Asian Diver and Scuba Diver Issue 01-2019 (114) | Page 5

I N S P I R AT I O N A L I M A G E S O F 25 O C E A N S P E C I E S U N D E R T H R E AT
As a long-time user of Canon’s DSLRs, I’ve become
accustomed to cameras with ultra-fast autofocus and
great image quality even at higher ISOs. So I was
very excited to hear about the PowerShot G1 X Mark III,
Canon’s flagship compact camera boasting class-leading
specifications such as a 24-megapixel APS-C sized
CMOS image sensor and Dual Pixel CMOS AF. On a recent
trip to Lombok, Indonesia, I finally had the opportunity
to try out the camera in Canon’s dedicated WP-DC56
underwater housing.
One challenging subject was a school of striped
catfish. However, getting the frontal shot I wanted with the
PowerShot G1 X Mark III proved much easier than
I had imagined. As I approached the large rock that the
fish were hiding under, I noticed they didn’t seem spooked
by my modestly sized camera setup, and I was able to
start shooting straight away. The camera’s speedy
autofocus easily locked onto the constantly moving school,
and I was able to capture the occasional “yawns” from
different individuals.
Another subject, a harlequin shrimp, tested the camera
in a different way. These beautiful little shrimps are only a
few centimetres in length, so you need to attach a macro
wet lens to allow you to get close enough to fill the frame.
For lighting, instead of flash, I used continuous light
sources, which usually results in a “softer” image. But the
PowerShot G1 X Mark III did a fantastic job of faithfully
capturing the different shades of tapering colours in the
animal’s patterned markings, the texture of the coral
polyps, and even the minute details in the eye.
When post-processing the resulting images, I found
the PowerShot G1 X Mark III’s RAW files to have recorded
an amazing amount of information that is not typical of
a compact camera. In the case of the fish school image,
I had originally composed the shot to include the rocky
habitat, but the camera’s high-megapixel files allowed me
to heavily crop the image to focus on the yawning catfish
while still retaining excellent resolution. The shrimp image,
shot at ISO 640, had no perceptible digital noise, which is
commonly noticeable in such higher-ISO images captured
by compacts with much smaller sensors.
In every underwater scenario I encountered, the
PowerShot G1 X Mark III lived up to its impressive
specifications. I’d recommend this unique compact to any
underwater shooter who demands the performance of a
DSLR but the portability and convenience of a compact.
To find out more visit:
Canon Underwater
Housing WP-DC56
(sold separately)
https://goo.gl/hXFf2R
• 24.2MP APS-C CMOS sensor
• DIGIC 7 processor
• Dual Pixel CMOS AF
• Up to 9 shots/sec (One-Shot AF),
up to 7 shots/sec (Servo AF)
• 24–72mm lens (35mm film equivalent)
• ISO 100–25600
• 3-inch Vari-angle LCD with touchscreen
• 60p Full HD video
• Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth low energy
h t t p s : // s n a p s h o t.c a n o n -a s i a .com
https://asia.canon
3 | SDOP