Articles

DPG editors Lia Barrett and Joe Tepper take a detailed look at five of reader Christopher Holtz’s images, giving him pointers and feedback on how he might improve them.
 

Clownfish, Karimunjawa National Park, Indonesia
(f/11, 1/250s, ISO 100, Olympus OMD EM5, +5 Subsee, dual Sea & Sea YS-01 strobes)
 

Lia: Some of the most satisfying underwater images are of anemonefish. When you can get them to stop moving for a split second, focus in on their eyes, and create a beautiful contrast of color, there is a genuine feeling of accomplishment. In this image, you have achieved focus, and so now it is time to move to the next steps in the thought process—lighting and composition. You haven’t placed the fish directly in the middle of the frame; however, I’d consider, either stepping back a bit to get more information on the habitat, or choosing a moment when the fish is more engaged, perhaps looking at the lens with both eyes, in order to show more interactive substance. I would also watch the color cast, for through either lighting and/or post-processing, you have created a yellow-green tint, which can easily be corrected by compensating for blues.

Joe: Anemonefish and their homes make for great behavior subjects—all that color and dynamic action in one shot is a must-have for any portfolio. I think this image has a lot of potential, and while one should never rely on editing to salvage a photo, there are some simple post-processing steps that could really help Chris’ image. First, I think the photo would benefit from evening out the highlights and shadows, either in your RAW processor or through dodge/burn tools. The chin of the fish and lower left-hand corner are a little over exposed, while the upper right quadrant is slightly underexposed. I’d also go in and remove the backscatter (either through cloning or with the healing brush)—normally, a little backscatter is okay, but I find the particulates in this image distracting.
 

Anna’s chromodoris, Tulamben, Indonesia
(f/16, 1/250s, ISO100, Olympus OMD EM5, +10 Subsee, dual Sea & Sea YS-01 strobes)
 

Lia: I like how you have used the foreground as the focus of the composition, invoking a touch of bokeh for greater interest, and a less distracting background. It might have been interesting to wait another few seconds/minute (if you have it) for the nudibranch to open its lungs a bit more. Sometimes, when they are initially spooked by your presence and that of the camera, they will retreat slightly, but will usually re-emerge. And because their “branchs” are sort of the meat of their physiology, it is best to get them when they are fully exposed. 

Joe: I think this is possibly the strongest image in the series. Confession (send all hate mail to lia@divephotoguide.com!): I’m not a big nudibranch fan. I find it very hard for a lay viewer to connect with an eyeless subject. However, you’ve overcome a lot of that by capturing excellent depth of field with a high f-stop. And, having most of the body in partial focus and the lungs in sharp focus does draw the viewer right to the head of the subject—a sometimes difficult task with nudis. One cropping or framing opinion: It might feel a little less squeezed in the frame if you left more negative space in the bottom of the frame rather than the top.
 

Goby, Tulamben, Indonesia
(f/8, 1/320s, ISO 100, Canon S100, +5 Subsee, dual Sea & Sea YS-01 strobes)
 

Lia: This image reminds me of the jellybean wall in the candy store. It is just bursting forth with color—which can be beautiful but can also work in your detriment, depending on the subject. I often find that sometimes in macro situations, if there is too much color and texture within the frame, the element of focus tends to battle with other aesthetics. In wide angle, you can get away with this more, because subjects can be isolated in the blue, but in macro, it can be more challenging because there is less room to work with. Even more testing is the ever-impatient goby who will fly away the moment you are ready to pull the trigger. I would consider either waiting for the moment that he moves a bit forward, or for your next goby encounter, think about using snoots or other methods of light isolation, so that the background isn’t battling with the goby.

Joe: I feel that your photographer’s vision was in the right mindset here: interesting behavior and lots of color to be captured. I think the main setback of the image is that the fish is not prominent enough in the image. This is caused partially by the collage of colors in the scene (it’s like a scavenger hunt)—but also by the way you’ve framed the subject. I think it may have been better to approach the fish from the front and actually use a shallow depth of field (bokeh) to blur the colorful background into a pleasing pastel.
 

Pygmy Seahorse (Hippocampus bargibanti), Tulamben, Indonesia
(f/18, 1/250s ISO100, Olympus OMD EM5, +5 Subsee, dual Sea & Sea YS-01 strobes)
 

Lia: Ah, the elusive pygmy seahorse—you sure are running the gamut of difficult subject matter! With something so small, delicate, and camouflaged as the pygmy, your main goal is to get your basics in order, and most importantly, to get at least one eye in focus. Here, your lighting and exposure are decent, but you just need that seahorse to turn its body around slightly. Compositionally, a seahorse profile works, but having it facing the viewer earns you gold stars. Alternatively, if it is facing even slightly away from you, you should keep shooting. I know it is difficult because pygmies like to hang out a bit deeper (and you run out of bottom time, your buddies get mad, and the guide gets tired), but you really should wait for that face-to-face moment, and then you can walk away and never have to shoot another yellow pygmy again!

Joe: Pygmy seahorses are tough. They never seem to want to face you. And that’s the main issue I have with this image—there’s very little draw to the subject. It’s fine if you really have the patience to wait for the seahorse to face you, but let’s say it’s the world’s most stubborn subject and it never turns. Maybe use the seahorse’s camouflage ability to your advantage and create an abstract image with a shallow depth of field so that only the seahorse’s eye is in focus, and the body blends seamlessly into the coral?
   

Harlequin shrimp, Tulamben, Indonesia
(f/18, 1/250s, ISO100, Olympus OMD EM5, +5 Subsee, dual Sea & Sea YS-01 strobes)
 

Lia: I must say, harlequins are perhaps my most favorite shrimp, for they are so brilliantly patterned and photographically stunning. In saying that, I like what you are going for with the composition, and think it is a great step at playing with light and exposure. Whether this is snooted or post-processed is neither here nor there, in my opinion; however, next time, I would choose your highlights with a bit more intent. Think about lighting in a way that spreads more evenly over the body, so as to avoid patchy shadows. Also, bringing forth the eyes and other claws would make the image pop a bit more. And again, I would color-correct by adding in more blue, which will bring out the pattern in the body.

Joe: First thing: I hope there wasn’t a second harlequin chomping down on a sea star. It’s a fairly prized image to be had! I assume, given the quality of your work, that this guy was all alone in rubble or boring sand. That being the case, your choice to snoot is an excellent one! Aside from bokeh, snooting is the perhaps the strongest tool you have at your disposal when separating critters from the muck. It’s well executed, with just some highlight/shadow issues that can be fixed in post (see first image). I am, however, a stickler for symmetry, so I’d like to see more of a head-on shot to get a sense of the whole subject’s appearance.

Final Comments

Lia: Chris is obviously not afraid to take on the “big fish” of the macro world. He is playing with some very stubborn creatures, and is thus enhancing his abilities, scope, and experience. The next steps that I would focus on if I were Chris, would be color and composition. Training your eye for color correction takes practice, but if you hold up your images next to those of professionals (this goes for topside and underwater), you will start to see the difference in what tendencies you take in your color casts, and can thus start to correct for those hues. Sometimes it’s lighting (lights can have warmer or cooler colors, depending on what type of light it is), other times it’s your own manipulations, but either way, comparing your work with that of others is helpful in determining your process.

Joe: Given the selection of images, I’m going to go out on a limb and say Chris prefers macro photography. A lot of photographers assume macro is easier than wide-angle—and while perhaps the basic macro shot may require less acumen than balancing natural and artificial light in a reef scene, to get a truly special image of a critter it takes years of patience and practice. I think Chris is well on his way, capturing well-executed macro images of prized subjects and even throwing in a fancy technique like snooting. I think the next step will involve a better understanding of how to post-process and learn to tell more of a narrative with his macro shots rather than just capturing profile, identification images.
 

About Christopher Holtz: Chris lives in the suburbs of Chicago, but his work requires him to travel widely in Asia and the Pacific. This means that while he may only go diving two or three times a year, he goes to some of the best spots in the world. He began diving when he was 13, gave it up, and started again about five years ago. He recently moved from a point-and-shoot with one strobe to a mirrorless micro four-thirds system with two strobes. Chris hopes to up his macro game over the next few years, until he feels ready to take on the muck of Lembeh Strait.