Reef Creep

In the October post I discussed my first rule of underwater photography – maintain your o-rings. This month, I’ll delve into my second rule which merges nicely with good diving practices – swim slowly and use your buddy as a critter spotter.

Swimming slowly, painfully slow to the non-photographer, provides you an opportunity to discover the most elusive creatures on a reef. The key word in the sentence is “opportunity” since creeping along a dive site does not guarantee you’ll find any interesting marine life. The unique critters may simply not be in the immediate area or you may be plagued by the dreadful “camouflage cataracts.” Numerous friends can tell you how I regularly fail to see fish right in front of my face, throw my hands in the air and yell “where” through my regulator. A prescription mask is not the solution. In Fiji, my buddy and a dive guide had to practically put my finger on a ghost pipefish two feet away. I protested over the tiny size of the pipefish, but I didn’t have any excuse for almost bumping into a cantaloupe-sized frogfish in Sulawesi. The trick is to focus on finding shapes, mouths and eyes. Knowing the types of coral preferred by specific creatures can be found by perusing Paul Humann’s fish identification books.

Swimming at a deliberate pace not only assists you in finding nudibranchs and other wonderful creatures, but it conserves your air supply. The downside to swimming very slowly, though, is certain dive buddies may become inpatient. You can overcome a buddy’s frustration by sending them a little bit ahead in a scout role and announcing their discoveries to everyone back on the dive boat. Dive buddies can also fulfill the role of underwater “goon & light boom.” A strategically positioned partner can either keep less than courteous divers from wrecking your shot or illuminate an area from an interesting angle with an extra flashlight. I’ve found spending a few dollars to enlarge an image for a buddy after a trip is a great way to secure their help in the future.

The best scenario is to pair-up with another photographer, agree on rotating the first shot and allow your respective buddies to act as spotters. I swam with another photographer in Sulawesi while his wife and my three friends scoured the volcanic muck for marine life. The four pairs of eyes we had in front of us found a tremendous amount of weird creatures. At the end of the dives I was exhausted from racing between photo-opts.

New Diver, New Camera

Newly certified divers often ask me the best way to begin underwater photography. Usually the questions focus on equipment and arise immediately after I give someone a camera to use in the pool or lake during training. “Should I purchase a housing for my Nikon before heading to Belize?”

My first recommendation is to become at ease in the ocean and develop reasonable buoyancy skills before strapping a camera to your wrist. At a minimum, spend the first few dives of your trip getting comfortable with the environment, above and below the water, and your basic equipment. I typically leave the camera in the room for the first day of trip to ensure my regulator, jacket, weights, wetsuit etc. are all properly functioning and observe how the crew on the dive boat handles cameras. More importantly, the routine between arriving at my destination, checking-in, unpacking and boarding the dive boat is normally a busy process. I avoid the additional stress of trying to assemble my camera & strobe arms in just a few minutes. This guidance can be applied to any new diving situation. If you’re drift diving for the first time, my suggestion is to leave the camera on the boat. A few years ago, a student returned from vacation very upset because he lost a new camera system trying to follow a dive guide through a series of swim-throughs.

My second recommendation is to focus on taking basic snapshots of the marine life. Build your approach, buoyancy, framing and lighting skills on easy subjects like passing barracuda, schools of grunts or grey angelfish. Starting your foray into underwater photography by attempting to capture a bouncing spotted drum under a tight ledge or a macro image of a juvenile trunkfish isn’t the best path. Beyond frustration, you will probably damage the coral and create a cloud of backscatter for yourself and other photographers.

My third recommendation is to invest in a point & shoot system that includes the camera, housing and strobe all in one package. The cost of most complete point & shoot packages is roughly the same as the housing for a sophisticated digital camera. The features of point & shoot cameras are continually improving and with a little practice you can create pictures that rival the most expensive arrangements. I still use point & shoot cameras for a few reasons.

• In my carry-on bag I can pack two cameras, two housings, three decent-sized strobes and still have room for my regulator, mask and other travel necessities. The average-sized bag is deceptively heavy, but no one has ever checked the weight. Toting a hard case for a larger camera system through an airport can be a hassle. Moreover, if you check a locked case your luggage fees increase along with the risk of a lost bag.


• Most divers can only afford one of the high-end cameras. Opting for a little less functionality allows me to purchase back-up components in case a housing or strobe fails.


• The larger the camera systems can be cumbersome to manage underwater especially in a current. I can also place, or take, my rig into tight spaces without any major adjustments.

Equipment envy is an easy trap to fall into around the camera table on a dive boat. Remember, it is not about the gear, but who gets the shot of the inverted, mating hammerheads.

Bonaire Report

Exactly one month ago, I was just finishing my first day of diving in Bonaire. After sorting through a few hundred images over the last few weeks my finally tally is three "wall worthy" pictures and a few other good shots. Most importantly, I finally captured a close-up of an eagle ray, wings up, after years of unsuccessful attempts.

Bonaire is a great destination for either budding or seasoned underwater shutter bugs. Light/non-existent currents, the ability to select a site and pursue any dive plan provide provide the opportunity to set-up on a subject for practice or create the perfect image. The shore diving option eliminates the quick shots and time constraints typically encountered by photographers with divemaster-led boat dives. In addition, photographers do not have to contend with the backscatter causing fin kicks of other divers. On one dive, I spent thirty minutes with a chain moray.

O-ring Cleaning:

I'm fanatical about cleaning, greasing and inspecting my o-rings. Every time I open my camera I meticulously prepare the o-ring. In my opinion, o-ring maintenance is the first rule of underwater photography. A guest in Bonaire with a brand new camera failed to reinstall the o-ring one evening and didn't check for any housing leaks in the dunk tank on day two of his trip. Unfortunately, he discovered the error after descending to about twenty feet.

Please post your comments, questions, favorite shots, equipment tips and any special approaches you may use on some of our shy ocean friends.

Coming soon... Tim's U/W Photography Blog

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