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Looking to get into underwater photography!


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#1 ChesapeakeOutdoorsman

ChesapeakeOutdoorsman
  • NANFA Guest
  • Cookeville, TN

Posted 10 March 2018 - 07:04 PM

I'll be working in eastern Tennessee from May until October and would like to get into underwater photography. I'm interested in what cameras other people are using and would recommend. I've been looking at the Olympus TG-5, Nikon W300, or the GoPro Hero 5 Black although I am open to any suggestions. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.



#2 Isaac Szabo

Isaac Szabo
  • NANFA Member
  • Marble Falls, AR

Posted 10 March 2018 - 08:56 PM

Id recommend the TG-5. Lots of cool fish to photograph in E TN. Maybe well run into each other. You should also consider trying to attend the convention across the border in N GA in early June. It will be a chance to hang out and snorkel with other underwater photographers.

#3 trygon

trygon
  • NANFA Member
  • Knoxville, Tennessee

Posted 12 March 2018 - 07:37 AM

I'll second what Isaac said.  I use a TG-4 plus my other camera, but if I was just starting out I'd go with the TG-5.  PM me, maybe we can get together some time.


Bryce Gibson
There are sharks in every ocean...except Billy Ocean.

#4 Dustin

Dustin
  • Forum Staff

Posted 12 March 2018 - 08:57 AM

Isaac and Bryce are two of the best underwater photographers out there.  Their work is amazing.  


Dustin Smith
At the convergence of the Broad, Saluda and Congaree
Lexington, SC


#5 gerald

gerald
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  • Wake Forest, North Carolina

Posted 13 March 2018 - 10:38 AM

and Lance ... is he still around?


Gerald Pottern
-----------------------
Hangin' on the Neuse
"Taxonomy is the diaper used to organize the mess of evolution into discrete packages" - M.Sandel


#6 Matt DeLaVega

Matt DeLaVega
  • Forum Staff
  • Ohio

Posted 13 March 2018 - 06:21 PM

Derek is pulling off some good ones too.


The member formerly known as Skipjack


#7 keepnatives

keepnatives
  • Regional Rep

Posted 13 March 2018 - 08:51 PM

Casper also gets some great shots. Though Isaac has the fish coming to him by reputation and I believe Casper's subjects think Casper is just another fish since he spends so much time in the water.


Mike Lucas
Mohawk-Hudson Watershed
Schenectady NY

#8 trygon

trygon
  • NANFA Member
  • Knoxville, Tennessee

Posted 13 March 2018 - 09:02 PM

Yes, there are quite a few really good photographers associated with our native fishes, too many to mention here.  The original post was about camera selection and general underwater photography questions not who is behind the camera actuating the shutter.  The photographic principles and physics of light are the same for all of us, but how one uses them, the creativity, juxtapositions, the amount and type of practice, the where and how is up to the individual.  If someone asks the photographers mentioned above how to do something photographic be prepared for at least four answers and lots of, "unless...", "um, bu if..", "sometimes though...", etc.  That's why it"s art.  Let's keep this discussion about hardware and principles.


Bryce Gibson
There are sharks in every ocean...except Billy Ocean.

#9 Matt DeLaVega

Matt DeLaVega
  • Forum Staff
  • Ohio

Posted 15 March 2018 - 06:18 PM

I agree. However we all are proud of what these guys do. So bragging about how good our members are was quite natural and inevitable. But Bryce is right, that is not really what this topic is about.

 

I have seen these guy's. Their rigs run from high end to poor boy. They all have different styles. Isaac weighs himself down with lead. Casper seems pretty impervious to cold water. Lauren and Josh apparently can dive 20 feet and get photos. Your best bet would be going out with these guys.The convention would be the best place to start.


The member formerly known as Skipjack


#10 ChesapeakeOutdoorsman

ChesapeakeOutdoorsman
  • NANFA Guest
  • Cookeville, TN

Posted 15 March 2018 - 08:14 PM

Thanks Isaac and Bryce for the advice. Coming from you guys it means a lot. Looks like I will be investing in a TG-5 at some point in the near future. As for the convention, if nothing comes up I'm going to be there. Really looking forward to meeting everyone and grabbing a sweet Bluehead Chub shirt. 

 

Not sure if this is the best place for this question but what thickness wet suit do you guys suggest for use in mountain streams May to October? If this question need to go somewhere else just let me know.



#11 Matt DeLaVega

Matt DeLaVega
  • Forum Staff
  • Ohio

Posted 15 March 2018 - 08:38 PM

Here is fine. But it is a good question. Be good to bring up again in the convention thread, so more potential attendees might benefit as well.


The member formerly known as Skipjack


#12 trygon

trygon
  • NANFA Member
  • Knoxville, Tennessee

Posted 15 March 2018 - 10:10 PM

I use a 3mm farmer john and jacket most of the summer.


Bryce Gibson
There are sharks in every ocean...except Billy Ocean.

#13 Michael Wolfe

Michael Wolfe
  • Board of Directors
  • North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage

Posted 16 March 2018 - 07:39 AM

I think mine is 5mm and I tend to wear the jacket only. The farmer John I addin early / spring late fall.
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin

#14 Casper

Casper
  • NANFA Fellow
  • Chattanooga, TN alongside South Chickamauga Creek, just upstream of the mighty Tennessee River.

Posted 20 March 2018 - 10:02 AM

TG4 and now the TG5 seems to be the choice, and many of us have this model.  However my experience has been frustrating, probably due to mis-interpretation of hieroglyphics and playing with the many settings offered.

The lack of desired focus and too low of a shutter speed seems to be my consistent failings.  But is a good and inexpensive field camera and can capture sometimes decent underwater shots. One really needs to be in good light, not shadows with fast moving Shiners.  resting Darters with the LED light on works pretty well, if you can get it to focus on the desired spot selected.

 

I have gone through many wetsuits, from shorties to full bodies.  I like to bareskin when the water is above 70 but my current wetsuit is a Pinnacle Cruiser 5 mm.  I like it.

 

divers-supply.com

 

They had a great deal a couple years ago, and still do ( see link ), for this wetsuit and a host of additional gear... gloves, hood, booties, etc.  Buying the package was advantageous overall.

 

http://www.divers-su...ASAAEgKChfD_BwE


Casper Cox
Chattanooga, near the TN Divide on BlueFishRidge overlooking South Chickamauga Creek.

#15 FirstChAoS

FirstChAoS
  • Regional Rep

Posted 14 April 2018 - 04:44 PM

do you use the underwater housing with your TG5? Seeing Isaacs awesome photos I am debating getting one.

(my Sealife needs repairs. When I got it the guy at the now closed dive shop said it was the best. But given his in store model used film and was not digital like the one I ordered online he may have once have been right at one time.)



#16 trygon

trygon
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  • Knoxville, Tennessee

Posted 17 April 2018 - 07:34 AM

The TG-5 is waterproof to 50 feet.  If you are planning to stay shallower than that the camera doesn't need a housing, but it would add a layer of protection it also adds a layer of expense.  Don't depend on the the camera to make you a good photographer, all a camera does is capture light, the brain behind the camera makes the photograph; one needs to put in time to understand how the camera works and understanding the principles of photography.  The pencil didn't make da Vinci a genius, it allowed him to express his genius. 


Bryce Gibson
There are sharks in every ocean...except Billy Ocean.

#17 trygon

trygon
  • NANFA Member
  • Knoxville, Tennessee

Posted 28 June 2018 - 08:17 PM

This is what you can do with a TG-4 or 5 if you set it up correctly and practice a little.  This is an image of either Spotfin or Whitetail Shiner eggs taken in the Cheoah River with my TG-4 set on the microscope setting, there are a couple of different settings, but they are a bit trickier to use in moving water. This is not a cropped image and only corrected for exposure and contrast.

 

eggs.jpg


Bryce Gibson
There are sharks in every ocean...except Billy Ocean.




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