A Guide to Freshwater Underwater Photography

Home » Photography Tutorials » Underwater » A Guide to Freshwater Underwater Photography

Sharks, coral reefs, and turtles – these subjects are all dramatic, colorful, and exciting to photograph. Yet, as an underwater photographer, they are only a small part of the watery realm we love to spend our time in – freshwater underwater photography can be just as thrilling.

These freshwater habitats are the often-undervalued environments that I find myself filming in more than anywhere else. In the area where I had been living until recently, this included swamps, rivers, canyons, and lakes.

In this article, we’ll look at some top tips for freshwater underwater photography, with helpful information on setting up for standout images and what to expect from these environments.

A personal journey into freshwater underwater photography

What motivated me to embark on my own underwater photography quest was a great white shark diving trip, as well as a trip to the Socorro Islands in Mexico.

However, when I got my first camera setup, I started shooting a lot in environments that were close to home and always available without having to get on a plane.

The first place that drew my attention was a nearby lake that had a swampy margin filled with aquatic plants. This environment is where I took my first photo that garnered interest from National Geographic and was published in the April 2013 issue.

At the time, I was living in Campbell River on Vancouver Island, BC, Canada, which is known as the Salmon Capital of the World. Naturally, I was intrigued to start filming these iconic fish in the local rivers. This began what would become my niche for the next ten years.

What to expect from freshwater underwater photography

Photographing in freshwater environments presents its own unique set of challenges, with the first being the actual diving conditions.

As no two places are the same, precautions must be taken regarding the type of water.

Safety first

Slow-moving water, although tranquil to look at, has a surprising amount of force once you put your body in the flow. Being aware of this and predicting where it will take you in advance not only helps you get into position to take a great photo, but it might also help keep you alive.

In a river, for example, there are many natural hazards that can surprise the unaware diver, from rapids, waterfalls, and constrictions, to branches, abandoned fishing gear, and more.

Getting comfortable underwater

I mostly snorkel and freedive in rivers but occasionally use scuba gear. Before you venture into a river environment with a camera, I recommend getting comfortable with all types of gear in this unique water world.

If you have not spent any time in moving water like this, I highly recommend getting in touch with a white-water kayaker or rafting guide to give you some pointers on what to look out for.

Once you understand how water moves in a river, you can use it to your advantage. However, not learning to respect it can be very dangerous and is not to be taken lightly.

Composing underwater freshwater images

Once you have become comfortable with the conditions, the real challenge begins with your camera.
Holding still and framing up a nice scene is much harder when you have a lot of force acting on your body. Sometimes, literally going with the flow enables you to be more relaxed.

However, once you learn to read the river, you will find many ways to tuck into little pockets of slower-moving water. This is often where fish and other critters hang out anyway, so it’s a good thing.

One of the greatest joys for underwater photographers shooting in a nice, clear, moving river is the lack of particles being stirred up. If you do manage to kick up a plume of sediment, it washes away quickly.

Most times when I go to a river, I pick a spot I can get to and stay in that general area. Floating a long way down a river just means you need a way to get back to your starting point, and if something occurs along the way, you may not have the ability to get out of the river.

Once, this happened to me, and I crawled in my wetsuit along the only little path I could find that led in the general direction I needed to go. This trail got lower and tighter until suddenly I found myself in a bear den with only one way in and out. Thankfully, the resident was not home at the time.

Top tips for freshwater underwater photography

Now that you are ready to jump in, here are top tips to help you get the most out of your freshwater underwater photography adventure.

1. Patience is a virtue

Just like in most underwater photography, being patient counts.

I recommend finding a scene that looks promising, laying in wait facing upstream, and observing.

2. Utilize natural ambient light

One of the most striking aspects I find in shallow water photography like this is the dramatic ambient light. I rarely use strobes, as I find they are more of a hindrance than a help.

With natural vegetation cover along the banks of rivers or lakes, it is easy to find areas of high contrast with stunning light rays penetrating through the trees and into the water.

Shooting in a shaded area out into a brightly lit area with the subject highlighted is relatively easy and makes for striking photos.

3. Try split shots

Another great aspect of shallow freshwater diving is the ability to work on your over/under shots.

Laying still on the riverbed in shallow water gives you a nice, strong stance to frame up that perfect split. Also, the exposure variance is not as great between above and below the water.

4. Camera settings

One surprising aspect to me, when I started shooting in very shallow waterways, was the need to use very high power settings if you are going to be using strobes.

Because of the lack of many meters of water above you, the natural light is very strong, so the camera settings are often not what you would encounter in typical deeper diving.

I am commonly shooting towards the sun at 1/320th shutter speed and a small aperture. Fast-moving subjects, such as salmon, for example, need a fast shutter speed.

The high ambient light will also overpower lower strobe settings. I find I need to shoot almost at full power in certain spots.

However, because of this, freshwater locations are also a great place to practice rear shutter sync photos. With the moving water and fast-swimming fish, you don’t need to slow the shutter speed down much to achieve this effect.

I am often mesmerized by the movement of water itself and take a lot of photos with no aquatic life in them – just rocks, water, and light. Again, experimenting with slow shutter speeds can lead to awesome photos.

The challenges with still water in freshwater locations

Not all freshwater sites feature moving water. Swamps and ponds are amazing places to photograph, but they present a few more challenges for getting good photos.

The lack of moving water in these spots tends to let detritus accumulate on everything. One swim through a spot, and it is stirred up for the remainder of your dive. You need to move slowly and deliberately.

Mastering fin sculling, both forward and backward, helps you move with more grace and less disturbance.

The aquatic vegetation is often quite delicate in these areas, so I like to avoid pushing through it as much as possible and instead look for natural pathways or skirt along the edges.

In conclusion

The amount of aquatic life in ponds can be surprising, and it is a place very few people ever put their heads under. The ability to get some truly astonishing photos in these places is amazing.

The natural light filtering through aquatic vegetation and the surrounding trees offers beautiful compositions, and I find the use of strobes takes away a little of the magic of these places.

The most common comment I get from people viewing my photos is that they had no idea that world existed.

I have spent a decade bringing to light some of these less charismatic parts of the watershed. All aspects of our waterways are important, and I highly recommend getting in and taking a look. You might surprise yourself.

You might also like the fact that you didn’t have to put up with the stress of carrying all your heavy camera gear onto a plane to go to a tropical destination!

A Guide to Freshwater Underwater Photography

A personal journey into freshwater underwater photography