Underwater photography: Dealing with the guilt

[Mossman]

I agree with those who recommend solo diving. Either you sacrifice your photography or your sacrifice your buddy skills or your buddy. Face it, even though you might be carrying a redundant air source for your buddy, you're hardly being attentive. I've been engrossed in getting a photo only to find that my buddy has moved away to look at other stuff and if either of us got in trouble we'd probably be too far apart to be of much use. The alternative is either insisting that she remain engrossed in whatever I'm trying to shoot, or that I don't bother with certain shots because they'd take too long to get right.

Being effectively solo but following a small group has always worked well for us, in the resort or liveaboard setting. At least my buddy can tag along with the DM or have other divers near her and I can hang back to get my shots, then catch up before I lose sight of their bubbles.

 

[Rainer]

My experiences weren't as positive as yours. Nothing happened, but for sure I could see the potential for issues. I just don't love having multiple teammates spending good chunks of time with their face pressed into a viewfinder.

I suspect Bonaire (great vis, no current, not scootering, not running line, simple navigation, simple depth averaging, etc) might have made this easier than our respective local dive sites.

At a minimum, I'd feel a lot more comfortable having at least ONE teammate watching over the shooter(s). The question Lynne asks is a good one. Is it any fun to be that "nanny"?

Chris - Just reading this now after my post. I've only had two dive experience with a three person team of all photographers but was lucky it worked out. During most of my dives in Bonaire my buddy (also my cave buddy) and I each had a camera and we commented how keeping an eye on each other despite each having a camera was not as bad as we thought it would be. It may be the result of our Fundies and cave training, both stress situational awareness.

 

[ScubaSam]

My experiences weren't as positive as yours. Nothing happened, but for sure I could see the potential for issues. I just don't love having multiple teammates spending good chunks of time with their face pressed into a viewfinder.

I suspect Bonaire (great vis, no current, not scootering, not running line, simple navigation, simple depth averaging, etc) might have made this easier than our respective local dive sites.

At a minimum, I'd feel a lot more comfortable having at least ONE teammate watching over the shooter(s). The question Lynne asks is a good one. Is it any fun to be that "nanny"?

Yes, agree that conditions in Bonaire made it easier than SoCal diving to keep an eye on the team.

If the "nanny" knows upfront what he/she is getting into then I'd like to believe the "nanny" will find some fun during the dive otherwise why would the "nanny" do the dive at all?

 

[Rainer]

If the "nanny" knows upfront what he/she is getting into then I'd like to believe the "nanny" will find some fun during the dive otherwise why would the "nanny" do the dive at all?

She's married to me?

 

[ScubaSam]

She's married to me?

Oh, poor, [-]nanny [/-] Jen.

Your videos are great, I always look forward to them after your dives. Jen does make a lovely subject in them as well.

 

[Dhboner]

My son is an avid photographer (and I'm not). He dives dry and I dive wet. The only time the camera becomes an issue is when we are diving in the winter. I really hate hovering in 34 degree water in a 7mm wetsuit...on those days I REALLY need to keep moving!

But in warmer water (above 40!) I'm okay with the pace of the dive and use the "hovering" moments to practice kicks or play with buoyancy control.

Bob

 

[ligersandtions]

Yes, agree that conditions in Bonaire made it easier than SoCal diving to keep an eye on the team.

If the "nanny" knows upfront what he/she is getting into then I'd like to believe the "nanny" will find some fun during the dive otherwise why would the "nanny" do the dive at all?

I agree to an extent....if the "nanny" knows up front that they'll be supervising a somewhat inattentive diver, it's fine. The thing is, I don't want to be in that position all the time. Rainer's friend who started diving with a camera recently = my husband. It's really fun to have pictures to help relive the dive afterwards, but it can be somewhat of a pain on the dive.

That said, the more we do it, the better we're becoming. At first, there were times when camera buddy would descend while playing with settings and what not, leaving me 10+ feet shallower....or see something neat and zoom off without signaling....or get confused as to why I was moving away (so that my light didn't spill into the frame) and think that I was getting impatient and wanting to keep moving.

All the little issues that come with a buddy shooting (pics or video) are resolvable given a bit of conversation afterwards about what went right and what didn't go so well. But I am very glad that my photographer/videographer buddies are not adamant about bringing the cameras along every dive....it is nice to have dives where there is not an obviously "weak" diver to watch over.

 

[eelnoraa]

I had similar issue over the weekend. I was diving with 2 relatively new divers (sorry for say that, I myself am very inexperence). I felt so uncomfortable using my camera. I didn't want to lose track of where they are, and I didn't want to go give them the impression of being ignored. I only started taking pictures at our safety stop. Of course, nothing much to shoot except each other.

 

[djtimmy77]

2 of the 4 folks in my usual dive crew normally have DSLR's along. Fortunately there is so much stuff to look at that we don't mind at all going slow. Heck, sometimes I am the one with my head in the reef watching some little critter. Other times (especially when they are shooting macro) I am hunting subjects for them while they are taking photos.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

My first wife and I certified together. We were a strict buddy pair until she got a camera. After a few dives of waiting...impatiently...nearby I began to swim around as if I were solo. Once I learned that she was fine on her own I began enjoying dives again. Fast forward to 2006. I met Merry, a fairly new diver. We began diving together as if I was a guide, keeping her close and not looking around much. When she finally got a camera, the magic was back. We now descend and ascend together, but several minutes go by when we don't see each other. She's even made a few solo dives and loves it.