PatW
Contributor
OK, white balance will only do so much. Water absorbs light but it absorbs the longer wavelengths of light much faster than the shorter wavelengths of light. What that means is that red light is gone at 15'. I have seen lion fish at about 25' that looked black. It does not matter if you use white balance, a lion fish shot at 25' will look black and white. In order to get the red back, you need to use an artificial light source. Most of the time, the artificial light source is a strobe. I have taken photos of fish that to me looked as if they were against a grey background. When I looked at the photos later, I discovered that the background was a garish combination of reds and oranges.
For the best results, you want to use strobes and RAW. With RAW you have the distinct advantage of adjusting the white balance in post processing. You also have to be aware that the light from your strobes declines in "value" at range. Light from your strobe has to go to the subject and back again to your camera's sensor. That usually means that the light passes twice the distance through the water compared to the camera sensor to subject distance. That fact is one of the reasons why most underwater photographers try to shoot their subject at distances of no greater than 5 feet.
Now there are circumstances where you are just flat stuck. If you want a view of an entire wreck, which is a common enough goal in shooting these obvious subjects, you are not going to be able illuminate the wreck with your strobes. You are going to be stuck with the existing light (unless you do something exceedingly involved like having multiple strobes scattered around the wreck, it can be done but not by me or most photographers). If your wreck is at 80' for example, you are going to be stuck with only blues and greens.
For the best results, you want to use strobes and RAW. With RAW you have the distinct advantage of adjusting the white balance in post processing. You also have to be aware that the light from your strobes declines in "value" at range. Light from your strobe has to go to the subject and back again to your camera's sensor. That usually means that the light passes twice the distance through the water compared to the camera sensor to subject distance. That fact is one of the reasons why most underwater photographers try to shoot their subject at distances of no greater than 5 feet.
Now there are circumstances where you are just flat stuck. If you want a view of an entire wreck, which is a common enough goal in shooting these obvious subjects, you are not going to be able illuminate the wreck with your strobes. You are going to be stuck with the existing light (unless you do something exceedingly involved like having multiple strobes scattered around the wreck, it can be done but not by me or most photographers). If your wreck is at 80' for example, you are going to be stuck with only blues and greens.
