1. Get Comfortable in the Water
If you plan on taking pictures one or two feet below water, you don’t need a lot of training. But if you plan on going a bit deeper or even going scuba diving, you’ll have to spend some time in the water without a camera.
Learn how your swimming equipment works and how to easily control it. So when the times comes, you’ll focus on your camera instead of readjusting your snorkeling mask, checking the air pressure, or retrieving a lost flipper.
The best method is to practice in the same place where you want to take the pictures. This way, you’ll already be accustomed to the waves, tides, or any other environmental characteristics before going in with your camera.
2. Make Sure Your Camera Is Waterproof
Even if you’ve bought a waterproof camera, you should closely check its specifications before going diving. Because the water pressure rises as you dive deeper, water might start infiltrating your camera and ruin your underwater photography experience. Your camera might be waterproof only if you remain close to the surface.
To protect your camera, you can use waterproof plastic pouches and cases. However, a plastic pouch could increase your buoyancy and make your camera float to the surface. Before going underwater to take photos, squeeze out as much air as possible.
3. Use the Right Camera Settings
The biggest problem when taking photos underwater is the lack of light. If you don’t have a lot of experience with underwater photography, it’s better to stay in clear waters and close to the surface for the best results.
Here are a few settings that you should pay attention to when taking photos underwater…
Flash
As always, light plays a tremendous role in photography, and not having enough light will get you underexposed photos. Also, without flash, you’ll get green or blue photos as water absorbs more color the deeper you are.
To compensate, set your camera to Forced Flash instead of Auto-Flash. If you want to take this a step further, you can equip your camera with underwater flashguns. But this will make your equipment bulkier and harder to maneuver underwater.
White Balance
If there’s plenty of light, your flash might overdo it. In this case, setting the white balance to Automatic or Daylight mode will give your photos the right amount of light, so you can avoid overexposing them.
ISO
If you’re not familiar with ISO, choosing the right setting for underwater pictures might be tricky. As a general rule, the more light you have, the lower your ISO should be. So if you shoot close to the water surface, an ISO of 100 to 200 should be enough.
Aperture
If you plan on shooting underwater, you need to know a thing or two about aperture. Alongside ISO and shutter speed, aperture determines the level of exposure.
For example, an aperture of f/2.8 might be a good fit for underwater photos as it captures a lot of light, but the photo will have an unfocused background. For sharper images, you’ll have to use a narrower aperture, even if you’ll lose some light.
Focus
If you’re shooting a stationary or slow-moving subject, a Single-Servo or One-Shot autofocus setting should be good enough. But if you plan on shooting faster subjects, check if your camera comes with Focus Tracking. This will keep your photos from turning out blurry.
If you have a DSLR camera, you can half-press the shutter button to set focus and exposure before pressing it completely to take the photo. You can use the back button to lock the shutter button so you don’t have to refocus every time.
4. Shoot Upwards
Because of how water refracts the image, your subject might look disproportionate. To avoid it, your subject should be at least one or two feet above your camera.
However, don’t make any sudden movements to get yourself in the right spot. Most marine wildlife is less scared of humans than you might believe, but it will still flee if you touch it or get too close. Instead, slowly swim along while getting closer.
Keep in mind that you shouldn’t be actively swimming when taking the photo because it will likely result in a blurry image.
5. Pick the Right Lens
Besides mastering your camera settings, you should also pick the right lens. When shooting underwater, switching your camera lens isn’t very simple. You’d have to come out, make sure your camera is completely dry so there’s no water infiltrating it, change the lens, and go back in.
And once you’ve changed the lens, you’ll have to readjust the camera settings. This will cost you time, and you might miss some great opportunities for getting that perfect underwater shot.
6. Take Advantage of the Natural Conditions
As we’ve previously discussed, light is important when taking underwater photos. If possible, schedule your shooting session between 10 am and 2 pm to have as much sunlight as possible.
Try to stay away from areas with powerful water currents. Not only will it make it harder for you to swim, but there will be a lot of sediments floating around, so you’ll have a difficult time adjusting your camera focus.
7. Don’t Go Alone
Firstly, you shouldn’t go alone because of safety reasons. Even if you’re a certified scuba diver with a lot of diving experience, a partner will keep you safe in case of equipment malfunction, powerful currents, or other hazards.
If you plan on taking photos close to the water surface, going with a friend will make your life easier. They can help you scout marine life, and they can also help you change your camera lens and settings by holding onto stuff while your hands are busy.
Take Amazing Underwater Pictures
Taking beautiful underwater pictures might be difficult, especially in the beginning. Hopefully, these tips gave you an idea of how to better prepare and what to focus on when shooting. And don’t forget to have fun, it’s not every day we get to observe life underwater, let alone capture it!
