Recently, I had two conversations at the shop with customers interested in pursuing underwater photography. Both people were newly certified divers getting ready to embark upon their first salt water adventures and willing to spend around two hundred dollars.
My initial suggestion to the customers was to simply enjoy the dives while becoming familiar with the equipment, buoyancy, environment, etc. I asked them, “Why do you want to add an additional, unfamiliar task to an entirely new experience?” My second piece of advice was to forget underwater photography unless they were willing to invest at least five hundred dollars in a “starter kit” that included a camera and strobe. Moreover, any money they were considering spending on a camera should first be applied to a regulator, computer or jacket.
One gentleman was interested in only purchasing a camera and adding a strobe in the future. I had to remind him how the spectrum of colors will begin to dissipate as soon as his head goes under the waves. I said, “Remember ROYGBIV? All your pictures will be blue & green without a light source.” He mentioned his exceptional skills with Photoshop, which made me cringe. I’m not certain how effective the latest version of Photoshop is in massive color correction, but I’m not a proponent of excessive touch-up. (More on the subject in a future post.)
The other customer asked about putting his high-end Nikon SLR in an underwater housing. This option exists, but the price of custom camera housings are well beyond five hundred dollars. When we began discussing strobes, he asked about just using ambient lighting. In ten to fifteen feet of water sunshine can be a wonderful light source. Below the safety stop level, however, sunlight can only play a secondary role in illuminating a subject.
Both customers followed my final comment. If you’re not ready to commit finances, and occasionally frustration, to underwater photography, hire a local photographer to follow you around for a 2-tank trip. Ask the boat crew for a recommendation. You’ll get better images than anything you could do on your own with a new camera for a fraction of the cost and no hassles. I still have a picture the photographer took of me on my second ocean dive hanging on my wall.
My initial suggestion to the customers was to simply enjoy the dives while becoming familiar with the equipment, buoyancy, environment, etc. I asked them, “Why do you want to add an additional, unfamiliar task to an entirely new experience?” My second piece of advice was to forget underwater photography unless they were willing to invest at least five hundred dollars in a “starter kit” that included a camera and strobe. Moreover, any money they were considering spending on a camera should first be applied to a regulator, computer or jacket.
One gentleman was interested in only purchasing a camera and adding a strobe in the future. I had to remind him how the spectrum of colors will begin to dissipate as soon as his head goes under the waves. I said, “Remember ROYGBIV? All your pictures will be blue & green without a light source.” He mentioned his exceptional skills with Photoshop, which made me cringe. I’m not certain how effective the latest version of Photoshop is in massive color correction, but I’m not a proponent of excessive touch-up. (More on the subject in a future post.)
The other customer asked about putting his high-end Nikon SLR in an underwater housing. This option exists, but the price of custom camera housings are well beyond five hundred dollars. When we began discussing strobes, he asked about just using ambient lighting. In ten to fifteen feet of water sunshine can be a wonderful light source. Below the safety stop level, however, sunlight can only play a secondary role in illuminating a subject.
Both customers followed my final comment. If you’re not ready to commit finances, and occasionally frustration, to underwater photography, hire a local photographer to follow you around for a 2-tank trip. Ask the boat crew for a recommendation. You’ll get better images than anything you could do on your own with a new camera for a fraction of the cost and no hassles. I still have a picture the photographer took of me on my second ocean dive hanging on my wall.
