People often ask what the best camera is for underwater photography. Chase Jarvis said, “The best camera is the one that’s with you.” I do believe that is true. When I first started shooting images underwater, I had no idea what a good snapshot should look like, let alone how to get that image. I started my underwater photographic journey with a compact camera, that was made for underwater photography. It had a setting for blue water, and one for green water, and an on-board flash.
The above image was taken with my new compact camera on its maiden voyage (or dive) which also happened to be my first dive after certifying. It isn’t horrible, but I sure could have used some pointers back then. Later I learned the importance of good lighting and I added a strobe to my compact camera.
Good lighting makes a big difference as you can see from the above photo in my first effort using a strobe.
After a year of experimenting with my compact camera and strobe, I began to master some of the basics and my desire for a DSLR camera became stronger. The next image was taken on my new DSLR’s maiden dive. You can see that there is improvement in the clarity and composition of this image.
My point in showing off my first efforts with underwater photography is to demonstrate that I had a lot to learn in the beginning, and after a couple of years of practicing, I got better. But I didn’t simply get better. I studied other images by well known underwater photographers. I read books on underwater photography and took both private and group classes with underwater photography instructors. I found some mentors and I asked them a lot of questions and I asked them for critiques of my work. Eventually, I began to take images that I am now proud to put my name on.
