Diving gives you an amazing opportunity to take awesome pictures of aquatic life, but sunlight doesn’t travel very far below the surface of the water, so photography dive lights are necessary even when diving during the day. Certain dive lights are excellent when engaging in daytime underwater photography. The two types of lights used for underwater photography include:
Strobe: This light produces a super-bright flash that lasts a few milliseconds.
Continuous light: This type of light produces a continuous beam of light for up to a few hours.
Understanding Brightness and Beam Angles
The brightness of the light depends on the lumens and the beam. Daytime photography dive lights typically have a lumen output between 500-1000. The beam angle of the light determines both the focus of the light and the spread. Focusing the light helps to concentrate the light on a particular object or position. However, the wider the beam, usually 60-120, the better it is to create ambient lighting.
Beam angles of photography dive lights are categorized as follows:
Flood only: The light has a wide beam angle that is ideal to light up a larger area for a video or photo shoot.
Spot only: The light has a focused beam perfect for viewing farther distances or to help your camera focus on the subject you’re shooting.
Flood & spot lights: These lights can change their beam with a press of a button, switching between a narrow beam and a wide beam.
Variable beam: The variable beam lights can also alter the width of the beam, but only by a few degrees.
Tips for Using the Day Dive Lights For Perfect Pictures
- One should be a master in diving and buoyancy. It will help in navigation and enable you to take clear pictures.
- Exercise patience to take perfect shots. It might mean taking numerous pictures and experimenting with lighting and angles.
In conclusion, daytime underwater photography can be a spectacular, and it doesn’t have to be limited to the first few meters below the water’s surface.