Ok, which is more difficult?

[HowardE]

Wide angle shots in "not so clear water" are definitely more difficlut to walk away with a winner than macro period. If the water isn't so clear, I don't even attempt WA, and just go for macro shots.

 

[alcina]

If that's the only thing that cheeses you off about contests you're doing better than I am

 

[MaxBottomtime]

Few things are more boring than Nudibranchs. They slug along slowly, rasping out a meal from some inperceptable roughage and once in a while lay some eggs. You can take a text book shot of a Nudi - top down, and get it all in the frame... and its a big yawn. Or you can hunt for a better angle, a better look, find the one doing something silly, different, funny, amazing. You need to get in the sand, force yourself into a tight and uncomfortable place, brave the surge, brace, be patient, etc... With some practice and a good attitude, you can turn this boring bag of slime into art.

Some dives my SAC is almost nil when I get shots like these. I'm extremely patient...underwater, that is. I had to wait for these nudis to stand up and be counted. They're not as easy to train as Sea Lions.

 

[parabolic]

In terms of pure camera technique, wide-angle photography is IMHO much more difficult than macro photography. In wide-angle photography you have to contend with four issues that are, for the most part, not involved in macro photography: 1) two light sources, artificial light from the strobe on the close subject and ambient light from the sun for the background (involving strobe power settings, aperture, shutter speed, all related), 2) backscatter (mitigated primarily by strobe aiming, and 3) bubbles and other undesirable stuff in the frame, 4) composition (sun in the background, etc.). Certainly recognizing and stalking macro subjects are important and involve specialized skills, but the purely photographic techniques are much more difficult in wide-angle work. Macro photography involves more understanding of the behavior of the subject but less mechanical camera skills.

 

[Cacia]

Not to change the subject, but W/A is Sooooo much more fun. I prefer action dives...so much happening you are breathing hard and your heart speeds up. Current? sharks ? bait balls? so much to snap...so little time. I have realized I will never go one bit further because I hate computers and photoshop...I just do not like sitting in the muck or at the computer...I don't care enough about any one image to spend the time, change the variables...I appreciate other people's a lot.

Lately, I am finding freedivers very fun. I really wanted to see Ribbon in Bali and then after I saw them for about 15 minutes..I was wanting a whale shark to show up..scanning the blue for some potential surprise.

Macro is very hard for me, because I always feel I might be missing something that is swimming right by....

And macro is very solitary and I like looking at the other person and cracking up.

My images are just momentos of the dive.

I am really craving the port for the fish eye inside wrecks though....lighting just happens..it presents itself, like a gift.

I am a little afraid of doing a workshop and having to "pay attention".

 

[Mo2vation]

Not to change the subject, but W/A is Sooooo much more fun.

I shoot both, but in SoCal, I shoot mostly Macro. I LOVE learning the nuances of a specific subject, where is hangs out, what makes it special, how to best light it and coax the story out of it.

I love the one intimacy of the macro shots and set up - W/A has the wow factor, but to me its generally sterile and impersonal. The possible exception is W/A of the large palegics, etc. I like those. But I got no time or patience for another CFWA reef shot. I had some friends over just last night, and they were looking through the current issue of Scuba mag. One of them said, "look at all of these pictures - they all look the same...." He was referring to the impossibly stretched out sideways diving colorful person with the light pointing at something they're not even looking at type shots. There are about 6 in the current Scuba Mag, in 6 different ads, for 6 different resort destinations.

For my neighborhood diving, Macro is much more personal and offers something different every moment because the living subject, not the scenery or the "pose" is the thing.

Maybe I just haven't gotten tired of Macro and the mid-length / portrait stuff yet.

---
Ken

 

[HowardE]

I agree with Ken.. I enjoy shooting both Macro and WA... That's why I got a zoom lens. I have a 17-70 mm lens and I shoot both on the same dive. I know that I lose some ability to get ultra close macro shots, but I can still get the captures I want.

Like on the same dive recently... I took

and shortly after, I took

I really enjoy finding the critters, and usually I have someone around to alert me if something BIG worth shooting is coming by...

 

[Diver Dennis]

I am a little afraid of doing a workshop and having to "pay attention".

AHA!!!! I knew there was a reason you weren't in Bali. It is not that bad Catherine. I'm already signed up for next year there...

 

[Cacia]

I wanna go.

 

[Doc Harry]

I can photoshop a crappy wide angle shot into an image of beauty. But I can't photoshop a photo that I don't have (a macro of a Blenny).