If landscape and wildlife photo contests could give spectacular subjects for photography, underwater photo contests can also provide a fascinating array of subjects any one would love to try. If you are tired to taking photos of whatever you find interesting on land, why not take your camera and plunge into the sea for a change?
Unlike other photo competitions, underwater photography requires you to be comfortable with diving and buoyancy first. Underwater photo competitions can be distracting, and it can be too easy for a new dive to crash into the reef, or worse, float to the surface without knowing it. Diving and floating lessons help you maintain your position and shoot at your subject more easily.
Underwater picture contests also requires a few tweaks in the camera mode which depends on the type of photography you want to use. For people who haven’t tried taking pictures in manual mode, underwater picture contests will often sound difficult. I advise beginners with compact cameras having internal flash to use auto mode since it works fairly in macro photos. However, advanced users can go manual if they like to use aperture priority mode or shutter priority mode.
In underwater macro photography, you need to be comfortable in changing your aperture for different types of shots. It is very important how the aperture effects your photos, depth of field, and the background. DLSR users and compact camera users usually have different settings for underwater photography contests. For compact cameras, switch the flash to forced mode and always maintain the zoom in the widest setting. Utilize base ISO and if you camera has manual mode, use F8, 1/1000th shutter speed. Using fast shutter speed will block out unwanted light. DLSR users on the other hand, should set their ISO to 100 or 200 while using F13 and max sync speed. Aperture may need to be lowered to F7-F8 or a larger aperture for fish shots. For underwater photography contests, shoot small subjects with a smaller aperture (up to F29) for more DOF.
For wide angle settings, it is best to go in manual mode using base ISO (usually ISO 100 or 200), F7 at 1/100th. You should also maximize the number of focus points and utilize matrix metering. You can also make use of the aperture priority mode, F7, exposure compensation at –1 or –1 ½ if you need to maintain a good background. Or shutter priority mode, 1/125th (or faster), exposure compensation at –1 or –1 ½ when taking pictures of fast moving subjects.
Take note that these are only initial settings for your camera. You can change the settings as you go on and absorbed some experience whether you need to lower or increase the aperture settings. Truth is, you should personally make your customized settings by changing one parameter at a time using the primary settings provided. You can also start off reading you camera’s manual to know the advanced settings your camera is capable of.
-
-
Photo Laureates on Flickr
More Photos
