Underwater digital photography?
- Thread starter Crit21
- Start date
Crit21
Active member
Probably not scuba. Last time I did that was 17 years ago in Cancun and my sinuses felt like exploding afterward.
We'll be doing a lot of snorkeling all around the Hawaiian coast (the big island). We're staying with a friend who said we'll see a ton of corals, fish and turtles--and a fair share of sharks. I have a Sony Cybership 6 megapixel--small but really nice pics. I just hope it has image stabilization when the sharks swim by.
We'll be doing a lot of snorkeling all around the Hawaiian coast (the big island). We're staying with a friend who said we'll see a ton of corals, fish and turtles--and a fair share of sharks. I have a Sony Cybership 6 megapixel--small but really nice pics. I just hope it has image stabilization when the sharks swim by.
rmougey
Chair, MACNA 2014
Stay away from those zip-lock looking bags.....
As mentioned earlier, both Canon and Sony make plastic housings for their cameras. They range in price from $150-$400 and generally work fairly well for quick pictures. But don't expect to get much closer than 18" to the subject and that little flash in your camera can't put out enough light to light up that entire shark. They can be fun though, if you understand their limitations.
You can bump their performance up a notch by getting an underwater strobe (a water proof external flash) and attaching it to your camera. Sea & Sea and Ikelite make small inexpensive ($200+) strobes that can mount to your point and shoot camera housing. If you are comfortable with setting exposure levels and f-stops, then you can create some really nice photos using a small digital camera and a small strobe.
If you want to get serious about doing underwater pictures, plan on spending $3000-$5000 to get started using some of the new 8-10Mpixel DSLRs that are on the market. It's like fish tanks... do you want to keep a Niger Trigger in a 29 or do you want a reef in a 300?
If your goal is to have fun, get a housing and play. The nice thing about digital is that you get to see your mistakes immediately!
-Rob
As mentioned earlier, both Canon and Sony make plastic housings for their cameras. They range in price from $150-$400 and generally work fairly well for quick pictures. But don't expect to get much closer than 18" to the subject and that little flash in your camera can't put out enough light to light up that entire shark. They can be fun though, if you understand their limitations.
You can bump their performance up a notch by getting an underwater strobe (a water proof external flash) and attaching it to your camera. Sea & Sea and Ikelite make small inexpensive ($200+) strobes that can mount to your point and shoot camera housing. If you are comfortable with setting exposure levels and f-stops, then you can create some really nice photos using a small digital camera and a small strobe.
If you want to get serious about doing underwater pictures, plan on spending $3000-$5000 to get started using some of the new 8-10Mpixel DSLRs that are on the market. It's like fish tanks... do you want to keep a Niger Trigger in a 29 or do you want a reef in a 300?
If your goal is to have fun, get a housing and play. The nice thing about digital is that you get to see your mistakes immediately!
-Rob
Crit21
Active member
It appears Sony only makes cases for a limited set of cameras. Regardless, this will be just a week long trip, so going whole-hog is not a cost effective option. It's unlikely I'll be repeating the experience very soon (although my daughters want a 5-year-overdue vacation cruise in the spring to warm waters). I'll probably have to rent if I want quality underwater digital pics.
COreefer
Premium Member
You wll have a ton of natural light at snorkeling depths...don't worry about a flash. Just find the proper setting for your camera and if the case manufacturer makes a red filter that fits your case then invest in this also.
I disagree with rob that you have to invest thousands to take good quality pictures...and comparing UW photography to reefkeeping is outrageous IMO.
The pic in my avatar was taken at 50 ft with a canon A70. Some of the pics I took in Egypt in my gallery were taken with the same camera after I added a red filter to it. Knowing the settings, using a red filter and understanding the effects your flash has UW will go along way in enabling good picture taking.
I disagree with rob that you have to invest thousands to take good quality pictures...and comparing UW photography to reefkeeping is outrageous IMO.
The pic in my avatar was taken at 50 ft with a canon A70. Some of the pics I took in Egypt in my gallery were taken with the same camera after I added a red filter to it. Knowing the settings, using a red filter and understanding the effects your flash has UW will go along way in enabling good picture taking.
