Underwater Photography and Videography, News, Forums, Trips, Photo Contests :: Wetpixel.com

Our good friends over at FiNS Magazine have launched a new website! FiNS is now entirely web-based, and has relaunched its website to incorporate video podcasts, blog posts and PDF articles, with the objective of making use of mixed media to showcase the amazing dive destinations in Asia.

Apparently the FiNS Team lost many hours of sleep putting the new site together, so head on over to finsonline.com to check out the new site!

Last-minute, discounted spots are still available for second trip of the Wetpixel Ultimate Indonesia expedition. Join Eric Cheng and Indonesia dive-guide extraordinaire Graham Abbott on a charter especially set up for photographers. We will have a flexible itinerary that will bring us from Ambon, through the Banda Sea, to the famous sea snake island of Guning Api (featured in BBC’s Planet Earth series), and the amazing critter life around Alor, Pantar, Flores and finally Maumere. Contact Dan Baldocchi at for details.

EXPEDITION #1: Sorong, Halmahera, Ambon | March 7-22, 2009 (15 days)
Fully booked.

EXPEDITION #2: Ambon, Banda Sea, Maumere | March 25-April 9, 2009 (15 days)
UPDATE: 5 spots available

We’ll be aboard the Seven Seas, a fantastic luxury liveaboard vessel.  For more information, visit our Ultimate Indonesia info page.

The San Diego Underwater Photographic Society (SDUPS) is proud to announce that its 40th Film Festival will be held in San Diego, CA at Qualcomm Hall on April 25, 2009.

In celebration of this, SDUPS’s 40th Film Festival, SDUPS has expanded the film festival’s program to include: a) a Matinee Show featuring films from SDUPS members, b) a reception honoring many of San Diego’s underwater pioneers, c) a headliner film from Steve Drogin shot utilizing his DeepSee submarine, and d) a worldwide film contest that includes a $500 first place prize. 

The Northern California Underwater Photographic Society (NCUPS), Backscatter’s Berkley White, and Wallin’s Dive Center are hosting a two-day underwater digital photo and video workshop on February 13-14, 2009. The event is free and open to the public, and will cater to the full range of novice through advanced divers and underwater photographers.

The Friday night classroom seminar will involve a presentation of underwater imagery and a discussion of techniques, while the Saturday morning event will be a hands-on pool session with tips for each individual’s specific shooting needs. Backscatter will also have demo gear to try out for those interested in the various equipment choices - continue reading for more details…

Wetpixel needs help manning its booth at Beneath the Sea this year! This is your opportunity to get involved in the largest consumer scuba and dive show in the USA. We need two volunteers to man the booth and showcase Wetpixel Quarterly, the magazine that features the best in underwater photography.  In addition to our eternal gratitude, we’ll throw in a free 1-year subscription to Wetpixel Quarterly!

If you’re interested, please .

Watershot, Inc. has announced that the Watershot Digital housing brand has finally been released, beginning with the WDS-450D housing kit for the 12.2 megapixel Canon EOS 450D/XSi digital SLR.

Machined from a solid block of aluminum, the housing features a standard flat port for the 18-55mm lens, hand strap, two optical strobe bulkheads (wired bulkheads coming soon), and leak sensor. Also in development are housings for the new Canon 50D and 5D Mark II. Check out the housing kit for more information, or continue reading for photos of the Watershot 450 XSi housing…

Lee Peterson has posted some images of the new Gates underwater video housing for the RED camera:

This is the first look at the new Gates video housing for the RED camera. John has done an amazing job with this housing and all the special attention to detail has really paid off. This is truly the best of the best in underwater video housings.  The new underwater optical lens for this housing will produce the finest quality imagery possible. the external monitor can be placed on top or on the back of the housing to suit the particular needs of the video photographer.

Last October, John Ellerbrock of Gates Housings took Wetpixel on a tour of the new RED housing, but the housing was still in the early prototype stage.

Corner sharpness, with rectilinear wide angle lenses behind dome ports, is a commonly debated topic on the Wetpixel forums. There are many variables: different domes, different port extensions, different lenses, different formats (full frame, versus cropped sensor) and different dioptres or no dioptres at all.

Of course it is possible to determine the theoretically correct dome port and dioptre setup for a lens, but many photographers find that deviating away from the theoretically perfect setup gives them the flexibility and results they are after in the field. Underwater tests are invaluable in determining performance, and for seeing the differences between different setups.

A recent thread about Nikon’s impressive 14-24mm lens has blossomed into a discussion where several photographers, Karin Brussaard, Stephen Frink and Alex Mustard, have been kind enough to share some of their tests of both Nikon and Canon lenses. See their results and join the discussion. 

Google yesterday released the latest version of its Google Earth software, for the first time introducing a new layer called “Ocean,” an oceanography component that allows you to ”plunge all the way to the floor of the sea, view exclusive content from partners like BBC and National Geographic, and explore 3D shipwrecks like the Titanic.”

Wetpixel member Bruce Yates (bmyates) had the opportunity to attend the official launch of Google Earth 5.0 at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, and has written a report of the event, with photographs of notable attendees Sylvia Earle, Al Gore, and Jimmy Buffett. Continue reading for the report, or learn more about Google Earth’s Ocean…

The Underwater Channel (UWC), a new web TV Channel for divers, is dedicated to the mysteries and marvels of the underwater world. UWC is looking to light up diving in Australia for its international audience on The Underwater Channel, and is (in association with PADI), seeking an experienced diver to present a monthly dive report, primarily from the Australian east coast. You will join an international team of Faces of The Underwater Channel around the world to become the Face of Australia.

If you’re interested, send in a video application to UWC! Submission deadline is 28 Feb, 2009.