shots from the Silver Bank

hi all

here are a couple of shots from the Silver Bank ( Dominican Repuplic )

both natural light only using the S2 and a nikon 12-24.

still need some color adjustment.

Note, Now I really hate the viewfinder in the Aquatica S2 housing.

Chris

wow... Beautiful. I don't think strobes would do much good on these shots.

thanks herb

whales and strobes do not mix. do not want to spook them and just trying to maneuver with just the housing is more than enough work.

also when working with these are ony whales Scuba is also a no no. tried years ago and never got clase, on the surface in your face shots are quite possible

Chris

one more

Beautiful work! It looks like the visibility wasn't tremendous but that adds to the moody quality, especially #2.

What do you hate about the Aquatica S2 "peep-hole."

Larry

hi Larry

yea the vus was not all that good and the surface conditions sucked 3 to 5 foot swells and wind.

the Aquatica peep hole as you describe it is bad enough but to make things worse, the metering adjustment knod makes it impossible to get your eye on it. I also found that while struggling to compose the shot I would often change the metering mode which all but ruined a lot of shots. after I realized this I removed the metering control wheel inside the housing.

I have had 6 other Aquaticas and this by far has the worst viewfinder. there has got to be a better design that can be incorporated into future housings.

I think the metering system knob is one control I could do without. I own an Aquatica S2 and was thinking about having it removed. I can't imagine ever wanting to change the metering underwater. I was disappointed in the design of the viewfinder too.

Wow Chris,

Lovely images!

I think that a bit more contrast and a bit less cyan would help bring the humpbacks out of the murk.

The composition in the top image is fantastic - I really love this shot. So many humback images end up looking the same - because of the all the difficulties in getting the shots - but this one is full of character and originality. I think it would make a fantastic cover shot!

Looking forward to seeing more of your images from the trip.

Alex

Thanks for the tips Alex, will have a go at it, actually haven't had time since I returned to even review all the shots yet.

I did notice that others who were using the D100 were getting brighter images using similar settings. the fuji tended to produce rather dark RAW images. Wyland's 1D produced the best results.

thanks for the kind words an the baby image.

Chris Bangs

Hi Chris,

Great shots - I agree that the mood is excellent.

One reason that the D100 shots may have been brighter is that it's base ISO is 200, compared to 100 on the fuji.

What were you shooting at? Did you shoot them all at 400?

Cheers

James

Awesome shots!

How and where did you get them? Are they snorkelling shots from the surface, and if so what sort of distance were you at?