Northern Ireland viz.

A few photos showing our less than ideal viz ( less than 1m ).

These were taken when I first started u/w photography 6 months ago.

Any advice welcome.

Cheers,

Dave.

wreckferretuk

www.digigreen.net

Hey Dave!

Its tempting to say "move"..... but then I live in Macclesfield.

It is tough in the UK where there are not too many life form readings underwater, but you might like to try getting yourself into a position where you are not shooting down on the subject. An up-angle often produces an image with a bit more impact. But tough, I know, in the UK.

are you kidding !!

I live in the Netherlands, and went for a diving holiday to Scotland 3 times (and a little trip when i lived there). Granted that Scapa flow was twice a major attraction, but there is life enough.

cheers,

Gerry

Some advice when shooting in low visibility (my case too in tropical Singapore...):

1. Get close.

2. Get closer.

3. Closer still... almost there...

4. Use a larger aperture and smaller strobe output to minimise backscatter. Works best in combination with advice 1 to 3

5. Angle your strobes more than you normally would, and aim slightly behind your subject (less light/backscatter will bounce back from there).

6. If shooting wide angle, try shooting shallow (5-10m), and with filters to avoid backscatter.

7. When using autofocus, make sure the focus locks on your subject, not the particles in front of your lens. If so, refer to steps 1, 2 and 3

Cheers,

Mat

Hi Matt

Does large aperture help to remove backscatter simply because of reduced depth of field?

That's part of the reason. It also helps reduce your strobe output: less light = less backscatter. Aiming behind the subject at an angle also helps a lot. Good luck for Tuesday's dives