I’m new to the underwater photography seen and actually digital photography in general.

I have taken many shots in the Red Sea that would have been excellent if it were not for the backscatter that I get from the internal flash. If I don’t use the flash I don’t get much colour. Any advice? Should I use an external/remote stobe?

Also the focus of some images is not good when using the internal flash. I’ve tried differnt intensity settings but that doesnt seem to help.

Hi Bruce,

as you already guessed it, a remote strobe should always be prefered. If you get a strobe arm, you can position it slightly above your object (usually in a 45° angle) and far away from the camera, so that the flash will not be “directly” reflected into the lense. If you have even two strobes you can place them left and right to get full coverage.

The internal flash is usually fired directly from the camera, so reflection/backscatter is maximized if you do not have ultra-clean water conditions or if you can put the camera macro-close to the object. However I have seen many beautiful macros in our gallery which went fine using the internal strobe and sometimes a diffuser.

The Problem concerning your camera is that I do not know any external strobes which can directly sync with a cord to control the intensity. There are some solutions which make use of fibre optics from Ikelite and Sea&Sea which you may try.

An alternative might be to buy a set of videolights. But a normal torch will do fine as well if you buy it with a flood spot option… This will usually result in very warm ambient lighted photos, which I personally prefer. But you will not be able to capture fast moving objects like for example a “dancing” spanish dancer… (this occured once to me on a night dive, where I used a kowalski torch to illuminate the scene). The Edges will turn unsharp as you can only “freeze” fast moving actors with a strobe.

Hope this helped a little,… :wink: Maybe someone else can provide infos about the focus problem.

Andi

Andi,

Many thanks for the reply. I’ll try the torch option today. I’m already thinking of upgrading to a different camera/housing with more adaptability and options like external strobes/filters etc.

I’ve got about 1,500 images here in the Red Sea and probably 100 of them are pretty good, in my eyes anyway.

Thanks again for the reply, I’ll let you know how it turns out.

Bruce.

I eliminate virtually all backscatter and noise with Photoshop 7.0 in a minute.  Check out the book, “Digital Imaging for the Underwater Photographer” by Jack and Sue Drafahl, available through Amazon.com.  Chapter 8 is all about the problem you describe and step-by-step instructions on how to fix it.  When the book was published, Photoshop 7 hadn’t been released...it offers even faster and easier ways to enhance color and eliminate backscatter and other noise.

Thanks for the reply.

I’m currently using photoshop 5 and am only learning how to use it at the moment. Getting hold of books here is really tough but I’ll make a point of getting the book you mentioned if its got that kind of info in it.

I think I need to get hold of photoshop 7 also.

Thanks again.

Bruce.

Right...Photoshop 5.0 is ancient compared to the ease and enhancing virtues of 7.0 or even 6.0.  Amazon.com has been offering a net cost of $100 ($150 minus a $50 rebate) for the upgrade version of 7.0...I believe it just may still be in effect.  But there’s quite a large gap in content between 5.0 and 7.0 that won’t be addressed in the accompanying “new features” CD which has accompanied the 7.0 upgrade.  That CD is directed to those of us who have upgraded from 6.0 to 7.0.  Nonetheless, this is the “go to” photo-editting software, and I personally believe it will not only enhance your pictures;; but, you’ll have a good time exploring what’s possible.  You may have to take a class, purchase tapes or CD’s, or attend seminars to get a grasp of the changes from 5.0 to 7.0, but it’ll be worth your time and money to do so# these are quantum-leap changes.

Also, Bruce, you mentioned that books were hard to come by “there.” Where in hell are you that you can’t order from Amazon.com.  (incidentally I have absolutely no business or personal affiliation with either Adobe [Photoshop] or Amazon.com).  Unless I’m mistaken, Amazon is accessible from anywhere the net reaches and they’ll ship just about anywhere the net reaches as well.  That book I mentioned is a terrific primer as its chapters address step-by-step what to do with our shots once we’ve downloaded them to our computer’s hard drive.

After almost 20 years of diving, I started taking photos underwater last August.  And that’s when I started to learn Photoshop as well.  Both are rather steep learning curves for me:  u/w photo because my opportunities are limited to taking 3 to 6 dive trips yearly ranging from a few days to a couple of weeks, and then taking “wet” photos there; and photo-editting just because I’m not a computer geek# I enjoy it, but computer-related learning is certainly not easy for me.  What I know to absolutely true is this:  experiment to the limits of your imagination...you can always opt for “no change” to your picture when you close the file...kind of like “nothing ventured, nothing gained” meets “you’ve got nothing to lose.” I hope I’ve helped you out somewhat. 

On a personal note, I’m really disappointed in the lack of imagination that most u/w digital photgraphers are exhibiting.  Most use photo-editting software simply to try to make their images more “realistic.” In my opinion, the most wonderful contribution provided us by digital imaging technology is the freedom to escape the ad nauseum Latin-named species photograph...for God’s sake, we’ve seen most all of them before.

Hi Again!

Thanks for the info, is the name Brant? I can’t figure it out.

I know photoshop 5 is way behind but it can be difficult getting hold of anything here, here being Saudi Arabia. I live in Jeddah about 3 clicks from the Red Sea which you would think is perfect but with work I only get 3 dives a month in if I’m lucky. Fortunately they are nearly always good photo opportunities.

Getting stuff shipped here is a nightmare as it regularly dissapears, all mail is searched and censored! I’ve waited 6 weeks for stuff before now only to recieve the package opened and empty!

I know what you mean about modifying images to get them realistic. I like doing that but also have some great shots that are more surreal and I really like them but its all individual taste. I have an eagle ray shot that knowbody seems to like but me.

With the limited equipment I’m using getting rid of backscatter is a top priority now as it spoils some potentially good stuff. I need to get hold of photshop 7 and the book and then see what damage I can do. I’ll check out amazon and maybe give it chance, does the upgrade you mentioned go from 5 to 7?

Thanks again, Bruce.

Yep, the name’s Brant.  Oh, you DO have a problem getting stuff shipped there!  The upgrade works for a registered version of Photoshop 5.0.

Another approach to learning and staying in touch with the advances and changes in Photoshop is to join the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP).  You can go to www.photoshopuser.com and find out a ton about this terrific affiliation.  It costs $99/year and includes 12 monthly issues of a magazine that will keep you busy every spare moment you have, AND access to the website, advice and help desk (free), and countless valuable links that’ll make you wish there were 100 hours in a day.  That way you won’t need to rely on the shipping of merchandise for you to get solid answers to all you questions and suggestions for editting and enhancing you may never have thought exist.  It’s all available online even though there’s as well all kinds of tutorials and publicatuions you can send for to be shipped to you.

Good luck and keep in touch!

Brant
San Anselmo, California

Hi Brant,

Keep the info coming. Unbelieveably I managed with very little effort to get hold of photoshop 7 and adobe illustrator 10!!! I was amazed.

Anyway now got to get the book you mentioned to figure out the reduction in backscatter.

Bruce.