A serious beginner....seriously!

hi! I live in BC and want to start taking underwater photos. Obviously getting certified in scuba is a must and I'm all lined up to do that this spring. What about after that? Is there somewhere in BC (specifically around vancouver area) where I can get underwater photo lessons? Do I need to get a completely new camera or just buy a 'house'? Is underwater photography expensive as a hobby? I really apprieciate any answers I can get. Thank you.

-A drowning crayon

hi! I live in BC and want to start taking underwater photos. Obviously getting certified in scuba is a must and I'm all lined up to do that this spring. What about after that? Is there somewhere in BC (specifically around vancouver area) where I can get underwater photo lessons? Do I need to get a completely new camera or just buy a 'house'? Is underwater photography expensive as a hobby? I really apprieciate any answers I can get. Thank you.

-A drowning crayon

Yup it can be (is) expensive (not sure of what your budget or expensive means though to you), and you will need a housing and other thing, such as strobes, over time. (What camera do you have?)

The first thing before anything else is get your diving skills down prior to adding other things, such as cameras, to the mix. Really very important to do so.

Sometimes when I haul my gear everywhere, wish I never decided to take photos or video underwater, but of course once I start shooting I remember why I haul my toys

welcome to the board Crayon.

Are you in Vancouver? If so, we have a dedicated area here for the Underwater Photographic Society of BC, they host their meetings in Vancouver.

I would suggest dropping into their next meeting and talking to folks face to face, they will be able to give you some great info.

Here is the thread with the next meeting details:

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showt...view=getnewpost

I agree. Local UPSes are a great resource and will give you scheduled, regular learning time.

And if Mike Veitch wants to video conference in, it will be a bonus. Of course, his connection will only allow him to send one frame of video each day...

Given the conditions here, you really want to start out by perfecting your skills as a diver, long before considering lugging photo equipment. My first recommendation to you is that you learn to dive in a drysuit, and invest in your own dive gear before investing in underwater photo equipment. Those that do not own their gear tend to not stick with it in these cold waters: it's just too difficut to get a rental drysuit that fits. I dove my first 100 dives in a wetsuit, and I can attest hypothermia is not fun!

Once you can handle your bouyancy, currents, the cold and actually taking the time to look at what's down there (beginners tend to zoom by everything at first), than start with something compact, but versatile. Switching to a housing was a learning experience in itself in these waters: it took me a while to get used to the weight and size, and there are times I crave a nice small system, particularly when there's current.

That being said, the diving here is world class (particularly on Vancouver Island), and well worth the effort and $$ to explore.

If you PM me, I can recommend some excellent facilties for training.

Cheers,

Marli