Cape Scuba Club

Ten underwater photography tips

CapeScuba — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 13:04:42 +0000

Get in nice and close.

Make sure your diving skills are good before you start using a camera underwater.

Set your camera to the highest resolution, and the lowest ISO to begin with.

Practice topside with your camera inside the housing. Try taking close-ups of flowers and other objects.

Get close to your subject - within 30cm is good starting point. Water reduces contrast and sharpness as well as colour (particularly red). This is why we get those awful soft blue shots.

When using a flash watch out for backscatter. Backscatter happens when the flash picks up debris in the water and reflects the flash back into the lens. To compensate you could use an external strobe or get in closer to your subject. See above.

For the best composition, get in low and shoot at an upwards angle. Centering the subject usually results in a boring composition, try and fill your frame with the subject. Avoid shooting "down" on a subject, they tend to get lost in the background.

Make sure the subject's eyes are in focus,

Use auto white-balance when using a flash/strobe, and custom white balance or underwater mode when not using a flash.

If you are shooting with natural light, shoot with the sun behind you.

For quickest focus, use spot focus mode. Learn how to focus on an area without taking a photo (pressing the shutter button halfway) and recomposing.

Backscatter sucks!

Why was the Atlantic so green?

CapeScuba — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 07:53:12 +0000

This image was NOT photoshopped!

The south-easter causes the upwelling of clean and cold water which is very rich in nutrients. When the wind stops and the upwelling is no longer continually replacing the inshore water it just needs a little sunlight for microscopic floating plants called phytoplankton grow and multiply. They are eaten by tiny floating animals called zooplankton which become a rich source of food for fish such as sardines, anchovies and maasbanker. These small fish are game for predatory fish such as snoek, yellowtail and tuna as well as seals, sharks and even whales.

The upshot for scuba diving is that you are unlikely to get really good Atlantic viz if the south-easter has stopped and its much better to get in while its still blowing. Even if that means a slightly bumpy boat ride.

Thanks Grant (Blue Flash) for this brief explanation.

How well do you know sharks?

CapeScuba — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 12:52:17 +0000

Have a look at these beautiful sharks and see how many of them you can recognise. Click on an image to reveal their identity.

This strange filter feeding shark can be found in temperate waters and on average reaches up to 8 meters in length. The largest recorded specimen caught measured 12.27 meters.

This toothy shark goes by many names including Sand Tiger Shark and Grey Nurse Shark. They enjoy warmer water and can grow up to 3 meters.

This sleek beauty get grow to 3.8 meters and thrives in deep tropical waters.

This shark has an undeserved bad reputation thanks to movies like Jaws and other media hype. These top-line predators can reach 6 meters in length and can been found in both tropical and cold waters.

These shy critters can grow to just over 1 meter and can be spotted trawling the sea floor all around False bay. Photo: Guido Zsilavecz - www.surg.co.za

This aggressive shark can been found in both warm oceans and fresh water. They frequent river mouths and estuaries and have even been spotted thousands of kilometers up river. They are also known as the Zambezi shark, grow to about 4 meters and are responsible for many attacks on humans.

These beautiful sharks can grow to a massive 5 meters in length and are characterised by the vertical stripes along their flanks. They prefer warm water.

There are about 9 species of these oddly shaped sharks, the largest of which reaching lengths of up to 6 meters. It is believed that the reason their head has evolved into a hammer-like shape is to enhance their vision.

Unfortunately many of these sharks are critically endangered from overfishing and finning - about 73 million sharks are caught annually. We need to protect these awesome apex predators as they keep our oceans in balance. If you love sharks as much as we do please visit this link and see how you can get involved and informed.

Red tide hits False Bay

CapeScuba — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:04:32 +0000

Red tide in False Bay

Expect dirty dive conditions in False Bay for the next few weeks as a red tide moves through. The red tide has been in the bay for more than a week already and seems to be disapiting but the water is stil very green and murky.

What is Red tide?

Red tide is a common name for a phenomenon known as an algal bloom. These algae (phytoplankton) are microscopic, plant-like organisms that can form dense, visible patches near the water's surface that vary in colour from green to brown to red.

Red tides can cause the deaths of fish, coastal birds, marine mammals and other organisms. It is recommeded that you avoid shellfish, especially mussels, at this time as they can cause poising.

Initial signs of shellfish poisoning from red tide toxins are tingling of the lips, followed by a reduction of basic motor skills and difficulty breathing. Shellfish poisoning can be fatal if consumed in large amounts. If these symptoms occur after eating shellfish, seek immediate medical treatment.

Additional information on red tide and shellfish poisoning:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_tide

Cape Scuba Club is launched

CapeScuba — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 15:16:11 +0000

It's official, Cape Scuba Club is here! We are a new fun, family-based scuba diving club founded by experienced divers with a humble respect for the ocean and a passionate love for the sport. Passion is one of the pillars on which Cape Scuba Club is built, a passion not only for being underwater but for family and friends as well.

The founding members are Rod King, JP and Candice Meistre, Wayne and Nicola Reddek, Daryl and Lynne Glass, Ian Lowe, Sean De Nobrega and Franky Marr.

What do you think of our new logo? I think it sums us up well, it's fun, simple and sticks out like a sore thumb. Look out for it around Cape Town and come and say hello.

For the time being, Wayne and Nicola have kindly offered thier entertainment area to use as our clubhouse. Wayne and JP have been working hard to built a bar and braai area.

If you have a valid scuba diving certificate and share our passion, have a look around, get in touch and come dive!

How well do you know your diving hand signs?

CapeScuba — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:57:21 +0000

Go through these hand signs and see how many you know, click on an image to see if you are correct.