Time to invest in a true UWV setup...Advice needed!

[pakman]

Annie,

You mentioned something here that I find quite curious. In your video work, do you often find use for a tripod? I know that shooting on land it's indispensable, but shooting under water, I'd think it much less so.

I tend to think of shooting underwater as more like steadicam work, than fixed camera work. Do you find it different?

Well yes the tripod's not going to help when you're chasing that whale shark or doing cavern swim thru's... Guess it really depends on what you tend to shoot. But for macro shots where you don't want to dispense vomit bags to your viewers I can see it being needed...

Now that I've had my camera u/w a number of times and have tried to shoot macro such as nudibranches, I can appreciate Anne's suggestion more. Especially if you're using the camera's telemacro feature or a diopter lens. Even if you can lie down in some sand or prop your camera on a rock, it's pretty tough to keep that camera steady u/w.

An u/w tripod is the next thing on my shopping list; looking at cheaper alternatives to the Gates tripod... A couple folks over at wetpixel have been trying the larger gorillapod flex arm tripod under water. Waiting to hear how that works for them.

 

[ronscuba]

I've considered getting a tripod. I probably will sooner or later. What has stopped me is tripod legs need something to rest on. Dives with sand, rock or muck bottoms and with creatures at or near the bottom sound perfect for a tripod.

Most of my diving is not like this and when it is, resting the camcorder in the sand when possible has helped a lot. If I ever go to a place where I'll be diving frequently in the sand or muck, I'll buy a tripod.