Sony a7s II underwater use -- All parameters

 

 

It depends. Here is what I have been doing with ambient light lately. I focus, and if the distance to the subject has not changed much, for a wide angle shot, I leave it as is and shoot at f8. I then adjust the ISO to get the proper exposure. This varies greatly on lighting conditions. I pretty much guage that by how things look on the monitor, but check lights with what the meter is telling me. Like you, I am tending to -.3 to -.7 exposure. It also depends on what your subject is. If it is the foreground illuminated with video lights, then that has to be properly exposed even if the background is underexposed.

George, if I may just add my 2 cents:

 

First, Caribbean waters can be a real bitch if it comes to white balance due to their very intense blue color. I remember having some issues as well when diving Turks & Caicos 2 years ago - and I wasnt the only one.

 

Second, I would tend to agree to your theory, that the yellow shool of fish was causing some offsetting adjustment in auto-mode, resulting in that magenta cast. I am not convinced a meter or 2 difference in depth during the clip on its own is causing such a heavy shift, but it may be a contributing factor.

 

Third, I assume this was shot in ambient light without a red filter? I would suggest using at least a red-filter. Also well worth trying out different ones. I have used Magic Filters as well but I like the results I'm getting from URPRO filters more - maybe a matter of taste. In fact, these day I am not using a red filter but a magenta filter which on the AX100 in AWB gives a better color balance (details are outlined in that article by Pete Lightowler that someone already here posted before).

 

Now you may say: I already got too much magenta in my picture, how can a magenta filter help? Scientifically maybe correct, but this is not really about science but trial-and-error ;-)

 

And of course a good set of video lights almost always helps. Not on the widest wide angle shots but on most else.

 

NB: that turtle really looks quite interested in and approving of your equipment :-)

 

good luck!

Thanks bubffm!

I agree. I tried the magic filter on one dive, and it really did not get better results. And, if you check the very first post in this topic, or discussion, where I posted some results from Cozumel, the first trip where I used the camera, there was horrible magenta even with a red filter. On this trip I concluded that it didn't really help. Then, when there was a dominance of yellow in the foreground, and the background changed to psychedelic magenta, I concluded it was the computer program in the camera.

The dives in Grand Cayman were generally quite deep 40 feet would have been a shallow dive, with most of the action between 60 and 80. I am hoping my next dives (Raja Amapat at Misool Ecoresort) will be much shallower and I will not have these problems.

I will experiment with different filters. One of the things I don't like about this camera is you have to tape the filters on over the front of the lens. Or do you? I am using the 28 mm E mount f2 inside the housing and a Wet Wide Angle lens.

Thanks for contributing your thoughts!

GLP

Shot this in June in Lembeh with the A7R2. Still on the steep learning curve for video.

 

[media]

[/media]

Hi there Howeikwok.

I agree with the others. Really superb. I know I can learn a lot from you. I am going to Raja on October 21, and Ammar is going there on a liveaboard around the same time. I don't think I have time to learn macro video before then. Just started shooting with an "SLR" underwater in June. So I am on steep learning curve.

I do, however, want to use a tripod I purchased. I will take the wet wide angle off the housing, and that will leave me with a 28 mm, which underwater would be a 35 mm, which hopefully will focus closely. I would like to ask you some questions a little later about the use of the tripod. I will bring mine and will want to use it for "close ups," or "portraits" as opposed to macro, and then move into macro later.

Thank you for joining the group! Will be back to you soon about the tripod questions.

GLP

 

 

Hi there Howeikwok.

 

I agree with the others. Really superb. I know I can learn a lot from you. I am going to Raja on October 21, and Ammar is going there on a liveaboard around the same time. I don't think I have time to learn macro video before then. Just started shooting with an "SLR" underwater in June. So I am on steep learning curve.

 

I do, however, want to use a tripod I purchased. I will take the wet wide angle off the housing, and that will leave me with a 28 mm, which underwater would be a 35 mm, which hopefully will focus closely. I would like to ask you some questions a little later about the use of the tripod. I will bring mine and will want to use it for "close ups," or "portraits" as opposed to macro, and then move into macro later.

 

Thank you for joining the group! Will be back to you soon about the tripod questions.

 

GLP

The 28mm with the Nauticam WWL will focus quite closely. In fact you can shoot a good sized nudibranch with this combination.

 

The 28mm with the Nauticam WWL will focus quite closely. In fact you can shoot a good sized nudibranch with this combination.

How would you use that combination? Photo? With video lights? I don't have a strobe, only video lights as I am interested in video mainly, but will likely branch out. Would you use ambient light to shoot a photo?

And if video, would you necessarily need a tripod? Or can you hand hold? IT would seem the subject would need to be about 1 inch from the lens to get that close.

I will try some tests in the pool before we leave. Thanks for the information.

 

Well Bruno. I don't think I will have time to learn how to shoot macro video before I go, but who knows? My fiance has a GoPro and wants to get some video lights, and perhaps we can use that? I am very much looking forward to going to Indonesia! I will check out those liveaboards. They look nice!

You must be getting excited. There are three of us on this thread that are going to Indonesia in the next month, and you to two places. I will collect information for a full blog, and I look forward to hearing about everyone's experiences.

George

 

You must be getting excited. There are three of us on this thread that are going to Indonesia in the next month, and you to two places. I will collect information for a full blog, and I look forward to hearing about everyone's experiences.

 

George

Indeed, really interesting to see what happens if we are all back :-)

 

How would you use that combination? Photo? With video lights? I don't have a strobe, only video lights as I am interested in video mainly, but will likely branch out. Would you use ambient light to shoot a photo?

 

And if video, would you necessarily need a tripod? Or can you hand hold? IT would seem the subject would need to be about 1 inch from the lens to get that close.

 

I will try some tests in the pool before we leave. Thanks for the information.

I shot a 4-5 cm nudibranch on video with video lights much earlier in the year when i was testing the system out on a short weekend trip. If i remember it correctly the footage was shot without a tripod just rested the whole housing on the seabed or using my hand below the housing to support.

[media]

 

I shot a 4-5 cm nudibranch on video with video lights much earlier in the year when i was testing the system out on a short weekend trip. If i remember it correctly the footage was shot without a tripod just rested the whole housing on the seabed or using my hand below the housing to support.

 

[media]

[/media] Nudi footage at 1:15 onwards

Thanks very much Howeikwok! Yes I see that. I did not know that combination could focus so closely. Is that what you used on the eel nearer the end? How close does the lens have to be from the eel to get that kind of shot? A few inches?

I need to learn from you about the dive sites in Indonesia. I have become highly interested in diving there. Raja Ampat is my first trip.

Indeed, really interesting to see what happens if we are all back :-)

Yes. I do hope we all make it back.

Thanks very much Howeikwok! Yes I see that. I did not know that combination could focus so closely. Is that what you used on the eel nearer the end? How close does the lens have to be from the eel to get that kind of shot? A few inches?

 

I need to learn from you about the dive sites in Indonesia. I have become highly interested in diving there. Raja Ampat is my first trip.

 

 

 

Yes. I do hope we all make it back.

I think the eel was using the 90mm macro lens. For the WWL, i think the subject can be almost touching the lens and it will still focus. the minimum focal distance is quite short if i'm not wrong.

Raja Ampat is fantastic for both Macro and Wide Angle. Coral cover in the Dampier Straits area is the best i've ever seen. Oceanic mantas, schools of barracudas and jacks. The 'walking' cat shark. Lots of macro opportunities as well like pygmy seahorses, nudibranchs, mandarin fish etc.

Uploaded now in 4K...

https://vimeo.com/184655553

4K on Vimeo. Alfredo! Thanks for uploading in 4K. I have noticed that VIMEO is now streaming 4K more often and better and better. If you choose the option, all you need to do is let it load a little, and then you can indeed watch in 4K -- although it is doubtful your screen can handle that. Of course you need a good internet connection.

Great job Alfredo!

I've been a bit busy to update this thread recently, but I've been doing a lot of shooting and testing underwater the past few weeks with the A7RII.

In the 0-10 meter range (with good visibility), the best settings I've come across are No Picture Profile, Autumn Leaves creative style (boosts contrast and red/yellow saturation), -0.7EV exposure in manual mode with auto ISO 100-3200 range. This creates a really nice, punchy image right out of camera without any highlight clipping. No filters needed. It also works surprisingly well with a bit of fill light from torches -- but you have to be careful, as too much fill light can give the overall footage too much of a reddish tint. Of course, a bit of reddish tint isn't a disaster, as it can be dialed back by pushing green/blue in the highlights in post-processing. It's much easier to remove excess reds in post than it is to create them from nothing, in my experience.

Here is some footage at 6 meters using using the above settings, no color correction filters, and one Gates GT14 light on it's lowest setting (around 5000 lumens). No color correction was done on this in post, it's straight out-of-camera footage.

https://youtu.be/x5cWTgtWe_w

Unfortunately, I'm still struggling to find a workable solution for white balancing below 10 meters. It seems that, just like custom white balance, the camera's auto underwater white balance algorithm is limited to a maximum of 10k color temperature, whereas the canon cameras can go up to 50k. So below 10 meters, ambient light footage is still going to be mostly greenish/blue. Of course, you can address this by just using powerful video lights and shooting with a fixed white balance to match the lights, which will produce very nice colorful foregrounds if you're deep enough that your lights can out-compete the ambient light. But this is limited -- it means the transition from the lit foreground to the unlit background is quite harsh, so you have to be very selective in your composition and framing.

Has anyone been able to get good results below 10 meters using filters to supplement the camera's white balance capabilities?

I've been a bit busy to update this thread recently, but I've been doing a lot of shooting and testing underwater the past few weeks with the A7RII.

 

In the 0-10 meter range (with good visibility), the best settings I've come across are No Picture Profile, Autumn Leaves creative style (boosts contrast and red/yellow saturation), -0.7EV exposure in manual mode with auto ISO 100-3200 range. This creates a really nice, punchy image right out of camera without any highlight clipping. No filters needed. It also works surprisingly well with a bit of fill light from torches -- but you have to be careful, as too much fill light can give the overall footage too much of a reddish tint. Of course, a bit of reddish tint isn't a disaster, as it can be dialed back by pushing green/blue in the highlights in post-processing. It's much easier to remove excess reds in post than it is to create them from nothing, in my experience.

 

Here is some footage at 6 meters using using the above settings, no color correction filters, and one Gates GT14 light on it's lowest setting (around 5000 lumens). No color correction was done on this in post, it's straight out-of-camera footage.

 

https://youtu.be/x5cWTgtWe_w

 

Unfortunately, I'm still struggling to find a workable solution for white balancing below 10 meters. It seems that, just like custom white balance, the camera's auto underwater white balance algorithm is limited to a maximum of 10k color temperature, whereas the canon cameras can go up to 50k. So below 10 meters, ambient light footage is still going to be mostly greenish/blue. Of course, you can address this by just using powerful video lights and shooting with a fixed white balance to match the lights, which will produce very nice colorful foregrounds if you're deep enough that your lights can out-compete the ambient light. But this is limited -- it means the transition from the lit foreground to the unlit background is quite harsh, so you have to be very selective in your composition and framing.

 

Has anyone been able to get good results below 10 meters using filters to supplement the camera's white balance capabilities?

Awesome video! I very much like and am impressed by the way you were able to mix the ambient light, and the video lights. I have been largely unable to shoot that shallow. Perhaps in Raja. We leave in less than a week. 9 days of diving and I will pack in as much as I can. Want to make a decent film afterwards, that tells the story of Indonesian Throughflow. I will also interview the owners of Misool -- the Marits -- or at least Miner Marit has agreed to be interviewed. I am bringing my wired lavalier microphones.

I have shot very deep with a red filter, and did so recently in Grand Cayman. It really does not make much of a difference as far as I can tell. There is still the magenta problem. I think it is the camera's processor and "color science." WIthout the filter and using USWB things work pretty well, when you do illuminate the foreground with your lights. I am editing a highlight film of the Grand Cayman trip and perhaps will be finished before we leave.

Anyone here tried custom white balance? I tried it on my first trip with this camera, and it did not work. The guy at Backscatter told me it does work and I will try it again. He says to take a custom reading higher than you are filming, rather than vice versa.

Very impressive footage Andrei. You must have been very excited when you got that!

Best,

George Paul

Shooting at Similan finished. One week relax in Pattaya. Footage looks goooooood....

Shooting at Similan finished. One week relax in Pattaya. Footage looks goooooood....

Great. Very much looking forward to it. We leave for Raja tomorrow!

Which WB were using you ??

 

 

It depends. Here is what I have been doing with ambient light lately. I focus, and if the distance to the subject has not changed much, for a wide angle shot, I leave it as is and shoot at f8. I then adjust the ISO to get the proper exposure. This varies greatly on lighting conditions. I pretty much guage that by how things look on the monitor, but check lights with what the meter is telling me. Like you, I am tending to -.3 to -.7 exposure. It also depends on what your subject is. If it is the foreground illuminated with video lights, then that has to be properly exposed even if the background is underexposed.

I've been a bit busy to update this thread recently, but I've been doing a lot of shooting and testing underwater the past few weeks with the A7RII.

 

In the 0-10 meter range (with good visibility), the best settings I've come across are No Picture Profile, Autumn Leaves creative style (boosts contrast and red/yellow saturation), -0.7EV exposure in manual mode with auto ISO 100-3200 range. This creates a really nice, punchy image right out of camera without any highlight clipping. No filters needed. It also works surprisingly well with a bit of fill light from torches -- but you have to be careful, as too much fill light can give the overall footage too much of a reddish tint. Of course, a bit of reddish tint isn't a disaster, as it can be dialed back by pushing green/blue in the highlights in post-processing. It's much easier to remove excess reds in post than it is to create them from nothing, in my experience.

 

Here is some footage at 6 meters using using the above settings, no color correction filters, and one Gates GT14 light on it's lowest setting (around 5000 lumens). No color correction was done on this in post, it's straight out-of-camera footage.

 

https://youtu.be/x5cWTgtWe_w

 

Unfortunately, I'm still struggling to find a workable solution for white balancing below 10 meters. It seems that, just like custom white balance, the camera's auto underwater white balance algorithm is limited to a maximum of 10k color temperature, whereas the canon cameras can go up to 50k. So below 10 meters, ambient light footage is still going to be mostly greenish/blue. Of course, you can address this by just using powerful video lights and shooting with a fixed white balance to match the lights, which will produce very nice colorful foregrounds if you're deep enough that your lights can out-compete the ambient light. But this is limited -- it means the transition from the lit foreground to the unlit background is quite harsh, so you have to be very selective in your composition and framing.

 

Has anyone been able to get good results below 10 meters using filters to supplement the camera's white balance capabilities?

Hello folks. Back from Raja Ampat. Below is a link to my experimental first ever video with the Sony A7R II. Well, we didn't have a single sunny day, cloudy, thunderstorms and heavy rain, but we tried to make the best out of the trip.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/YCr-T5xtKEg

Originally filmed as 4K but had to downsize it as I was also filming on land with GoPro.

Settings are: shutter priority at 50/s, Auto ISO, Auto WB, 4K XAVC S, 24p 100M

Most of the time my depth for filming was 11m to 3m. This is where all the fun is actually, plus some bright light.

I made another experimental video at 20 meters where I tried all of the cam's WB settings. Will post later.

Hope you all had or are having good time in your trips and good filming

You have some nice shots. But many times light isnt good for shooting. Too much dry shots for my taste. I had same diving conditions at Similan Islands and when light is bad the best way is go deep and use torches. In three weeks I will try a new magenta filter at Red Sea.

Thanks 4 sharing...

You have some nice shots. But many times light isnt good for shooting. Too much dry shots for my taste. I had same diving conditions at Similan Islands and when light is bad the best way is go deep and use torches. In three weeks I will try a new magenta filter at Red Sea.

Thanks 4 sharing...

Thanks buddy. Totally agree, light is terrible to my taste also, and this is after correcting it in Adobe Premiere. First days, I dove 30 to 20m, totally dark and dead. Nothing but rocks. This is why I started to dive and shoot close to surface. Plus poor light condition, visibility was terrible also. Well, now I learnt from the locals that February is the best time for visibility in Raja Ampat.