Newbie action cam questions!

[cheekydollar]

Hi guys,

Sorry if this is has been asked before - i have looked but couldnt find an answer.

Ive just bought an Isaw Edge camera and will hopefully be diving in sri lanka next month!

Question 1 - How important is a red filter?

Q2 - Do i need to adjust the white balance settings?

The camera has the options - auto / daylight / cloudy /tungsten lamp / fluorescent lamp

Which one shall I use for underwater use? If I also use a red light filter do i need to change these settings too?

Thank you!

 

[morey000]

Q1. Pretty important. just get one of those inexpensive EelVision ones off Amazon.

Q2. the resultant color, even with the red filter, is so different than any of those specific WB settings, my guess is some may look better than others, but nothing is going to look great. Daylight is the highest color temperature (and closest to the blue of the water), but none are going to be great. I leave it on AWB as if the camera can figure out anything close to white and adjust for it, you'll be in good shape. Color under water is basically a mess, unless you're shooting with your own lighting.

 

[SCRedWolf]

Hi guys,

Sorry if this is has been asked before - i have looked but couldnt find an answer.

Ive just bought an Isaw Edge camera and will hopefully be diving in sri lanka next month!

Question 1 - How important is a red filter?

Q2 - Do i need to adjust the white balance settings?

The camera has the options - auto / daylight / cloudy /tungsten lamp / fluorescent lamp

Which one shall I use for underwater use? If I also use a red light filter do i need to change these settings too?

Thank you!

Filters are necessary if you are not using a torch for additional light. When you bring your own light you're not relying on the sun so colors getting 'washed out' isn't nearly as much of a problem. If you don't have a camera torch a red filter is necessary when you're in blue water (usually saltwater) and a magenta filter is used in green water (usually freshwater). I would leave the camera's AWB set to auto. The other settings are essentially manually setting the WB for the light source. Since there isn't a setting for 60fsw just leave it to auto.

You may also find that in very clear water you won't need a filter or a light source depending on your depth. Because there are no magic formulas since the amount of natural daylight, the sky conditions, the water conditions, etc varies you will have to do a bit of trial and error to find what works best for you. Then do the best you can to adjust color when editing the video which isn't all the easy depending on the software used. Good luck and have fun.