Black Water Diving

I am currently shooting with both strobes tight to the port and turned out about 45* and switching between single point and matrix focusing.

What settings have others found successful in minimizing back scatter?

My problem is focusing. OMD-M10.

Really, the first place to start this discussion is to define what you really mean by black water, since that could mean different things to different people. For some people, that would be diving at night on a night without a moon. For me, that means diving in water so full of muck and sediment that there is less than six inches of visibility, even in full sun. I don't even bother to take a dive light into those conditions because I can't even see it pointing towards me, much less being of any use. So, I would not even attempt photography under those conditions.

So, exactly what do you mean by "black water diving"?

I'm pretty sure the OP means this http://www.uwphotographyguide.com/photo-tips-blackwater-diving

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I'm pretty sure the OP means this http://www.uwphotographyguide.com/photo-tips-blackwater-diving

 

 

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I suspect that you are correct, but want to be sure that we are actually talking about the same thing. As I said, to me, that would be a clear water night dive, and not black water at all. Thanks.

My previous post on "black water diving" is a night dive at approximately 15 to 25 meters photographing plankton and other juvenile life forms being attracted to a light suspended under water.

This describes the dive: http://www.uwphotogr...ackwater-diving

For me, two strobes at about 15degrees (each) out from the port are about right for shooting in relatively clear water (like Hawaii) but for Philippines or Indonesia this goes out to 30 degrees each (or 60 degrees apart.

Bill

I have been shooting Kona (HI) blackwater dives with a single strobe, a Seacam 150D. I do a fair amount of strobe angle adjustment according to subject - one hand on the strobe the other on the housing handle. For example I saw this belonid at the edge of our lights near the surface (I was about to board the boat at the end of my dive) so was able to quickly change the light to being parallel with the lens:

http://www.salmonography.com/Aloha/Fish-Portraits/i-7Pz5MhK/A

Most of my blackwater shots are in my Hawaiian Invertebrates gallery (this fish was an exception):

http://www.salmonography.com/Aloha/Hawaiian-Invertebrates/

You can see that there is some backscatter in these shots. Most of these things are moving around quite rapidly.

I agree that focusing is the biggest challenge for these pix.

The blackwater terminology derives from bluewater dives. Basically blackwater dives are bluewater dives done at night. Divers are tethered in both cases.

Tom

Timely to this discussion an article on blackwater photography was just posted on WP. Link to article here: http://wetpixel.com/articles/interview-gutsy-tuason

very interesting to read