried wide angle macro. I used a fixed lens — the Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye with a 1.5 Kenko teleconverter — and not being in possession of a small fisheye dome (which are recommended) I had to use my existing Subal larger fisheye dome. I was able to achieve sharp focus on the dome port itself, which made every small critter I could find a potential subject. The Clown fish here is only a couple of cm from my port, as is the harlequin shrimp on the fire urchin in Fig. 9.63. I experiment with flash angles all the time so when I came to play with wide angle macro I immediately opted for my ‘inward light’ flash angles (see Chapter 6 ‘All About Lighting’), which entails pointing my flash back towards my housing so I use the very edge of the flash beam. My problem (which is still ongoing) is a soft focus effect in the middle of the frame. At the time of writing I’m yet to ascertain why this is. It may be dome optics or it could have been a little condensation on the inside of my dome when I last used it for this purpose. This figure was taken with a Nikon D300, lens configuration as above, on f 11 at 1/90th sec, ISO 200. Fig. 9.63 was the same set up on f 11 at 1/20th sec with two Inon Z220 flashguns.

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The Wide Angle Wow Factor I literally stumbled across this finding about 10 years ago, in the late 1990s. A friend called me one day to look out an underwater photograph in a ‘coffee table’ book of mine. He could remember the name of the photographer but not the book. He described the picture as. ‘A shot of two divers swimming just beneath the surface with a reef drop off towards the right-hand side and ‘‘awesome’’ (his words not mine) beams of light breaking through the surface’.

I had a good idea of the shot he was referring too; it was one of my favourites also. There was incessant prompting and enthusiasm down the phone line: ‘It’s wide angle’. ‘Sun beams at the top’ ‘It’s shallow’ ‘It’s just beneath the surface’. Convinced that I knew the one he meant, I began to wade through my books. ‘I’m absolutely certain it’s a wide angle shot and it’s got the surface in.’ His encouragement was of little help. I turned page after page only pausing to look at the wide angles. ‘I know the one you’re talking about but all these wide angles have the surface showing.’ Then it dawned on me! Almost every wide angle shot I saw had the surface or some suggestion of the surface visible in the shot! I quickly ended my conversation and began to search through my other underwater photo books looking specifically at wide angles. I logged onto the early Internet sites and sought out underwater wide angle competition winners, quality dive magazines, dive travel brochures, etc. I looked out my own favourite wide angles and recognised the same characteristics. The vast majority had a suggestion of the under-surface present! Quality wide angle images have something in common! I would go as far as to say that over 85% of quality underwater wide angle photographs have one single thing in common with each other, which is the visible presence in the picture of surface detail of some kind or another. The twelve photographs below (Figs 9.65-9.76) represent the basic ‘building blocks’ to under-surface detail and are not ‘wow factor’ images in their own right. Look at them and consider them in harmony with the text.

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FIG. 9.65

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FIG. 9.66

FIG. 9.67

Look out two of your favourite underwater wide angles photographs. One of your own and another taken by someone else. In fact you don’t even need to look them out, just visualise them — that will be sufficient. Now, see them both in your own mind’s eye and I would envisage that there is a presence of surface detail of some kind within the picture. The characteristics of the under-surface have many qualities which have the potential to make beautiful underwater wide angle images. They are so familiar to photographers, but often neglected. We’re all familiar with these under-surface qualities but sometimes fail to identify what gives a particular photograph the ‘wow’ factor. Wherever you may be right now, if at all possible:  

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Close your eyes and visualise yourself kneeling on the sand in shallow water looking up towards the under-surface. What do you see? Look out of the water towards the sky. Visualise the colour of the sky, the shape of the clouds.

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FIG. 9.68

   

Can you see the sun, or the palm trees that fringe the beach? Can you see reflections of the shallow sandy bottom, the sunbeams dancing on the sand? Study the wave action and the texture of the under-surface. How still is the surface, how pronounced is Snell’s window?

There are no particular tricks of the trade in capturing these shallow undersurface water qualities. Once you know they are present, it’s just a matter of remembering that they can be used to give your wide angle images a little of the ‘wow factor’

Specifically As a process for my photo-workshops I have listed the various attributes that are favourites of mine. In no particular order: ripples, faint sunbeams without surface, split levels, strong shafts of light, Snell’s window, reflections, breaking waves, sun-ball itself, silhouettes, blue sky and clouds through Snell’s window, dapple light, cathedral light.

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FIG. 9.69

I’m still waiting to capture the ideal breaking wave! My own thoughts could be classed as technical, visual and perhaps touching on the spiritual. 





Surface detail, however understated it may be, will break up a twodimensional monochromatic tone of blue and provide a greater sense of interest, depth and perspective. That’s a fact! Do we relate to a view of the under-surface as a view to our safe-haven? I don’t know the answer, but there have been occasions in my diving longevity when I’ve been very grateful to see the surface again. A number of underwater photographers who I’ve discussed this with have alluded to the similarity with our topside horizon, the sky, moon and the stars. Could the under-surface whilst we’re submerged be comparable?

What I do know is that the significance of under-surface suggestion in our images should not be overlooked and disregarded, but taken advantage of in a mindful and attentive way. There are just too many examples out there for the fact to be neglected.

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FIG. 9.70

FIG. 9.71

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FIG. 9.72

FIG. 9.73

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FIG. 9.74

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FIG. 9.75

FIG. 9.76

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CHAPTER 10

Underwater Photography in Temperate Waters by Shannon Conway Introduction

W

hen my passion for underwater photography first began I was living inland, some miles from the British coastline. At this time I was always looking to capture the kind of shot which I could produce when photo-diving in tropical waters. I found it difficult and very frustrating. My UK work was nowhere near the quality of my tropical work, but then I realised that my mistake was trying to produce the same kind of image in England as I did overseas. Since moving to the south west coast of Australia four years ago I have taken tens of thousands of images in our green temperate waters and have honed

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POLAR (18°C)

FIG. 10.1 The part of the Earth’s surface between the Arctic Circle and the Tropic of Cancer or between the Antarctic Circle and the Tropic of Capricorn;

characterised by temperate climate.

my photo skills considerably. Significant concepts which helped me to improve my quality, were:   

If you are diving in green water then use the green water as your negative space. Green is a great colour; it’s not blue but use it to your advantage. Green backgrounds will enable your images to stand out from the countless number of blue and black backgrounds so often populated by scuba magazines.

Take a sample of water from a tropical coral reef and you will find it to be relatively clear and colourless. Take a sample from a temperate reef and you will find the water has a green hue tinge to it with thousands of tiny particles; in effect, a veritable saltwater soup. The majority of these particles are plankton, the basis of ocean life. It’s these particles that result in backscatter, which anybody who has taken underwater photos using a flashgun will be familiar with.

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Eliminate Distractions and Keep your Concentration Dive Gear We have enough distractions just being in an aquatic environment. I try to eliminate these as they interfere with my main objective: taking photos. Equipment is the place to start. Wetsuit Get a thick one or a good dry suit as it’s important not to be cold. I use a 6.5 mm þ 3 mm hooded vest even in 20—22 degree water. I can honestly say I have never been too hot in the water but maybe that’s just me. Preparing for the water conditions is vitally important. Some shallow photography dives can last up to two hours or more. That’s a long time to be cold and will affect your concentration, ultimately leading to careless photo mistakes. Gloves Not something I use except in water below 10 degrees, as they can be cumbersome.  

Cut out the shutter finger like a marksman. It keeps your hands warm but you still feel in control for that peak of the action. Cut other fingers from the gloves to suit your camera controls and comfort.

If you’re going to use a dry suit then get some practice. Good buoyancy is a major part of getting good images and, more importantly, for marine conservation. If you’re a well-trained and confident diver it will show in your results. Being weighted correctly to suit your style is obviously a major part of your buoyancy skill. I tend to be slightly over weighted as I find it helps me to settle on the sand when required. A very useful piece of equipment is a stainless steel pointer, which can be used to steady yourself against the reef wall or above the seabed whilst taking an image.   

I use my pointer on a dead patch of reef instead of the two-finger technique. It gives me greater separation and control. It’s also a great tool for pushing away from the reef when finished. The pointer can also be used as a basic monopod for those occasions when you need to use slow shutter speeds. A piece of equipment I never dive without!

Sea Conditions and Weather Planning for the conditions is very important, certainly around Fremantle waters in WA. You will struggle to get good wide angle shots in two-metre visibility. Doing your research before you dive is time well spent.

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FIG. 10.2 Pointer.

 

Ascertain the best time to dive certain areas. I have found South Western Australia is best in winter for visibility and autumn for less swell and wind. Talk to local divers and underwater photographers before you plan your trip. You can’t always guarantee the conditions but putting the odds in your favour is a great start.

If you are lucky enough to have two camera set-ups and you’re not sure of the visibility, type of site, or subjects, then configure one for macro and the other for wide angle. I certainly always do this to give me maximum flexibility. This also saves changing lens and port configurations in a hurry, which ultimately can result in a flood (as I know from costly experience). As the old saying goes ‘failing to plan is planning to fail.’ I use my local Marine weather report to help me decide where and when I’m going to dive. It doesn’t make much sense to dive the northern side of an island when a predicted strong north westerly wind is due the day you are diving. Most of the year we are susceptible to south westerly winds so it would make sense to look at the less dived sites on the southern side. I have also learnt to take notice of the sea swell conditions, which make for uncomfortable and difficult conditions, reducing visibility even further. When good visibility arrives make the most of it. Break out your wide angle lenses and make the best of the conditions. I have dived with many photographers who believe that temperate waters are for macro lenses only. Not true! When conditions are good you can capture those wide angle images that are so rarely taken. I feel such a sense of elation when showing a wide angle shot that has worked in temperate waters. Non-divers are amazed by images they see from cooler climes, believing coral reefs are only found in warm blue water.

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Lighting Oh that Backscatter! I personally use Twin Inon Z220. They are reliable, compact and lightweight with buttons and dials which are easy to use. Their colour temperature is 5500 Kelvin, which is ideal for green water. I use a double configuration of one 8-inch Inon/Ultralight arm for each side with both macro and wide angle. This would not be everyone’s choice, but since using the ‘Edge’ lighting technique I find it works for me. I use low power flash settings and ‘Edge’ lighting angled away from the subject to reduce the backscatter. These flash angles should be adjusted depending on the conditions. Whilst waiting for Manta Rays to turn up on a night dive in Hawaii I was taking some practice shots with Martin in low visibility conditions with a 10.5 fisheye lens; this certainly convinced me ‘Edge’ lighting (no pun intended) can make a significant reduction of backscatter. Try not to light too much of the water column between the lens and the subject; have the feeling that you are literally feathering the subject with light.

Balanced Light Shots Using a Combination of Natural Light and Artificial (Flash) Light Open (reduce) your shutter speed and use the green water to enhance the shot and show its natural conditions. This will also help you to eliminate backscatter, which can be hidden by the colour of lighter negative space. Shooting against busy reef backgrounds can detract from the subject but when used with macro lenses and with larger apertures, such as f5.6, can create a magnificent blur effect called Bokeh. With practice you can make your subject pop out the image. Shots taken against kelp, or just light rock, can be fantastic as it produces a very neutral backdrop. Again this will help in low visibility to disguise the backscatter.   

The lighter the background the less backscatter will be visible. Not all backscatter can be eliminated even with careful lighting. Reduce your post processing time and get it right in the camera. It’s much more satisfying and ultimately produces a more natural looking image.

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FIG. 10.3 Taking a lunch break in a bay between boat dives I noticed some sea lions on the beach so I took a quick splash instead of lunch. As so often sea lions are inquisitive! The sand and dead sea grass had been stirred up by the swell crashing on the beach. Using the natural light and minimal fill flash in about 3 m of water has allowed me to take this image minimising the backscatter. I took about 60 images in about half an hour. The lunch break produced about 10 good images. The dives either side of lunch produced only one; missing lunch was well worth it! Nikon D2x with 12—24 mm zoom at the 12 mm end, Twin Inon Z220, f10, 1/125th sec, ISO 100.

< FIG. 10.4 (Opposite page)

I spent around 90 minutes with this male Cardinal fish trying to catch this image. Every 3 or 4 minutes he would roll the eggs in his mouth. Catching this peak of the action on camera proved very frustrating as he would usually turn to one side. Using the negative space of the sandstone rocks proved a great asset complementing the colour of the Cardinal fish and hiding the majority of the backscatter. Nikon D2x with Nikkor 105 mm macro, Twin Inon Z220, f14, 1/60th sec, ISO 100.

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FIG. 10.5 This Potbelly seahorse is a classic image using eye contact, shooting up and green negative space. Using a high f number has given me the depth of field I required for the angle. Using a slow shutter speed has achieved the green water despite a high f number. The angle of the sun and shallow water gave high ambient light levels despite low visibility. Nikon D2x with Nikkor 60 mm macro, Twin Inon Z220, f20, 1/50th sec, ISO 100.

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FIG. 10.6 Over two days I spent nearly 4 hours under a jetty finding this particular Seadragon in a similar location each dive. I took a quite a few shots over the period but most of my time was spent letting it get used to my presence. As you can see from this picture, it got more inquisitive of me as time went on. I used a fast shutter speed to darken the background and make the subject pop! The eye contact is key in this image. Nikon D2x, Subal Housing, Nikkor 60 mm macro, 1/250th sec, f13, ISO 100, twin Inon strobes.

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Black Backgrounds There is a balance between aperture and shutter speed to create a black background. It is easier to create a dark background with less ambient light but you have to get your strobe angles right to avoid creating a snowstorm of backscatter. When I spot a subject I make my judgement as to the image I want to create before I approach. Look at angles, possible backgrounds and accessibility. I will regularly take a test shot or two of a similar coloured static subject, e.g. a sponge in a similar position making sure my settings and lighting angles are as good as possible. This will give me the freedom to concentrate on composition. You may only get one single chance, so cutting those odds makes sense. 



With macro I may use two strobes, close to and either side of the lens port, angled outwards in order to create a soft shadowless ring type flash around the port. With wide angle I extend my flash arms, angling them outward and adjusting them around the housing to suit the subject and image I wish to create.

Lens Selection Macro When it’s cloudy and visibility is reduced then it’s macro time for me. I predominantly use the Nikon 60 mm (90 mm equivalent on my Nikon D300) which is a versatile lens giving 1:1 life-size and cutting down the camera to subject distance due to the clarity of temperate water. As is said repeatedly, if you are close then get closer and this certainly applies when in low vis. Many photographers use the Nikon 105 mm (cropped sensor ¼ 152 mm) macro lens giving a greater working distance, thinking they have a better chance of getting shots of fish faces and other difficult subjects to approach. In poor visibility you may end up with more backscatter in view of the additional working distance of lens to subject so keep this in mind. I wanted a facial image of a Blue Angelfish for an exhibition based on Sea Faces of Western Australia. Whilst in North Western Australia I was unlucky to be caught by unseasonable heavy swells resulting in bad visibility. So temperate water techniques were put into use. I approached maybe 20 to 30 Blue Angel fish over an 11-day period and was unable to get close enough with the 60 mm macro lens. Eventually one was cooperative giving me the opportunity I had persevered with. You may get fewer images but ultimately you will end up with more keepers.

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FIG. 10.7

Wide Angle Nikon 12—24 mm, Tokina 10—17 mm or Sigma 10—20 mm are all excellent for wide angle. My choice is the Tokina 10 mm—17 mm zoom fisheye. My advice is to:  



Get close to your subject to reduce the water column. Make the ambient light your predominant light source and try shooting at an angle across the light. The water should appear clearer because the light source is not reflecting the lighter edge of the water particles into your lens. To my eye it often produces an acceptable water colour rather than a muddy grey colour.

Shooting on a sunny day, close to the surface, can often produce a rich blue background. The use of Snell’s window can make for some interesting negative space. Use the sunburst if necessary to enhance your image. It will take adjustments of shutter and aperture but with practise some very striking images can be produced.

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If ambient light levels are lower than you would like then consider increasing your ISO. With the technical progression of digital sensors and low noise we are now able to use much higher speeds than ever before. Since moving to a Nikon D300, I don’t hesitate to ‘up’ my ISO from 200 to 400 in circumstances where less ambient light is available. This provides me with a valuable additional ‘stop’ of light at ISO 400. Be careful not to push this too far or you loose a certain amount of Dynamic range the further you push it, sequentially loosing detail in shadows. Some of the latest high-end SLRs can shoot comfortably at ISO 800 and beyond.

Working with a Model I am lucky that my wife Amanda is an excellent model for my wide angles. Unfortunately she’s not too keen on diving in cold temperate water. So I have to find a buddy who doesn’t mind spending a little time gracing a shot or two. It’s essential to discuss a few agreed hand signals and I may sketch out my ideas before entering the water. This will avoid frustration for both of us. If it’s a new site, I’ll take a small slate with me to sketch a basic idea, which I can then relay to my model. Remember this is low visability photography, so whilst you may be able to see them holding their dive torch, they may struggle to see you. This is not the model at fault! The photographer is responsible for effective communication! Discuss your hand signals and their meaning before you enter the water. 



Take shots of the background but without the inclusion of your model. This will enable you to determine exposure, lighting and composition, etc. Think of this as ‘practice time’. Next, call your model in. This will allow you to concentrate solely on their position within the frame and not the background. This you have already practised.

Conclusion It’s often said that underwater photo competitions are always won with tropical photographs. This may have been the case some years ago but not now. With so many good underwater pictures out there I believe you have to be different. Temperate waters are difficult and can be frustrating but there are some wonderful images to be captured. The techniques I use are not for everybody and I am constantly learning new ideas to experiment with. The digital age has provided us with the flexibility to produce some amazing underwater images. You only have to look in the diving press to appreciate the vast array of great pictures which are available. Persevere with your temperate water photography; accept the challenges and the rewards will come.

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FIG. 10.8 After an unproductive dive I noticed a few jellyfish floating close to the surface so took the opportunity whilst my buddy returned to the boat. I

spent a few minutes selecting a suitable undamaged specimen and proceeded to try and align the sun behind it. Achieving approximately a 45 degree angle with surface and the jellyfish moving seemed to work the best. The sky created the rich blue. The deeper water combined with the fast shutter speed and high f number controlled the sunburst and darkened the deeper water. Nikon D2x with 12—24 mm zoom at 14 mm, no flash, f18, 1/200th sec, ISO 100. 461

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FIG. 10.9 Whilst on a road trip in Southern Australia I spent many days photographing the Leafy Seadragons. Trying to think of different angles to shoot these magnificent creatures exercised my grey matter from dive to dive. On a day of relatively good visibility I was looking for habitat with surface detail to provide an added feature to the image. This one captured for me the eye contact, habitat and good negative space. Using f10 allowed me to capture the depth of field required whilst balancing the natural light with a relative slow moving critter. Nikon D2x with 12—24 mm zoom on the 24 mm end, Twin Inon Z220, f10, 1/80th sec, ISO 100.

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FIG. 10.10 With sea lions being such wonderful fun animals, capturing that cheeky pose becomes more luck than judgement. They seem to use a diver with cameras as a type of catch me if you can game. I found that early in the dive if you stay in one spot they will come and check you out, whilst later they tend to get bored and you end up moving towards them. I found my spot, took a few images to set the exposure and waited. This sea lion posed for maybe one second and I was lucky to capture it. Maybe a bit of planning does help? Nikon D2x with 12—24 mm zoom at 21 mm, Twin Inon Z220, f9, 1/125th sec, ISO 100.

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Acknowledgements I would like to thank the support I have had from the Department of Fisheries Western Australia, Western Australian Underwater Photography Society (WAUPS) and members of BSOUP for their support over the years. My special thanks to the Martin and Sylvia Edge for their constant ideas, motivation and friendship.

About the Author Shannon Conway is a professional underwater photographer creating images for the advertising, editorial and fine art market. He has an energetic passion for his photography with the patience to capture that peak of the action. Originating from Dorset in the United Kingdom, Shannon has always been fascinated by the ocean, spending most of his childhood holidays searching rock pools for marine creatures. Shannon and his wife Amanda moved to Fremantle, Western Australia, in 2006 in the search for crystal blue waters and sunny skies. After changing from a career in IT, he now focuses on his underwater photography and sharing his passion by teaching underwater photography. Shannon has won a variety of awards from the Western Australian Underwater Photographic Society, British Society of Underwater Photographers and Photo Quest. He was also the winner in the underwater category for the ANZANG Nature and Landscape Photographer of the Year award in 2007 and 2008. He can be contacted at www.underwaterphotography.com.au

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Green/Temperate Water Magic Filters by Peter Rowlands Filter photography in dark green waters is more of challenge than using filters in brightly lit blue waters. The Greenwater Magic filter is our most technical filter and works well on DSLR, compact and video cameras with manual white balance. The main use of filters in green water is to allow us to produce types of images that we cannot with flash. Filters are not a replacement for strobes, simply an alternative photographic technique with different qualities. The main advantage of using filters in green water is: 





They allow us to photograph large subjects, such as shipwrecks, in colour without the risk of backscatter, which can be a big problem in turbid green waters. The filter seems to cut through the murk and the gloom often surprisingly revealing more on the viewfinder than you can see with your eyes at the time. The filter greatly increases the contrast in a green water ambient scene.

The main disadvantage of filter photography in green water is the lack of light — which necessitates long exposures or high ISO settings. This is less of a problem with the latest generation of digital cameras, which have remarkable high ISO performance. Even so, fast moving subjects are probably best photographed with strobes, unless you are in very bright conditions. Ambient light photography requires a different approach to shooting with strobes, and even experienced photographers may take several dives to get used to it. The most important point is to shoot with the ambient light to get even lighting and good colours. Setting your camera’s white balance (WB) manually is a crucial part of the technique for shooting with Magic filters, and is particularly important for the Greenwater Magic. The filters are specifically designed to work with the characteristics of your camera’s WB. You should fully familiarise yourself with the technique for manually setting WB, so it becomes second nature during a dive. We strongly recommend that you set the WB for each subject that you photograph with the Greenwater Magic, and at least each time your change depth by more than a metre. Generally you can set the WB on the subject, making sure that you fill the frame with a fully illuminated and neutral coloured area (avoiding strongly coloured marine life or open water). If you want you can use a grey card or white slate (depending on your camera), but we have found these unnecessary.

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The Greenwater Magic filter is effective over a wide depth range from 5 m (15 ft) down to 25 m (80 ft). If you plan to shoot only above 5 m (15 ft) then we recommend not using the filter and only using manual WB as outlined above. Below this depth manual WB alone may work, but the combination of the filter and manual WB will give superior results as it affects the balance of colours collected by the camera’s sensor, rather than merely how these data are processed. The most important factor for successful filter shots is using the ambient light to illuminate your subject:    

First look up towards the surface and note the direction of the sunlight. Then position yourself so that the light comes from behind you and fully illuminates the subject. A slightly downward camera angle is also useful to ensure even illumination. In green waters ambient light can be very diffuse, often giving you more flexibility of shooting angles.

The slow shutter speeds required for ambient light photography in green waters make certain subjects more suitable for this technique than others. Fast moving marine life, such as fish and seals, are less suitable. But the technique is excellent for photos of wrecks, divers, scenery, and slow moving marine life. During the development of the Greenwater Magic filter we have noticed that RAW and JPEG files (taken simultaneously) can look a little different and sometimes the JPEG can look nicer. Surprisingly we have not been able to exactly match the look of the JPEG files using Adobe Camera Raw to adjust the RAW files. We attribute this difference to additional processing applied to the JPEG files in the camera. We can match them using the fine control in Photoshop, and we expect that we could in the manufacturer’s RAW converters. Anyway, we recommend that you shoot RAW þ JPEG with the Greenwater Magic filter so that you can use the JPEG files should you prefer them (www.magic-filters.com) Peter Rowlands

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FIG. 10.11 Nikon 10.5 mm fisheye lens, f 2.8 at 1/8th sec with Greenwater magic filter. By Peter Rowlands.

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FIG. 10.12 Same lens as above, f2.8 at 1/10th sec with filter. By Peter Rowlands.

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CHAPTER 11

Creating an Individual Style by Dr Alexander Mustard W

e all accept that doing something different, original and identifiably ours in our photography is desirable. It helps our images attract attention, win plaudits and prizes, and forge a niche in the market. It’s known as developing a photographic style. In this chapter Martin asked me to examine how we can motivate ourselves to push creative boundaries and how the decisions we make allow us to develop a photographic style.

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The Development of a Photographic Style Like the sound of a new band, a photographic style originates in influences and emulation. From day one as a photographer, we see a variety of photographs that we like and attempt to recreate them. There are so many images out there and the subset that inspires each of us begins to define the way we shoot. As we gain experience we develop habits based around techniques that produce pleasing results. These consistent technical and artistic choices give our portfolios a coherent style. The physics of light in water (see Chapter 1) places tight constraints on underwater photography. Only certain subjects, lenses, lighting and settings work and as a result many underwater images look quite similar. So by definition, if we want to take images that push creative boundaries we have to make a conscious decision to step away from the crowd. Despite an intention to be different, the innovation, in itself, must not be our end goal. We must strive for photographs that are both novel and justified in terms of the end result. The image must be strong without the explanation. I believe the biggest obstacle to innovation and creativity in photography is a fear of failure. Inevitably, going away from tried and tested techniques will increase our failure rate. In underwater photography this fear is heightened because our time is always running out. We only have a finite number of dives and each is time limited (by decompression, air supply, cold, etc.). We feel we have to make the most of each minute and stick to tried and tested techniques, aiming for 30 to 40 decent images we’ve probably taken before, rather than gambling a dive on one exceptional shot. Escaping the mindset of time-pressure photography is crucial if we are to discover creative freedom. It is no coincidence that the three essential elements for excellent underwater photography, which David Doubilet identified in the title of his great book, are Water, Light and Time. There is no set recipe for photographic creativity. Some images are put together according to a precise thought process, preconceived long before a dive. Others are just a reaction or instantaneous idea that comes from how you find a subject or situation. In this chapter I will describe my thought process in trying to generate a portfolio with a fresh vision in underwater photography. As a case study, I hope it is both interesting and useful.

Education Before Innovation Before we can be different we must first know the lie of the land. I love looking at underwater photographs. I always have, always will; and I think it is

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important for any photographer both for inspiration and education. There are so many places to look: books, magazines, competition galleries and in more recent times, browsing websites on the Internet. I still have a folder on my desktop called inspirational images. By studying the work of others we learn much. Initially we see what works when putting together images: the angles on fish that are revealing, the juxtaposition of elements in wide angle scenes that are pleasing, the types of lighting that complement subjects, etc. Equally important, we will start to recognise patterns in how most people shoot and, if we want to be different, we can identify areas to exploit.

Deciding to be Different ‘The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping from old ones.’ — John Maynard Keynes

Like every underwater photographer, my portfolio encompasses many different types of images. A strong portfolio undoubtedly balances both emulation and innovation. Some of my images are similar to the work of other photographers and clearly influenced by them, but here I want to discuss two examples (one macro, one wide angle) where I feel I made conscious decisions to deviate from what others were doing. I think that these are interesting cases because I consciously chose to go away from images I greatly admired and respected, to differentiate my work. Fashions go in cycles and I am sure there will be some people reading this who will say ‘I was doing that in the 1970s before you were even born, Mustard’. Which is something I would not refute. This is simply a description of my thought process at around the turn of the century, which was when I set out to take my work in a fresh direction to the mainstream of underwater photography at that time. My strategy was simple: identify the most impressive influential wide angle and macro photos of the time, characterise their major stylistic elements and attempt to build my photos based on different characteristics. The dominant influence I saw in the photographers around me came from David Doubilet’s work for wide angle and from Martin Edge for macro. It would be a tough challenge to be different.

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FIG. 11.1 Be different, be noticed.

Editors, competition judges, etc. have to look at 1000s of underwater photos, which these days tend to be all very good. So it is more important than ever for us to try and do something different so that our work attracts attention. For this photo I used a 105 mm lens to photograph a large subject. I had my strobes on long arms and pushed them well forward in front of the camera to get enough light on the snapper to make it stand out from the blue. Even so, on film this photo would not have worked. With such a long lens, it would have been too blue and the slide would have gone straight in the bin. But shooting it on digital I knew that as long as I could get a reasonable amount of light on the subject I would be able to restore the colours in the RAW converter, creating an image that would have been impossible on slide. Exploiting new technology is just one way of finding a fresh vision for our photos. Nikon D100 þ 105 mm macro lens, Subal housing, two Subtronic Alpha strobes. F13 at 1/45th sec. ISO 100.

Vibrant and Inviting Wide Angle For at least the last 30 years, few would argue that Doubilet’s wide angle photography has represented the epitome of the art. Before I could define a way to be different, I had to characterise its technical and artistic DNA. To me, his wide angle was characterised with wonderfully atmospheric ambient

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digital SLRs do not capture sunbursts as easily as slide film, but with the correct techniques they can produce excellent results. However, the difficulties have led most photographers to avoid shooting into the sun on digital. I am always looking for ways to differentiate my portfolio from the majority, so when I realised nobody was shooting sunbursts anymore I decided to shoot into the sun whenever possible. In the past, it would be fair to say that underwater photographers overused sunbursts, so I find it amusing that shooting them now is a way to be different! Looking for trends in underwater photography and then choosing to be different is a simple way to make your work stand out. Nikon D2X þ Tokina 10—17 mm at 15 mm, Subal housing, twin Inon Z240 strobes. F8 at 1/250th sec.

light, often with only a little strobe light to paint in colour, which was usually acutely angled to reveal textures and create interest. He regularly used off camera lights too, generating more atmosphere through backlighting. He preferred the accurate water colour captured by Kodachrome film, over the fake and more saturated colours rendered on other stock. At the time, most people seemed to be incorporating some, or all, of these elements of Doubilet’s wide angle vision in their photos too.

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To stand out I had to be different, which doesn’t come across as sound logic; rejecting what appears to be a perfect checklist for excellent wide angle. To differentiate my foregrounds I chose to fully illuminate them with flatter, soft, fill lighting revealing strong colours and detail. The switch to digital was crucial in making this possible with a very high quality of lighting. This also helped to differentiate my work from what had been done before. FIG. 11.3 As an attempt to differentiate my wide angle photography from the dominant style at the time I was developing my portfolio, I chose to forego moodiness and atmosphere in my images for bright, vibrant colours making the underwater world appear less mysterious and more inviting. I used my strobes to illuminate the foreground as evenly as possible, revealing strong colours and detail. I found that this effect looked best with brightly exposed backgrounds with rich water colours. Despite this style of image being successful for me, I think more atmospheric wide angle shots are ultimately more powerful. But to make my images stand out I chose to shoot this way. Nikon D2X þ 10.5 mm, Subal housing, twin Subtronic Alpha Pros. F9 at 1/80th sec.

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FIG. 11.4 An important element in the

look I was after for my vibrant and inviting wide angle photos was a bright, strong water colour. On slide film this meant choosing saturated films like Fuji’s Velvia and Kodak’s Extra-Color. On digital I achieve this by using warm colour temperature strobes, or attaching warming filters to my cooler strobes. To understand why this is important, consider an available light image. You can open one of your own up in a RAW converter to see this yourself. If we process the image at a low Kelvin value of 4300 K (which happens to be the colour temperature of my warm Subtronic strobes) we will get a richer blue water colour than if we process it at 5500 K (which is the colour temperature of my cool Inon strobes).

Producing even lighting on wide angle foregrounds was not easy on film, because strobes usually have to be on very different power settings, which could not be done with TTL. Look back at many of the wide angle shots from the film era and you will see hotspots, highlights and unintentional shadows from strobe lighting, which would be unacceptable today. The instant feedback of digital made it much easier to adjust strobe power and achieve a high quality soft and even foreground illumination. I soon found that the fully illuminated foregrounds didn’t complement moody backgrounds, so I combined them with brighter water, precisely

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exposed to give a bright saturated blue and strongly silhouetted reef. This approach sacrificed moodiness, but increased impact, and my friends started to refer to these intense blue backgrounds as mustard blue! On film I favoured the saturated and rich blues produced by Ektachrome EBX and Fujichrome RVP, and with digital, for the same reasons, I used warm (filtered) strobes to allow me to shoot at cooler colour temperatures (see Fig. 11.5 for an explanation) thus rendering similarly rich blues. The result was a less mysterious sea, but a vibrant and more inviting one.

FIG. 11.5 When we shoot balanced light wide angle images, the required white balance value is determined by our strobe light, in order to get a correct looking subject. A warmer strobe means we need to use a lower Kelvin value in the RAW converter and as a result get richer blues. With cool strobes like my Inon Z240s we can easily warm then up by fitting a warming gel (such as a Lee 444 lighting filter) behind the diffuser. The difference is quite subtle, but the richer blues will be there in every image you take. The only difference between these two photos was the addition of filters to the strobes, consequently affecting the white balance values selected by the camera (or RAW converter) to produce a correct coloured foreground. This has also affected the water colour, which is a richer blue in the filtered strobe example on the right. Many would argue that you could make this difference in Photoshop, and indeed you could, but I believe in getting my photos right in-camera, whenever I can. This gives the best image quality, fastest workflow and most satisfaction.

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The images were distinctive and attention grabbing and this phase in my wide angle photography coincided with my first book The Art Of Diving. Coincidentally, David Doubilet was asked by the publisher to write a cover quote and certainly noted the difference to his own photography: ‘Come, dive into Alexander Mustard’s bright blue world’, he commented.

Characterful Macro Martin’s influence on underwater photography stems not only from people emulating his photographs, but also more directly from his writing, lecturing and teaching. Almost every successful underwater photographer in the UK has trained with Edge, and while he always endeavours to encourage his students to follow their own ideas, it is inevitable that many, consciously or subconsciously, emulate his photographic style. Through his books, his influence stretches around the world. As a developing photographer in the UK, Edge style macro images, taken by a variety of photographers, were so dominant that they would regularly clean sweep our competitions. To my eye, the genes of the Edge school of macro photography lie in graphic simplicity. Clean, uncluttered images, with the subject isolated against a contrasting, usually black background, focusing the eye on a strong composition with saturated colours. The images have high impact and an artistic balance. All are desirable features of good macro photography. To make my macro pictures different, I chose to sacrifice some of the compositional balance and graphic strength of my shots and make the focus engagement with the subject. Strong eye contact was my overriding aim, particularly finding camera angles that generate recognisable human-like face shapes in subjects. For example, a head on angle will show a fish’s face as two eyes, above a nose, above a mouth. This allows viewers to project human emotions onto subjects, meaning images often get reactions like ‘that fish looks grumpy/surprised/sad’ etc, which greatly increases the appeal of pictures of scaly, slimey fish, especially to non-divers. I also chose to shoot much of my macro as balanced light images with blue backgrounds. This usually reduces the graphic strength of the image, since black backgrounds give a more striking, higher impact look. But ambient light backgrounds give the viewer more of a sense of the environment. With a macro lens and correct framing these background details will always be out of focus, but they still contribute without being too distracting. I usually try to find an open water background, to get as clean a look as possible, but I like to get a bit of texture into the blue, usually from the surface. This makes the image look less sterile, compared with a solid blue, and gives the portrait more depth. Generally, I choose to shoot long exposures, and to

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FIGS. 11.6 & 11.7 Being different means that there is room for your images in the market. Compare my photograph (right) of a Leafy Seadragon with that

of photographer Shannon Conway (left). I think both are strong shots, but they are very different despite being of the same subject, at the same time, on the same dive site. These shots show how two photographers with different photographic visions can produce very different interpretations despite being faced with the same opportunity. Shannon is an excellent photographer and readily admits that his photography is strongly influenced by his friendship with Martin. To my eye, his image has much of the classic Edge macro DNA. The black background isolates the subject and creates a cleaner, more graphic effect. The symmetrical composition and the diagonals in the background reinforce its striking impact. Mine has weaker composition and graphic qualities with a less striking composition and a blue-green background. Instead my photo is entirely focused on eye contact. This generates impact by evoking a strong connection with the viewer. Furthermore, the human-face positioning of the eyes above the nose and mouth allows the viewer to project a personality onto the subject, increasing appeal. My photo: Nikon D80 þ 60 mm, Subal housing, twin Inon Z240 strobes. F13 at 1/50th sec.

preserve depth of field by selecting a small aperture, which makes the images technically harder to take, but also harder for others to replicate. I also felt that this style of macro portrait fitted well with my punchy wide angle and the two styles came together, with many others images, in my second book Reefs Revealed.

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FIGS. 11.8 & 11.9 When working on new ideas I find dedicating dives ‘to play’ is an important step. By doing this I am taking the pressure off having to

produce finished images and freeing myself to experiment. The aim of the dive is to play with a technique and see how it works with different subjects. If I get no keepers, I don’t feel bad. Backlighting is a classic technique in underwater photography, but one that had never given me really pleasing results. So I dedicated a couple of dives in Thailand to playing with it. I tried it on different subjects and at a wide range of different exposures, seeing how it worked balanced against different amounts of front light and also with blue and black backgrounds. None of these images are finished shots, but they allowed me to learn about the technique. Both images Nikon D2X þ 10—17 mm. 3 Subtonic Alphas, one behind the subject. Coral: F18 at 1/13th sec. Crinoid: F14 at 1/200th sec.

Play-Time: Experimenting with Ideas and Dealing with Failure The two examples I have discussed are ones that worked out. Many more end in failure, or have many disappointments along the way. Learning to deal with this is key to maintaining a motivation to pursue new ideas. As I have already stated, I believe that the time limitation on taking photographs underwater heightens our fear of failure and stifles our desire to

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innovate. I get around this mental block by giving myself permission to fail by categorising dives, or parts of dives, as play. I’ll say to myself (or even others) ‘On this dive I am going to play’. I am taking the pressure off having to deliver polished photos and giving myself the go-ahead to experiment, even if it ends in failure. Often a new image starts with an idea to try a new technique (such as rear curtain flash, a snoot, an unusual lens, etc.). A play dive allows you to see how the technique works on a variety of subjects and situations without worrying about creating finished images. Then later, with a better understanding, you can take the elements that work and create a finished image around them.

The Pitfalls of Being Different To some extent, these two are examples from my past, because like all photographers my style is always evolving and I shoot much less of both these types of images these days. In my wide angle, for example, I have been trying to find a middle ground between punchy colours and atmosphere. This is making me happy, but I am not sure if it is an improvement. On the downside, I feel that having motivated myself to always try and create new images, I sometimes leave behind good ideas before they are fully mature or I have found the ideal application for them. I think that every photographer needs to balance the skills of innovation and refinement of ideas. I can spend too much time chasing the former at the expense of the latter.

Editing is Crucial Finally, a confession that I am sure will surprise nobody. I take lots of average photos and I take plenty of photos that look just like everyone else’s. The key is to edit your work carefully and only show the images you want people to see: the types of images that you want to represent you as a photographer. The Flicker age has swamped us in mediocrity and posting 1000s of images on the Internet and leaving the browser to find the good ones goes against this basic facet of photography. As a photographer you are judged on your best work, not the average quality of your favourite millennium of images. Editing your work effectively is a difficult skill and I do not get it right all the time. But I am certain that a lot of photographers, whose work I am familiar with, would have more success in competitions and publishing if they selected the correct images from those they have taken. Emotional attachment to certain shots is always part of the problem, but it is also important to have a clear vision of how you want your portfolio to look.

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FIG. 11.10 Having done my play dives with backlighting, I decided that the crinoids were the most suitable subjects and looked at their best against a black background, which was the most dramatic way of showing the lighting effect. To give the image more depth I asked our dive guide to pose with a torch against the sun at the top of the frame. I don’t use torches much with models, but here I was hoping that the (non-photographer) viewer might think that the backlighting effect came from the torch, making the image seem less contrived. I think a stronger torch would have helped, but this was already a complex shot to put together! Nikon D2X þ 10—17 mm. 3 Subtonic Alphas, one behind the subject. F14 at 1/250th sec.

I edit my images both for quality and, importantly, for style, only showing images that fit with my vision for how I want to communicate the underwater world. Editing also teaches us to identify the aspects of an image that differentiates the stand out shot from the average one. If we learn to spot this at the editing stage, we will be able to make the same choices when looking through the viewfinder. This undoubtedly improves our photography.

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Conclusion If we all took photographs the same way the world would only need one underwater photographer. Developing a distinctive style will make your photos stand out and be more memorable, which is key to winning competitions and being published. We develop a style by blending what we like in other photographers’ work with our own ideas and a desire to be different. In this chapter I focused more on the latter, but the work of many of my peers continues to inspire and influence my portfolio. Our style will always evolve: our tastes change, we get tired of old ideas and excited by new ones. The more ideas we try, the more we learn and hopefully the better we become as photographers. Returning to first principles, photography is about communication; we take pictures to tell stories and to communicate ideas and emotions about the underwater world. Developing a distinctive photographic style comes from knowing our own mind and what we want to emphasise in these stories. The more decisions we put into our underwater photographs, the more they become our own — and ultimately this makes the results all the more satisfying.

About the Author Alex is author and photographer of the award-winning book Reefs Revealed, and the inventor of the Magic Filter. He also lives no more than 30 minutes from Martin and although they meet regularly to discuss underwater photography, they still haven’t managed to dive together, something they intend to rectify in the not to distant future. www.amustard.com

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CHAPTER 12

Developing a Workflow System by Stuart Gibson Introduction

W

ith digital we can immediately review our pictures on the camera LCD and re-shoot where necessary. This creates many shots of the same subject, so it’s essential to have an organised workflow system in order to download, store, organise, catalogue, and process these photos on our computers. Organising them in this way can be confusing and problematic for many of us. This chapter covers some basic guidelines for managing the thousands of images we can accrue during a dive trip.

Take Pictures

Download & back up

Sort, delete and rate

Process

FIG. 12.1 Simple schematic of image workflow.

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Software There are many software packages that can organise and process images, and the majority of cameras come with a proprietary tool for this on purchase. They vary tremendously and range from simple image viewers to complete image management and processing systems. Software such as Apple’s Aperture and Adobe’s Lightroom are some of the most sophisticated. Whichever software is used we have one fundamental skill to master — that of file management on the computer. The software will organise our photographs for us but if we don’t understand how it’s being done we may be helpless to restore them if things go wrong. We need to apply the same care and attention to this aspect of our photography as to any other.

Image File Management A good structured folder system is key to good file management. Files should be stored together in folders that represent some common feature. By far the easiest method is by date or dive trip. Most software packages use dates by default but we may want to tailor it further to suit ourselves. Below is an

FIG. 12.2

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FIG. 12.3

example of a system, based on diving trips. You will notice that each dive trip has a prefix code which I personally use to keep them in a logical order i.e. 1.3.8 190109 Maldives. We can then store photos from each day’s worth of diving in folders within the dive trip folder. Although this might seem long-winded at first, once this structure is built in the way that suits your photography habits it pays dividends in the long run in terms of organisation of our shots.

Adobe Lightroom Adobe Lightroom has been developed with the input of professional photographers. It is therefore designed to follow a sensible, structured approach to complement their workflow. It makes sense to look at this structure and try to align our own workflow to it.

Lightroom Modules Lightroom is split into five core modules each representing a major step in the workflow process. They cover: image input, processing and output. These modules are called:     

Library Develop Slideshow Print Web.

The parts which should interest us are Library (where we organise our images) and Develop (where we process them).

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I don’t intend to describe how to use the functionality of Lightroom, but for detailed information and tutorials visit: www.adobe.com/products/ photoshoplightroom What I’m going to cover here are those parts of Lightroom which help us enormously to develop a workflow structure.

Library Module: Import Before Lightroom can help us organise our photographs we need to tell it where our photos are stored if they are already on a hard drive, or where to get them from if they are on a memory card or still in the camera. Follow this procedure for importing your images directly from the camera or a memory card. STEP 1. Connect the camera or memory card to the computer and from the Library Module access the ‘File’ drop down menu. STEP 2. Select the ‘Import Photos from Device’ option and a dialogue screen will appear as shown in Fig. 12.4. FIG. 12.4

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If the photos are already on the hard drive then select ‘Import photos from Disk’ and direct Lightroom to the photos you want to import. The same dialogue screen will then appear. I would recommend that once you are up and running with Lightroom that you let it import all your future images and manage you folder structure from within Lightroom.

FIG. 12.5

STEP 3. The first field defines how the photos should be handled in terms of their format. The option to convert them to DNG (Digital Negative) allows other software that supports the universal DNG format to read the files. In this instance we leave the files in their native RAW format and copy them to a new location on our hard drive. STEP 4. The next step is to specify where we want Lightroom to physically store these photos. This is where the benefit of a disciplined folder structure comes in. Select the ‘Choose’ button and use the browse dialogue to navigate to the required area of our folder structure. Select the required parent folder and click on the ‘Make new folder’ button. Create a folder that best describes the photos or photo trip. In this case it was a trip to the red sea, dated 23rd March 2009. The folder is therefore called ‘1.3.9 230309 Red Sea’.

Note If you are importing existing photos from the hard drive you can choose to leave them in their existing location or copy them to a new location.

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FIG. 12.6

STEP 5. Decide how the images will be organised within the folder ‘1.3.9 230309 Red Sea’. This can be done in two ways. If you have several days’ diving to import, Lightroom can split the photos up into individual folders that represent each day.

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FIG. 12.7

FIG. 12.8

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Alternatively you can opt to have Lightroom put all of the images into one folder. Here I have decided that I want all the photos in one folder and I have also specified the name of that subfolder ‘Day 1’. Lightroom will create a sub-folder called ‘Day 1’ within ’1.3.9 230309 Red Sea’ and copy all my photos there. FIG. 12.9

At this stage there is also an opportunity to make a back-up copy of the photos at the same time, by selecting the ‘Backup to’ option and specifying a location on the hard drive in the same way as was done in the previous steps. Regular and complete back-up of photos is a vital safeguard against hard drive failure and this will be covered later in the chapter. STEP 6. File names. Standard preset naming options can be applied as shown here. If we select the ‘Edit’ option we can customise the file name. We can combine any of the preset options and add descriptive text too. Personally I always keep the original sequential file name reference from the camera somewhere in the final file name. I also have my camera set to ‘continual counting’. This ensures unique traceability of photos so there is never the risk of having more than one photo with the same name. STEP 7. Metadata and keyword information can also be applied to all the photos during import. This will be imbedded with the image file and is useful for cataloguing.

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FIG. 12.10

FIG. 12.11

Once all these parameters are set to our requirements click the ‘Import’ button and Lightroom will copy all of the images to the selected place with the specified file names and attached metadata and keywords. Fig 12.12 shows Lightroom importing images and copying them to the specified folder. A progress bar indicates the status of the process. The images will start to populate the film strip at the bottom of the screen and the central screen area.

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FIG. 12.12

Back Up There are many ways of backing up image files. How you choose to do it is a personal choice, however you should always have at least one back-up copy of your images on some other media other than your computer hard drive. I tend to be extra cautious and have a fixed process of back-up. I have three memory cards and I use one per dive (typically). Each card will not be formatted until the images have been downloaded via Lightroom and backed up to a second drive. When I return home my second drive backup is transferred to DVD (some people recommend two copies of this on two different brands of disk).

Duplicate ‘Mirror’ of Working Drive My working drive is mirror copied regularly as a matter of course to ensure minimum disruption if my working disk goes down. The cost of external drives is negligible compared with the cost of our underwater housings, camera kit, diving trips and scuba costs. Don’t think it won’t happen to you because it probably will.

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Organising the Images Within the Library module there are many features we can use to organise our images. These are Star ratings, Colour codes, Stacking and Flags.

Star Ratings Star ratings allow us to give our images a one to five score based on how good we think it is. This is obviously subjective but I use the following system: 0 ¼ delete, 1 ¼ not reviewed, 2 ¼ Weak, 3 ¼ Potential, 4 ¼ Good, 5 ¼ Competition. To apply a star rating select the image and press the numeric key of the rating required. The rating is shown along the bottom of the image thumbnail and can be increased or decreased by pressing the appropriate number key (1 to 5). Personally, I rank all my images as one star immediately after import before I review them.

Colour Codes Colour codes work in much the same way and can be used to visually code images For example: Red ¼ Reef shots number key 6 Yellow ¼ Portraits 7, etc.

Flags The flag system allows you to simply flag a picture ‘yes’ (white flag) or ‘no’ (black flag) if you just want to code it in this way. All of these can be used to selectively view and organise by using the filter bar above the bottom film strip, i.e. if you click the 3 star on the filter bar only images rated 3 stars or more will be displayed. It is worth thinking about a coding system that suits you best.

Stacking Images During our dive we will have worked a number of subjects and will have many similar examples in a series. Lightroom has the ability to stack all these images together in the filmstrip and main screen thus reducing the number of thumbnails on view to a minimum.

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FIG. 12.13

FIG. 12.14

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STEP 1. Select the first image in the series, hold the shift key down and select the last image in the series. STEP 2. Using the drop down menu select the ‘Photo’ option and then ‘Stacking’; select the ‘Group into stack’ (CtrlþG) option to add all these photos into one stack which will have the first image on top. All but the first image in the stack have disappeared; the others are still there but are stacked below the first photo in the series. The number of photos in the stack is shown in a small white box in the top left-hand corner of the remaining image. STEP 4. Repeat this procedure for the remaining groups of photos and you should see just the top of each stack of photos in the displays. This simplifies our workflow as we can see all the subjects from our dive and can work through each one in a structured and controlled way. Figure 12.15 shows a far simpler layout of all the images from the dive after stacking. To open up a stack simply click on the number in the left-hand corner, to select all the images in the stack click on the number again, to close the stack click once more.

FIG. 12.15

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Now that the entire set of photographs are more manageable open each stack in turn and work through them using your preferred rating system of stars, colours and flags. I would also rotate images at this stage too.

Develop Module The Develop module is where the images you have chosen to work on can be processed. Again, I do not intend to cover this module as there is so much to explain that I would recommend you source this separately as discussed earlier. In terms of workflow, however, the Sync function is very useful. This allows the development settings from one photo to be selectively transferred to a selection of other images thus reducing the time to do the same development on all of them individually. Simply select the host image first and then the ones you wish to transfer the setting to. Click ‘Sync’ and tick the required development settings you want to transfer.

FIG. 12.16

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Collections Back in the Library module there is the opportunity to create collections of images. This is another key feature of Lightroom that helps with our workflow. It removes the need to make many copies of the same image to use for different purposes. STEP 1. Create a collection by clicking on the þ symbol in the collections section of the Library’s left-hand pane. STEP 2. Give the collection a suitable name and the collection will appear in the list. STEP 3. Right-click on this collection and make sure it is selected as the current target collection. A þ sign will appear after the name to show this.

FIG. 12.17 -

FIG. 12.18 -

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STEP 4. Start adding photos to your collection by clicking on the small circle in the right-hand corner (or select the photo and press B). Remove a picture by the same process.

FIG. 12.19

The images will start to populate the collection and will look exactly the same as normal, however the pictures in the collection are only representations of the original and can be removed without loosing the actual image from the Library. Any rating, keywords or development changes made to the image within a collection, however, will change the original too. If this is undesirable make a virtual copy of the image first (right-click on the image and select ‘create virtual image’) and make changes to that instead.

Exporting Files from Lightroom When we have a collection of photos that we would like to use outside of Lightroom we use the export function. Lightroom does not move your original photos during export. It merely takes all the changes you have made to the original file and applies them permanently to a copy. The format of these copies is determined in the dialogue box. STEP 1. Select the images to be exported and click on the ‘Export’ button. STEP 2. In the dialogue box that appears (see Fig. 12.20) select where the files are to be put, and a suitable file naming convention using a similar discipline discussed at the beginning of this chapter. STEP 3. Choose a file type (JPEG, PSD, TIFF, etc.) and a compression ratio to suit the quality of file you want. STEP 4. Scroll down the dialogue box to specify the image dimensions and resolution if required. Image sharpening and metadata options can also be set here.

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FIG. 12.20

STEP 6. Once all the parameters are set, click ‘Export’ and the files will be written to the specified location.

Conclusion Many of the concepts discussed in this chapter are not new and photographers all over the world will operate various systems similar to this. For me, Adobe’s Lightroom has been designed to encourage this very discipline and allows us to work in a very intuitive way. I would recommend trying this procedure to develop your own way of working. By using this structured approach to our workflow and a disciplined control of our image files and folders, we can work more efficiently. Additionally, if we understand our filing structure and keep regular back-ups of our files, we have a far better chance of recovery if our hard drive crashes or our files are lost. This ultimately allows us to relax and focus more of our efforts on the important aspects of our photography. From the author: If you have read this you are already three-quarters of the way to developing a workflow system d so why not start developing your own system now?

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Internet Resources Suppliers Personal Underwater Photographic Tuition with Martin Edge Martin Edge offers one on one tuition with programmes tailored to meet an individual or couple’s needs and budget. Martin adopts a modular approach enabling photographers to select areas of specific interest and, for those who want to combine teaching with practice, he offers an accompanied underwater photography session in a swimming pool. The modules are outlined below. It is not necessary to select the teach-in modules ahead of time. Many find it helpful to determine the areas of focus after the introductory photo clinic. A typical full day programme consists of the introductory photo clinic/critique, agreed topics/teach-ins and a swimming pool session with review and basic Lightroom/Photoshop skills if necessary.

Photo Clinic This is a 1—11/2 hour session during which Martin reviews and critiques your own photographs to determine style, trends and specific areas for improvement. This session always provides direction for which teach-in sessions to select.

Teach-ins Each teach-in runs for 45—60 minutes. During a one-day programme a variety of topics can be accommodated. They are numerous but often include:         

The Basics—Apertures and Shutter speeds, etc. Getting the best from your compact digital underwater camera Moving on to SLR cameras. Which one is right for me? Nikon D300 and D200 housings — ‘Try before you buy’ ‘Mindset’ planning an underwater photo-dive Digital issues — RAW v JPEG, White balance, etc. Close-up and Macro Wide angle and natural light All about lighting including flash lighting and blending them both together

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Composition Basic digital editing with Adobe Photoshop CS and Lightroom The Future — other equipment options to suit the individual Getting your work published.

If there is something that is not on the list that you would like to cover then this can always be included.

Practical Pool Session This provides the opportunity to put all the teaching and tips into practice in an accompanied photographic session with Martin. The results are reviewed and critiqued. When booking a programme, Martin will need to know what photographic equipment you use and you will need to bring all your photographic equipment with you. For those who have yet to take the ‘plunge’, digital camera hire is available free of charge. For further information about tuition and tropical photo-workshops go to: www.edgeunderwaterphotography.com

Internet Resources and Other Suppliers Underwater Photography is a free, web-based magazine that can be downloaded at www.uwpmag.com; it is published bi-monthly, and each issue contains new product details, equipment reviews, underwater photo techniques and excellent underwater photos. Underwater Photography is a permanent source of information and entertainment for all underwater photographers world-wide. Wetpixel (www.wetpixel.com) is a website dedicated to providing the latest information on digital underwater photography and imaging. The website contains news, reviews, tutorials and features, but probably the main attraction is the forums, where many thousands of underwater photography enthusiasts chat about all aspects of their passion. Wetpixel.com has won the Website Award at the Antibes Festival, and the Editor’s Choice Award from Scuba Diving Magazine. Dive Photo guide (www.divephotoguide.com) is a popular resource and community for underwater photographers and videographers of all levels. Articles and news on techniques, equipment, destinations, and marine conservation are published daily. Membership is free and you can create your own photo galleries in addition to browsing galleries from the top pros in the world.

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Babysplashers (www.babysplashers.co.uk) is a small, privately owned, swim school specialising in baby swimming. Louise Sanger, Proprietor and Head Instructor, teaches babies using the Swimming Teachers Associations’ Water Safety Programme for Babies. All babies are born with a natural affinity to the water and babies start classes from as young as six weeks old where they learn to swim underwater, completely unaided. British Society of Underwater Photographers (BSoUP) (www.bsoup.org) is the largest underwater photographic society in the UK, catering for both film and digital photographers. BSoUP holds meetings at the Holland Club, Imperial College, South Kensington, London, on the third Wednesday of each month. BSoUP publishes the magazine in focus and provides advice and information on all aspects of underwater photography: digital and film. Cameras Underwater UK (www.camerasunderwater.co.uk) is a premier supplier of underwater photographic equipment and can cater for your requirements no matter what your specialty. Professional end user or keen diver, it doesn’t matter, we will have something to suit your needs. Divequest (www.divequest.co.uk) offers dedicated diving holidays and is passionate about underwater photography. They arrange trips for individuals and offer a number of group workshops. Complex itineraries to far flung destinations are their speciality! Edge Underwater Photography uses Divequest for long-haul photo-workshops. Tony Backhurst Scuba Travel (www.scubatravel.com) based in the UK specialises in world-wide diving holidays and caters for underwater photographic enthusiasts. Edge Underwater Photography uses TBSC for photoworkshops, particularly in the Red Sea. Trevor Foster for all your photographic equipment repairs including digital SLR and compacts and sensor cleaning. Bournemouth Photographic (Repair) Services Ltd, 251 Holdenhurst Rd, Bournemouth, England, BH8 8DA. Tel: 01202 301273. Longwood holiday’s (www.longwoodholidays.co.uk) offer underwater photographic diving holidays in the warm, clear waters of the Red Sea. Contact Dan Lion or other members of the dive team on: 020 8418 2570. Digital equipment review sites go to: www.dpreview.com, www.dcviews.com, www.fredmiranda.com. The work of Kay Newman who produced the HDR image in Chapter 1 can be viewed at her website www.kaynewmanphotography.com Keri Wilk (www.reefnet.ca) is an engineer and underwater photographer with 15 years of experience exploring the world’s oceans. His photo credits include many international awards and publication in magazines, scientific journals,

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books, and field guides. He currently designs new products (e.g. SubSee) and hosts underwater photo expeditions for ReefNet Inc. (www.reefnet.ca). Ken Sullivan (www.kensunderwaterphotography.com) has been diving for over 40 years and taking underwater images for more than 20. He has an extensive engineering workshop where he designs and builds UW housings and accessories; check out his website for details. Martyn Guess is a freelance photographer based in the UK specialising in underwater and wildlife images from around the world. Go to: www.martynguessphotography.com for more of his work. Shannon Conway is an Australian-based professional underwater photographer creating images for the advertising, editorial and fine art markets. To discuss any fine art, stock images or training courses go to: www.underwaterphotography.com.au Stuart Gibson has been a keen underwater photographer for over 10 years. He currently uses a Nikon DSLR Camera in a Subal housing with Inon strobes. Stuart is based in the UK and travels to many popular dive destinations both in the UK and abroad. Examples of his work can be seen at www.stuartgibson.net Leena Roy is a dive and photo enthusiast. Her best photos can be found at web.me.com/lintu2/BEST/BEST_PHOTOS.html Stephen Frink offers underwater photo instruction and tours designed with the UW photographer in mind. He is also the North and South American distributor for SEACAM housings and strobes. http://www.stephenfrinkphoto. com (portfolio) and http://www.waterhousetours.com (travel). Ocean Optics (www.oceanoptics.co.uk) has been at the forefront of providing the best equipment and advice to underwater photographers for 30 years. Steve Warren and Mark Koekemoer are specialists who shoot underwater pictures themselves. The Underwater Channel (www.theunderwaterchannel.tv) is a free web TV channel for divers — your window to the underwater world. By bringing a wide range of diving videos, many of which are exclusive, into people’s homes through their PCs, The Underwater Channel fulfils a 24/7 need for divers to pursue their passion and to tempt ‘armchair’ divers out of their seats and into the water.

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Glossary Absorption The blue, filtering effect of sunlight. Water absorbs the colours of the spectrum selectively until, at depths of around 20—25 m, only tones of blue and green remain. AE lock (AE-L, Auto Exposure Lock) This enables you to take a light-meter reading from part of an image and then hold that setting while you compose the picture. AF lock (AF-L, Auto Focus Lock) This enables you to lock an auto focus lens in its present focus setting and then hold that setting while you recompose the picture.

Backscatter Light reflected into the camera lens and showing up as snow on the finished photograph, resulting from suspended particles in the water. Barrel distortion If you take a wide angle seascape with a wide angle or fisheye lens and notice that the horizon seems to curve, you are seeing barrel distortion. This is caused by the camera lens distorting an image so it appears spherised. Beam angle degrees.

The angle of a flashgun beam expressed in

Ambient light (also referred to as natural light) The light from the sun which is available underwater.

Bokeh The blur or the aesthetic quality of the blur, in out-of-focus areas of a photographic image.

Angle of view The extent of the view taken in by the lens, which varies with focal length for any particular format size. The angle made at the lens across the image diagonal.

Bracketing (exposure) Taking several pictures of your subject at different aperture settings, flash distances or flash-power settings, with the objective of obtaining one perfect exposure.

Aperture Behind the lens of your digital camera is a circular iris that opens and closes to determine the amount of light falling on the CCD. Altering the aperture also changes the depth of field.

Brightness range The range of brightness between shadow and highlight areas of an image. This is also referred to as ’dynamic range’.

Aperture preview A small button close to the lens on some SLR cameras that allows you to visually check the depth of field in the viewfinder. Aperture priority A semi-manual exposure mode which allows the user to set the aperture according to the depth of field required, while the internal metering system selects the appropriate shutter speed to obtain the correct exposure. Apparent distance The distance at which objects appear to be away from the eye/camera. Objects underwater appear to be one-quarter closer than they really are. Artefacts Compressing an image sometimes causes noise to appear as angular blocks or artefacts. Auto Focus (AF) System by which the lens automatically focuses the image of a selected part of your subject. Automatic An exposure mode found on digital cameras in which all the camera settings, including ISO, white balance, shutter speed and aperture, are chosen by the camera. This is useful for beginners to digital underwater photography. Av (Aperture value) AE camera metering mode by which you choose the aperture and the metering system sets the shutter speed (also called aperture priority).

’B’ setting Brief or bulb. On this setting, the camera shutter stays open for as long as the release button remains depressed. Buffer A buffer is RAM (Random Access Memory) inside a digital camera which can store images before they are written to the memory card. This means you can shoot a number of photographs without having to wait for each to be saved. Shoot too many and you will cause a delay before you can begin to re-shoot. Calibration Calibration is altering the settings of a device so it conforms to a standard. You can calibrate the LCD of your camera’s viewfinder, a screen monitor, scanner and printer so that what you see is accurate. CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) The light sensor in a camera that records an image. It consists of millions of tiny light sensors, one for each pixel. The size of a CCD is measured in megapixels. Centre-weighted metering An auto-exposure system that uses the centre portion of the frame to adjust the overall exposure value. Close-up attachments Dioptres, teleconverters, wet lenses and other accessories which enable the camera to focus on subjects that are closer than the nearest distance that the lens would normally allow.

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Glossary

Colour temperature The measurement of colour expressed in Kelvin (K). The lower the Kelvin rating, the ‘warmer’ or more yellow the light. The higher the rating, the ‘cooler’ or more blue the light. Compact flash digital cameras.

A popular form of storage media for

Complementary colours A compositional tool for colour balance which indicates the colours that complement each other on the compositional colour wheel. Composition The activity of positioning subjects within a frame or viewfinder. Photographers often aim to create a visual balance of all the elements within their photographs. They do this via careful composition. Compression Refers to a process where digital files are made smaller to save on storage space or transmission time. Compression is available in two types: lossy, where parts of the original image are lost at the compression stage, and lossless, where the integrity of the file is maintained during the compression process. JPEG and GIF use lossy compression, whereas TIFF is a lossless format. Contrast (composition) Photographers who position subjects with different characteristics in the frame together are said to be creating contrast in the composition. Placing a highly textured object against a smooth and even background creates a visual contrast between the two subjects and emphasises the main characteristics of each. Contrast (exposure and tone) The difference (ratio) between the darkest and brightest parts. In a scene, this depends on lighting and the reflecting properties of objects. In a photograph, there is also the effect of exposure level, degree of development, printing paper, etc. Crop factor The ratio of the focal length of a digital camera lens compared to a 35 mm film camera lens. Cropping Cutting out unwanted (edge) parts of a picture in an imaging program such as Adobe Photoshop, or cropping at the printing or mounting stage. Depth of field (D of F) The area that is in focus behind and in front of a subject. Depth of field is controlled by three factors: the focal length of the lens, the size of the aperture and the camera to subject distance. Diffuse lighting Scattered illumination, the visual result of which is gentle modelling of the subject with mild or non-existent shadows. Diffuser A circular or rectangular disc placed over a flashgun to widen the beam of light. Diffusers also decreases light intensity from between one and three f-stops.

506

Digital image A visible image on a computer monitor formed by a stream of electronic data. Digital zoom Many digital compacts can zoom in on an image by expanding it in-camera. The zoomed area looks bigger but contains the same number of pixels, so will look ’pixelated’. Digital zoom should not be confused with the superior, optical zoom. Digitise This is the process by which analogue images or signals are sampled and changed into digital form. Dioptre Magnification factor of a supplementary lens. The focal length of such a lens can be calculated by dividing a thousand by the power of the dioptre. DNG (Digital Negative File) The digital camera file format from Adobe that was designed to provide a standard for RAW files HDR (High Dynamic Range). Dome port A semi-spherical piece of glass or plastic used to eliminate the magnifying distortion caused by reflection. dpi Dots per inch, a term used to indicate the resolution of a scanner or printer. Dynamic range The measure of the range of brightness levels that can be recorded by a digital sensor. Effective f-stop The actual f-stop value when you use a macro lens and focus for extreme close-ups. Enhancement A term that refers to changes in brightness, colour and contrast that are designed to improve the overall look of a digital image. EV (Exposure Value) This refers to the amount of shutter speed or aperture adjustment needed to double or halve the amount of light. EXIF Stands for exchangeable image file. EXIF format enables image data, such as the date and time the shot was taken and exposure, to be stored onto the camera’s memory card. Exposure When you take a picture, the camera’s light meter determines how long the shutter should be open for and how wide the aperture should be to gain the correct exposure. If a picture is too dark it’s underexposed, and if it’s too light then it’s overexposed. Exposure compensation Adjusting the camera or metering system to give a greater or lesser exposure than that which the light meter considers to be correct. Most cameras now have an exposure compensation dial built in. Exposure latitude (film latitude) The measure of a film’s propensity to compensate for over- or underexposure. Slide film has small latitude. Plus or minus a half f-stop is common, therefore exposures have to be very accurate. Print film has much wider latitude.

Glossary

Exposure mode Camera settings such as M (manual), A (aperture priority), etc. that determine which controls you have to adjust manually for an exposure and which ones the camera does automatically. Fast lens — Slow lens — Lens speed Refers to the maximum aperture diameter, or minimum f number of a photographic lens. A lens with a larger maximum aperture (that is, a smaller minimum f number) is a fast lens because it delivers more light intensity to the sensor allowing a faster shutter speed to be used. A smaller maximum aperture (larger minimum f number) is ‘slow’ because it delivers less light intensity and reqires a slower shutter speed. Fill-in flash This is additional light from a flashgun(s) to enhance colours and lighten shadows when natural light is the primary light source. Firewire Faster than USB, this is a type of connection between computers and a range of different equipment, including digital cameras and card readers. Fisheye lens A lens with a 180 degree field of view across the diagonal. Fisheye lenses offer maximum depth of field. Fixed focus Non-adjustable camera lens set for a fixed subject distance. Flare Scattered light that dilutes the image, lowering contrast and seeming to reduce sharpness. Mostly occurs when the subject is backlit or when using wide angle lenses with flash and extraneous light from the flash strikes the dome port. Flash contacts Electrical contacts, normally within the mechanism of the camera shutter, which come together at the appropriate moment to trigger the flash unit. Flash synchronisation The firing of a photographic flash coinciding with the shutter admitting light to image sensor. It is often shortened to flash sync. Focal length This describes the magnifying power of a lens. The longer it is, the greater the magnification; conversely, the smaller it is, the wider the angle of the lens. Focusing Changing the lens-to-subject distance to achieve a sharp image. Focus priority (single servo) Auto focus mode by which you cannot release the shutter until the lens has sharply focused your subject. Format

Height and width dimensions of the picture area.

Fractional f-stop Any aperture setting which is between the full f numbers marked on the camera’s aperture control ring. F19 is an example, being between f16 and f22. Frame

One single image on a roll of film or digital sensor.

f-stops The various settings that control the camera lens aperture. The f-stop or f number indicates the relationship between the size of the aperture opening and the focal length of the lens, so a setting of f8 means that the diameter of the aperture is one-eighth of the lens focal length. GIF An image file format designed for display of line art on the Web. Greyscale A monochrome digital image containing tones ranging from white through a range of greys to black. Highlights

The brightest parts of a photo.

Histogram A graphic representation of the range of tones from dark to light in a photo. Some digital cameras include a histogram feature that enables a precise check on the exposure of the photo. Hot shoe Mounting on top of the camera to which the flash is attached. Image browser An application that enables you to view digital photos. Many browsers also allow you to rename files, convert photos from one file format to another, add text descriptions, and more. Image stabilisation This helps you in taking handheld shots that would otherwise require a tripod by compensating for small and fast movements (shaking). It is especially useful on long lenses in less than ideal lighting. Infinity A distance so great that light from a given point reaches the camera as virtually parallel rays — in practice, distances of about 1000 times the focal length or more. It is written on lens focusing mounts as ’inf’ or the symbol 8. Interchangeable lens A lens that can be removed from a camera to be replaced by another lens. Interpolation A mathematical method of creating missing data. An image can be increased from 100 pixels to 200 pixels through interpolation. There are many methods of interpolation, but one simple method is to generate a new pixel by using the average of the value of the two pixels on either side of the one to be created. Inverse square law The physical law that causes light from a flash to fall off in such a way that as flash-to-subject distance doubles, the light falls off by a factor of four. It forms the basis of flash guide numbers and close-up exposure increases. ISO (International Standards Organisation) In the ISO film speed system, halving or doubling of speed is denoted by halving or doubling the ISO number. It also incorporates the DIN figure, e.g. ISO 400/27 film is twice as sensitive as ISO 200/24.

507

Glossary

JPEG A file format, designed by the Joint Photographic Experts Group, which has inbuilt lossy compression that enables a massive reduction in file sizes for digital images. Kelvin Measurement unit of lighting and colour temperature. Kilobyte

1024 bytes.

Landscape An image taken with the camera in its normal horizontal orientation. Latitude

See Exposure latitude.

Mood The mood of a photograph refers to the emotional content of the picture. M setting mode.

Indicates the cameras is in Manual exposure

Negative space the subject.

Everything in the photograph that is not

Neutral density filter A filter that reduces the amount of light entering the camera lens. Ni MH Nickel metal hydride battery. Rechargeable, ecologically safe and very efficient.

LCD monitor A small LCD liquid crystal display screen on the back of the camera, used to compose or look at photographs.

Noise Misinterpreted pixels found in a digital image, usually occurring in longer exposures, which can be seen as misplaced or random bright pixels in the picture.

LED (Light Emitting Diode) Lights and symbols displayed in the camera viewfinder to give exposure data.

Normal lens Lens that has an angle of view similar to that of the human eye. Underwater, that length is considered to be 35 mm (on film).

Lens Filter A piece of transparent glass, plastic or gelatine placed over the camera lens to adjust colour in natural light photography or to balance the light when flash is used. Lens speed The widest aperture to which a lens can be opened. The wider the maximum aperture of a lens, the faster it is said to be. L-ion Lithium-ion is a popular type of rechargeable battery. It holds more power and does not suffer from the ’memory effect’, where a battery when recharged only registers the additional charge and not its full capacity. Line (composition) ’Line’ is one of the strongest visual elements that photographers can use to help compose their pictures. Often, line is used to direct the attention of the viewer towards a certain part of the frame or a specific focal point.

Open up To increase the size of the lens aperture. The opposite of stop down. Optical zoom Digital compacts have optical zoom lenses. This means that they can be adjusted to magnify the scene before you zoom in or, alternatively, zoom out to capture a wide angle scene. Orientation sensor A sensor that knows when you turn the digital camera to take a vertical shot and rotates the picture so it won’t be displayed on its side when you view it. Overexposure An image that appears too pale because of too much light reaching the sensor.

Macro lens Intended for close-up photography, able to focus on subjects at close distances. The majority of macro lenses now provide life-size magnification (1:1).

Panning Rotating or swinging the camera about a vertical axis to follow the movement of a subject. Carried out correctly with the shutter open, this should produce a sharp subject against a blurred background. Plenty of practice is required to master this technique.

Matrix metering An exposure system that breaks the scene up into a grid and evaluates each section to determine the exposure.

Parallax error Viewpoint difference between the picture seen in the viewfinder and as seen by the camera lens.

Megapixel One million pixels. Used to describe the resolution of digital camera sensors.

Pattern (composition) Repeating subjects that have similar characteristics such as colour, shape and texture create a strong visual element that is often referred to as pattern. Pattern can be used in a similar way to line and colour as a way to balance compositions and direct the viewer’s eye throughout the frame.

Modelling light (aiming light) A small light, often a torch, which is attached to a flashgun and shows the direction in which the flash is pointing and also the effect that the angle of the flash will have on the subject. Monochrome Single coloured. Usually implies a black and white image, but also applies to one which is toned (e.g. sepia).

508

Pixel Short for ‘picture element’, and refers to the smallest image part of a digital photograph. Pixelisation An effect seen when you enlarge a digital image too much and the pixels become obvious.

Glossary

Polariser Grey-looking polarising filter, able to darken blue sky when at right angles to the sunlight, and suppress reflections from (non-metallic) surfaces.

RGB The colour system used in most digital cameras, where red, green and blue light are captured separately and then combined to create a full colour image.

Port Glass (or Perspex) window that is attached to the camera housing, through which the lens ’looks’ underwater. A flat port is associated with macro lenses, and a dome port with wide angle lenses.

Ring-flash A ring-flash does just what its name implies, encircling the camera lens with a flash tube so that the light is projected forward from the camera.

P (Program) mode Indicates that the camera is in the Program exposure mode, in which the camera selects both aperture and shutter speed automatically.

Scanner An input device that uses light to read printed information, including text, graphics and bar codes, and transfers it into the computer in a digital format.

Prosumer A broad term that refers to a digital compact camera with a range of manual controls, many of which can be found on an SLR. They are capable of taking pictures to the very highest standard, and usually have a minimum resolution of 5 megapixels.

Short focal-length lens (wide angle) A lens that provides a wide angle of view of a scene, including more of the subject area than does a lens of normal focal length.

Rear curtain synchronisation Here, the flash fires an instant before the second (rear) curtain of the focal plane shutter begins to move. When slow shutter speeds are used, this feature can create a blur effect from the ambient light — e.g. flowing light patterns following a moving subject with subject movement frozen at the end of the light flow. Reciprocity law failure The effect of dim light, or small lens aperture, can be counteracted by giving a long exposure time, but this reciprocal relationship (half the brightness, double the exposure time) increasingly breaks down with exposure times beyond 1 s. The film then behaves as if having a lower speed rating. Colour films may also show incorrect balance.

Shutter The device in the camera that opens and closes to let light from the scene strike the image sensor and expose the image. Shutter lag The time between pressing the shutter release button and the camera actually taking the shot. This delay varies quite a bit between camera models, and used to be the biggest drawback of digital photography. The latest digital cameras, especially the prosumer and professional SLRs, have virtually no lag time. S (Shutter priority) mode An automatic exposure system in which you set the shutter speed and the camera selects the aperture (f-stop) for the correct exposure. Shutter speed The length of time for which the shutter is open and light strikes the image sensor.

Recycle time The time it takes for a flashgun to recharge between flashes.

Single lens reflex (SLR) A type of camera with a lens that is used both for viewing and for taking the picture.

’Red eye’ The iris of each eye in portraits shows red instead of black; this is caused by using flash directed from close to the lens.

Slave flash A flash that is activated by the light from another flashgun. The ’slave’ can be turned on or off at the touch of a switch.

Refraction Change of the direction of a ray of light passing obliquely from one transparent medium into another of different density, e.g. from air into water. Underwater, this causes objects to appear closer and larger than they actually are.

Smart media

Relative f-stops f-stops marked on the camera’s aperture ring, as opposed to effective f-stops. Reproduction ratio The size of the image on film or sensor compared with its actual ’real-life’ size. Resolution An indication of the sharpness of images on a printout or the display screen. It is based on the number and density of the pixels used — the more pixels used in an image, the more detail can be seen and the higher the image’s resolution.

A popular form of flash memory card.

Snell’s window The circular arc visible on the undersurface of the water, caused by the effect of refraction. Spot metering A metering method based on a small circle in the centre of the viewfinder to calculate the best possible exposure. Stepless shutter speeds Infinite number of shutter speeds available on modern cameras. Stop An aperture setting that indicates the size of the lens opening. Stop down To decrease the size of the lens aperture. The opposite of open up.

509

Glossary

Teleconverter A device used to increase the effective focal length of a lens that consists of optical glass. It is mounted between the camera and the lens, and usually comes in two different sizes: 1.4 and 2.0. A 1.4 teleconverter increases the focal length by 1.4 times, while a 2.0 increases focal length by 2.0 times. Telephoto lens A lens that provides a narrow angle of view of a scene, including less of a scene than would a lens of normal focal length, and therefore magnifying objects in the image. Through-the-lens (TTL) metering Measuring exposure by a meter built into the camera body, which measures the intensity of light passing through the picture-taking lens.

Underexposure Exposing the film or sensor to less light than is needed to render the scene as the eye sees it. This results in too dark a photograph. Up rating Shooting film at more than the manufacturer’s suggested speed rating (e.g. exposing 400 ISO film as if 800 ISO). Viewpoint The position from which camera and photographer view the subject. Vignetting Progressively diminished illumination on the film from the centre to the corners. There are two kinds of vignetting: natural vignetting caused by the lens, and vignetting that is caused by improper use of accessories such as a lens hood or filter.

Thumbnail A low-resolution preview version of larger digital image files used to check before opening the full version.

VR (Vibration Reduction) The name which Nikon have given to there image stabilisation mechanism.

TIFF A popular lossless image format used in digital photography.

White balance An automatic or manual control that adjusts the brightest part of the scene so it looks white. Cameras have pre-set options, such as sunny, cloudy, flash, etc.

Time exposure exposure.

General term for a long-duration

Tone (subject matter) Tone can also refer to the mood of a picture. When the tone of a photograph is said to be ’dark’, then the subject matter and/or the way that the content is depicted can be emotional, complex, sometimes sad, confrontational and generally thought-provoking. Translucent Transmitting but at the same time also diffusing light (as with tracing paper).

510

Wide angle lens

See Short focal-length lens.

Zoom lens A lens that offers several lenses in one by allowing the focal length to be altered at will. The minimum and maximum focal lengths available are made clear by the way in which zoom lenses are described and labelled (e.g. 17 mm—35 mm).

Glossary

Scene mode icons for digital compact cameras Auto mode For taking snapshots without worrying about the mechanics of photography. This mode sets all exposure levels automatically and usually locks you out of making any adjustments manually.

Manual mode

This mode gives you total control. You set both shutter speed and aperture.

Aperture mode You set the aperture, your camera automatically provides the right shutter speed to deliver a correct exposure. Perhaps the most popular mode for underwater photographers.

Shutter mode This setting is your best option for moving subjects such as seals, mantas and fish. Shutter priority allows you to stop the action whilst the camera keeps the exposure matched to the aperture.

Program mode Similar to the Auto mode, this mode automatically sets aperture size and shutter speed for a perfect exposure, but it also lets you tweak settings, giving you more creative control. You can change white balance and exposure compensation, for instance, and even alter the shutter speed up or down a bit. Movie mode Many cameras let you record MPEG or QuickTime videos to the same memory card storing your photos. The videos aren’t sharp enough for DVD, but they’re good for email.

Macro mode To focus on extremely close subjects, within a few inches of the lens, choose the tulip. You can take life-size pictures of insects, flowers, and other small subjects in this mode, but the focus range at such distances is very narrow. Landscape mode Your camera picks the best aperture and shutter settings for the depth of field that you want when taking pictures of landscapes and other outdoor scenes.

Brightly coloured or glaring backgrounds can trick the camera into underexposing the subject. This mode overexposes the scene to gain details that would otherwise be lost.

Action Sports mode sets the camera to the highest possible shutter speed to catch fast action normally associated with sport.

Night This mode lets you photograph a night time scene by combining a flash, which freezes people in the foreground, with a slow shutter speed, which allows lights from buildings and other elements to show in the background.

511

Index 50 mm macro lens, 332 60 mm macro lens, 318, 332 105 mm macro lens, 318, 333, 336—7 200 mm macro lens, 318, 333 A1 servo AF for moving subjects (Canon), 106 Abstract art: close-up, 346—53 macro, 346—53 Accessibility and diving for photography, 155—9 Achromatic wet lenses, 357—8 Adobe Lightroom, xix, 485—6, 497, 498—9 Aluminium housings for SLR cameras, 128 Ambient light see natural light Amputations and composition underwater, 300—1 Angle finders for dive photography, 163 Angles of view for wrecks, 423—4 Apertures: description, 4—5 effective, 317 priority in SLR cameras, 85—7 shutter speeds, 7 Arms: flashguns, 259—63 wide angle, 260—3 Auto Focus Area Mode in SLR cameras, 106 Auto focus: close-up and macro, 314 lock with AE-L/AF-L button (Nikon), 107—8 SLR cameras, 104—9 Auto white balance (AWB) setting, 15—16 Available light see natural light Back up for workflow, 492 Backlighting and individual style, 479, 481 Backscatter, 153, 453 Balance and composition underwater, 296—8 Baseline and composition underwater, 299 Bit depth, 30 Black backgrounds: macro, 458 temperate waters, 458 wide angle shooting, 458—9

512

Blue water: backgrounds, 217 camera angles, 220—1 close-up, 327—8 macro, 328—31 shooting, 217—19 Bokeh (blur) technique, 332—9, 353, 453 Bow shot of wrecks, 428—9 Breaking the rules and composition underwater, 305 Breathing/buoyancy and super macro photography, 360 British Society of Underwater Photographers (BSOUP), 167, 464, 503 Built-in flash for digital compact cameras, 59—60 Bull’s eye effect, 285 Buoyancy: arms, 147 control, 149 one-to-one refreshers, 147 super macro photography, 360 ‘C’ continuous Servo AF (Nikon), 106 Cameras: compact, 5—6 digital compact, 57—80 exposure modes, 2—4 preparation for underwater photography, 171—3 SLR cameras, 81—124 tilting, 288—291 Canon: cameras, 62 exposure compensation, 94 full fame sensors, 52 housings, 65 lenses, 53 servos, 105, 106 Cathedral light in the sea, 235 Centering the subject, 285 Checkout dives, 148—9 Circles and composition underwater, 292—3 Close focus, wide angle shooting, 381—6 Close-up: abstract art, 346—53 arms for flashguns, 260 auto focus, 314 blue water, 327—8 blur (Bokeh), 332—9 digital compact cameras, 58—9, 67 filters, 356 fish, 340—5

flash positioning, 321 flashguns, 245—6, 321 lenses, 356 predictive focusing, 314—15 theory, 309—10 TTL flash, 321—2 two flashguns, 321 Closeness and models, 388—9 Closer and closer technique, 38—40 Cloudy conditions and white balance, 16 Collections for workflow, 497—8 Collision avoidance on reefs, 146 Colours: codes for images, 493 complementary, 295—6 composition underwater, 295—6 loss, 35—7 temperature, 15—17 water, 475 wheel, 296 Comfortable positions for dive photography, 160 Compact cameras: apertures, 5 digital scene mode icons, 511 law of thirds, 281—2 pelagics, 430—2 wrecks, 418 Compact image gallery (digital cameras), 76—80 Complementary colours and composition underwater, 295—6 Composition underwater: amputations, 300—1 balance, 296—8 baseline, 299 big is not always better, 304—5 breaking the rules, 305 centering the subject, 285 complementary colours, 295—6 curves/circles, 292—3 depth perspective, 294—5 dramatic diagonals, 286—8 enclosure, 292 eye contact, 301—2 focal point, 279—80 horizon line, 293—4 horizontal or vertical, 277—9 landscape or portrait, 277—9 law of thirds, 281—4 mergers, 299—300 orientation of housings, 285—6 simplicity, 302—3 tilting the camera, 288—91

Index

viewfinder decisions, 276 which way to view, 305 work, 276 wrecks, 423—4 Concentration for underwater photography, 174—6 Construction of SLR camera housings, 128—9 Coral: Bokeh technique, 339 distortion, 372 fan, 253—4, 304, 316, 381—2, 384—5 fire, 383 hard, 227, 261 inward lighting, 264 merger, 299 soft, 262, 331, 381—2, 384—5, 386 staghorn, 399 table, 266 wide angle shooting, 378—9 Crop factors: lenses, 51—2 SLR cameras, 110—11 Cropped sensors and SLR cameras, 110—11 Curves and composition underwater, 292—3 D of F see depth of field Dappled light photography, 150—1, 227—34 Daylight and white balance, 16 Depth: perspective and composition underwater, 294—5 rating in digital compact cameras, 63 Depth of field (D of F): Bokeh (blur) technique, 331 close-up, 311—12, 314 description, 8—11 digital compact cameras, 58 macro, 311—12, 314 wide angle shooting, 372—5 Develop module for workflow, 496 Diffraction and macro technique, 316—17 Diffusers for flashguns, 258—9 Digital compact cameras: built-in flash, 59—60 choice, 60—1, 62 close-up, 58—9, 67 depth of field, 58 depth rating, 63 exposure control, 61 filters, 72—4 flashguns flash power, 68—70 guide numbers, 68—70 settings, 70—2 focal lengths, 58 housing, 63, 64

ISO, 58 macro, 58—9 scene mode icons, 510—11 shutter lag, 60 video module, 60 viewing angles, 64 weight, 63 wet lenses supplementary, 64 wide angle, 66—7 white balance, 61—2 Digital evaluation of potential, 190 Digital focal lengths and lenses, 51 Digital noise, 12—13, 117 Dioptres (supplementary positive lenses), 356 Dioptres and wide angle shooting, 409—10 Distance and models, 387—8 Distortion in wide angle shooting, 370—1 Diving: accessibility, 155—9 check-out dives, 148—9 F8-1 metre, 152—4 gear in temperate waters, 451 light and models, 388 mask glass clarity, 170 photo body angles, 160—3 pre-planning, 150—1 reef protection, 141—7 DNG (digital negative), 27 Dramatic diagonals, 286—8 Duplicate ‘mirror’ of working drive, 492 Effective apertures, 317 Ektachrome EBX film, 476 Enclosure and composition underwater, 292 Environment underwater, 149 Existing light see natural light Exposure: camera modes, 2—4 compensation in SLR cameras, 94—5 description, 2 digital compact cameras, 61 SLR cameras, 83—93 wide angle shooting, 410 Eyes: contact and composition underwater, 301—2 shooting fish close-up, 340—1 training recognition of subjects, 177—8 wide angle shooting, 375—6 f numbers, 4—5 f8 maxim for dive photography, 152 f8/one metre maxim for dive photography, 152—4 Fast lenses, 55

Filters: close-up, 356 digital compact cameras, 72—4 neutral density, 410 Fisheye lenses, 52 Flash: close-up, 321 hand-held techniques for reefs, 146 macro, 321 natural light, 267—73 position, 194—5, 321 schooling fish, 403 temperate waters, 453 travel and backscatter, 153 TTL, 321—2 wrecks, 422 Flashguns: arms, xix, 259—63 balancing exposures, 258 close-up, 321 combinations, 258 diffusers, 258—9 digital compact cameras, 67—72 flatter your subject technique, 247—9 handheld techniques, 258 hotspots, 252—3 Inon, xix light in the sea, 245—66 macro, 321 one flash with close-up/macro, 245—6 one, 245 second flash, 256—7 set-up, 250—2 SLR camera housings, 137—8 theory, 252 two, 321 Fluorescent light and white balance, 16 Focal lengths: crop factor, 51 depth of field, 52—4 digital, 51 digital compact cameras, 58 lenses, 50 Focal point and composition underwater, 279—80 Focus mode selector in SLR cameras, 104 Focusing: split levels, 408 super macro photography, 359—60 Foregrounds differentiation, 474 Fujichrome RVP film, 476 Full frame sensors: lenses, 51—2 SLR cameras, 110—11 Golden rules and law of thirds, 281—4 Greenwater Magic Filter, 465—7

513

Index

Hand signals and models, 387 HDR (high dynamic range), 31—3 Histograms and SLR cameras, 112—15, 116—19 Holding camera housings, 285—6 Horizon line and composition underwater, 293—4 Horizon and tilting camera, 288 Horizontal or vertical and composition underwater, 277—9 Hotspots: flashguns, 252—3 inverse square law, 254—6 Housings: brands, 64 digital compact cameras, 63—4 holding, 285—6 Seacam, 413 SLR cameras, 125—40 Subal, xix Image depth see depth perspective Individual style of photography: backlighting, 479, 481 conclusions, 482 deciding to be different, 471—2 development, 470 editing, 480—1 education before innovation, 470—1 experimenting, 479—80 failure, 479—80 introduction, 469 macro, 477—9 pitfalls of being different, 480 wide angle shooting, 472—7 Inon flashguns, xix Intact view of wrecks, 423—4 Inverse square law and hotspots, 254-6 Inward lighting techniques, 264—6 ISO (International Standards Organisation): blue water, 217 description, 12—14 digital compact cameras, 58 digital noise, 117 filter photography, 465 flash settings, 70—1 macro, 308 sensors, 111 wide angle shooting, 460 JPEG files: description, 22—3, 27 RAW files comparison, 24—6 Landscape or portrait and composition underwater, 277—9 Law of thirds, 281—4 Layers approach and composition, 411, 414 LCD review screen, 179

514

Lenses: achromatic wet, 357—8 aperture in SLR cameras, 87 basics, 50 Canon, 53 close-up, 356 crop factors, 51—2 depth of field, 52—4 digital focal lengths, 51 fast, 55 fisheye, 52 focal lengths, 50, 52—4 full frame sensors, 51—2 image stabilisation, 55 longer focal lengths, 54 macro, 49, 311, 317—20, 325—6, 332-3, 458 Nikon, 53—4, 200 pelagics, 430 port, 134—5 prime, 54 schooling fish, 403 slow, 55 SLR cameras, 369—70 SLR macro, 316 supplementary positive, 356—7 vibration reduction, 55 wet, 64—6 wide angle, 49 wide angle shooting, 368—71, 375 zoom, 54 Light: blue water, 217—19, 220—1 cathedral light, 235 dappled light, 227—34 flashguns, 245—66 inward lighting techniques, 264—6 loss, 35—7 Magic Filter, 241—4 natural light description, 217 flash, 267—73 Magic Filter, 239—44 refraction, 34, 236 silhouettes, 235—8 sunbursts, 222—7 ‘think and consider’ system, 215 wrecks, 419—23, 422 Lightroom 2 graduated filter tool, 410 Lightroom see Adobe Lightroom Live view with SLR cameras, 123 Loss: colour, 35—7 light, 35—7 Luminosity histogram, 113 Macro: abstract art, 346—53 arms for flashguns, 260 auto focus, 314 black backgrounds, 458

blue water, 328—31 centering the subject, 285 depth of field, 311—12 diffraction, 316—17 digital compact cameras, 58—9 effective apertures, 317 flashguns, 245—6 individual style of photography, 477—9 introduction, 307—8 lenses, 49, 311, 317—20, 325—6, 332—3, 458 ‘limit’ switch, 320 metering, 317 predictive focusing, 314—15 wide angle shooting, 437—9 Magic Filter (MF): Greenwater, 465—6 light in the sea, 241—4 natural light, 239—44 pre-planning, 151 shooting down, 48 temperate waters, 465—6 white balance, 465 wrecks, 425 Magnifying optics for SLR camera housings, 130 Manual exposure mode for SLR cameras, 90—3 Manual white balance and wrecks, 425 Matrix metering, 96—8 Memory cards: editing in camera, 29 formatting, 29 lifespan, 28—9 size, 28 Mergers and composition underwater, 299—300 Metering: Macro, 317 SLR cameras, 96—103 Motion blur technique, 398 Natural light: flash, 267—73 Magic Filter, 239—44 RAW files, 221 sea, 217 Snell’s window, 240 summary, 244 temperate waters, 453 wide angle shooting, 460 Naudibranch, 297 ND (neutral density) filters, 410 Negative space: land photography, 179 photo, 181—90 underwater photography, 179—90 Nikon: AF Zoom-Macro 70—180 mm lenses, 318

Index

auto focus lock, 107—9 cameras, xix exposure compensation, 94 full frame sensors, 52 lenses, 53—4, 200 sensors, 110—11 servos, 105, 106 SLR cameras, 90, 92, 95 Zoom lenses, 318 One metre maxim for dive photography, 152 One-to-one refreshers buoyancy refreshers, 147 Organising images, 493—6 Orientation of housings, 285—6 Over/under splits photography, 151 Panning and slow shutter speeds, 395—6 Patience in underwater photography, 204—5 Peak of action in underwater photography, 206—10 Pelagics: compact cameras, 430—2 equipment, 430 SLR cameras lenses, 432—4 lighting, 433—6 Perfect world and wide angle shooting, 411—13 Photo body angles, 160—3 Photoshop CS4 graduated filter tool, 410 Pointers: reef photography, 145 temperate waters, 451—2 Polymer housings for SLR cameras, 128 Portrait or landscape and composition underwater, 277—9 Ports: lenses, 134—5 SLR cameras, 133—7 Pre-planning for dives, 150—1 Preset function for white balance, 16—17 Prime lenses, 54 Radial light see cathedral light RAW files: advantages, 26 current techniques, 118—19 description, 22—3 disadvantages, 26 histograms, 117, 118—19 JPEG comparison, 24—6 natural light, 221 not opening, 26—7 white balance, 18—21

Reasons for underwater photography, 213 Reefs: collision avoidance, 146 flash hand-held techniques, 146 pointer, 145 protection, 141—2 searching for, 178 subject accessibility, 143 two-finger technique, 144 underwater camera setups, 146 Refraction of light, 34, 236 RGB histogram, 114 Routines for underwater photography, 173 Schooling fish: disorganisation, 400 flash, 403 lenses and techniques, 403 lighting, 403 underwater art, 400—2 wide angle shooting, 400—7 Sea: conditions in temperate waters, 451—2 cucumber, 44 lions, 433, 454, 463 Searching for reefs, 178 Seascape vistas, 48 Shade and white balance, 16 Shape of histogram, 114—15 Shipwrecks see wrecks Shooting down: exceptions, 44 eye contact, 48 Magic Filter, 48 psychology, 43 seascape vistas, 48 subjects, 45—6, 47 visual orientation of horizon, 44—5 wrecks, 48 Shot number, 147 Shutters: lag, 283 lag in digital compact cameras, 60 priority in SLR cameras, 88—9 release and wide angle shooting, 375 speeds aperture, 7 description, 6 wide angle shooting, 395—9 Silhouettes: capture, 235 exposure, 235 shape, 236 Snell’s window, 236—8 Simplicity and composition underwater, 302—3 Single Lens Reflex see SLR

Size of digital compact cameras, 63 Slow lenses, 55 Slow shutter speeds: panning, 395—6 wide angle shooting, 395—9 SLR (Single Lens Reflex) cameras: 105 mm Macro Lens, 318 auto focus underwater A1 servo AF for moving subjects (Canon), 106 Auto Focus Area Mode, 106—7 Auto Focus Lock with AE-L/AF-L button (Nikon), 107—9 ‘C’ continuous Servo AF with Nikon, 106 focus mode selector, 104 ‘M’ manual focus, 104—5 ‘One Shot AF’, 105—6 ‘S’ single servo AF with Nikon, 105—6 compacts comparison, 81 crop sensors v. full frame sensors comparison, 111 cropped sensors, 110—11 exposure modes aperture priority, 85—7 compensation, 94—5 description, 83 lens aperture, 87 manual, 90—3 shutter priority, 88—9 underwater, 84—5 full frame sensors, 110—11 histograms dynamic range, 116 height, 113—15 highlights, 112—13 RAW files, 117, 118—19 underwater, 118 housings choice, 126—7 construction, 128—9 features, 139 flashguns, 137—8 future, 139—40 magnifying optics, 130 orientation, 285—6 ports, 133—7 viewfinders, 129—30, 131—3 image overlay, 120—2 law of thirds, 281—2 lenses, 320, 369—70 live view, 123 macro, 307, 320 metering current techniques, 102—3 matrix, 96—8 spot, 98—101 Nikon, 90, 92—3, 95, 100—1 pelagics lenses, 432—3

515

Index

SLR (Single Lens Reflex) cameras (continued ) lighting, 433—6 topside (land) photography, 1—3 viewfinder dioptre adjustment, 124 wrecks, 418 Snell’s law, 236 Snell’s window: curves and circles, 292 natural light, 240 silhouettes, 236—8 wide angle shooting, 459 Software for workflow, 484 Speeds: shutter, 6, 395—9 synchronisation, 6 Split levels and wide angle shooting, 408, 416 Spot metering underwater, 98—101 Stacking images, 493 Star ratings for images, 493 Subal: elbow, 147 housings, xix Subjects: centering, 285 potential, 182 selection, 177—9 super macro photography, 359 through viewfinder technique, 359 touching, poking and moving, 147 wrecks, 420—3 Sunbursts and light in the sea, 222—7, 269, 461 Super macro photography: breathing/buoyancy, 360 extension tubes, 354—5 focusing, 359—60 subjects, 359 subjects through viewfinder, 359 supplementary positive lenses, 356—7 techniques, 357 teleconverters, 355 tools, 354 Synchronisation speeds, 6 Tanks: position, 149 weight, 148—9 Teleconverters, 355, 439 Temperate climate on Earth, 450 Temperate waters: black backgrounds, 458 concentration, 451 distractions, 451 lenses, 458—60

516

lighting, 453—8 Magic Filter, 465—6 models, 460 sea conditions, 451—2 weather, 451—2 ‘Think and consider’ (TC) system: close-up and macro, 337 composition, 199—200 light in the sea, 215 mindset, 167—70 patience, 204 Touching, poking and moving subjects, 147 TTL flash, 321—2 Tungsten light and white balance, 16 Two-finger technique for reefs, 144 Underwater art and schooling fish, 400—2 Vertical or horizontal and composition underwater, 277—9 Vibration reduction (VR) lenses, 55 Video module for digital compact cameras, 60 Viewfinders: decisions and composition underwater, 276 SLR cameras dioptre adjustment, 124 housings, 129—30, 131—3 wide angle shooting, 412—17 VR see vibration reduction Wave action, 415 Weather in temperate waters, 451—2 Weight: digital compact cameras, 63 tanks, 148—9 Wet lenses for digital compact cameras, 64—6 Wetpixel, 502 White balance (WB): auto, 15—16 cloudy conditions, 16 daylight, 16 description, 15 digital compact cameras, 61—2 fluorescent light, 16 Magic Filter, 465 preset function, 16—17 RAW files, 18—21 shade, 16 tungsten light, 16 Wide angle lenses: arms, 260—3 fisheye, 52

reasons for use, 375 shooting, 368—71, 375 tilt, 291 uses, 49, 52 wet, 64 Wide angle shooting: black backgrounds, 458—9 close focus, 381—6 concept, 367—9 depth of field, 372—5 dioptres, 409—10 distortion, 370—1 exposure, 410 eye training, 375—6 individual style of photography, 472—7 layers approach and composition, 411, 414 lenses, 368—71, 375 Lightroom 2 graduated filter tool, 410 looking and seeing, 376—80 macro, 437—9 models, 387—94 neutral density filters, 410 pelagics, 429—46 perfect world, 411—13 Photoshop CS4 graduated filter tool, 410 schooling fish, 400—7 shutter release, 375 slow shutter speeds, 395—9 split levels, 408, 416 TTL flash, 321—2 viewfinder, 412—17 water droplets, 408—9 ‘wow’ factor, 440—8 wrecks, 418—28 Workflow: Adobe Lightroom, 485—6, 497, 498—9 back up, 492 collections, 497—8 conclusions, 499 develop module, 496 duplicate ‘mirror’ of working drive, 492 exporting files from Adobe Lightroom, 498—9 image file management, 484—5 library module: import, 486—91, 497 organising images, 493—6 software, 484 Zoom lenses, 54, 318