Problem w/Fuji S2 and 14mm WA

Hello,

I am addressing Pakclu's problem with his Fuji S2 and 14mm WA shots from Cozumel. I thought a new thread was in order since we went from discussing 105mm macro to 14mm WA. (hope I didn't offend anyone - just wanted maximize response to Pakclu's question)

Pakclu,

Which F stops did the camera use while in Program mode? Could it have been a problem with the lens itself? Did you shoot any land shots with it?

I agree with Jimbo. Don't trust the camera's Program Auto mode underwater. Seems to work great on land though.

I had some focussing problems with the 14mm on my last trip due to some housing problems. I couldn't chage the aperture below 30 ft. I would have liked to increase the F stop in the attached photo in order to focus closer. (correct me if I'm wrong). I really like this picture except that the turtle is out of focus in the foreground. It was shot at F 5.6 at 1/60. I was wondering if your problems were related to camera settings.

As for strobe placement with the 60mm, I placed my single strobe up directly over the housing angled down at about a foot in front of the port. This seemed to have worked for me. I'll play with different positions as I become more experienced (dirty minds!! )

John

A lot of people i know who use hand hold their strobe arms, and therefore are constantly having to check their strobe aiming, attach small torches to the strobes to that they know exactly where they are pointing when they take the shot. This is a solution that works for many people. Alex

Hi John,

Even at f8 or f11 there's no guarentee that you would be able to get the turtle in focus (you probably can). Welcome to the world of balanced lighting wideangle - it's not easy.

The depth of field as a general rule is 1/3 in front of your subject, and 2/3 behind it. So if possible, it's a good idea to focus on the front subject and hope that the stuff behind is sufficiently in focus. Wideangle is a balancing game. Subjects that are out of focus but are behind your main subject usually look OK, whereas the converse is not true.

Cheers

James Wiseman