Underwater Cameras are a powerful accessory to have during a dive. A picture can speak a thousand words without any narration. An underwater camera can show the world what lies beneath the surface of our vast oceans. Ocean depths that not a lot of people have access to. But can also be a part of by seeing photographs.
We often get asked by people who just want to experience scuba diving if they can carry their Gopros’ with them during the dive. To which we are bound to say no. Having a camera that you can take underwater is great but knowing when to take the camera is extremely important.
Temple Adventures loves rules, which is why we do not let our PADI Discover Scuba Divers and our divers doing courses take any camera with them underwater. Handling a camera underwater may look easy but is absolutely not. First time divers are very wary of their buoyancy and the new world they have just dived into. Giving them a camera to hold may result in them losing an expensive gadget.
Except for students doing the PADI Digital Underwater Photography course, those doing courses, need to concentrate on learning. And having a camera in their hand might prove to be a fatal distraction that we refuse to take the risk of!
Which is why we at Temple Adventures always have designated photographers underwater who can take care of the needful.
Whether you want to try out underwater photography just as a hobby or as a profession, the question is when is the right time to indulge in the activity?
When do you really know if you are ready to take underwater cameras with you?
There are multiple reasons for when you definitely know that you are ready to try out underwater photography! We have narrowed it down to 3 main factors.
1. Respect Marine Life
We cannot stress this reason enough. As a scuba diver you are taught from the very beginning not to touch and harass marine life. No photograph in the world is worth it if it was taken at the cost of an animal being harassed. Being a good diver means understanding boundaries and giving space. We all hate it when our buddies get too close and the same goes with the marine life! If using external light, always make sure to never take more than 5 as the flash can be extremely irritating and upsetting to the marine creature. Respecting marine life can go a long way. And sometimes you might even get surprised by curious animals coming to check you out, if you give them the space!
2. Buoyancy Control
One of the marks of a good diver is buoyancy control. If you have a streamlined trim and perfect buoyancy you can take your underwater cameras with you! But if your trim is not very good then you will have to first work on getting that in order. Not being able to control your buoyancy will result in you losing air more quickly, disrupting the bottom life and stressing out animals. Also an underwater photographer might have to spend a certain amount of time in just one place and for that you would need to learn how to be properly buoyant and streamlined.
By taking the PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy course and doing more dives you can ensure that you will have good buoyancy to take an underwater camera with you!
3. Understanding the Basics of Photography
An Underwater Housing with Strobes.Our second and third points are two sides of the same coin! Because being a good diver is all well and good but if you do not understand even the basics of how your camera works, then all you will be is lost! Just like how in scuba diving we have theory, we must make it a point to read about the basics. For this reason we need to understand the camera we are working with! We always urge divers to read the manuals of their gear. Therefore, now we are urging them to also read the manuals of their camera and their camera rigs.
Are you ready?
So do you think that you are ready to try out underwater photography any time soon? If you do not feel ready yet that is completely okay! It is what we are here for! We can help you get better buoyancy and enough dives to get all the practice before we dive in for some photography dives.
Send us a message here to book your dives and courses with us!