How do I get that clear blue look?

Hi all

Does anyone have any recommendations on how to get that brilliant clear blue effect that I see on so many great images on here? My current set-up is a Nikon D70 and the only compatible lens I have with my housing and port is the 18-70mm kit lens. Basically I've been told in the past that its down to the camera and glass i'm using but I always feel there are better things I could be doing in terms of technique as well. I've definitely managed to improve a bit over time but I still feel my images look a bit 2D if you catch my drift. Here's a few examples of the best I've managed to achieve so far:

Yellowfin Goatfish, Mulloidichthys vanicolensis by djeclarke, on Flickr

Untitled by djeclarke, on Flickr

Untitled by djeclarke, on Flickr

Any help would be very much appreciated!

D

Try setting exposure compensation for the metered background to -0.7 or -1, that should make it darker / deeper blue

Which strobes are you using?

Which strobes are you using?

A single DS-125, would more light help me get the kind of clarity I see in really top images? Even with the 18-70mm?

Hi Djeclarke,

I had a quick look at the settings your using for these examples. f8, 1/200th, ISO200 @ 18mm. Except the middle example with f10, 1/200th, ISO200 @ 18mm.

The Nikon D70 is capable of syncing with the strobe to 1/500th from memory. So play around with the shutter speed to see if this helps as a higher shutter speed darkens the background. A second strobe will help but more importantly strobe position, as you can create great shots with a single strobe. If your shooting TTL maybe also play with shooting manual strobes for your wide angle work and see if this helps as I prefer to shoot with manual strobes.

Maybe try f8, 1/320th, ISO200 @18mm and use manual strobes at 3/4power or higher and see what it does for you.

Regards Mark

I think the water looks ok, but more strobe might help give 1 & 2 more pop.

Also, remember that often from the photographers point of view the images will never look as good as the others you look at, even when they are or even better!! just that darn self-criticism thing!!

I agree entirely with WBK.

There is a very simple method in Photoshop, however, to do what you want. Navigate to 'Image'>'Adjust'>'Selective Color' and select CYAN in the drop-down menu. Bump the CYAN slider slightly to the right, bump the magenta slider slightly to the right, bump the YELLOW slider slightly to the left, and for good measure (if you can stand it) bump the BLACK slider slightly to the right. You can also do the same thing to the BLUE channel if you want to go nuts, but adjusting the CYAN is usually enough. Like so many other techniques in PS it is very easy to overdo this, so be careful. You want the image to be realistic and believable when you are done, but this can give your images a bit more pop and make the water look cleaner. I did a (perhaps heavy-handed) example here. I hope this helps.

Randall