Canon Underwater Camera Housing Tips, Tricks & Techniques

Have you ever considered taking your digital camerabuoyancy.
for a little undersea adventure? If your both a diverWhile good fully charged batteries are essential to any
and an avid photographer, then I'm sure you have.camera work, it's doubly true with underwater
Chances are you've done more then think about it,photography. I've yet to see a camera housing good
you've likely already taken the plunge . . . sorry ;)enough to let you change batteries while underwater,
Underwater photography can be a very rewardingwithout destroying your camera. Be sure to plan
merging of two passionate hobbies. The resultingahead.
photographs can be beautiful. Additionally, it enablesI may be stating the obvious here. Especially on your
you to share your undersea adventures with familyfirst dive with your expensive Canon SLR and your
and friends that don't dive. If your just getting startedbrand new case. But, as soon as you enter the water,
though, you may want to consider a few things.check the camera housing for leaks. Especially around
With the advent of some truly remarkable andany seals and O-rings.
sophisticated digital camera housings you can use theBeware of bubbles in the lens port. Unless your going
camera equipment you own are already familiar with.for that soft focus look ALL your photographs, it's
While there are waterproof housings for all camerabetter to clear any bubbles ahead of time.
makes, Canon is one of the more names thatTake the highest resolution pictures your camera and
produces their own housings. There are also third partymemory card can handle. Preferably in RAW format if
manufacturers that make camera housings for Canonpossible. Since the marine world introduces it's own set
cameras. If you've just purchased a waterproof case,of challenges for getting good pictures, the more pixels
or are in the market for one, there are a few tips toyou start with, the better your odds are for successful
keep in mind.editing of imperfections after the fact.
Doing a test run is essential to success in the field.Error on the side of underexposing rather than
While you may be very familiar with your camera,overexposing in underwater photography. Generally
using one within a case in a marine environment canspeaking, it's easier to bring out colors from a darker
be a very different experience. So, spend some timephoto with editing that one where all the color has
in full dive gear, with your camera a housing to seebeen wiped out with too much light. While this is a
how it feels. Checking for neutral buoyancy isgood rule out of the water, it's worth mentioning here,
important here. Some housing cases come withsince underwater photographers often have very
additional weights to help achieve a slightly negativestrong strobe lighting at their disposal.