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
I recently returned from a week-long snorkeling photography workshop in Belize with sixteen guests, all of whom had the famous Olympus TG-6 camera. With so many guests using the same camera, it couldn't have worked out better! Having spent so much time learning and navigating the different modes, menus, and configurations of this sassy little camera I thought it might be useful to put together a little guide to the TG-6 so everyone can hit the water ready to snap some great photos without stressing about what does what on the camera. Fish Mode The first thing you should do is turn the little dial on the back so that the little fish icon lines up with the white dash. This will put you in the underwater mode where you can select four different underwater shooting modes. Underwater Snapshot vs. Underwater Wide These two modes function pretty much the same, the only difference is that the Underwater Wide mode starts by using the Underwater: Mid Range white balance function indicated by a fish symbol with WB2 next to it. Underwater Snapshot uses the Underwater: Shallow (WB1 + 'fish symbol'). These Underwater white balance modes can be easily adjusted regardless of whether you are using Underwater Snapshot or Underwater Wide. Unless you can dive down and hold your breath for a good amount of time I wouldn't recommend using the Underwater Macro mode. Your best bet is to keep it in Underwater Snapshot or Wide and just zoom in a bit to bring yourself closer to the subject if you absolutely can not get physically closer. To access these underwater shooting modes without spinning the rear dial again you can press the left button next to “OK” with the icon of a square and a diagonal arrow. Underwater White Balance So,
I recently returned from a week-long snorkeling photography workshop in Belize with sixteen guests, all of whom had the famous Olympus TG-6 camera. With so many guests using the same camera, it couldn’t have worked out better! Having spent so much time learning and navigating the different modes, menus, and configurations of this sassy little
Before we talk about the benefits of taking wide-angle photos, I want to quickly explain what exactly I mean by “Wide Angle.” Wide-angle generally reefers to the photographer using a lens or a lens adapter that either goes onto the camera itself or mounts on the housing and will significantly increase the field of view beyond what the human eye can see. For example, most compact cameras will have a field of view when zoomed all the way out of about 70-90 degrees, this is roughly what the human eye sees in a fixed position. Interpretation of the differences in perspectives from a 'naked' compact camera lens and a wide-angle lens A wide-angle lens or a wide-angle lens adapter will increase the field of view to anywhere from 120-180 degrees, depending on the camera lens and or adapter. So, as you can see, most compact cameras, aside from the GoPro, really don't allow you to shoot true wide-angle photos. In order to do so, you'll need to purchase an after-market wide-angle lens. For wide-angle lens info, you can check out this blog. For now, let's talk about the benefits of shooting in “wide-angle”. 1. Closer Really, the biggest benefit of using a wide-angle lens underwater is the fact that with this increased field of view, we can now get nearly twice as close to our subject without cropping our intended composition. On land, where we're shooting through air, we can more or less compose the same scene regardless of whether we're using a wide-angle lens or a telephoto lens, we just need to back up further. It doesn't work like this underwater, unfortunately, the more water we have between our camera and the subject the more clarity and color we lose in the image, especially in water with a lot
Before we talk about the benefits of taking wide-angle photos, I want to quickly explain what exactly I mean by “Wide Angle.” Wide-angle generally reefers to the photographer using a lens or a lens adapter that either goes onto the camera itself or mounts on the housing and will significantly increase the field of view
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