Underwater Photography Archives - Underwater Journal

Picture of a small moray eel surrounded by backscatter.

Battling Backscatter: Our Underwater Nemesis

April 3, 2026 Walt Stearns Diving, Imaging Techniques, Latest, Photography

The Problem and the Acceptance As underwater photographers, we constantly battle backscatter—that frustrating phenomenon where light from our strobes or[…]

Yellowfin Flasher Wrasse (Paracheilinus flavianalis) captured with the aid of Nauticam's MFO-1 more specifically known as a Mid-range Focus Optimizer

Nauticam’s MFO-1: Game-Changer for Macro?

December 19, 2025 Walt Stearns Photo Equipment, Photography

One of the biggest struggles in my macro photography has been getting a sharp, in-focus image of hyperactive subjects, like[…]

Close Focus Wide Angle (CWFA) picture of a hawksbill sea turtle.

Captivating Marine Life Portraits with CFWA

September 10, 2025 Walt Stearns Imaging Techniques, Latest, Photography

In my last column, “The Art of Captivating Macro Portraits,” I touched on some of my techniques to capture macro[…]

A pair Indo Pacific coral hermits peering out from their holes in a coral head.

The Art of Captivating Macro Portraits

July 11, 2025 Walt Stearns Imaging Techniques, Latest, Photography

There is more to Captivating Macro Portraits than just capturing a macro size subject. The real art behind a captivating[…]

Positive Side of Negative Space

April 14, 2025 Walt Stearns Diving, Imaging Techniques, Photography

Thumbing through a favorite dive magazine, you can’t help but notice that a good number of the feature stories open[…]

Tips for Photographing Mandarinfish

December 14, 2024 Walt Stearns Imaging Techniques, Photography

Having the best of the best underwater camera setup money can buy is not the key to getting great mandarinfish[…]

Sharpear enope squid (Ancistrocheirus lesueurii) is a deep-water species found in the mesopelagic depths (200–1000 m down) throughout the oceans tropical and subtropical regions. The only species in the genus Ancistrocheirus and family Ancistrocheiridae, enopes grow to a moderate size with a mantle length of 25 cm.

Blackwater Photography

September 30, 2024 Walt Stearns Diving, Imaging Techniques, Photography

Blackwater photography has become one of the hottest forms of underwater macro photography due to rich and highly varied subject[…]

When implemented properly, the technique of using a camera’s slow shutter speed paired with its Rear Curtain Sync mode can create a glorious ruse, creating the illusion that we are seeing a state of motion in a still image.

Using Rear Curtain Sync

August 2, 2024 Walt Stearns Diving, Imaging Techniques, Latest, Photography

When implemented properly, the technique of using a camera’s slow shutter speed paired with its Rear Curtain Sync mode can[…]

- Diver with Green Moray – When you come across a great moment like this scenario of a diver coming up on very large green moray, clear communication is imperative. Get your signals crossed and it could result in a complete disconnect between your buddy and the subject, leaving your buddy looking like a deer in the headlights.

How to Shoot Your Dive Buddy

June 14, 2024 Walt Stearns Diving, Imaging Techniques, Latest, Photography

You may not be a professional underwater photographer, and your dive buddy is certainly not a professional model. As the[…]

How to combine the right balance between that amount of ambient present with the amount of fill lighting from your underwater flash system for more dynamic imagery.

Balancing Flash With Ambient Light

April 30, 2024 Walt Stearns Diving, Imaging Techniques, Photography

Finding the right balance between flash fill photography with ambient lighting from the sun to achieve more dynamic Imagery.