Tips for Shooting Underwater Videos

Marc Morale is the owner of Hamilton Construction, a company he founded in Frankfort, Illinois, in 1996. Outside of work, Marc Morale is an avid scuba diver with experience instructing classes, repairing scuba diving equipment, and giving presentations on underwater videography and photography. 

Many scuba divers record their underwater experiences on video. Here are a few tips for shooting high-quality underwater videos.

1. Buy the correct gear. First, it's important to note there are no true underwater cameras. However, there are waterproof cameras that can be fitted with underwater camera housing. As such, underwater photographers look for a camera capable of shooting in 720p or higher and use an underwater camera housing made by the camera’s manufacturer or a third party. Specifics like features, size and weight, and price are up to the individual. 

2. Make sure the videos aren't shaky. This is easier said than done when strong currents are involved, but steady videos can be taken by focusing on motor control and/or using a tripod. Companies sell tripods for shooting underwater in a variety of prices and styles. Divers can set up the tripod on two legs and hold the third leg for stability or set up the tripod and weigh it down to shoot from a distance.

3. Get buoyancy right. Divers achieve neutral buoyancy by wearing the right amount of weight for the dive and by breathing evenly. Without buoyancy, the diver will not be able to stay balanced, which makes it difficult to take photographs or videos. For instance, an individual seeking to capture up-close video while floating over a coral reef or hovering beside a whale shark will need to stay steady to keep from scaring or bumping into sea life. It takes time to achieve natural buoyancy, so many dives may be necessary before a diver strikes the right balance. However, it will be well worth it to save time editing out shaky or “bobbing” footage later.

Taking Effective Underwater Photographs of Reefs

Marc Morale is a respected presence in the Chicago community who leads Hamilton Construction, Inc., where he focuses on projects involving reclamation, sewer, and watermain issues. An avid scuba diver and certified instructor, Marc Morale has extensive experience taking still and video footage underwater. 

One of the most complex aspects of underwater photography involves capturing reefscapes. With showcasing marine life in the foreground a goal of many, such shots often involve careful planning, with the diver prepared to stay in a single location and capture those animals that swim or drift by during a session.

While wide angle lenses are often used, creating viewer interest may require the use of strobes and other forms of underwater lighting. With soft lighting defining the shape of the foreground object, a sense of immediacy and vividness can be generated through the use of backlighting. 

Another dramatic technique is to create over/under images that reflect both the view from the surface and underwater. This is best accomplished in shallow water situations with hard corals fanning out toward the surface. Taking advantage of sunny conditions, the photographer may leave fins behind, so that sand and other sediment are not stirred up. The surface level of the shot, often accomplished through use of a dome port, can incorporate classic land elements such as sandy beach and coconut trees along with the reef below.

Underwater Photography Tips for Scuba Divers

A resident of Chicago, Marc Morale owns Hamilton Construction in Frankfort, Illinois. Interested in the ocean and scuba diving for years, Marc Morale became a certified scuba diver after college and is certified as a Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) open water diver. Since then, he has parlayed his love of being underwater into doing underwater photography and videography.

Underwater photography requires divers to swim well in order to keep up with many of its subjects. When compared to snorkeling photography, scuba photography allows people to spend long periods of time in deeper water, giving them a better chance of being closer to marine life. Divers should keep a few tips in mind when shooting underwater.

* Use the right camera settings. Most underwater cameras have different flash settings, and divers should use the forced flash mode if possible. The camera should also be set to the highest resolution. In addition, divers should use the spot focus mode.

* Get close to the subject. When taking pictures underwater, the light needs to travel from the camera to the object and back to the camera, through water in each direction. By shortening the distance, the photographer will achieve clearer images.

* Shoot photos upward toward the surface. This allows the shot to include more than just the sea bottom, which can make your subject blend into the coral or other background. Upward shots have the sun or sky backlighting the subject.