Beneath the Waves
by Michael Anderson
Tsoi Lik Island, Papua New Guinea.
A lone starfish shines in the late afternoon light of Tsoi Lik Lagoon, Papua New Guinea. The Tsoi Islands are a secret South Pacific paradise with spectacular white sand beaches surrounding a stunning turquise lagoon. A large tropical tree overhangs the lagoon in this spot and the late afternoon sun was filtered through the branches for a few minutes each day, providing a dramatic backdrop of light rays that danced from one colorful starfish to the next.
I find that underwater photography is the most challenging aspect of my work, so any critique or commentary would be greatly appreciated. This scene was much more difficult to shoot than it appears. I didn't bring a strobe on this trip due to weight considerations so I had to shoot everything with ambient light. To get the depth of field needed for this image, I shot at f22 at ISO 1200 and 1/60 second which was barely fast enough to freeze the camera in the surging waves of the lagoon. The intensity of the light beams and the overall exposure varied second by second depending on the wind and the way the light filtered through the branches of the tree. The sun drops toward sunset much more quickly at the equator than temperate latitudes and I was amazed at how quickly the beams advanced across the sandy bottom and how quickly the exposure time increased as I was following the underwater light. Despite the challenges, the Canon 5D Mark II is the perfect tool for underwater photography with it's resolution and high ISO performance. I used an Aquatica housing and I can highly recommend it for anyone considering underwater photography. My only minor complaint is that the dome on the housing leaves images a bit soft on the edges, even at f22. If any of you guys have any tips on dealing with that issue I would love to hear from you.
I'm really enjoying all of the autumn photography everyone has posted over the last month- this has been a banner year for NPNers!!!
-Mike
Comments
50 commentsThanks for the comment! Depth of field in underwater photography is a huge challenge. Your camera doesn't actually focus on the subject- the focus is on a virtual image on the dome and the range of DOF gets dramatically reduced as a result. I still don't quite get it from a physics point of view but you can read about it on www.wetpixel.com. However, I actually think that 80% of the focus problem at the bottom of this image is due to the curvature of the dome rather than limited DOF. Seems that is just part of the deal with UW photography. I can tell you it is REALLY fun despite (or possibly because of) the challenges. It's fun to be able to shoot all day rather than scout and then shoot mostly at the golden hour.
-Mike
this is awesome
the DOF is excellent
love the fish in the back it gives some realty and depth
Perfect
Thanks for the insightful comments. The reason you don't see the dome blurring in the upper corners is because the top of the image was cropped about 10%. I feel that about 80% of the softness at the bottom is due to the curvature of the dome and maybe 20% from limited DOF by getting a couple inches too close to the starfish. Here is a discussion of the 'virtual image' which makes DOF so tricky. http://www.uwphotographyguide.com/dome-port-optics
My housing allows me to manually zoom the 16-35mm lens or focus it but not both. So I've been using the zoom manually and using spot autofocus when I compose the scene. It's one more challenge but I can't tell you how fun it is to experiment and be able to photograph all day long!
-Mike
gio
Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI.
First - your composition is fantastic! I might dial back some of the highlights in the sand if they were not completely blown - but that is a minor nit.
As others have said the lack of focus over this horned sea star (?) is the most distracting element. I think this is one of the most difficult things about underwater work with a rectilinear optic. The dome ports available for the Aquatica series are very good - I use the 9.25" Megadome myself - and using the correct match of port/extenders for a particular lens/camera are an absolute must.
If you've checked with Aquatica to make sure you have the right adapters and are using the largest port they offer (which will cut down on these effects) then the only thing I can think of that would completely fix this problem is to use a fisheye lens. These optics will almost completely eliminate the effects of field curvature from the dome. You can get them in a variety of zooms - Tokina makes the most popular at 10-17mm.
The thing I really like about them is that you can focus them to infinity and stop down to f8 and the entire scene from a few inches in front of the port to infinity is nice and sharp.
Hope this helps!
-Jason
This is a beautiful capture. As others have mentioned my only nitch would be the very bottom being a little out of focus. That said I can definitely relate to how difficult underwater photography is. I just recently got back from a dive trip and wrote about the challenges on my blog. I also love how everything we shoot underwater is pretty much new and never seen before. =)
Anyhow, back to the image. I love the blue water and capturing the light rays like you did is just fantastic. I am pretty new to underwater photography myself, so by no means an expert, but I am shocked that you are having the DoF issues. Do you think it is possibly because you were too close to the subject? I use a fisheye lens though, so that has something to do with it, as it seems to do pretty well in the dome. Also I use an 8" dome which is very large. I have found that with the fisheye I hardly ever get to that small of an aperture. You usually don't have to deal with with subjects super far out, so using an aperture in the F8-F16 range has yielded nice sharp images. Lastly a strobe adds quite a bit as you already know, but the weight is an issue. I nearly broke my back carrying the udnerwater gear with two strobes and random other photography stuff on my recent trip. =)
Good to see you back and posting, and I really love your underwater work as much as your above land shots.
Cheers,
Koveh
Great shot Mike, and quite a refreshing outlook on the underworld. Looks like paradise. Makes me want to grab my snorkel and go free diving again.
Well done indeed.
Geoff.
I was just thinking last week that we have not seen anything from you in a long while. So to see this now is great. I think it is very cool that you keep challenging yourself with new techniques and this one seems like a great challenge. The OOF areas on the bottom are noticeable but really are not very objectionable and I would not make to much of it. Looking forward to more underwater photography from you. If I find anything on underwater focusing through a dome lens I will try to digest it and explain it better to you. Maybe I can put my Ph.D. to some good use.
I'm glad you described wwhat went into this shot, because this is clearly a case of making the image.
I'm surprised no one mentioned the fish on top, which add even more, in addition to the aspects already mentioned.
I'm diggin' this photo! The light from above is quite is epiphanic !
I can only imagine the fun you must have been having bouncing a drift in the currents trying to nail a perfect capture of time. I'm glad your back safe and (I'm guessing) full and recharged on experiences only travel can bring. Travel and experiencing other culture and regions is better than any drug IMHO.
Guy
As always, the two of us getting back from separate trips pretty much the same week.
My thoughts about the image - WOW! What Guy said, one of (if not) the best underwater comp/light I have seen. Stunning! .....That said though, it is a definite bummer about the primary subject up front not being in focus. Without any experience with the housing you're using, I can't suggest anything in that regard. I'm gathering this is more of DOF issue and not edge sharpness since the top edge looks comparably sharp (unless cropping was done). If that's the case it would just depend on how well you could hold this position (not exactly, but close enough) to pull off a DOF aperture blend.
This image is so cool, it makes me want to get trained in SCUBA, buy the necessary equipment and start making underwater pictures ASAP! You've definitely got a winner here.
Glad to see an image from you. Even though you're the one experiencing it, it's sure great for you to share your adventures and wonderful imagery with us. Thanks!
Lon
I'm so sorry for being so late to comment your photo.
It's one of the photos that really grabbed my brains from the many beautiful pics I see on NPN.
The light and the composition are amazing.
Congrats for making this beutiful piece of art.