MikeBrum.com

Today was another great day of diving.

We saw our first shark here – a Caribbean Reef Shark. It probably only got within about 50 feet of us, but it skirted the top of the wall that we were diving and passed out of view. I fired off a few shots, but none of them will likely be all that useful. One of them did allow me to ID the shark by pushing the levels and contrast.

The first day out with the dome port went well. Definitely learned a lot already. Not least of which is that I absolutely need a second strobe to cover a scene with the Sigma 15mm fisheye. I briefly considered buying one (anticipating this problem), but decided that it wasn’t the right time to spend another $1000+ on this trip.

Another tidbit gleamed is that I’m going to need to exert more control over flash output. My flash photography is either done with automatic metering or with studio strobes when shooting static product type scenes. The automatic metering (Canon’s ETTL system) does a really good job in most cases for my needs. A little FEC goes a long way. For my studio work, since I’m shooting static subjects, I have all the time I need to fine-tune strobe output and positioning – so that’s really not a concern. When shooting most things underwater, at most, you have a few seconds to take the shot before the opportunity is gone. That’s just the nature of it. Both you and your subject are always moving – as is the medium in which you’re both suspended! You just have to be ready for it.

I haven’t really had time to start processing and posting images yet. I don’t think I’d want to on a laptop without an external mouse either. Expect some after I return. I should have much of the lot culled by the time I get back and I should be ready to put up some photos not that long afterwards. For now, I think I have a few shots that I’ll be hanging onto. I’m not to the point where I can capture the shot that I see in my head while underwater yet (which I’m fairly good at with macro work). Just need to keep on shooting and keep the mental process churning while technique catches up.

…if only I went on more tropical vacations!