<![CDATA[SUMMITS TO SEAS PHOTOGRAPHY - ADVENTURE & UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY SERVICES.

<![CDATA[SUMMITS TO SEAS PHOTOGRAPHY - ADVENTURE & UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY SERVICES. - Photography blog]]>Mon, 23 Feb 2026 04:37:03 +1100Weebly<![CDATA[Shooting Shipwrecks - Capturing the Awe and Mystery of the Grand Steamship S.S. Yongala]]>Fri, 05 Feb 2021 04:54:09 GMThttps://www.summitstoseasphotography.com/photography-blog/shooting-shipwrecks-capturing-the-awe-and-mystery-of-the-grand-steamship-ss-yongala

There is no doubt that descending into the deep blue as a sunken vessel magically appears always invites a sense of awe, mystery and wonder. Often harbouring tales of turbulent seas, death, and sunken treasure; capturing a wreck’s story in a single photograph is what we would call beyond challenging. As divers, we haven’t done a lot of wreck diving, and therefore haven’t photographed many wrecks. So how do you shoot a shipwreck when you’ve never dived it before? Here’s what we learnt from our first attempt shooting Queensland’s grand steamship S.S. Yongala.

Research your wreck and dive it more than once

Because we had never dived the S.S. Yongala before, our first dive was essentially our ‘reconnaissance’ dive. At 109 meters long and a depth of 28 meters, we knew our bottom time would be limited, so we took the chance on our first dive to go deep at the stern to work out where the best photographic angles were. We dived the site as many times as the weather and currents would allow which enabled us to think about the best shots we could get on the wreck and also do some experimenting. Luckily the weather was in our favour allowing us to complete 4 dives in the limited time we had.

Be first down

Whilst it’s not always possible, for us it was important to descend to the wreck on our own and before other divers to get some shots. We found that having your buddy in the shot can definitely add drama and scale, particularly if the wreck is large like the Yongala. There is one hard and fast rule though: too many divers and their bubbles will most often always ruin your shot.

Ambient light is your friend & your strobes often your enemy

We worked out pretty quickly that with the Yongala being the size it is, we had no hope of lighting her with our strobes, and that keeping our strobes on would only light up all the particles we were trying to avoid. Shooting however in ambient light gave us the opportunity to get shots of the entire visible part of the wreck without having to worry about artificial light. It was actually quite liberating to be shooting in this way, as its not often that we turn off our strobes. It definitely enabled us to be more creative without having to worry about dealing with artificial light.

Use close focus wide -angle to shoot some colour

The visibility on wrecks can be challenging and is often limited to only a few meters or so. When you do turn your strobes back on, it feels like no matter which way you angle them your photos end up like a sand storm! We found however that the best shots we got using our strobes were ‘close focus wide-angle’.

A wreck like the S.S. Yongala harbours extensive coral growth that encrusts every available surface of its huge structure, attracting; sponges, soft corals and prolific fish life, so close-focus wide angle shots really gave us the opportunity to display the Yongala’s coral brilliance. Be sure though to include part of the wreck’s structure in your shot as you want people to know that it is a wreck and not just any colourful coral reef.

Photographs in black and white can create the mood you’re after

So many artists use black and white as a means of expression. When colour can sometimes distract the viewer, black and white can help emphasis the shape and contrast of the wreck and orchestrate the mood you’re after to tell the wreck’s story. We found that because the visibility was low and the day was cloudy, we just couldn’t get some of our images to convey the mood we wanted, but in black and white, well they totally transformed!

So, are you up for it? If you’ve never photographed a wreck before then the S.S. Yongala is one great way to start. Why wouldn’t you? It is one of the best wreck dives in the world and is older than the Titanic!

We chose to dive her from the closest access point at Alva Beach, Queensland Australia with the very reputable team at Yongala Dive.

]]><![CDATA[Are you an aspiring bird photographer? Why not use the Covid-19 pandemic to hone your skills?]]>Tue, 21 Jul 2020 04:41:05 GMThttps://www.summitstoseasphotography.com/photography-blog/are-you-an-aspiring-bird-photographer-why-not-use-the-covid-19-pandemic-to-hone-your-skills

The Covid-19 lockdown has forced us to look a bit closer to home for our photo subjects, and we were surprised to see that we actually live in a city full of amazing bird life. As sad as it is, the recent bushfires in Australia have forced many birds closer to our cities, searching for food and new habitat. The influx of parrots in particular over the past few months has been overwhelming, like nothing we have experienced before.

If you’ve ever been interested in bird photography, the coronavirus pandemic provides an excellent opportunity to hone your skills. Why not experiment with the birds in your backyard or local park? You might be surprised to see what you’ll find. We certainly were!

Previously a subject we had little interest in, we are now in love! Here’s what we’ve learnt about photographing them:

Get close
This is easier said than done! Birds can be quite wary of people, so moving in slowly and calmly is the number one skill you can master. Being patient is also important. Waiting for the right moment and pose can be frustrating, and getting that one good shot can be slow. In general though, the closer you can get the better your photograph will be.

You’ll need a good camera and lens
Mirrorless or DSLR cameras are the best for bird photography, and you will need a good telephoto lens. Lenses ranging from 200 to 600 mm are ideal as they will enable you to stay a distance away while still getting you close enough to your subject. For the birds in our neighbourhood, we found that a 100-400 mm lens worked well, although you could go up to 600 mm if you can’t get close enough.

Little birds can be tricky
Little birds tend to move around and wiggle a lot, so the best advice we can give you here is to practice your focus technique. Every camera is different and many have their limitations when it comes to auto-focus. Regardless of whether you choose to use manual-focus or pick from your camera’s multiple auto-focus options, getting to know your camera’s focus limitations and practicing changing focus techniques will help master a sharp shot. With practice, you’ll eventually nail it every time!

Avoid the shakes
A tripod or monopod can be useful, especially in low light when a slow shutter speed is required. We find though that a steady hand will also yield great results up to 400 mm zoomed. If there is enough light and your birds are quite active, having the freedom to shoot hand-held means you can optimise your chances of getting a great shot.

It’s not just your subject that matters
Getting your foreground and background right are just as important as your subject as often a distracting object can destroy what would have been a great image. While you can do some editing to remove these distracting objects in post, if you can get your subject framed correctly in-camera it’s definitely a bonus.

]]><![CDATA[Buying presets. To preset or not to preset?]]>Wed, 13 May 2020 06:43:04 GMThttps://www.summitstoseasphotography.com/photography-blog/buying-presets-to-use-or-not-to-use

If you’re a regular user of Instagram you’ve probably noticed that almost every blogger or influencer has a suite of presets that they want you to buy. For many influencers, selling their presents is a way to generate a passive income from all the years slaving away in the digital dark room. But should you be buying and using them on your own images?

Ok, we get it, in an era when photographic success is simply a measure of the number of Instagram followers you have, it's no wonder that people want to buy a cookie-cutter formula that they think will encourage more ‘likes’ and engagement. But regardless, we’ve never purchased or used a single one, and we never plan to either. Here’s why:

We want to keep learning

We don’t claim to be the best photographers, and like so many photographers we are constantly trying to improve our photography. In our view though, taking a photograph and applying someone elses preset to improve the image is not improving your actual photography. A one click preset won’t show you how to ‘fix’ the image, but undertaking adjustments manually in Lightroom yourself will help you understand where you went wrong and how to make improvements in-camera when your next out shooting. A bad photograph cannot be fixed with a good preset.

We don’t want to be another photographers clone

Presets are based on someone else’s creativity, style and equipment, not yours. While looking at other photographers’ images is a great way to learn and develop your own photographic style, using their presets is likely to limit your own creativity.

It’s never just black and white

While presets may be a welcome time-saver for portrait and wedding photographers, when it comes to underwater and landscape photography, one size doesn’t fit all. Mountain and underwater landscapes are uniquely dynamic, shifting and continually wavering with the weather and of course the light. Because of this, each image we create is totally unique, and therefore in our view fitting of its own individual post-processing.

Whether you decide to purchase and use other photographers presets will depend on what you’re trying to achieve; but for us, photography is a uniquely creative process of which manual editing is an important part.

We’d love to hear your thoughts.

]]><![CDATA[The Art of Shooting Black Backgrounds in Underwater Photography]]>Thu, 30 Apr 2020 01:29:00 GMThttps://www.summitstoseasphotography.com/photography-blog/the-art-of-shooting-black-backgrounds-in-underwater-photography

If you’re relatively new to underwater photography, you’re probably wondering how to get that striking black background behind your subject. Depending on the style of photograph your trying to achieve, a black background can make your image pop and bring out your subject’s unique character and personality. But you’ll need more than just the right camera settings to achieve it. Here’s what works for us:

Choose your subject carefully

The most important thing in achieving a black background in your underwater photographs is to have as much open water in the background of your subject as possible. A subject that is positioned on top of a rock or piece of coral with a good amount of open water behind it is ideal, but it’s often difficult to find a subject perfectly positioned in this way. If your subject isn’t positioned quite as you’d like, you can also try shooting upwards. Getting below the subject (if possible) and shooting up into the blue will also yield good results.

All subjects had clear water behind them.

Strobe position

If you happen to have a background behind your subject (which is often the case), your strobe positioning can be used to help darken the background. Moving your strobes to the side of your housing and pointing them slightly inwards towards your camera housing and port will help achieve this. The strobe positions of 10 and 2 O’clock work well, just make sure that your strobe light isn’t hitting your port too directly, as this will cause reflections on your lens and in turn destroy your image.

If you happen to be shooting with only one strobe, then try positioning it above the camera, but angle it in towards your camera’s housing. You’ll be surprised as to what you can achieve with a bit of trial and error and slight adjustment to your strobe position

Camera settings

Regardless of the type of camera you are using; compact, micro four-thirds or full frame DSLR, you’ll want to make sure you’re using a fast shutter speed. The best speed is usually around 1/200th - 1/250th, which is around the sync speed of most strobes.

Using a low ISO and closing down your aperture will also help. This, combined with a fast shutter speed will block out any ambient light - especially helpful if you’re on your first dive of the day and you are shooting alongside bright ambient light.

The time of day

Most cameras will struggle to produce black backgrounds in very bright conditions, so shooting black backgrounds on early morning dives when ambient light is at its brightest can be challenging. We find it far easier to achieve a black background when shooting; on deep dives, in the late afternoon or on a cloudy day. At night is even better for obvious reasons! We always choose to shoot wide angle on our first dive for the day when the light is at its best, and move to close focus, macro and super-macro shots for afternoon and night dives.

Respect your subject

We don’t need to tell you that throwing a Spanish Dancer into the water column is not on. So if your subject is not positioned perfectly and you can’t achieve a black background by using your strobes and camera settings then just be content to move on and photograph something else. Touching, harassing or moving an animal for the perfect photograph has no place in underwater photography.

Often very difficult to photograph, we were lucky to find these Pygmy Seahorses in a good photographic position.

And finally

Remember, not every shot needs to have a black background, and although they are visually striking, the technique can often be over used. Photographs that are more realistic and display what you actually saw with your naked eye are also very nice. So if the black background is not working for you, just open up your aperture, slow down your shutter speed, and try a blue or green background instead.

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