UW photos with built in flash or flashlight?

[puncho]

Hi all, I'm going diving for the first time in awhile with a canon s95 and wp-dc38 casing. I'm going to take a refresher and get a few dives in before a liveaboard trip to play around with the camera/buoyancy.

As I don't dive enough to warrant a strobe purchase, I'm wondering if anyone has any tips for taking pics/vids without one.

I plan on getting a white slate for WB, I know the closer the better if I'm to use the built in flash. I also plan on getting a flashlight and either hold it myself or have my dive buddy help when I take some pics.

Would 600 lumens do for the flashlight? I would want one that can focus and also have a wider angle for different pics/lighting, right? Any "cheap" recommendations?

If anyone has the same setup, would you recommend weights to make the camera and casing have neutral buoyancy? Or is it not that big of a deal?

Thanks!

 

[smellzlikefish]

A flashlight isn't going to put out the same kind of light as a strobe in regards to both strength and color (and not to mention timing). I think it will be a bit weak to accentuate your daytime shots and the high iso you'd shoot at at night would render your shots too grainy to be nice. With the cost of many flashlights approaching that of a cheap strobe (look at Fantasea's Nano, for example), I wouldn't spend any money expecting a flashlight to substitute for a strobe unless you just want a flashlight.

Otherwise, it sounds like you are on the right tracks. Sans a strobe, you will be shooting either macro or ambient light. Good luck!

 

[puncho]

Thanks for the info. Fantasea Nano..I didn't come across that before. All the ones I've seen are the more expensive ones!

 

[smellzlikefish]

Do keep in mind that the Nano isn't very big, but it will still be a farsight better than your onboard flash.

 

[ivakdiver]

Actually, when I first purchased my Canon S100 and Canon case, I did not have a dedicated strobe for it. I was able to take some good photos in Roatan using just the onboard flash only. If you go to my images on this Site, you can see some of the results. What I especially liked was being able to get the camera in under ledges etc. without arms and strobes in the way.
Do get used to white balance with your available light photos, as it improves the images.

 

[daz88]

set your Wb and shoot in RAW so you can adjust after the dive.. you still can get some nice results without an added strobe.

 

[gustele]

Forget about setting the WB when you have the option to shoot in RAW. Shoot RAW, don't go too deep and process your images afterwards for optimal white balance; you can get good results till about 40 feet without a strobe and sometimes deeper depending on the circumstances. For close-by shots you can try your internal strobe. Just check that the housing doesn't block part of the light and causes a shadow in the picture.

 

[puncho]

Yep, will be shooting in raw and adjusting white balance every few meters. Thanks!

 

[daz88]

oh, forgot to say about the case weights.....it is not a must, but it does make it easier to handle the camera when it's closer to neutral. used it for years without. if you plan on using the onboard flash, be sure to use a diffusser, a must! and get as close as you can to your subject. then try to get closer.

 

[gustele]

Yep, will be shooting in raw and adjusting white balance every few meters. Thanks!

Puncho, no need to adjust white balance when shooting raw. Custom white balance is only needed for JPG. With RAW you adjust the white balance afterwards during processing.
Have fun.