16 Boisterous California sea lion pups are fantastic – but fast-moving – photo subjects Equipment & settings: Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Sea & Sea housing, 8 – 15mm lens at 15mm, dual Sea & Sea YS-250 strobes, f / 8, 1 / 200s, ISO320
17 A torpedo ray patrols a deep reef in Carmel Equipment & settings: Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Sea & Sea housing, 8 – 15mm lens at 14mm, dual Sea & Sea YS-250 strobes, f / 11, 1 / 50s, ISO320
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INTERMEDIATE CALIFORNIA SEA LIONS
• California sea lions are another subject that requires a lot of light – pups, which have brownish coats, are the worst offenders. Unfortunately, they are very difficult to appropriately colourbalance during post-processing, so it is important to get the best in-camera exposure possible. Using strobes with a very high output will maximise your chances of lighting these boisterous creatures.
• Sea lions are fast! To capture a dynamic image of a sea lion’ s face( rather than its neck!), set your shutter speed to the fastest speed to which your strobes will sync( typically 1 / 200s or 1 / 250s). Set your camera to continuous fire, adjust your strobes to ensure the fastest recycle time possible( typically, this is around half power), and take as many images as possible!
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COMPACT CAMERAS: Photographers wielding compacts attract the envy of everyone because they can seamlessly shift between wide-angle and macro subjects. A supplementary lens for wide-angle photography is necessary to help compact shooters get closer to subjects and capture California’ s fantastic vistas; a macro lens / dioptre is also beneficial to help get closer to the tiny critters.
A focus light to aid the camera’ s focus ability in limited light situations is critical for compact camera use in California. Using an external light source( a strobe or strong video light) will also be advantageous; several common subjects( kelp, sea lions, pelagic invertebrates) require lots of illumination – more than you’ d think – to get the best possible results.