Deep Sea Macro Photography Underwater
In the realm of underwater photography, supermacro captures the minute details of tiny subjects with stunning clarity. Here's a breakdown of how to achieve this level of magnification using diopters and teleconverters for compact cameras and DSLRs.
For compact cameras, a high-quality diopter is essential. Popular choices range from +13 to +18 diopters, with a common effective choice around +13 or +18 depending on your camera's close-focus capability and the desired magnification.
Effective use of diopters involves choosing a compatible high-quality wet diopter, using the highest possible aperture number to increase depth of field, positioning the diopter close to the subject, pairing diopters with appropriate macro lenses or the native macro mode of your compact camera, and using wet diopters for flexibility during a dive.
DSLR users have a variety of macro lenses to choose from, such as the Canon 60mm, Canon 100mm, Olympus 50mm, Nikon 60mm, and Nikon 105mm lenses. Using diopters or teleconverters to achieve greater than 1:1 magnification is called super-macro photography.
Olympus users often opt for the Oly 50mm F2.0 macro lens with a 1.4x or 2.0x teleconverter for supermacro photography. Similarly, Nikon 60mm or Canon 60mm macro lenses are good choices, and a teleconverter is suggested for increased magnification.
A 1.4x teleconverter enlarges the center portion of the image until it fills the frame, magnifying all images by 40%. However, it loses 1 stop of light, while a 2x teleconverter loses 2 stops of light. Using a teleconverter on a prime lens is recommended to avoid image degradation.
When shooting supermacro, it is often necessary to bring strobes closer to the subject to get sufficient strobe power at very small apertures. A 100/105mm lens with a +2 dry diopter and a Woody's wet diopter is a good combination for supermacro photography.
In supermacro photography, the depth of field lies equally in front and behind the focus point, so choosing the focal point carefully is important, and using at least F16 is recommended.
Wet diopters like the Subsee +10, Bluewater +7, and Nauticam CMC-1 are popular wet macro lenses for compact cameras. The macromate and the Subsee are stronger diopters, but much more expensive. Reefnet makes the Subsee adapter for most DSLR ports and a couple of compact camera ports.
In conclusion, whether you're using a compact camera or a DSLR, supermacro underwater photography allows you to reveal extreme details of tiny subjects. With the right choice of diopters, teleconverters, and lens combinations, you can capture stunning images that showcase the beauty of the underwater world in a whole new light.
- In the underwater realm, supermacro photography captures minute details of tiny subjects with startling clarity.
- For compact cameras, a high-quality diopter, like those ranging from +13 to +18 diopters, is crucial for supermacro.
- Positioning the diopter close to the subject is essential for effective use of diopters, as is pairing them with appropriate macro lenses.
- DSLR users have a range of macro lenses to choose from, such as the Canon 60mm, Canon 100mm, Olympus 50mm, Nikon 60mm, and Nikon 105mm lenses.
- Using a teleconverter for increased magnification in super-macro photography is common, with a 1.4x or 2.0x teleconverter being popular choices.
- Behavior and lighting are important considerations in supermacro photography, often necessitating strobes to be brought closer to the subject.
- A 100/105mm lens with a +2 dry diopter and a Woody's wet diopter is a good combination for supermacro photography.
- In supermacro photography, the depth of field lies equally in front and behind the focus point, so choosing the focal point carefully is important, and using at least F16 is recommended.
- Wet diopters like the Subsee +10, Bluewater +7, and Nauticop CMC-1 are popular options for compact cameras, while the Reefnet makes the Subsee adapter for most DSLR ports.
- Using Photoshop to enhance the color and quality of supermacro photos can help showcase the beauty of the underwater world in a whole new light.
- By following a guide on a trip, you can learn the taxonomy of coral, nudibranch, and other marine life to better understand the subjects of your supermacro photography.
