April 5^th Meeting with James Wiseman
CALIFORNIA DREAMING

By Leonard Cichowski

Having spent some of my teen years in the San Diego area, Imperial Beach specifically, I am anxiously awaiting the HUPS, April 5th presentation by James Wiseman.  James' talk will be about the wonderful diving in Southern California, with a focus on his home town - San Diego.  Who would think that from just one place, you can dive with sea lions, sharks, the kelp beds, world-class wrecks, and even a "rig" dive?  James will give an overview of the area, followed by a digital slideshow of images from his dives there.  Finally, James will present a short tutorial for "cold water shooters" on how to remove the "green water effect" from images taken in clear - but green - cold water.  This tutorial should surely open some people's eyes - especially when they see the before and after samples.

James Wiseman is a deep water engineer from California, living in Texas.  His work is on projects over a mile deep, where few humans have ever been and where little about the environment is known or understood.  Growing up in San Diego, he was snorkeling and diving since before he could drive.  Unlike many who have prior experience shooting film underwater, James started out "all digital" and shot over 50 dives before picking up a Nikonos to "give it a try."

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April 5th Meeting from previous column

James' strong ties to the marine biology and ocean engineering communities give him a unique perspective not often seen in our hobby/field/profession.  His photos have been used by NOAA, the Coral Reef Alliance, and public aquariums in the U.S. for educational purposes.  James has been a SCUBA diver since 1998 and an underwater photographer since 2000.

I have to thank James for making my job easy this month.  He sent a beautifully written Bio and talk description.  All I had to do was cut and paste.  And I bet his program will give us some tips that will make our underwater photography just as easy.

Last month, and I hope you didn’t miss it, Terry Moore did a wonderful digital show on the British Virgin Islands.  Having lived on the islands, he gave us a perspective that a tourist never sees.  But the one thing that impressed me and a few others, is that Terry was able to translate his passion and knowledge of underwater photography/videography into a vehicle that stirred the enthusiasm of the membership.  A job well done, Terry.

As usual the meeting will be at the Bayland Community Center starting at 7:00 PM.  A map and directions are at the end of this newsletter.

Happy Diving,

Leonard

San Diego image by James Wiseman ©2004

President's Message
Why Not Digital Video?

I had an epiphany last month during Terry Moore’s excellent program.  Why in the world aren’t more of us doing digital video like he does?  When I joined HUPS a half-dozen years ago, we still had people actively doing UW video and giving presentations as monthly meetings.  I, for one, always looked forward to these shows since they represented a great way to view nature in action.  Don’t get me wrong, I love still photography and the artistry required to do it right, but there is nothing that can tell a story like seeing critters in action interacting with other critters and the environment.  I’ll never forget the time Steve Billiott put together a great short program from video shot on one of our Cozumel Shootouts.  A major section in the show was when he followed a moray eel at night to get video of it stalking its dinner.  "I can’t believe he ate the whole TANG," takes on a whole new meaning to me now.  And what about the ground-breaking show HUPS put together for SEASPACE several years back in which we had three projectors going, two slide and one video.  After the Film Festival was over, DUPS was overheard saying something to the effect, "How will we ever be able to top this show?"  It was truly awesome with Steve’s centerpiece video flanked by slide shows all complimented with music.

I’ve missed this aspect of HUPS over the past several years and can’t quite fathom why it simply dropped off the face of the earth for us.  I can only assume that it was for lack of support from the membership.  We really never have had a large group doing UW video.  Why?  I suspect that a lot of the reluctance to go this route had to do with the expense and hassles of editing the old tapes and copying the output back onto new videotapes.  And, of course, getting VHS or Hi-8 tapes converted to digital format was also an expensive, bothersome problem if you wanted to go digital.

So what’s different today in the digital age?  High quality, reasonably-priced equipment and ease of use, I would maintain.  If you want a decent digital video system, you really don’t have to spend an arm and a leg.  Sure, you can easily spend over $3000 for a really great system complete with lights, housing, camera, and other bells and whistles, but you can get good, competent systems for a lot less.  If you are curious, check out http://www.backscatter.com or http://www.ikelite.com to get an idea for what is available and for how much.

The last issue that has to be addressed is the barrier of editing all of that "footage" into something compact and compelling.  Lots of expensive, difficult-to-understand equipment you ask?  I think not!  Mostly you just need a reasonably fast computer with lots of RAM and hard disk space.

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President's Message from previous column

Downloading is a simple plug-in operation using a USB or Firewire port.  Once downloaded, editing your work has never been easier.  There are more digital video editing programs out there than McDonald hamburgers (or so it seems).  You can spend a lot for premium programs such as Adobe Premiere, or less than $100 for more compact but competent programs from Pinnacle, Ulead, or Roxio.  I’ve been dabbling with digital video up at work, and although I still have a lot of learning to do, I can see that it’s really going to be a lot easier to generate a nice product than I originally imagined.  It’s almost as simple as dropping in your background music segments and adding your video files.  Once each video segment has been edited for length, you string it together with other edited segments and select transition effects.  You are also able to do editing to correct color balance, exposure, and contrast (if you think it is required).  Adding titles has never been much simpler.  Type it out and select how long it stays on screen.  This just scratches the surface of what you can do with these programs.

To use an old phrase that summarizes the situation, "This isn’t your father’s Buick."  This technology is exploding right now.  Cameras are small, cheap, and good.  You probably get more for your buck with digital video than you do with digital cameras, where everyone is paying mega-bucks for another megabyte of resolution.  The biggest barrier is probably acceptance, and the willingness to take the first steps down this path.  I’m really hoping that HUPS will embrace digital video like we have digital still photography over the past 2-3 years.

In the near future, we’ll be checking with HUPS members to see how much interest we might have in workshops and other digital video activities. Stay tuned.

See Ya April 5th,
Dennis

Second Place Advanced, Ken Knezick ©2004

Workshop Update from the DEA
By Joe Nicklo, Director of Educational Activities

David Lenderman showed the attendees of our third workshop that he knows Nikonos.  David gave a wonderful three and one half-hour workshop on "Getting the most from your Nikonos V."  I was amazed at the amount of information David had amassed and his keen way of presenting it.  I certainly learned a few things about the trusted and proven Nikonos camera.  Although David's workshop was on a film type camera, there were many things covered that applied to digital cameras and digital photography.

As we proceed with these workshops, I'm convinced even more now, than I was when I first proposed them, that it is the ideal educational format for all HUPS members.  I strongly believe we are on the cutting edge, especially after having heard that we have received a request from Houston Photochrome Club to do a workshop for their members.

With the digital photography evolution, there are so many new things to learn such as "Workflow" and "Computer Enhancement," the subjects of the next two HUPS workshops.  On June 12, James Wiseman, whom you all know as the "Digital Wizard," will teach us techniques on digital photography workflow which includes storage and retrieval of those wonderful cherished images.  Then on September 18, Dennis Davenport, our president, will give a repeat performance of his well attended workshop on "Enhancing Digital Images."  After hearing about this informative workshop, many members requested it be given again.  You can put your money on this: Although superb, Dennis will give a better, more polished, workshop then he did originally.  That is his modus operandi.

Good Goin’ Gary

HUPS Member Gary Merritt recently placed third in the wide-angle category of the prestigious Underwater Images Photo Competition.  To view Gary’s shot along with the other winning images, checkout http://www.uwimages.org.  If you know of a HUPS member who has recently won a photo contest or has been published, send a note to your newsletter editor.  Don’t be afraid to toot your own horn.

Joyce Burek ©2000

UpComing Meetings & Events

April 5, 2004 - HUPS Meeting
James Wiseman – Diving San Diego & Digital Tips

May 3, 2004 - HUPS Meeting
Dennis Deavenport – Photoshop Techniques
& David Lenderman – Shark!

June 5-6, 2004 – SEASPACE http://www.seaspace.org

June 7, 2004 – HUPS Meeting
Special post-SEASPACE meeting – Marty Snyderman

June 12, 2004 – Workshop
James Wiseman – Digital Workflow

FOR SALE

Ikelite SLR housing for Cannon AE1, w/ flat port, focus & zoom controls & rings, Ikelite Substrobe M, Ikelite strobe arm, Sync cord and Fitted plastic carrying case Canon AE1 35mm film SLR camera, Canon lens FD 50mm 1: 1.8, Canon zoom lens FD 35-70mm 1: 3.5-4.5, Canon zoom lens FD 70-120mm 1:4, Vivitar tilt/bounce flash unit zoom thyristor 3500 w/colored diffusers, Hanimex close up lens set +1, +3 Make an offer to Lee Mixon. *************

Two Ikelite SubStrobe 200 (orange) with batteries, quick charger and 2 diffusers -- $900. All work great and one just serviced by Ikelite

Ikelite 4200 Digital underwater light meter. $275 Sekonic MMII with bracket and UltraLight mount. Extra batteries. $125

Ikelite flat port for 50 Micro Nikkor (#5502 for lenses < 3.5" max extension). $25

Photos of these items are viewable at http://www.seabelow.com/uwphoto4sale.  All prices OR BEST OFFER.  Contact Dave Van Rooy at dvanrooy@seabelow.com.  Dave has been a member of HUPS for over 15 years and currently resides in Bali.  All equipment is in good working order, and he will guarantee money back if not satisfied.  Equipment is located in and will be shipped from Austin, TX.

HUPS at SEASPACE 2004

SEASPACE, scheduled for June 5-6, is rapidly approaching.  HUPS will have a double width booth (10’x20’).  In addition to our promotional activities we plan to have a silent auction and/or raffle of prints.  As in the past we are in need of volunteers to set up/tear down the display, staff the booth to sign up new members, and all kinds of other stuff.  Because so many HUPS members are involved with our SEASPACE booth we are in need of a few people to coordinate the activities.  We are looking for members willing to fill the roles of: New Member Recruitment Coordinator, Handouts Coordinator, Booth Worker Refreshment Coordinator and Raffle/Silent Auction Coordinator.  Of course all these Coordinators need some coordination.  That’s why we have Jack Andrews and Joe Nicklo as the Supreme SEASPACE Coordinators.  To find out how you can help out, contact Jack or Joe.

If you enjoy your HUPS membership please support the club by volunteering at SEASPACE.  This is a great way to get to know your fellow members.

Monthly Contest Winners
March 2004 - Anemones

People, People Everywhere

The topic for the April slide contest is "People."  This can be divers, snorkelers, swimmers or whatever.  The image just has to have been taken underwater and include at least one human being.  You can’t win if you don’t enter.

A Letter to Terry Moore

Ed. Note – Typically it is the job of the HUPS VP to write up the article recapping the past meeting.  This month we are reprinting a letter sent to last month’s presenter, Terry Moore, and the HUPS officers concerning the March program.  Good work Terry.

Terry, I want to say that I have enjoyed all of the presentations that I've seen at HUPS since I've joined.  But I consider Terry Moore's presentation last night to be different from what I've seen so far.  I think that his presentation was in a format that really reflects what HUPS is all about.

Being a non-underwater photographer at this point mainly because I'm so new to diving, I found his presentation to be very informative.  He talked a lot about how his pictures were taken.  It was a fun presentation with a great mix of on land, under water, angles, equipment, subject matter, and animal behavior.  Hearing about how to interact with the marine life in order to get the best shots is such a fascinating subject!  And since I'm just getting into this sport I am very glad to be shown that you can actually take great pictures without spending your life savings.  At this point, with being so new to diving I wouldn't want anything more than an enhanced point and shoot setup.  Now I can't wait to take it to the next step!

Thank you HUPS for putting Terry's presentation into the schedule, and thank Terry for a great show!

Sharon Waddell

Irradiated Mail and Fuji Film Mailers
By Pat Miller

Since I use Fuji mailers to send rolls of slide film for processing, I wondered, in these days of heightened security, about the possibility of my film being X-rayed by the post office. I asked that question on the US Postal Services' web site http://www.usps.com.

Here's the reply I received: "Only specific mail is going through an irradiation or e-beam (electron-beam) sanitation process. . . The only mail being irradiated at this time is mail addressed to federal government agencies in Washington DC.  Those addresses are all within the ZIP Code ranges beginning with 202, 203, 204 and 205. No other mail is affected at this time."

So, I am glad my film isn't being irradiated.  But, am I glad the federal government is protecting only itself?

HUPS Members to Offer Workshops at SEASPACE

If you haven’t already marked your calendars for SEASPACE, do it now.  In addition to the exhibit hall, seminars and film festival, HUPS members Jesse Cancelmo and James Wiseman will be presenting photography workshops at SEASPACE.  Take advantage of these workshops to improve your skills.

Jesse will teach a workshop entitled, "Techniques for Improving your Underwater Photography."  This three-hour photography workshop, designed for film and digital shooters alike, will teach you how to sharpen your shooting skills and will improve your results as an underwater photographer.  Some of the key areas covered will include:

• Wide Angle Photos: The Equipment you really need and how to use your lens and strobes for maximum dramatic effect.
• Lighting Techniques: The critical aspects of lighting that apply to film and digital applications.
• Tips for Approaching Skittish Marine Life: It's more than simple patience.  Learn valuable tips from a pro.
• Using Models: The ins and outs of using divers to complement your underwater images.
• Planning Your Photo Shoots to get Results: Tips for maximizing your shooting success.

Jesse Cancelmo is a frequent contributor to Rodale’s Scuba Diving and Dive Training magazines.  His images have appeared in publications throughout the world from National Geographic books and BBC Wildlife to USA Today.  Jesse also has authored two books, Diving Bermuda and Diving Cayman Islands by Aquaquest Publications.

James Wiseman and Eric Cheng will be teaching a three hour workshop entitled, "Underwater Digital Photography by Wetpixel.com: Beginner & Advanced Photo Systems, Digital Workflow & Computer Tools."  Among a diversity of intriguing endeavors, including degrees in computer science and in-depth study of cello and piano, Eric owns and runs the digital underwater photography resource Wetpixel.com.  Wetpixel provides up-to-date news, reviews, features, and a 1700+member strong community forum for underwater digital photographers.

Eric Cheng's photos and articles have been published in PDN Magazine, Dive Magazine, PEI Magazine, E-Photo Magazine, Digital Photo FX Magazine, DigitalFOTO Magazine, Fathoms Magazine, Shark Diver Magazine, the National Geographic Channel, and all over the web.

A true pioneer in the growth of digital underwater photography, Eric's Wetpixel website has become an ever growing font of information and communication for digital underwater photographers.

Traveling Without Trampling
Submitted by Pat Miller, edited from National Geographic News

Heavy traffic and unsustainable practices are often ruining elements that make a destination unique and worth visiting, says National Geographic Traveler geotourism editor Jonathan Tourtellot.  With careful planning, however, you can do more good than harm on your next trip. Here's how.

When tourism is badly managed it can destroy a place.  Coasts, for example, are extremely vulnerable.  Everyone wants to go to them.  Everyone wants to own a second home on them.  And there's just not enough coast to go around.  Coasts are also important for biodiversity, because much of marine life has its nurseries in coastline areas.  So development there is a highly sensitive issue.  Same thing goes for attractive mountainsides like the Rockies of the West.  That's why when development occurs on a large scale, it's important that it be carefully clustered and well planned.

When tourism is managed well it can save a place.  When people come see something special and unique to an area -- its nature, historic structures, great cultural events, beautiful landscapes, even special cuisine -- they are enjoying and learning more about a destination's geographical character.  The new term geotourism means to sustain or enhance the geographical character of a place -- its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage, and the well being of its residents.  Here travelers spend their money in a way that helps maintain the geographical diversity and distinctiveness of the place they're visiting.  It can be as simple as spending your money at a little restaurant that serves a regional dish with ingredients from local farmers, rather than at an international franchise that serves the same food you can get back home.

How else can tourism help benefit a destination?  Great tourism can build something that wasn't there before.  Tourism can also preserve things that would otherwise disappear.  An example is the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California.  It was built in a restored cannery building, on historic cannery row -- which is a good example of preserving a historical building, rather than destroying it.  The aquarium, which has about 1.8 million visitors each year, brought people's attention to the incredible variety of sea life right off the coast of California.  And it played a major role in the development of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.  Once people saw what was there, they wanted to protect it.

Use an environmentally responsible tour operator.  Whether you're hiring an outbound operator who helps you plan your trip to a destination or an inbound operator who receives you when you arrive at that destination, make sure that they try to follow good practices of sustainability.  That means that they give as much business as possible to local people.  And help to support natural areas and historic districts.  It's also up to you to learn about a place before you visit.  Armed with knowledge, you'll know which places to patronize and which ones to avoid.

There are very few secret places anymore.  So we must now understand what the vulnerabilities of a place are before we visit, and to help protect that place as best we can while we're there.

This article is a follow-up to a piece I did a few months back (February 2004) answering some common questions posed by photographers upgrading from a consumer camera to a DSLR.  Since that article, I have received many questions from people wondering which lenses would be good to purchase for their first dives with their new Digital Rebel.  There has also been an exciting new camera called the D70 released by Nikon at $1,299 including a very good lens.

I will present what I consider to be a good "stable" of beginner lenses and explain why I recommend them.  These lenses were selected with an entry-level perspective in mind, so none of them exceed $350 in cost.  Then I’ll talk about using these lenses underwater, inside an underwater housing and behind a port.

Since I have most of my experience using Nikon systems, the underwater photos in this article won’t include any shots taken with Canon lenses.  Don’t worry though, Canon and Sigma provide a stable of almost exactly the same glass at a very similar price point.

A good beginner "stable" of lenses for a digital SLR. Kit lens, 60mm macro, and full frame fisheye.

I think that everyone buying the Digital Rebel or the D70 should purchase it with the kit lens.  These lenses have focal lengths of 17-55mm and 18-70mm respectively.  They both provide a relatively wide field of view, but also have good close focusing ability.  Most housing manufacturers will recommend using this type of lens behind a dome port.  Depending on which dome is used, these lenses might need a screw on diopter (sometimes called a "closeup lens") to focus properly.  The following photo shows the Nikon 18-35mm lens in the Aquatica housing – if a diopter is needed, it can be screwed onto the front filter thread.  I don’t have the 18-70mm lens yet, so I have substituted the 18-35mm for this article.  I recommend this type of lens because it is inexpensive, comes bundled with the kit, and can shoot subjects from about 8" in size up to "scuba diver size."

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DSLR Lenses from previous column

The Aquatica housing with a zoom lens mounted. The 60mm is at right for scale.

I have selected some shots which I think are representative of what the 18-70 can do, but taken with my 18-35mm behind the Ikelite extended dome port.  These shots required a +4 diopter mounted to the lens.  I hope to try the 18-70mm DX lens soon, but at the time of this writing (March 2004), it is not yet in stock at dealers.

The 18-35mm at the "long end." This end of the zoom can be used for fish portraits, behavior.

The 18-35mm at the wide end

The next lens I will focus on (no pun intended) is the 60mm macro made by Nikon. This lens can focus down to a 1:1 reproduction ration (35mm equivalent).

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DSLR Lenses from page 6

Canon makes a similar lens, the 50mm f2.5, but the Canon lens only provides half the magnification.  Shooting 1:1 macro is certainly rewarding, and this is a consideration for Canon shooters, but most beginners will probably stick to slightly larger subjects.  Users have reported that the Sigma 50mm lens for either Canon or Nikon mount can do 1:1 (35mm equivalent) but that the autofocus is not as fast as the more expensive "name brand" lenses.  In any case, this isn’t as relevant for beginning DSLR shooters, because most subjects will range in size from about 3" up to roughly 18", so 2:1 (35mm equivalent) should be fine.  All of these macro lenses can be used behind a small flat port and they do not require manual focusing to get good sharp shots.

60mm shot of an amberjack eye – taken about 10" from the subject.

The 60mm at far focus – I was able to capture the whole fish at about 3 feet from the subject.

The last of the three lenses to get is a full frame fisheye.  I recommend the Sigma 15mm f2.8, which comes in either a Nikon or Canon mount.  This lens is a very good performer and does the job of a Nikkor 16mm fisheye at about half the price.  The 15mm is not a 180 degree fisheye on a DSLR, because it is cropped, but will still cover somewhere near a 100 degree field of view.  Straight vertical or horizontal lines at the top, bottom, or sides of the frame will be curved, but this is seldom a problem underwater.

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DSLR Lenses from previous column

In fact, it is almost impossible to tell that most shots taken with the Sigma 15mm f2.8 lens were made with a fisheye.  The 15mm focuses extremely close and can be used behind most dome ports.  An added bonus of shooting the 15mm is that this lens will force you to get close to your subjects.  A variety of marine critters make good subjects, but as a rule - even at close focus - the subject should be bigger than about two feet, or it will be dwarfed by this lens.  Of course, the reason for shooting a lens with this wide field of view is that you can get a BIG subject in the frame, and at 3 to 5 feet away, you can light it well to bring out color.

A shot of a hawksbill turtle taken with the Nikon 16mm Fisheye; the subject was less than three feet from the lens.

Wetpixel Administrator Craig Jones shooting a rope sponge with his Nexus D100 and Inon strobes.

I hope that this short article has provided a good guide for beginning DSLR shooters.  All of the lenses discussed in this article can be obtained new for about $300 (18-70DX) to $350 (15mm and 60mm).  If you have further questions, I’d encourage you to visit the Underwater Digital SLR discussion forum at Wetpixel or come talk to me at the next HUPS meeting.

The Houston Underwater Photographic Society (HUPS) meets the first Monday of every month at 7:00PM at the Bayland Community Center, 6400 Bissonet, near Hillcroft.

Social time begins at 7:00PM for members and visitors to get acquainted. Visitors are always welcome to join us. So, stop by and see what we are all about!