Hey Brent! I just graduated high school and I am interested in possibly pursuing a career in underwater photography. I have my scuba certification, and I am working on a portfolio. What is your advice for possible next steps?
Hi! I always suggest looking for a parallel career that keeps you close to the ocean with time to practice underwater photography. If it's not apparent, I work full time and photo/video is only a side hobby. This is the case for many 'pro' photographers. Aside from maybe 10 people, most 'full-time' underwater photographers create a sustainable income through photography, teaching workshops, shooting for clients and other projects since it's very difficult to earn enough simply from shooting photos. There is more opportunity in underwater cinematography, however it's still extremely competitive on many levels (networking, equipment investment, advanced certifications & training (e.g. rebreathers), etc.). I hope this helps a bit!
Brent as usual great advice. I would add one more, after the dive holiday and you get home make sure you correctly clean and dry and then store away your gear. Don't just leave it as a pre dive routine, it is a post dive routine and makes your next pre dive routine much easier. Cheers.
Thanks Brent! Being as a dive guide I’ve been finding subjects for photographers for years. Finally purchased my own camera! Only been able to use t snorkelling so far though. Is 1/160 sync enough? Considering strobes, I realised that’s the max for a6400.
Yes, 1/160 is enough for great wide-angle and macro. The only time you might want a higher max sync speed is shallow, clear sunbursts or fast wide angle subjects near the limit of strobe reach, but those are pretty specific.
I think it depends on what subjects you're trying to photograph, the location, etc. Scuba gives you lots of time to adjust settings, lighting, and composition, while freediving is streamlined and quick, often great for pelagic subjects in blue water. I always recommend determining what you want to shoot and your dive style before thinking about camera gear, since decisions depend on how you want to use it.
Thanks Brent. Excellent content as always!. On my last trip we were moving a bit too fast, so I switched to video. It was part of my plan anyway. I agree that diving with another photographer is your best choice
@@BrentDurand which will better for only swimming pool models underwater photoshoots? I just have my first underwater photoshoot last week, I only plan to do ot work models, none of the sea fish stuff
@@GPhotoFashion There are many ways to shoot models in pools, but any of these strobes on my list that feature manual and TTL/auto exposure control will be great in the clear water of a pool. I'm not a specialist in this area though!
Thanks! For ambient exposure and blue tones I use the two step process outlined in the video below (starting at 4.17). This assumes you're shooting in manual. Exposure is first, then small adjustments in aperture and shutters peed can change the color a bit. Of course, white balance and blue tones can be adjusted in post as well. th-cam.com/video/SC6o00h53Xo/w-d-xo.htmlsi=X-JpoFsG2n80ZGKJ&t=257
Thanks great tips as always. My channel to go too for advice 👍. I have the sealife micro 3.0 and Gopro11 now with wide lens . I wish I could afford the camera in your video 😂. When I go on a group dive on holiday I seem to be the only one taking close up photos and feel rush to take photos and to keep up can be very frustrating at times. Back home in Scotland theres only so many time I can take the same photo of a crab or a star fish 😂. Great content and also great videos.
Thanks for the kind words. And yes, it's funny how that goes. At home you could try different lighting on those subjects (like a homemade or DIY snoot). You could even look at experimenting with blue light (UV light) to mix it up on night dives. I've been in the same spot but try to always experiment with creative ideas on those same subjects.
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I have now added this video to my favorites and it is on my dive trip check list to re-watch. Every tip is spot on! Many thanks Brent!
Excellent - glad to hear it!
Hey Brent! I just graduated high school and I am interested in possibly pursuing a career in underwater photography. I have my scuba certification, and I am working on a portfolio. What is your advice for possible next steps?
Hi! I always suggest looking for a parallel career that keeps you close to the ocean with time to practice underwater photography. If it's not apparent, I work full time and photo/video is only a side hobby. This is the case for many 'pro' photographers. Aside from maybe 10 people, most 'full-time' underwater photographers create a sustainable income through photography, teaching workshops, shooting for clients and other projects since it's very difficult to earn enough simply from shooting photos.
There is more opportunity in underwater cinematography, however it's still extremely competitive on many levels (networking, equipment investment, advanced certifications & training (e.g. rebreathers), etc.).
I hope this helps a bit!
Brent as usual great advice. I would add one more, after the dive holiday and you get home make sure you correctly clean and dry and then store away your gear. Don't just leave it as a pre dive routine, it is a post dive routine and makes your next pre dive routine much easier. Cheers.
That's a very critical point. Agreed 110%. Thanks Dave!
Thanks Brent! Being as a dive guide I’ve been finding subjects for photographers for years. Finally purchased my own camera! Only been able to use t snorkelling so far though. Is 1/160 sync enough? Considering strobes, I realised that’s the max for a6400.
Yes, 1/160 is enough for great wide-angle and macro. The only time you might want a higher max sync speed is shallow, clear sunbursts or fast wide angle subjects near the limit of strobe reach, but those are pretty specific.
Do you think it's more difficult to do freediving photography over scuba?
I think it depends on what subjects you're trying to photograph, the location, etc. Scuba gives you lots of time to adjust settings, lighting, and composition, while freediving is streamlined and quick, often great for pelagic subjects in blue water. I always recommend determining what you want to shoot and your dive style before thinking about camera gear, since decisions depend on how you want to use it.
Thanks Brent. Excellent content as always!. On my last trip we were moving a bit too fast, so I switched to video. It was part of my plan anyway. I agree that diving with another photographer is your best choice
Thank you! Video is a great way to find balance when moving quick... embrace the motion.
Can you make video about settings like iso shutterspeel sputur?
This video covers this and more: th-cam.com/video/SC6o00h53Xo/w-d-xo.htmlsi=oyexD3-G6C1wKSCr
Grazie per i tuoi super consigli Brent!😊
Prego Alessandro!
Which flash will you recommend ?
My favorite strobes are here: tutorials.brentdurand.com/underwater-strobe-comparison/
@@BrentDurand which will better for only swimming pool models underwater photoshoots? I just have my first underwater photoshoot last week, I only plan to do ot work models, none of the sea fish stuff
In using a Nikon z7 Seafrog Housing
@@GPhotoFashion There are many ways to shoot models in pools, but any of these strobes on my list that feature manual and TTL/auto exposure control will be great in the clear water of a pool. I'm not a specialist in this area though!
Great video Brent as usual, just a quick one - how do you 'get your blues dialled in'?
Cheers!
Thanks! For ambient exposure and blue tones I use the two step process outlined in the video below (starting at 4.17). This assumes you're shooting in manual. Exposure is first, then small adjustments in aperture and shutters peed can change the color a bit. Of course, white balance and blue tones can be adjusted in post as well.
th-cam.com/video/SC6o00h53Xo/w-d-xo.htmlsi=X-JpoFsG2n80ZGKJ&t=257
Thanks great tips as always. My channel to go too for advice 👍. I have the sealife micro 3.0 and Gopro11 now with wide lens . I wish I could afford the camera in your video 😂. When I go on a group dive on holiday I seem to be the only one taking close up photos and feel rush to take photos and to keep up can be very frustrating at times. Back home in Scotland theres only so many time I can take the same photo of a crab or a star fish 😂. Great content and also great videos.
Thanks for the kind words. And yes, it's funny how that goes. At home you could try different lighting on those subjects (like a homemade or DIY snoot). You could even look at experimenting with blue light (UV light) to mix it up on night dives. I've been in the same spot but try to always experiment with creative ideas on those same subjects.