also make good use of the Canon EF 16-35mm, f/2.8 L II lens. The Canon EF-S 10-22mm is a good alternative for cameras with APS-C sized sensors; keep the zoom as wide as possible to counterbalance the cameras’ 1.6x crop factor. On the macro side, you also want to position the camera as close to your subject as possible, so the Canon EF 50mm, the EF-S 60mm, or the EF 100mm macro lenses will work well. Of course, you don’t want to scare away a tiny fish or get too close to anything that can harm you. A friend once had a small octopus grab onto her strobe and rip it off the housing—not a common experience but something to keep in mind when approaching wild life of any kind. Another diver found the strobe later that day, abandoned by the curious octopus.
Underwater Housing Tips Before you make your first dive with a housing, be sure to check it for leaks. The best way to do this is to take an empty housing on a dive with you. Yes, it’s a waste of a good dive but it’s better to find out that the housing leaks or you didn’t seal it properly before you put your camera in it. Pay attention to the manufacturer’s instructions about checking, cleaning and replacing O-rings. Even a little speck of sand or a strand of hair can break a seal and allow water to enter the housing and potentially harm your camera. Be sure to maintain your equipment on a regular basis. . Thanks to large capacity media cards and excellent battery life, your camera will be good to go for at least a full day of diving (and maybe a night dive, too). But when you need to take the camera out of the housing in between dives, be sure to wipe the housing dry before opening it up so you don’t get drips of water on the camera.
Strobes You’ll also need to budget for one, preferably two, external strobes and a set of strobe arms for each. One option is a self-contained underwater strobe, which requires no extra housing and, depending on the strobe, may be more economical than purchasing and housing a standard strobe such as the Canon Speedlite 580EX II.
When you’re traveling, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to fit all your underwater photo gear into a carryon bag so be prepared with a hard-cover case with TSA-approved There are a couple of diflocks. Most hard cases ferences, other than price, come with customizable that should be noted. ObviFor lighting, you can use purposebuilt underwater foam interiors or padded ously, you can’t use the strobes, or else invest in waterproof housing for Canon divider system for protecunderwater strobes above Speedlite flash units such as this Fantasea model tion. If you’re concerned water (okay, theoretically about checking everyyou can but they’ll be inthing, carry your camera credibly heavy) so it might and lenses on board and check the housing, strobes, make more sense to house your current flash(es). strobe arms, and other accessories. At least you’ll Another downside is the lack of E-TTL in some exhave a topside camera if your luggage gets delayed ternal strobes, so examine the specs carefully or be on the way to your island vacation. sure you’re well-versed in manual strobe exposure. Self-contained underwater strobes have a major advantage, however. They cover wide angle lenses while housed strobes do not so unless you plan to only shoot macro, you should opt for a self-contained model. 28 | AFRICAN EXPEDITION MAGAZINE SEPTEMBER 2010
Lighting Lighting is key in all photography but takes on an even more critical role underwater since light waves are refracted and absorbed as they travel through the water. So, unlike land photography, the best time