Swimming with the fishies: A beginner’s guide
Director of Photography Bob Hamilton tried his hand at underwater photography while he was vacationing in St. John, Virgin Islands. He offers a couple tips to think about before you take the plunge.
- This was a self portrait at Cinnamon Bay, St. John. Notice that I’m wearing a t-shirt. That’s because I got sunburned the first two times I went snorkeling despite a heavy concentrate of sunblock. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- I liked the vibrant blue fish contrasted against the red coral in Cinnamon Bay, St. John USVI. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- I was just finishing up shooting a Cinnamon Bay, St. John when I swam right over the top of this stingray. I circled back and got several shots. It was difficult to compose the image because the fish blended so into the sandy bottom. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- Colorful reef at Cinnamon Bay, St. John. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- A pair of squid swimming in Diamond Reef, British Virgin Islands. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- A school of fish at Trunk Bay, St. John, USVI. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- This massive piece of coral was located at Trunk Bay, St. John, USVI. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- A school of bright yellow fish feed off the reef at Diamond Reef in the British Virgin Island. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- A fish swims by the reef at Diamond Reef in the British Virgin, Islands. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- I used the underwater landscape scene mode on the Olympus camera to shoot this picture of Diamond Reef in the British Virgin Islands. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- A bright blue fish feeds off the coral at Diamond Reef in the British Virgin Islands. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- Colorful coral reef at Diamond Reef in the British Virgin Islands. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- I thought this image really brought out the bright colors in the fishes tail. I photographed it in Diamond Reef, British Virgin Islands. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- I shot this school of fish as it passed below me and I swam with them. In addition to shoot still pictures, the Olympus also does very nice video underwater. Many of the cameras models have the same capabilities. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- I shot this stingray at Cinnamon Bay, St. John. The fish was a considerable distance below me which is why the light was marginal. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- I shot this image a fish with very deep blue color against yellow coral with the flash turned on. Though I liked that it brought out the colors, I’m not a fan of the shadows the flash created. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- Even though I bought the Olympus to shoot underwater, it was important to me that it would not be one dimensional and could be used as a regular camera. This picture was taken at the baths at the Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- Trunk bay in St. John was my favorite spot for shooting underwater. The water was extremely clear and the coral was beautiful. The fish were pretty cool too. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- This is another example of the underwater landscape scene mode on the Olympus. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- This is the same coral rock that I shot earlier at a slightly lower angle which allowed the rock to reflect off the surface of the water in Trunk Bay. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- I saw a number of these fish while snorkeling in Trunk Bay, St. John. They had beautiful colors and markings. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- The clear water provided beautiful light on the various reefs and rocks at Trunk Bay, St. John, USVI. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- If I didn’t know better, I could swear this fish smiled for the camera while swimming in Trunk Bay, St. John. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- I like the curvature of the fish’s body in this frame. It seems to make the image more active as it swam in Trunk Bay, St. John. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
- This is an example of some of the fun things you can do with an under water camera and a little imagination. I shot this portrait of my friend Terry at Trunk Bay, St. John’s. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)e of the fun things you can do with an under water camera and some imagination. I shot this portrait of my friend Terry at Trunk Bay, St. John’s. (Robert K. Hamilton/Baltimore Sun)
My wife and I were traveling to St. John, Virgin Islands for our 30th wedding anniversary (yeah, I’m that old) and one thing on my agenda was to go snorkeling and try my hand at underwater photography. My only problems: I didn’t have an underwater camera and I didn’t have a clue what I was doing.
The first problem was easily remedied: I needed to buy an underwater point-and-shoot camera (an anniversary gift to myself). But which camera to get.
For that solution, I visited my favorite site for all things digital photography — dpreview.com, which has tons of information including field tests on many of the cameras that you can purchase at your local retail store.
As I did my research, I quickly found out there were many underwater cameras and camera housing options. After educating myself on the various features and comparing the makes and models, I finally settled on an Olympus Tough HG820. This model fit my budget and seemed like a good starter camera.
Now that I had the camera, all I had to do was figure out how to use it.
First things first, read the manual. I know that many people loathe breaking out the manual, but it can save you time and frustration when it comes time to shoot. I also recommend familiarizing yourself with the “menu” items on the camera. You don’t want to be fumbling with buttons while you’re swimming in the ocean and chasing a school of fish.
The camera I bought did not cost thousands of dollars, far from it, so it wasn’t too complicated to figure out. Almost all point-and-shoot cameras come with “scene” modes and it’s a good idea to take advantage of these features. A common example is for taking pictures of sporting events (usually pictured as a figure running). If you flip the camera to this scene mode, it will adjust the camera to the highest possible shutter speed to greatly increase your odds of an action shot that is in focus.
On the camera I purchased, since it had underwater capabilities, there were four scene modes for underwater use. This seemed like overkill to me, but I’m sure the manufacture had reasons for it. The first was for shooting in a pool, so I ruled that out since I was ocean bound. The second was for shooting fish up close, while the third was for underwater landscapes. The final scene was for underwater action shots.
When I got in the water, I spent time toggling between the three scene modes that seemed the most relevant and after a while I became accustom to adjusting the camera while underwater. I must say the hardest part was framing a composition through a swim mask. I found what worked best for me was keeping the lens at a fairly wide angle and lining the lens up with my intended target. Then, just shoot a way. Not very scientific, but I figured I could always crop the image after the fact. At the end of the day, I would say: mission accomplished.
So go ahead, break out the sunscreen, bathing suit and underwater camera, head to your nearest body of water and take a shot.
- A Snap on Nature
Jul 10, 2012 @ 19:14:20
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Karen Jackson
Jul 07, 2012 @ 19:39:31
This is my favorite color and on a fish! Love it! Thanks for sharing, Bob.
Rebecca
Jul 06, 2012 @ 17:40:03
I love these pictures. They capture the Caribbean beautifully. But I must protest. The island is not called “St. John’s” and never has been. It is “St. John.”
I’ll keep enjoying the pics, and closing my eyes to the oft-made mistake. 😉