Nostalgy-the first one

[sorvju-f]

We all have taken our first UW-picture somewhere and gotten spark to continue. My first one was from Red sea beginning 2004.
( I started diving 1999 ).

The camera was Canon Powershot A 80 ( point and shoot )

Still I have this in frames.

Are you proud enough to show yours?

http://sorvjuf.1g.fi/kuvat/UW-chat/The+first+one.jpg/full

Jukka

[tarczy]

Ahhhh Jukka . . . you are cruel . . . but I'll play!!

First the background . . .

I had been diving since I was 16 years old. I did my openwater checkout dive in a quarry in Racine Wisconsin toward the end of March. Can you say c-c-c-coldddd? There was no such thing as BCDs and dive computers back then. You didn't even have a gauge. You dove with what was called a J-valve. When the air started running out, you reached around behind you and pushed up the J-valve. Then, you had 500psi to return to the surface. How primitive!!!

Fast forward to 2002. I'm gettin' a divorce, so I decide to spend two weeks in Belize to get my head together. My second week was on the Aggressor liveaboard. It so happend that, for this trip, there is a guy aboard by the name of Rod Klein. He is giving a "free" class in the brand new emerging field of digital underwater photography. The class was sponsored by Aggressor and Light & Motion donated 5 Tetra housings and Sea & Sea strobes. Rod asked me if I wanted to sign up for the class since I was the first one on the boat. He said the class would fill up fast (and it did). I had never shot an underwater photograph in my life. I didn't know the first thing about underwater photography, but the "digital camera" part of the class sounded "cool" to me, so I signed up.

As it turns out Rod lives in Venice Beach, about 13 miles from where I live in Los Angeles. We've become friends ever since. Rod has gone on to publish books and was the Digital Photo Editor for Fathoms magazine. He is also a frequent contributor to other dive mags. Anyway . . . I'm proud to have been schooled by one of the best in the industry, even though I didn't know it at the time. :D

So . . . here's a few of my very first underwater digital pics taken in Belize. Shot with an Olympus C3030 using a Light & Motion Tetra housing with one Sea & Sea strobe.

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i284/mongo255/Belize%2002_05_25/51BelizeTubeSponges.jpg

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i284/mongo255/Belize%2002_05_25/39PurpleSeaFans.jpg

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i284/mongo255/Belize%2002_05_25/59SoftCoralwithYellowWrasse.jpg

[sorvju-f]

[QUOTE=tarczy;1797]Ahhhh Jukka . . . you are cruel . . . but I'll play!!

First the background . . .

I had been diving since I was 16 years old. I did my openwater checkout dive in a quarry in Racine Wisconsin toward the end of March. Can you say c-c-c-coldddd? There was no such thing as BCDs and dive computers back then. You didn't even have a gauge. You dove with what was called a J-valve. When the air started running out, you reached around behind you and pushed up the J-valve. Then, you had 500psi to return to the surface. How primitive!!!

Fast forward to 2002. I'm gettin' a divorce, so I decide to spend two weeks in Belize to get my head together. My second week was on the Aggressor liveaboard. It so happend that, for this trip, there is a guy aboard by the name of Rod Klein. He is giving a "free" class in the brand new emerging field of digital underwater photography. The class was sponsored by Aggressor and Light & Motion donated 5 Tetra housings and Sea & Sea strobes. Rod asked me if I wanted to sign up for the class since I was the first one on the boat. He said the class would fill up fast (and it did). I had never shot an underwater photograph in my life. I didn't know the first thing about underwater photography, but the "digital camera" part of the class sounded "cool" to me, so I signed up.

As it turns out Rod lives in Venice Beach, about 13 miles from where I live in Los Angeles. We've become friends ever since. Rod has gone on to publish books and was the Digital Photo Editor for Fathoms magazine. He is also a frequent contributor to other dive mags. Anyway . . . I'm proud to have been schooled by one of the best in the industry, even though I didn't know it at the time. :D

So . . . here's a few of my very first underwater digital pics taken in Belize. Shot with an Olympus C3030 using a Light & Motion Tetra housing with one Sea & Sea strobe.

Thanks for sharing the start of your UW-photo story. I myself just learned by doing and your photos are telling that somethimes it is worth of getting help from somewhere ;) .

[tarczy]

Yeah Jukka . . . I think you're correct about getting instruction. What I've noticed is that many beginning underwater photographers who try it on their own spend a lot of time mastering the technical aspect of underwater photography, but they always make a classic mistake - they shoot "down" instead of "up." This is one of my very first shots . . .

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i284/mongo255/Belize%2002_05_25/16BlueFish.jpg

Classically bad! Pretty terrible . . . eh?

After about the second day of shooting, Rod and I are messing around with our cameras on the camera table and he comments to me, "ya know something, try shooting underneath your subject to get the top of the water in the background." Well . . . that was all I needed to hear!!! Voilà!!! My pics were comin' out halfway decent!! I was hooked!!

The next day, it was getting to be about 4:00pm and we were going on the last dive before the night dive. Rod and I are about to jump in when he looks at the sun and says, "ahhh . . . the Golden Hour!" I asked him what he meant and he explained it's the best time of the day for getting the sun ball in your shots. That's all I needed. After that, I was on fire!!

After looking at the three pics in my first post above, I'm kind of amazed that the very first time out, I was already shooting with blue backgrounds and sun balls. There are people who dive fifty or more times before they realize that blue water backgrounds and sun balls are the two basic techniques that go the farthest in improving your underwater photography shots.

Another first shot . . .

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i284/mongo255/Belize%2002_05_25/66PurpleSeaFanSunlitBackground.jpg

Pretty crappy. :eek:

[sorvju-f]

Yeah Jukka . . . I think you're correct about getting instruction. What I've noticed is that many beginning underwater photographers who try it on their own spend a lot of time mastering the technical aspect of underwater photography, but they always make a classic mistake - they shoot "down" instead of "up." This is one of my very first shots . . .

Classically bad! Pretty terrible . . . eh?

After about the second day of shooting, Rod and I are messing around with our cameras on the camera table and he comments to me, "ya know something, try shooting underneath your subject to get the top of the water in the background." Well . . . that was all I needed to hear!!! Voilà!!! My pics were comin' out halfway decent!! I was hooked!!

The next day, it was getting to be about 4:00pm and we were going on the last dive before the night dive. Rod and I are about to jump in when he looks at the sun and says, "ahhh . . . the Golden Hour!" I asked him what he meant and he explained it's the best time of the day for getting the sun ball in your shots. That's all I needed. After that, I was on fire!!

After looking at the three pics in my first post above, I'm kind of amazed that the very first time out, I was already shooting with blue backgrounds and sun balls. There are people who dive fifty or more times before they realize that blue water backgrounds and sun balls are the two basic techniques that go the farthest in improving your underwater photography shots.

Another first shot . . .

Pretty crappy. :eek:

I have noticed that in this site there are about ten times more visitors, than regular members so maybe they want some tips how to start and improve.

Mark took up couple of basics.

I add one important:

Be close enough! Colours, sharpness and light with compotition is UW-photo, if you are too far you will lose them all.

[Schock@charter.net]

For anyone, but perhaps tarczy most of all...I am looking for some photos or--even better--some video of the rocky underwater coast just off the pier in Racine, your old stomping grounds. It's for a new film I'm making, the story of a body washed from Racine to Michigan. We have some very nice underwater video from our side...sandy bottom. But doesn't square with the discusion of the search for the body among the rocks. I hope and trust this question is withing the bounds of this list.

Cordially,

David

[David White]

You guys had talent all the way back when.

[tarczy]

For anyone, but perhaps tarczy most of all...I am looking for some photos or--even better--some video of the rocky underwater coast just off the pier in Racine, your old stomping grounds. It's for a new film I'm making, the story of a body washed from Racine to Michigan. We have some very nice underwater video from our side...sandy bottom. But doesn't square with the discusion of the search for the body among the rocks. I hope and trust this question is withing the bounds of this list.

Cordially,

David

Sorry David.

I'd like to help, but the sum total of my Racine, WI experience is my first checkout dive in a quarry in Racine in March 1971. After that miserable experience, I never went back to Racine again. :rolleyes:

[allison finch]

:(

I wish I could play, but....
On my trip to PNG with my new Nikonos III, I had my film processed on board. Unfortunately my camera malfunctioned after two rolls of film on a one month trip! %^*#@$!!!!!

What made matters worse, one of the other photographers on board took my two rolls of processed negs. I never found out who got them. they must have been OK, huh?

[solisti]

one of my first shots. Canon PowerShot A95:

[solisti]

http://www.uwphotochat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=111&stc=1&d=1170938422

This is pretty much the first one I ever took. (if the link works, I copied it from a previous post, but it also fits into this thread... ;) )

[bubbayeow]

Here are some of my first shots with a Sea and Sea MM II with a single strobe at Sipadan, Malaysia. The cost of developing 14 rolls of 35mm film pretty much decided that digital was the way to go.

[Sharp]

We all have taken our first UW-picture somewhere and gotten spark to continue. My first one was from Red sea beginning 2004.
( I started diving 1999 ).

Are you proud enough to show yours?

Jukka

Here is my first picture of my first trip to Red Sea in 2001. I started diving in same year. I had done 30 dives after that trip.

496

Camera was Reef Master pocketfilmcamera, which I´m still having.:)

[solisti]

Another one from the (not-so-far-behind) early days. No strobes, cropped a lot (5 Mpixels would not really allow this much). Ended up with an artsy-poster-like result that no-one except he who took it would hang on the wall. (and there it still is) :)

http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg27/solisti/UW/ahven.jpg

[solisti]

One more. (It's winter and everything is frozen solid so I won't be making any new pics untill the spring, but as you may have noticed my fingers are itching to post something...)

http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg27/solisti/UW/kivet.jpg

[Jonathan Bird]

My first picture was in 1989 on print film with a Nikonos V. I will have to dig that roll out and see what my actual first picture looked like....might be funny!

Jonathan

[sorvju-f]

My first picture was in 1989 on print film with a Nikonos V. I will have to dig that roll out and see what my actual first picture looked like....might be funny!

Jonathan

That will be part of UW-history!

Hope you will have time to scan it to us:D

Jukka

[McCloud]

This is my first with Olympus E-300 and Ike housing. 20m depth and a hand held light.

[sorvju-f]

This is my first with Olympus E-300 and Ike housing. 20m depth and a hand held light.

Picture with full of feeling...not bad:)

Jukka

[Shooter]

He are a few of my first pics.
They where taken during a Family trip to Cuba. Which is where I try scuba diving for the first time as well. So they are also my first scuba pics as well. At the Bay of Pigs no less to.
The first three are of fish that would let me take their picture.
The last one is of my Uncle feeding some fish.
All of these pic where taken with a disposable kodak camera.

[sorvju-f]

He are a few of my first pics.
They where taken during a Family trip to Cuba. Which is where I try scuba diving for the first time as well. So they are also my first scuba pics as well. At the Bay of Pigs no less to.
The first three are of fish that would let me take their picture.
The last one is of my Uncle feeding some fish.
All of these pic where taken with a disposable kodak camera.


So diver, corals, one fish and school of fishes...those we are fotographing still today:p

Jukka

[Papa Bear]

First underwater picture taken in Grand Cayman mid 1990's with my brand new Sea & Sea Motor Marine II! Untouched BTW! LOL:D
http://wsm.ezsitedesigner.com/share/users/21/218534/websites/478769/images/475_3_first_shot_mmII_GC_1997.jpg

[Papa Bear]

My first in the water in front of the Hotel and the next one was the one above!
http://www.twotankedproductions.com/images/475_3_Marriott_GC_1997.jpg

[Highlander]

Here is one of my first pictures. Taken in Gulf of Finland with powershot A630.

632

-M

[solisti]

Here is one of my first pictures. Taken in Gulf of Finland with powershot A630.

632

-M

I like that one, it's like the space, stars and a galaxy. Welcome to the board!