Underwater Photography

[NotAGolf]

I'm off on my trip in just over a week and will be taking my new Fuji F50 with underwater housing.

I'm very new to photography, only been snapping away for a couple of weeks, and I've never taken underwater shots before.

My first question is to do with the grease that you apply to the O-Ring on the underwater housing; should you apply this everytime you use the camera, once a week, month...?

And also, when in storage, should I leave the housing closed or open? I would have though closed but I didnt want to leave it closed only for the O-ring to become too squashed and deform or something.

With regards to the actual camera, what sort of settings should I be using? Is it similar to shooting above ground in terms of f numbers and shutter speeds etc? The camera also has an underwater mode, would it be a good idea to use this or am I better off doing things manually?

Sorry for all the questions, and thanks for any help!

 

[DampCat]

Grease it every time you store it. You don't need to grease it between dives on the same day, for example, but grease it if you leave it overnight or longer. The salt-water will dry out and crack the rubber otherwise. Remember to use vaseline on any screws/hinges too, because rust = bad.

I don't suppose it matters if you store it closed or open. I assume you can close it without locking it tight? in which case just do that. you wont deform the o-ring that way. As long as you don't store it above a radiator or in sunlight then you'll be fine. With rubber gaskets you just dont want to be making it hot/col/hot/cold because again, it will begin to petrify.

As for shooting underwater... no idea. I just use a point and click on auto Obviously though the deeper you go, the higher ISO you will need. Since you cant take a tripod with you (well... you could i guess... but uh... well yeah. up to you) you can't increase the shutter speed (as sitting still in water is impossible, you'll be moving around, and also, fish tend to move).

Enjoy!

 

[footman]

I'm certainly no expert but Ive recently done some underwater stuff in the Maldives. I used Auto all the time.
Dont use flash as the light will reflect from all the "bits" floating around.

If your staying in an air-conditioned room then make sure the camera comes up to ambient to avoid fogging in the enclosure.

 

[NotAGolf]

Cheers for the advice guys.

Dampcat, I can't really close it without locking it, it springs open to a slight angle so the O-ring is not touching at any point, I could obviously weight it closed but then I might as well lock it closed.

Are you saying that if I store it closed it's more likely to deform the ring? If so surely I'd be better just leaving it open, that way I'd avoid the problem of fogging in air-con rooms like footman said.

Then again that would incrase the chance of dirt/grit etc getting in...

One final thing, I'm not sure how long the grease I have will last, hopefully it should do me long enough, but just incase, is there any alternatives I could use? Vaseline for example?

Thanks again.

 

[DampCat]

Vaseline will work fine, it's what i use on all my dive equipment. Knives, reels etc..


I honestly have no idea about the locking effect, i was just trying to find a happy medium. If it were me, i'd be tempted to keep it closed and locked, since the chances of it deforming are less than it perforating. Honestly though it's your call, and i'm not going to be held responsible!

 

[DampCat]

Oh, and make sure you clean the casing out with fresh water after you use it and before you store it, then use oil-based vaseline to grease up any hinges, o-rings and metal clips.

Before you take it down with you too, you should grease it up and put a weight in it, then close it up and lock it and drop it into a bucket of water, kit washing tank or swimming pool to test for leaks and against pressure (so the deeper the better). This will be more important over time due to wear and tear. You dont want to get your camera down there and wreck it

Most people will grease up the case and take it down to depth without the camera in for the first dive, just to test. I'd recommend this