Thoughts on Cave Photography??

[inkdiver]

I was wondering what others think about bringing the camera in the caves to take photos. Specifically, when are/were you ready, what should you keep in mind, helpful hints for settings, etc.

I've got a Nikon D200 with an Ikelite housing and Ikelite DS-125 strobe. I really need another strobe, but the budget has been tapped lately with cave gear, training, etc.

My thinking has been that I wanted to complete Full cave before I was comfortable bringing the camera in with me, and then get some solid full cave dives under my belt. One suggestion I got was to make sure that someone NOT taking the photos should be responsible for navigation. I understand that there have been some cave incidents where the photos took precedence, and things got bad. So, I think I am erring on the side of caution by leaving the camera at home as I get some full cave dives under my belt.


Once I am ready, as there is no ambient light to work with, what are some suggestions for settings, lighting, etc??

Thanks for any thoughts and suggestions!

Don

[Me]

Don,

My buddy and I do a lot of cave photography, on a purely amateur scale. Tho, we both have had our pix published in CDS publications and brochures.

We shoot film using the Nikonos V, and given the light meter can be fooled with others lights, etc.... we found that shooting strictly guide number is the way to go. We're very high tech in this too....we simply use bandage tape, a sharpie and tape that puppy to the side of our strobe!! Sticking with this, our pictures are perfectly exposed every time.

We also have a slave strobe mounted on the non-camera buddy. This slave diver also has an additional sensor as the existing sensor in the slave will not be triggered due to the water. We use the corded sensor available from Ikelite, with our Ikelite slave.

And YES, most defintely, the slave diver is solely involved in navigation....and we even go so far as to not have that slave diver leave the line. IF, and ONLY IF, you need to leave the line for a specific shot, we mark the line and run a reel.....no excuses to basic cave diving protocol.

If you are shooting in a group of divers, on a guided dive for example, have some courtesy in mind. We've done quite a bit of Akumal stuff and we always volunteer to be the end of the chain. Allowing those divers not involved in photography to have their dive NOT interrupted by flashes in their faces, thus ruining their night vision, so-to-speak. The slave buddy is the caboose, with the camera buddy turning around for shots back the way he just came, thereby not harrassing the other divers ahead of him.

Also lastly, the camera diver will use more air than the slave diver due to using their breath to hold position for shots, ascend/descend, zipping a little further ahead to turn for a shot, etc. We don't have an objective when we are shooting as we know it's a waste of time, because given whatever the conditions are at the time, the normal SCR/RMV/SAC is going to be different for the camera diver. Therefore, our camera dives are usually just that, camera dives, we head in and look for spots we want to shoot, haven't shot before, etc. No objectives, basically leisurely dives....which we have found works best for us when diving in Florida caves.

Lori

[icestac]

I waited until full cave with enough dives under the belt to feel comfortable bringing the camera in. Then I started only in the caves that I was most familiar with. It seemed to work out for me and the more I do it, the better the end result is.

BTW - I mostly do video, b/c my pictures never really turned out. But I think the same "when to start question" would apply.

~Jeff

[Webmaster]

If you wanted to get started you could always do some cave photography out of the water. It's still just as dark.

On the plus side you have much more time to learn how to pick out your shots, place your strobes etc...

This would be a good place to start:
http://forums.caves.org/viewforum.ph...90ad9fec33180c

Also check the NSS book store.
http://nssbookstore.org/index.php?mo...r=07-1111-2007

http://nssbookstore.org/index.php?mo...number=01-0395

Marbry

[sskasser]

I second the advice to pick a cave with which you are familiar. Even then, the sneaky low hanging rocks will sometimes jump out in front of you when you least expect it. A nice thick hood helps protect the rocks from hard skulls.

Be careful about going into those dry caves. They're all full of air and extremely addictive!

[tenninstr]

Sounds like you have a good plan with waiting until full cave. However, I believe that being familiar with the system may be more important.

One suggestion I got was to make sure that someone NOT taking the photos should be responsible for navigation.

Just remember, even though you may not be laying reels and no matter what position you have in the team, everyone is responsible for navigation.

[FW]

How much OW photo experience have you had? I took a camera in the 3rd or 4th cavern I went into, but I did have a lot of OW camera experience first. The cave itself makes a big difference. It is much easier if you don't have any restrictions, or current to deal with, etc. Devil's Eye is much harder than Peacock. Stay close to the entrance at first, there isn't much dfference in a cave between the first part, and a long way in. Task loading can get to anyone, if you try to pile too much on yourself. I tried to take photos while running an instructor's institute once. It was too much, so I parked the camera, and picked it up on the way out.

[Gary]

Just remember, even though you may not be laying reels and no matter what position you have in the team, everyone is responsible for navigation.

+1 to what tenninstr said

There is a double fatality accident discussion over on The Deco Stop "Dual Cave Diving Fatality in Mexico" (2005) where the leader of a team of 4 was busy taking pictures instead of navigating. They took a wrong turn and everyone followed. Once they hit the end of the line in the wrong direction they figured out they'd gone the wrong way and turned around quickly.

2 make it (almost out of air) - 2 didn't.


http://www.thedecostop.com/forums/sh...435#post166435


Pay attention to where you are and if you can't do it without damaging the cave don't do it.

[aainslie]

Actually some of the coolest shots I've seen have been near entrances. Having a bit of open water on the shot often seems to really enhance it.

Seems to me though that there are two types of photos - AND for that matter, videos. One type just records where you went. For those, the camera isn't important and in fact it really helps if it's tiny, i.e. no strobes, no huge dome, etc etc. For the other, you want beautiful or unique subject matter. Very few capture both.

I think you need to make a choice of which type you want. I do travelogue stuff with very crappy video quality - that;s just my preference. For the arty stuff often you barely need to leave the OW area. For travelogue stuff, since you're just hitting the button when something pretty shows up navigation isn't such an issue. But you've already made that decision probably, given your strobes and stuff - it's tough to take that thing any big distance.

Watch gas management too. My suggestion - make a conscious decision to park the camera on the way back (i.e. concentrate on swimming out), and check gas often while taking shots on the way in. If you see something cool on the way out remember where it is and go take a cool shot next time.

[inkdiver]

Thanks to all for the feedback and suggestions. Much appreciated!!

Don