Underwater photographer with a camera housing, dome port and strobes

Digital Underwater Photographer

Name: Digital Underwater Photographer
Brand: PADI
SKU: DUP001
Price: 3500.00 ZAR
Availability: InStock

SKU DUP001

R 3,500.00 ZAR

Product variants

Everyone's underwater photos come out blue and disappointing. There are about three reasons why.

You've seen it happen. The dive was extraordinary, the colours were extraordinary, and the photos are a murky blue-green blur with a snowstorm of white specks across them. It isn't your camera, and it isn't your eye. It's physics, and once someone explains the physics the problem largely goes away.

The PADI Digital Underwater Photographer course explains it. Water absorbs red light within the first few metres, which is why everything goes blue. Particles between your strobe and your subject light up, which is backscatter. Distance destroys both colour and sharpness, which is why the single best piece of underwater photography advice is get closer.

From there it's about your equipment and your technique: white balance, strobe and video light positioning, composition, and the buoyancy control that lets you hold a position long enough to actually take the shot. All scuba equipment is included for the duration of the course.

What Digital Underwater Photographer Gives You

You'll come away able to get colour back into your images, avoid backscatter, compose a shot underwater, and handle your camera without wrecking your buoyancy or the reef. Two dives with an instructor, with a proper review of your images afterwards, which is where most of the learning actually lands.

It works with whatever you own, from a phone in a housing to a full mirrorless rig, because the principles don't change with the price of the camera. If you haven't bought anything yet, talk to us first. It also counts toward your Master Scuba Diver rating.

Ready to bring back photos worth showing? Book Digital Underwater Photographer below, or get in touch with our team to talk through equipment first.

What This Course Entails

Knowledge development covers why underwater images behave the way they do: selective absorption of light and the loss of red first, how suspended particles create backscatter, and why distance between lens and subject costs you both colour and sharpness.

From there it's practical. Setting up your camera and housing, white balancing at depth, positioning a strobe or video light to light the subject without lighting the water in front of it, and composing a shot that works. Buoyancy gets proper attention, because you cannot photograph well from an unstable platform.

Two open water dives with an instructor, followed by a review of your images, which is where most of the learning happens. All scuba equipment is included for the duration of the course; camera equipment is your own unless arranged with us in advance.

Prerequisites

Certified PADI Open Water Diver or Junior Open Water Diver, or a qualifying certification from another training organisation.
Minimum age is 10 years old.
A camera and underwater housing. Talk to us before buying if you don't have one yet.
Complete a basic health screening questionnaire to confirm you're fit to dive.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do my underwater photos always come out blue?

Because water absorbs red light within the first few metres, so by 10 metres there's essentially no red left to reflect. The course covers the three ways round it: getting closer, using a strobe or video light, and white balancing correctly. Fixing this one thing transforms most people's photos.

What is backscatter, and how do I avoid it?

Backscatter is the snowstorm of lit-up particles you get when your light source is too close to your lens axis. It's the single most common thing that ruins an otherwise good underwater photo, and the fix is mostly about strobe positioning and getting closer to your subject. The course covers both properly.

What camera do I need for the course?

Whatever you've got. The course works with anything from a phone in a housing to a compact to a full mirrorless setup, because the principles that make an underwater photo good are the same regardless. If you don't own anything yet, talk to us first and we'll help you avoid buying the wrong thing.

Can I do this during my Open Water course?

Yes, and it's the most efficient way to do it. PADI permits Digital Underwater Photographer Level One training to be integrated with the Open Water Diver course. The Level One dive can be run in confined water any time after your third pool session, or folded into the Dive 4 tour once you've mastered all your Open Water skills. In many cases it adds no extra dives at all.

How many dives does the course involve?

Two dives with an instructor, shooting and then reviewing what you got, which is where most of the learning actually happens. All scuba equipment is included; camera equipment is your own unless you've arranged otherwise with us.

Are air fills included in the course price?

No, and that is deliberate. Air is charged as you use it, per fill, and invoiced to you after your session. Every diver breathes differently, and building a worst-case air allowance into every course fee would mean the lightest breathers subsidising the heaviest, so instead you pay for the air you actually use and the course price stays lower for everyone. We confirm the current fill rate with you when we book your dates, and you are welcome to ask us for it at any point before that. Dive site entrance fees are also paid separately, at the site on the day.