7 replies to this topic

[clairegoodwin]

Any hints on greenwater wide angle lighting?
This is taken on a D300, subal housing, 2 ikelite DS125 strobes on full power. Exposure 1/80, F8, ISO 400. Post-processing - exposure increased in photoshop by +0.25. Dead men's fingers etc on arch look rather grey to me. How should I have altered settings to improve colour?

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[marc1990]

Any hints on greenwater wide angle lighting?
This is taken on a D300, subal housing, 2 ikelite DS125 strobes on full power. Exposure 1/80, F8, ISO 400. Post-processing - exposure increased in photoshop by +0.25. Dead men's fingers etc on arch look rather grey to me. How should I have altered settings to improve colour?

You could try to increase saturation en Lightness per color(all corlour except for green en blue you want to increase).(this often called HSL)

But the main problem is distante travel by the ligth of your strobe. I expect you are 4 m from the wall, so ligth has to travel 2*4m=8m, this will main that almost al red and orange have been removed.(see http://www.johneasle...struction.aspx)

To solve this get close to your subject or place the strobes close to you subject.

The background color can be change with another withe balance color temperature. Or you could add a gel to you strobe. that way can crate the right color temperature for background and for ground.

Marc

this what can get from increase saturation en Lightness per color:(you see nicely: the further away the subject the less color)

[errbrr]

For dark or dirty sites, I often try to get up close to something colourful (red/orange/yellow) and light that up in the foreground to balance the shots. As mentioned above, anything further away than a couple of metres is going to come out somewhere on a scale of green to black. If you can't get close enough to the main feature of the shot to hit it with your strobes, you can try using off camera strobes. These can add a layer of complexity, but do create opportunities for adding colour.

The other thought is to get your model decked out in yellow or orange so that they stand out from the background. If you find out how to achieve this, let me know. Why are divers so keen on wearing black all the time?

[Aussiebyron]

As a genral rule for greenwater wide angle and low vis I would recommend that you get closer and use a lens like a 10.5mm or Tokina 10-17mm. The shorter distance between you and the subject means more effect of the strobe on the subject. Strobe placement also comes into effect. I prefer to use a lower ISO also.

But it really depends on what your trying to shoot. Trying to do scene shots in greenwater can be hard if your trying to cover a large area in the shot. As Errbrr said off camera stobes can help and takes a little practice and can really make a shot like inside wrecks or caves.

Regards Mark

[pdemaagt]

You could try to increase saturation en Lightness per color(all corlour except for green en blue you want to increase).(this often called HSL)

But the main problem is distante travel by the ligth of your strobe. I expect you are 4 m from the wall, so ligth has to travel 2*4m=8m, this will main that almost al red and orange have been removed.(see http://www.johneasle...struction.aspx)

To solve this get close to your subject or place the strobes close to you subject.

The background color can be change with another withe balance color temperature. Or you could add a gel to you strobe. that way can crate the right color temperature for background and for ground.

Marc

this what can get from increase saturation en Lightness per color:(you see nicely: the further away the subject the less color)

Hi Marc,
please note that when you click on the link you added, it comes back with HTTP Error 404.0 - Not Found.This is because it include the bracket at the end for one reaon or another....

[JackConnick]

Yeah, agree, too much landscape, too little light. I think you could cheat your ISO a bit higher, lower your f/stop. Get in tighter and widen the lens.

But what you could also try is to have your buddy light the desired element with their dive light, providing a bit of "off strobe" light. It won't be great, but to the eye it may look natural.

Jack

[clairegoodwin]

Thanks for all the advice. I was shooting with the wide end of a Tokina 10-17 and got as close in as I could and still get the arch in full. I have some much more colourful shots in close where I could get strobe lighting but don't show the whole scene. I was wondering if there was some trick with white balance or something I had missed but I guess I'm just asking for the impossible (I'd love to try off camera strobes but could be difficult as this site is very tidal and in 30m). As for buddies in colourful clothing the only person I know who has one dives with his wife - although have potentially found one with purple and yellow drysuit!

Yeah, agree, too much landscape, too little light. I think you could cheat your ISO a bit higher, lower your f/stop. Get in tighter and widen the lens.

But what you could also try is to have your buddy light the desired element with their dive light, providing a bit of "off strobe" light. It won't be great, but to the eye it may look natural.

Jack

[wbk]

I have just adjusted the levels very slightly on the picture and used a mask or two where i wanted to lessen the effect. It was a quick job but you get the idea. If you have the RAW file you can do a lot more as i was just working of the image you posted.

I am very much a beginner with photoshop and there are many many people on the forums that can give you help at it.
Apart from that, what direction did you have your strobes firing?



Hope it helps...