Technique/Tutorial

Underwater photo tutorials, techniques and tips for all types of underwater photo and video, including macro, supermacro, wide-angle, composition and best camera gear.

Exploring the situations and techniques used for quick shots from the hip
By Mark Gray

Shooting from the Hip

Mark Gray
Exploring the situations and techniques used for quick shots from the hip

Shooting from the hip is a technique where one pulls the trigger without looking directly through the camera viewfinder.

So why should you shoot from the hip when you can use the traditional method of looking through a viewfinder?

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Getting great underwater photos with your full-frame Nikon dSLR
By Scott Gietler

Nikon D800 & D810 underwater settings

Scott Gietler
Getting great underwater photos with your full-frame Nikon dSLR

The Nikon D800 and D810 have the capability to take amazing underwater photos, if the settings, composition, and lighting all come together. Oh - and you have to be using the right lens. And you thought underwater photography was easy? In this article, we try to help with one part of the equation - settings. For more info, I highly encourage you to read my full Nikon D810 review.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Scott Gietler is the owner of Bluewater Photo, Bluewater Travel, and the Underwater Photography Guide. Bluewater Photo, based in Culver City, CA is one of the world’s largest and most prestigious underwater camera stores, serving many thousands of customers each year, where nothing is more important than customer service. The Underwater Photography Guide is the world’s first website to feature free tutorials on underwater photography, and has become the most trafficked resource on underwater photography worldwide. Bluewater Travel is a full-service dive travel wholesaler sending groups and individuals on the world’s best dive vacations. 

Scott is also an avid diver, underwater photographer, and budding marine biologist, having created the online guide to the underwater flora and fauna of Southern California. He is the past vice-president of the Los Angeles Underwater Photographic Society, has volunteered extensively at the Santa Monica aquarium, and is the creator of the Ocean Art underwater photo competition, one of the largest underwater international photo competitions ever held in terms of value of prizes. He lives in California with his wife, newborn girl and scuba-diving, photo taking 4 year old son.

Follow Scott on Facebook or Instagram.

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Visit Bluewater Photo & Video for all your underwater photography and video gear. Click, or call the team at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!

 


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Bluewater Travel is your full-service scuba travel agency. Let our expert advisers plan and book your next dive vacation. Run by divers, for divers.

 


Leave the marine life lenses at home – time to learn what’s needed for a pool photo session.
By Ken Kiefer

Inside Look: Gear for Shooting Models in Pools

Ken Kiefer
Leave the marine life lenses at home – time to learn what’s needed for a pool photo session.

Shooting models in a pool is quite a bit different than the underwater nature photography that most of the readers on Underwater Photography Guide are familiar with.   Most of us are trying to capture the wildlife in the oceans and lakes in its natural environment with natural movements.  Generally, you observe the animals and determine how best to capture the angle or activity th

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ken Kiefer is an underwater photographer that specializes in big animals and fashion/fitness shoots.  He uses his images of sharks to educate children about the realities of sharks –vs- media portrayal.  

View more of Ken's work at: www.kenkiefer.com.

SUPPORT THE UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY GUIDE:

The Best Service & Prices on u/w Photo Gear

 

Visit Bluewater Photo & Video for all your underwater photography and video gear. Click, or call the team at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!

 


The Best Pricing, Service & Expert Advice to Book your Dive Trips

 

Bluewater Travel is your full-service scuba travel agency. Let our expert advisers plan and book your next dive vacation. Run by divers, for divers.

 


A wide-angle underwater photography tutorial
By Scott Gietler

Wide Angle Tutorial on the Oil Rigs

Diving the California Oil Rigs
Scott Gietler
A wide-angle underwater photography tutorial

The Southern California Oil Rigs have long been a hidden gem for California's underwater photographers, but the word is slowly leaking out. With sea lions, mola mola, cormorants and huge schools of fish visiting at different times of year, the Oil Rigs can rival some of the world's best dive sites on a good day.

I'm going to show you some classic underwater scenes from the Oil Rigs, and share some times for getting good color, composition and exposure.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Scott Gietler is the owner of Bluewater Photo, Bluewater Travel, and the Underwater Photography Guide. Bluewater Photo, based in Culver City, CA is one of the world’s largest and most prestigious underwater camera stores, serving many thousands of customers each year, where nothing is more important than customer service. The Underwater Photography Guide is the world’s first website to feature free tutorials on underwater photography, and has become the most trafficked resource on underwater photography worldwide. Bluewater Travel is a full-service dive travel wholesaler sending groups and individuals on the world’s best dive vacations. 

Scott is also an avid diver, underwater photographer, and budding marine biologist, having created the online guide to the underwater flora and fauna of Southern California. He is the past vice-president of the Los Angeles Underwater Photographic Society, has volunteered extensively at the Santa Monica aquarium, and is the creator of the Ocean Art underwater photo competition, one of the largest underwater international photo competitions ever held in terms of value of prizes. He lives in California with his wife, newborn girl and scuba-diving, photo taking 4 year old son.

Follow Scott on Facebook or Instagram.

SUPPORT THE UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY GUIDE:

The Best Service & Prices on u/w Photo Gear

 

Visit Bluewater Photo & Video for all your underwater photography and video gear. Click, or call the team at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!

 


The Best Pricing, Service & Expert Advice to Book your Dive Trips

 

Bluewater Travel is your full-service scuba travel agency. Let our expert advisers plan and book your next dive vacation. Run by divers, for divers.

 


The quick or the dead – 5 tips to make sure you capture fast action underwater
By Shane Gross

Capturing Fast Ocean Action

Shane Gross
The quick or the dead – 5 tips to make sure you capture fast action underwater

Let’s face it – we humans are pathetically slow in the water. Even Michael Phelps’ top speed of 4.4 mph (7.1 km/h) pales in comparison to a yellowfin tuna’s estimated speed of 45 mph or, the fastest fish in the ocean, the sailfish’s 70 mph. With such a chasm between us, how can we possibly dream of capturing images of these fast animals? Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of shooting the fastest of the fast.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Born in Canada, Shane Gross has been living in the Bahamas for the past three years working as a SCUBA dive instructor and freelance underwater photographer/writer. His work has been widely published in books, magazines, ad campaigns, etc. He is an outspoken conservationist and ocean advocate who wishes to inspire those around him to do their part.

www.grossphotographic.com  |  facebook.com/shanegrossphotography

SUPPORT THE UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY GUIDE:

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Visit Bluewater Photo & Video for all your underwater photography and video gear. Click, or call the team at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!

 


The Best Pricing, Service & Expert Advice to Book your Dive Trips

 

Bluewater Travel is your full-service scuba travel agency. Let our expert advisers plan and book your next dive vacation. Run by divers, for divers.

 


Some of the most stunning macro images show portraits of tiny fish. What does it take? Find out in this tutorial.
By Christian Skauge

How to Improve your Fish Portraits

Christian Skauge
Some of the most stunning macro images show portraits of tiny fish. What does it take? Find out in this tutorial.

A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person, says Wikipedia.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Christian Skauge is a former Nordic Champion of underwater photography and has won several international photo contests. He writes articles about diving and underwater photography and is published regularly in magazines around the world. He also runs underwater photo and marine biology workshops. Check out his website for more info: www.scubapixel.com.

SUPPORT THE UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY GUIDE:

The Best Service & Prices on u/w Photo Gear

 

Visit Bluewater Photo & Video for all your underwater photography and video gear. Click, or call the team at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!

 


The Best Pricing, Service & Expert Advice to Book your Dive Trips

 

Bluewater Travel is your full-service scuba travel agency. Let our expert advisers plan and book your next dive vacation. Run by divers, for divers.

 


Tips and tricks for capturing shark portraits in the blue, from the open water to behind the bars of a cage
By Caine Delacy

Shooting Great Portraits of Sharks

Caine Delacy
Tips and tricks for capturing shark portraits in the blue, from the open water to behind the bars of a cage

There are a lot of opportunities to photograph sharks in the world, but getting a shot unlike others can be difficult task.  If you’re aiming to get a unique shot that is likely to capture people’s attention, then some of these rules may help with that.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Caine Delacy has spent his life pursing underwater adventures. It first started with a mask and snorkel, then progressed to a PhD in Marine Ecology. He has dived and conducted research all over the world including being one of the principle investigators on the biggest reef fish survey of the East African coastline. It was natural for Caine to start photographing underwater, and this has become a major outlet of his conservation efforts and exposing the world to the wonders of the underwater world, and the issues that it faces.

www.CaineDelacy.com

Follow Caine on:  Instagram  |  Twitter  |  Facebook

SUPPORT THE UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY GUIDE:

The Best Service & Prices on u/w Photo Gear

 

Visit Bluewater Photo & Video for all your underwater photography and video gear. Click, or call the team at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!

 


The Best Pricing, Service & Expert Advice to Book your Dive Trips

 

Bluewater Travel is your full-service scuba travel agency. Let our expert advisers plan and book your next dive vacation. Run by divers, for divers.

 


Shooting tips, light casts, best subjects and techniques for using a snoot underwater
By Mike Bartick

Ultimate Guide to Snoot Photography

Ultimate Guide to Snoot Photography
Mike Bartick
Shooting tips, light casts, best subjects and techniques for using a snoot underwater

Its been said many times before that lighting is everything in underwater photography. Lighting is without a doubt a prime method to create drama, add color and contrast, create shadows, add dimension and much more to each image. Controlling that light is totally up to the photographer and his/her ability to manipulate it.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mike Bartick is an avid and experienced scuba diver and Marine Wildlife Photographer. He has an insatiable love for nudibranchs, frogfish and other underwater critters, and is the official critter expert for the Underwater Photography Guide. Mike is also one of the UWPG trip leaders. See more of his work at www.saltwaterphoto.com.

SUPPORT THE UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY GUIDE:

The Best Service & Prices on u/w Photo Gear

 

Visit Bluewater Photo & Video for all your underwater photography and video gear. Click, or call the team at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!

 


The Best Pricing, Service & Expert Advice to Book your Dive Trips

 

Bluewater Travel is your full-service scuba travel agency. Let our expert advisers plan and book your next dive vacation. Run by divers, for divers.

 


Essential tips, advice and best accessories for capturing wave photos and videos with your GoPro camera
By Brent Durand

How to Shoot Wave Photos with your GoPro

How to Shoot Wave Photos With Your GoPro
Brent Durand
Essential tips, advice and best accessories for capturing wave photos and videos with your GoPro camera

GoPro Hero cameras are tough, easy-to-use and produce great photos, making them a great tool for wave photography. Traditional scuba diving housings are not designed for shooting waves – they’re bulky, heavy and use the wrong ergonomics for the positions you’ll be shooting waves from. Surf housings for DSLR cameras address all these issues but they’re expensive. So, this leaves many of us shooting waves with GoPro.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brent Durand is a weekend wanderer and story teller from California.

Brent is an avid diver and adventure photographer, and shoots underwater any time he can get hands on a camera system. He can be reached at brent@uwphotographyguide.com.

Follow Underwater Photography Guide on Facebook or Instagram.

SUPPORT THE UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY GUIDE:

The Best Service & Prices on u/w Photo Gear

 

Visit Bluewater Photo & Video for all your underwater photography and video gear. Click, or call the team at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!

 


The Best Pricing, Service & Expert Advice to Book your Dive Trips

 

Bluewater Travel is your full-service scuba travel agency. Let our expert advisers plan and book your next dive vacation. Run by divers, for divers.

 


Bring your macro video to the next level with these simple tips
By Sascha Janson

3 Tips for Underwater Macro Video

Sascha Janson
Bring your macro video to the next level with these simple tips

 

3 Tips for Underwater Macro Video


Bring your macro video to the next level with these simple tips

By Sascha Janson

 

 

SUPPORT THE UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY GUIDE:

The Best Service & Prices on u/w Photo Gear

 

Visit Bluewater Photo & Video for all your underwater photography and video gear. Click, or call the team at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!

 


The Best Pricing, Service & Expert Advice to Book your Dive Trips

 

Bluewater Travel is your full-service scuba travel agency. Let our expert advisers plan and book your next dive vacation. Run by divers, for divers.

 


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