What Is A Split Shot? Also Known As A Half-half Or An Over-under Shot? Well, in the world of underwater photography, technically they’re a way to show the above world and the immediate underwater, all at once, and they’re a really fun way to let the viewer know what it is we do, all captured in the one image. A picture where the topside of the picture and the land or seascape is visible, but the bottom half of the view is the underwater reef scene. As travellers with Snorkel Venture, we’re very lucky to visit some of the most beautiful tropical paradises in the world. And I’ve always been fond of taking shots that show the viewer exactly what it is we do and where, so what better way than a split shot? It’s like two for the price of one click of the shutter. And the great news is that they’re easier and much less expensive to achieve than you may think. The Necessary Kit And Equipment. Being an underwater photographer, also teaching underwater photography workshops alongside my job as a Snorkel Venture guide, has meant that I have amassed a lot of expensive underwater photo kit over the years. My bigger camera, lenses, housing, and strobes come to more than $15-20K, and it allows me to do some extraordinary things with it, but aside from the price, it’s huge and costly to travel with. So it was a revelation that when I started doing more of the Snorkel Venture trips, I could leave it all at home and instead use exactly what the majority of our SV clients use, and that was, in the main either GoPros or similar or the seemingly ubiquitous Olympus Tough range, currently the Olympus TG7. Admittedly, I was a bit skeptical at
What Is A Split Shot? Also Known As A Half-half Or An Over-under Shot? Well, in the world of underwater photography, technically they’re a way to show the above world and the immediate underwater, all at once, and they’re a really fun way to let the viewer know what it is we do, all captured
It wasn’t too long ago that if you wanted to take your precious camera underwater with you, you needed to jam it into a cumbersome metal enclosure so as to keep the water out. This often meant a significant additional expense in purchasing the housing, one more bulky item to pack for your snorkeling trip, not to mention the fact that the housing would increase the size and weight of your camera by two or three times. What was once a small point-and-shoot camera that could easily be operated with one hand has now become a hefty burden that requires two hands to wield. Thankfully, for those of us who want a reliable camera that fits in the palm of our hand and also functions beneath the waves, there is the Olympus TG series. These cameras have been out for quite a while now, with the most recent model being the TG-7, and have really set the standard for what amphibious compact cameras should offer the shooter. Olympus has done such a superb job of building a camera that’s ready to be submerged right out of the box; other camera manufacturers like Sony, Canon, or Nikon have basically backed away from this corner of the market. As a result, the TG series has become the obvious camera choice for snorkelers around the world. While the TG cameras are ready to start shooting underwater straight away, I’d like to ever so delicately present the idea of purchasing a housing for your TG camera, using only the most rock-solid points. I get that this might sound a little contradictory as I’ve just set TG cameras on a pretty high pedestal for their underwater readiness sans accessories. In my opinion, the TG camera’s pedestal position is very well deserved, and I don’t offer
It wasn’t too long ago that if you wanted to take your precious camera underwater with you, you needed to jam it into a cumbersome metal enclosure so as to keep the water out. This often meant a significant additional expense in purchasing the housing, one more bulky item to pack for your snorkeling trip,
Sometimes a cold beer, a long journey and a couple of ancient civilizations collide in the most unexpected way. I’m sipping a Belikin Beer — no, let’s be more accurate, I’m quickly downing one — in the bar at the Fort George Hotel in Belize City when I notice the condensation beading on the label. And then I spot the pyramid. A quick Google later and I discover that the pyramid on my now-empty bottle is the pyramid from Altun Ha the Mayan archaeological site we regularly visit on our Belize trips. The coincidence is that I’d arrived in Belize that very morning from Egypt, where I’d just completed another Snorkel Venture trip. Our Egyptian trips often include visits to the incredible structures and antiquities of Ancient Egypt. And one of Egypt’s most popular beers is Sakara, which also has a pyramid on its label — this time one of the earlier dynasty pyramids at Saqqara. Now, I’ve no idea if the producers of the Belizean and Egyptian beers are somehow in collusion, which I very much doubt. But it did strike me as rather odd that both national beers feature pyramids. So what has all this got to do with snorkeling? Bear with me, I’ll get to that bit shortly. When we meet our Snorkel Venture guests in Belize City — or Cairo — it would be a crying shame not to explore some of the local culture when the opportunity arises. Altun Ha is less than an hour away by minivan", making it an ideal morning excursion before we transfer to Turneffe Island. I’d taken more than 30 hours to reach Belize from Egypt, but for our mainly American guests, the flight from Miami is only around two hours. Even from further afield in the US, the Caribbean
Sometimes a cold beer, a long journey and a couple of ancient civilizations collide in the most unexpected way. I’m sipping a Belikin Beer — no, let’s be more accurate, I’m quickly downing one — in the bar at the Fort George Hotel in Belize City when I notice the condensation beading on the label.
There's no doubt that the most popular cameras on our snorkeling safaris are the GoPros and the Olympus TG cameras. As versatile and easy to use each of these different cameras are, quite often we encounter guests on our tours who bought one of the TG cameras only to find that they prefer the GoPro's video modes after seeing the results from one the other guests brandishing these ultra-compact action cameras. Similarly, we get a number of guests using a GoPro who admit that they would prefer a TG camera as they prefer taking photos and the much larger screen. While both cameras have the ability to capture the underwater world in beautiful colors and clarity with relative ease, each camera does have its niche, and as such, it only benefits us to take a minute to consider what it is we really want to capture with our cameras. Let's take a look. While the GoPro does take nice photos, it’s definitely geared more towards those who are interested in the video functions but would still like to take a photo here and there. Something else that’s great about the GoPro cameras is the wide-angle lens that works amazingly for capturing larger schools of fish, reefscapes, and other big animals like mantas and turtles. That being said, because of the wide-angle lens and the camera's 12-inch minimum focus distance, the GoPros are not great cameras for shooting small things like nudibranchs, crabs, shrimps, or small reef fish. Finally, one of the other great things about this camera is its ability to auto-color-correct underwater for images full of great natural colors and not just shades of blue and green. GoPro Pros Waterproof out of the box Oustanding video capabilities Decent photo capabilities (RAW + JPEG) Outstanding wide-angle lens Great Auto White
There’s no doubt that the most popular cameras on our snorkeling safaris are the GoPros and the Olympus TG cameras. As versatile and easy to use each of these different cameras are, quite often we encounter guests on our tours who bought one of the TG cameras only to find that they prefer the GoPro’s
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