A picture may be worth a thousand words, but an artful picture of your underwater dives is worth a thousand stories. The PADI Advanced Open Water Course specializing in Underwater Photography teaches camera handling techniques, preparation and care of equipment, the unique properties of underwater photography, and safety during your dives. Supervision from specialized instructors is especially important if you will be making your first underwater photography dives.

The Advanced Open Water Underwater Photography Course begins with these basic principles:

• Planning and organization
• Procedures and techniques
• Hazards of underwater photography
• Preparing your camera before and after a dive

In addition to these important basics, you will also learn photographic principles including:

• Composition
• Flash vs. available light
• Judging distance and light underwater
• Film types
• Water vs. air effects on photographs
• How descent changes affect colour and other properties

During the PADI Advanced Open Water Course, you will make one dive for Underwater Photography. The Underwater Photography PADI Specialty will require one additional dive.

Correct preparation of your camera and the underwater camera housing are crucial before a dive. A foreign object as small as a hair or grain of sand can cause the seal to fail and the housing to leak, resulting in ruined equipment. The O-ring and O-ring seat should be inspected diligently to prevent debris. The camera should also be inspected for “spidering” or cracks indicating the need for new housing. Some divers carry a magnifying glass to inspect equipment before and after a dive.

Photographic memories of your dives are so much more rewarding than log book entries! The variety of ocean fauna and flora has yet to be fully catalogued, and pictures of the amazing creatures you will come face to face with will delight family and friends for years to come.