my first shot....

Been diving for many years and finally have taken the plunge into uw photography. After some research purchase my gear this winter (Canon T2i/Aquatica) .My photo taking experience is next to nil.

Most of my photography will be wide angle wreck (ambient light until I can afford strobes) in the Great Lakes and St.Lawrence.

Comments appreciated.

Andy

Ontario, Canada

Canon T2i

Aquatica

Tokina 11-16mm

Location: St. Lawrence River

Subject : Wreck of the Conestoga

Depth : 25ft

Water temp : freezing!!

Equipment : Canon T2i/Aquatica

Lens : Tokina 11/16mm

Manual mode, Jpeg/Raw

ISO : 400

Post processing: Lightroom

Been diving for many years and finally have taken the plunge into uw photography.

Cha ching Andy looks good for the first shot. You maybe able to bring out some more detail under the wreck with some tweaks. Always worthwhile to play with settings in LR just to get used to what they do and how you can change things. Also playing with crops.

What were the settings in addition to the ISO? Some banding on the shot, could be the JPEG processing. Something to keep in mind is the ISOs on some Canons (not sure if it is all of them, such as the T2i) work better at different ISOs. There have been different things on the internet about it, but could not pull the posts from WP right now. ISO on Canon

Hey Drew..

Thanks for the comments.

Here are some of the other settings:

Aperture:f 2.8

ISO : 400

exposure: 1/40

focal length: 16mm

Metering: Center Weighted Average

Manual

I also used an 8 inch dome port with shade. I didnt do much with LR other than select one of the default BW settings. I really like BW pictures. I intend to study up on LR, but I do not want to depend on it too much.

Andy

Cha ching Andy looks good for the first shot. You maybe able to bring out some more detail under the wreck with some tweaks. Always worthwhile to play with settings in LR just to get used to what they do and how you can change things. Also playing with crops.

 

What were the settings in addition to the ISO? Some banding on the shot, could be the JPEG processing. Something to keep in mind is the ISOs on some Canons (not sure if it is all of them, such as the T2i) work better at different ISOs. There have been different things on the internet about it, but could not pull the posts from WP right now. ISO on Canon

Hi Andy!

Welcome to Wetpixel!

If only I would of had my first shot as good as this...

Personally I'm not the biggest fan of wreck shots, neither I like divers often figurating in UW shots. But in this case I think a diver with a torch light, hovering next to the propeller, would add a lot!

Secondly, You can really do a lot with good RAW processing in LR. I dont think the question is wether You'll become to dependent on it or not, rather are You interested of useing a powerful tool like LR in Your progress of becoming a better photographer. I learned a lot (during post processing in LR) about how to shoot better in the first place

Keep up the good work and be sure to share You'r shots with us.

Cheers

Karel

Thanks for the comments.

I will definitely spend some more time on LR experimenting with the exposure and ISO to see what happens and then maybe incorporate it on the dive.

I also want to start bracketing the shot with different settings. Still trying to figure out how to do it on the camera.

I will mostly be doing wreck shots since there is not much else. This particular wreck is in shallow water and a very easy dive. I am thinking of using a tripod to see if I can play with some longer exposures. I am a fan of Leigh Bishop wreck photography and I want to continue to shoot with ambient light as much as possible.

Still have alot to learn but i am not in a hurry. So far it has been great fun.

Here is another shot. The visibility wasnt that great and I played with the exposure in LR.

Thanks everyone.

Andy

Hi Andy!

 

Welcome to Wetpixel!

If only I would of had my first shot as good as this...

 

Personally I'm not the biggest fan of wreck shots, neither I like divers often figurating in UW shots. But in this case I think a diver with a torch light, hovering next to the propeller, would add a lot!

 

Secondly, You can really do a lot with good RAW processing in LR. I dont think the question is wether You'll become to dependent on it or not, rather are You interested of useing a powerful tool like LR in Your progress of becoming a better photographer. I learned a lot (during post processing in LR) about how to shoot better in the first place

 

Keep up the good work and be sure to share You'r shots with us.

 

Cheers

Karel

Leigh uses really long exposures to get his signature effects. He shoots from low down and off the wreck in many cases. The classical advice is to shoot downwards with the sun over your shoulder, generating a plan or oblique view of the wreck, but Leigh is much more creative than that.

You might want to try converting from the RAW file into monochrome rather than using the camera's algorithm (although I have actually found the Nikon algorithm to work pretty well in camera), using the green channel preferentially, then maximising the tonal range in levels or the equivalent.

I have tried working with shapes, so having a really good viewfinder is important, especially when including distant parts of the wreck in shot. Looking around rather than shooting from the hip (even better: planning the shot and visualising it before the dive) improves your chances of success.

Putting your dive buddy in shot is bit of a cliche, but it still helps!

You may not believe us, but compared to a lot of our first attempts, you're doing really well!! And play with camera on the surface: not only do the images put wrecks and dives in context, but it's the only way to really understand what your camera and lenses are doing.

Tim

Thanks for the comments and suggestions Tim.

I am lucky in that this wreck is right in front of my house so that I can practice .

I would like to take a longer exposure shot but will need a tripod.

Thanks again for the comments.

Andy

Leigh uses really long exposures to get his signature effects. He shoots from low down and off the wreck in many cases. The classical advice is to shoot downwards with the sun over your shoulder, generating a plan or oblique view of the wreck, but Leigh is much more creative than that.

 

You might want to try converting from the RAW file into monochrome rather than using the camera's algorithm (although I have actually found the Nikon algorithm to work pretty well in camera), using the green channel preferentially, then maximising the tonal range in levels or the equivalent.

 

I have tried working with shapes, so having a really good viewfinder is important, especially when including distant parts of the wreck in shot. Looking around rather than shooting from the hip (even better: planning the shot and visualising it before the dive) improves your chances of success.

 

Putting your dive buddy in shot is bit of a cliche, but it still helps!

 

You may not believe us, but compared to a lot of our first attempts, you're doing really well!! And play with camera on the surface: not only do the images put wrecks and dives in context, but it's the only way to really understand what your camera and lenses are doing.

 

Tim

 

I saw this five years ago, and have been planning to go back and shoot it for most of that time: I took four or five dives and a flooded camera to learn the technique, and shot about twenty versions on the day:

I do find wrecks addictive, especially when they are dissolving into the sea. This, by the way, is a remnant of Jaques Cousteau's Conshelf II project, abandoned in the Red Sea. It makes some of the points behind including a diver in the image.

Keep getting your camera wet (well, its housing, anyway)!

Tim

Leigh uses really long exposures to get his signature effects. He shoots from low down and off the wreck in many cases. The classical advice is to shoot downwards with the sun over your shoulder, generating a plan or oblique view of the wreck, but Leigh is much more creative than that.

 

You might want to try converting from the RAW file into monochrome rather than using the camera's algorithm (although I have actually found the Nikon algorithm to work pretty well in camera), using the green channel preferentially, then maximising the tonal range in levels or the equivalent.

 

I have tried working with shapes, so having a really good viewfinder is important, especially when including distant parts of the wreck in shot. Looking around rather than shooting from the hip (even better: planning the shot and visualising it before the dive) improves your chances of success.

 

Putting your dive buddy in shot is bit of a cliche, but it still helps!

 

You may not believe us, but compared to a lot of our first attempts, you're doing really well!! And play with camera on the surface: not only do the images put wrecks and dives in context, but it's the only way to really understand what your camera and lenses are doing.

 

Tim

 

A tripod underwater. I never even considered or thought that one may exist. Is there a manufacturer or model you may recommend? My initial thought was my Gitzo would be destroyed and I would have problems with air trapped in the hollow parts of the legs.

Chris

A tripod underwater. I never even considered or thought that one may exist. Is there a manufacturer or model you may recommend? My initial thought was my Gitzo would be destroyed and I would have problems with air trapped in the hollow parts of the legs.

 

Chris

Check out this thread Chris. http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showt...etsuit&st=0

Steve

hmmm nice i like it