For BSoUP Members who missed the September meeting or
need a recap, Keith Lyall has prepared a pdf file of the slides from his
presentation on Wide-angle techniques.
Members only may select the pdf document in the document archive but
you will be prompted to login if you haven't already done so this
session.
Keith has been diving since 2000 and is a PADI
Divemaster. Prior to learning to dive Keith was a keen land photographer
and as such underwater photography was a natural extension of this
interest, in fact the interest was significantly rekindled through diving.
To learn more about Keith and see some of his images please visit www.kclyall.co.uk
Google adds coral reef panoramas to Street View
maps
Panoramic images of several coral
reefs have been added to Google's Street View service in its maps, allowing
users to navigate their way around the sites.
The material was gathered by the Catlin Seaview Survey -
a project studying the health of the reefs, including the impact of global
warming.
The programme's director said the effort would help
scientists analyse ecosystems and raise general awareness.
It is also a publicity coup for Google at a time of
growing competition.
Google has previously offered computer-generated views of
the sea floor terrain, but this is the first time it has incorporated
underwater photographs into its mapping product.
The next meeting of the Northern Underwater Photography
Group takes place on Monday 8th October at the Gurkha
Grill, West Didsbury, Manchester (map).
Guest Speaker: Paul "Duxy" Duxfield
Title: "To Infinity and Beyond: Mirrorless Magic"
Duxy will be weaving his magic for the NUPG audience on
Monday 8th October, showing us his wonderful images from recent trips to
Egypt and Indonesia with Scuba Travel. He will be singing the virtues, and
giving us the low down, of the mirrorless camera systems available
today. Duxy is a superb public speaker, so please try and come along! £5
for non-members. All welcome.
The monthly competition theme is "The Top 1m"
For more details of venue, times and competition entry
please visit www.nupg.org.uk
Northern Underwater Photography Group
CORNSoUP - Next Meeting
Monday 15th October
The next meeting of CORNSoUP takes place on Monday 11th
October, 2012 at the Watersports Centre, Falmouth at 7.00 for a 7.30
start.
Charles Hood will give a fascinating
illustrated talk on his photographic career, covering early manual cameras
to working with the latest digital systems and his trips to locate basking
sharks and blue sharks.
Charles is a photojournalist author and skipper working
with RIB Logan out of Falmouth and writes for SCUBA Magazine among
others.
Chris Walter and has been taking black
and white photographs of Mountains and Forests and in the Ocean and on
Reefs for over twenty five years. He is based in London and Tuscany but
takes photographs all over the world. Both above and below the water Chris
is intrigued by creating images of natural scenes with a certain abstract
quality. He enjoys having to move his eye across an image and work out what
he is seeing rather than having it led straight to the punch-line. Chris
makes his own cameras for both landscape and for underwater. These are
either made of wood or aluminium and all utilise the Schneider 47 mm XL
lens with a variety of 6x12 and 6x9 backs. To see more of Chris's images
please visit www.chriswalter-photography.co.uk/
Congratulations to Trevor Rees who was
the winner of this year's Underwater Excellence Competition. Trevor's
portfolio included a shoal of perch by a wooden jetty taken at Stockholm
archipelago, Sweden using a Nikon D90 with a Tokina 10-17mm zoom lens
(left); an Alabaster/White lined Dirona nudibranch taken in
British Columbia, in Browning pass, Vancouver, Canada with the same
camera/lens combination; and an Angler fish taken in the Lofoten Islands,
Norway with a D50 with a Nikkor 18-55mm lens.
Trevor wins a cheque for £250 courtesy of DiveQuest and an individual glass trophy.
A total of 35 portfolios were submitted and the best 12
were pre-selected for projection by a panel of 3 judges and judging at the
September BSoUP Meeting by the audience present.
BSoUP Members only may view all of the
submitted entries in the Competition Slideshow Archive but you will be asked to
login if you haven't already done so this session.
If you were not one of the top six and would like to know
how you scored, please contact Brian Pitkin.
Next month's competition is the Best of British Portfolio
Competition, sponsored by Sport Diver. The is open to BSoUP Members
only. The Competition is now open. Please read the
revisedRules. The deadline is Sunday 7th October.
Note: landscape format images must be
1400 pixels wide and portrait images must be 1050 high. Any smaller and
images will look less sharp when projected.
EMUP - October Meeting
Wednesday 3rd October 2012
Nauticam workshop with Alex
Tattersall
Dr Alex Tattersall of http://www.uwvisions.com/ one of the
leading underwater photographers in the UK and the sole distributor of
Nauticam housings has kindly agreed to come to Stoney Cove to give hands on
and practical help with all your camera needs and he will get wet
too.!!
When.!!!. Well that's the good bit the day will coincide
with Stoney's late night opening of WEDNESDAY 3rd October 2012. From a
hands on approach Alex will be able to answer your questions both compact
and DSLR also give configuration advise on the many set ups we have.
East Midlands Underwater Photographers
Subject times and programme:
1. Enter the water no later than 19.00hrs and cap the
dive to 45 minutes. By all means enter sooner, plus Stoney will be open all
day, so why not make a day of it.
2. Exit the water, de-kit clean up and sort camera
equipment and remove your memory cards safely as we will need these to look
at our images in Nemo's. Bring your Lap tops and lap tops will be on hand
for viewing images.
3. Head into Nemo's function room for 20.30/21.00 try to
be prompt. We plan on making the critique side of the evening for the
second half of EMUP downstairs at Nemo's.
The next BSoUP meeting takes place on
Wednesday, 19 September 2012 at 7.30 for 8.00 p.m. atour usual venue the
Holland
Club, Imperial College, South Kensington, London, SW7 5BD. New
and prospective new members will be welcomed from 7.30 p.m. See Welcome.
Keith Lyall: Wide Angle techniques
Wide angle photography can provide dramatic images of the
underwater world, however capturing effective wide angle images is often
seen as complex and many underwater photographers favour macro instead.
Keith will talk about wide angle techniques and will aim to simplify
wide angle photography by introducing a simple step by step reproducible
approach. The talk will include camera settings, lighting options (both
natural and artificial), composition, use of models and other
considerations resulting in the creation of effective wide angle
images.
Keith has been diving since 2000 and taking a camera
underwater since those early days, but even prior to learning to dive Keith
was a keen land photographer with underwater photography becoming a natural
extension of this interest. His first experience of underwater photography
was with a disposable camera in a plastic housing but he has since
progressed to a Nikon D300 in a Subal housing! He has numerous awards to
his credit in competitions run by BSoUP, Photosub and the British
Underwater Image Festival and regularly teaches underwater photography
courses.
Competition: Underwater Excellence - A Portfolio
of 3 images
The Competition is now closed. A total of 35 entries (105
images) have been received. BSoUP Members only may now view a slideshow of
the 12 pre-selected portfolios at Competition
Slideshow. You will be asked to login if you have not already done so
this session.
2020VISION is the most ambitious nature photography
project ever staged in the UK. Using the power of visual imagery, it aims
to enthuse the public at large about the value of restoring our most
important habitats - not just for healthy wildlife, but for the well-being
of us all. In November last year Linda told us about the first phase of her
work on this amazing project. This month she will bring us up to date
on what she has done since and how the project has come to fruition
Linda Pitkin is the author of four books and has over a
thousand published images to her credit. She is one of only two underwater
photographers on the project (the other is Alex Mustard). She will talk
about her assignments and show many of the images she has taken this year.
The project has pushed those involved to new challenges. Linda has had a
mixture of successes and failures, battling with near impossible missions
and British weather!
New sponsors for BSoUP/DIVER Print
Competition
Deadline: 19th September 2012
BSoUP are delighted to announce that Ocean Leisure
Cameras have generously agreed to sponsor this year's
BSoUP/DIVER Print Competition again by donating a £250
voucher to the winner of the Advanced British and Irish Print category.
BSoUP are also delighted to announce that
the winning Advanced Overseas Print will receive the Mikes Dive Store
Overseas Print Trophy and a £250 voucher to spend at Mikes Dive
Store.
Print entries are invited from all
underwater photographers in BSoUP's annual competition. The best 80 entries
will be displayed at the DIVE Show held at the NEC Birmingham over the
weekend of 27th - 28th October, 2012 and the public invited to vote for
their favourites.
The Los Angeles Underwater Photo Society (LAUPS) is
calling for entries for their 2012 International Photo and Video
Competition. Now in its fiftieth year, it has 7 categories for amateur
photographers: Macro, Wide Angle, Behavior, Cold Water, Compact Macro,
Compact Wide Angle and Compact Cold Water. In addition, there are two
categories for amateur videographers: Video Raw Footage and Video Edited
Footage.
Full details of the contest are available on the LAUPS
website.
Festival Mondial de l'image
Sous-Marine
Deadline: 15th September, 2012
The Festival Mondial de l'image Sous-Marine,
known colloquially as the Antibes festival (despite the fact that it is now
held in Marseille) has announced a final call for registration of entries
for the 2012 festival. All entrants must have been registered by 15
September to be considered. The event will be held this year from 1 to 4
November at the Congres Center, Chanot Park, Marseille, France.
Full entry and registration details are available on the
contest's website.
Monday 17th - Saturday 22nd September 2012, 10am
- 5pm
Established in 2009 these Awards celebrate the talents of
both amateur and professional photographers, while simultaneously
highlighting the great wealth and diversity of British natural history.
The competition has captured the imagination of
photographers from all over the UK, who collectively, have created an
incredible series of images which showcase British wildlife at its
best.
The fifth edition of the North Sea Film Festival, the
only underwater film festival in the Netherlands, will
take place November 10th and 11th. The venue is theatreLantarenVenster in
Rotterdam, a location surrounded by water. This state of the art cinema
with comfortable chairs, restaurant, well stocked bar and huge foyer will
guarantee a great festival ambiance.
The festival organisers hope to welcome many filmmakers
to interact with the audience through Q&A sessions after the screening
of their movies.
Welsh inland diving site, the National Diving & Activity Center
(NDAC) at Chepstow, UK is hosting a Nauticam demonstration weekend over 22
and 23 September, 2012.
Nauticam UK / Underwater Visions will be in attendance
along with a selection of Nauticam's DSLR, EVIL and compact camera
housings.
The NDAC is located close to the M4 and M5 interchange,
on the Welsh side of the old Severn bridge (see map).
Nikon D600 announced
Nikon has officially announced the D600 FX format SLR.
The lightweight and compact camera has a 24.3 megapixel full-frame CMOS
sensor with a native ISO range of 100 to 6400 combined with Nikon's EXPEED
3 processor. It also features Nikon's Scene Recognition System for AF,
combined with a 39 point MultiCAM 4800FX AF module and has 100% overage
through the viewfinder. Video functions include 1080p video at 24p, 25 or
30, 720p at 60, 50 and 30 and the video image can be displayed on the LCD
screen while simultaneously shown on another monitor through the HDMI, with
or without shooting data. In addition, uncompressed video can be recorded
through the camera's HDMI connection.
The Nikon D600 will be available on September 18, 2012
for the suggested retail price (SRP) of $2,099.95.
The British Wildlife Photography Awards are proud to
announce the winners for 2012. The competition has captured the imagination
of thousands of photographers, who collectively have created a
stunning and innovative series of images which showcase British wildlife at
its best.
With twelve separate categories covering everything from
marine life and animal behaviour to creepy crawlies and urban wildlife; the
awards beautifully reveal the unseen splendour and surprising diversity of
Britains wildlife.
The winning image was captured on a remote location
off the North coast of Scotland. BSoUP Member Dr
Matt Doggett who took the winning image said It was an incredible
experience being in the water surrounded by these high speed divers. Judge
Greg Armfield from WWF described the photographï "A striking image that
manages to capture in parallel the raw power and grace of the diving
gannets. A beautiful and evocative shot."
Outdoor Photography - 2020VISION
Portfolio
The Autumn issue of Outdoor Photography magazine features
a portfolio of 2020VISION Images which include BSoUP
Member Alex Mustard's stunning image of a Puffin swimming underwater and BSoUP
Member Linda Pitkin's equally stunning image of Charr at
Ennerdale.
Linda will be giving a presentation on her 2020VISION
missions to photograph freshwater life in the UK (part 2) at the next
BSoUP meeting on Wednesday, September 19th 2012 at our
usual venue The Holland Club, Imperial College, South Kensington, London.
The meeting starts at 7.30 for 8.00 p.m.
Surrey's premier lifestyle magazine "Essence of Surrey"
featured a cover shot of a Grey Seal in the Farne Islands by
BSoUP Member Nick Blake. In addition, a
double page feature inside focussed on his Taxi & Diver image as well
as a Whaleshark image taken in Djibouti.
The feature can be viewed http://content.yudu.com. You will need Adobe Flash
Player 11 to to turn the pages
Diving primarily around the UK, it is only in more recent
years that Nick's long standing interest in photography has extended into
the water. Having initially bought an Olympus underwater compact camera in
2004 and subsequently a Nikon D300 DSLR, one to one tuition with renowned
Underwater Photographer Martin Edge has proved instrumental in Nick's
development. Now fuelled by dive trips to more tropical climes as well as
continued UK diving as a member of Woking based BSAC branch Surrey
Aquanauts, you can see a selection of Nick's more recent underwater
photographs together with images of personal interest above the water in
his portfolio at www.nickblakephotography.co.uk/
'Project Shark in the Maldives in
2013
Diving tour operator blue o two are pleased to announce
that resident marine biologist, Nikki Weeden, will be taking their 'Project
Shark itinerary to the Maldives in January 2013.
Nikki, who joined the blue o two team in 2011, studied
marine biology at Plymouth University and wrote her undergraduate thesis on
shark populations in the Bahamas. Her work contributed to papers validating
the use of baited remote underwater video surveys for assessing the
diversity, distribution and abundance of sharks in the Bahamas. Nikki will
now be able to go back to roots by hosting the 'Project Shark itinerary
from the Red Sea in the new location of the Maldives onboard the luxurious
M/V Carpe Diem.
The current 'Project Shark itineraries offered onboard
blue o twos luxury liveaboard fleet in the Red Sea were established in 2007
when Dr. Elke Bojanowski, founder of the Red Sea Sharks trust, joined the
blue o two team. Elke began her Longimanus Project in October 2004 and
since this date she has been actively collecting underwater photographs and
video-clips of Red Sea sharks for cataloguing, review and
analysis. Elke was able to continue her research by offering divers
the opportunity to learn about sharks in the Red Sea, collect and analyse
data, and learn about globally endangered marine species. Research will be
continued by Nikki with the extension of 'Project Shark to the Maldives
early next year contributing to existing Maldivian trust research
projects.
Company Director Jason Strickland commented We are
thrilled to be able to extend the good work of Project Shark to the
Maldives, giving customers the opportunity to experience the valuable work
of this itinerary in a new and beautiful location.
Pacific North West Diver. Cover image: Martin
Heyn
Pacific North West Diver - Latest
Issue
The latest issue of the FREE Pacific North West Diver is
now available to download.
This months photographers include Seattle photographer
and videographer Martin & Julie Hyne, BC videographer Peter Mieras,
Washington videographer Ryan Amberfield, and Oregon photographers and
underwater photo instructors Jack & Sue Drafahl. Nautilus Swell is this
months featured operator.
Other articles of interest include: Up-Coming October 13
Underwater Photo Walk in Edmonds, Carbon Monoxide in Air Fill Concerns,
Optical Ocean Sales Information, ReefNet Fiber Optic Snoot Review, Neptunic
Shark Suit Archive Article.
Nigel is a freelance photo journalist specialising in
underwater and scuba diving, producing editorial and pictorial articles
covering all aspects of diving from trip reports, technical equipment
reviews, course reviews and safety features for Diver Magazine UK. Examples
can be found in the Commercial
section of this site.
Nigel lives with his wife Karen and two Birman cats in
the beautiful county of West Berkshire in rural southern England.
In 2008 he was awarded the title of UK and Ireland
Underwater photographer of the year.
Nigel is an Associate of the Royal Photographic Society
and BSoUP.
The Meeting (start time 2000hrs) will be at
our normal venue - The Casson Centre, Rodway Road, Patchway, BS34 5DQ
(map)
The monthly competition theme is 'Natural
Light'.
The main event will be a video-based
presentation by Chris Lewis who will show footage from trips to Bali and
the Sardine Run. He will also discuss the video potential for users of
still cameras, many of which now have excellent video capability.
The next meeting of the East Midlands Underwater
Photographers will be on Tuesday September 4th August 2012 at the usual
venue - downstairs in Nemo's Bar, at Stoney Cove at 7:30 sharp. All pub facilities will
be open so refreshments will be on hand.
Plymouth Splash-in review
Tuesday September 4th 2012
Competition: First Dive
A Minute Beneath UK Waves by Jo
Horrocks
BSoUP Member Jo
Horrocks has posted a short video entitled 'A Minute Beneath UK
Waves' on YouTube.
The video is a fast paced glimpse at the variety of
marine life that can be found around the UK coast, from barnacles to
basking sharks.
BSoUP are delighted to announce that Cameras
Underwater have generously agreed to sponsor this year's
BSoUP/DIVER Print Competition again by donating a voucher
for the winner of the Overseas category
(non-advanced).
Print entries are invited from all underwater
photographers in BSoUP's annual competition. The best 80 entries will be
displayed at the DIVE Show held at the NEC Birmingham over the weekend of
27th - 28th October, 2012 and the public invited to vote for their
favourites.