Underwater sequence

F

filmcruz

Member
Hello..
I will filmimg some feature film next month include several underwater sequence but have never experince underwater shoot..what i have to consider such as equipment , photography and/or procedual challenge of shooting underwater?? any issue related to the underwater shoot????

plz help me out ???
 
Re: Underwater sequence

i have the epic pro underwater housing and it does work as far as no water gets into the housing. it is a very simple unit as far as there are no controls for the camera on the outside. you just have to turn it on before you close the back. you do not have to hit record before you put it into the housing. the reason is all you have to do is push the back ruber piece and it will start to rec.
another problem that i had with the housing was the fact that it wanted to float. i was told that all you need to do was add some wights to it. the camera got hot becouse the housing is clear so i only filmed for 20min. or so.
for me the housing was worth the price which was a little under $400 dollors.

http://www.epiccam.com/

hope this helped ;D
 
Re: Underwater sequence

Mr Beaker , I weighed mine down with sand bags. I shoot in the ocean so I just bring 2 nylon reinforced bags and use a bucket to measure the amount of sand out into each bag. Also use rope ties to lower the bags enuf to see LCD. Less schlepping! How are you weighing them down!
 
Re: Underwater sequence

i have an epic housing also, and am not very impressed with it. i used it in indonesia to shoot some surfing and had the handles rip on me the first day.i was diving under a wave holding on to the straps and as i went under the straps ripped along with the epic leash. i was so pissed off , i had to swim about a 1/4 mile in 2 1/2 feet of water over razor sharp coral to retrive the camera. then a few days later it took on some water,not enough to hurt the camera but enough to scare the crap out of me. the design also makes it some what difficult to get steady shots. i have shot with pro housings many times and this one is definetly not a "pro" housing. it might be ok for a pool or shower but i would not reccomend it for shooting surfing. but what can you expect for $375 ,when most housing are anywhere from $1200 to $2000
 
Re: Underwater sequence

Are you filming in a pool or in the ocean? If it's a pool there is little to concern yourself with except that the housing doesn't leak (and the weighting as earlier posts suggest). Make sure the O-rings are properly lubricated and no hairs, dirt, etc. are on them before you seal the housing.

if you're filming in the ocean, this is doubly important. And there are a host of other concerns. Primarily with water conditions. I suggest you get your hands on an underwater photo book. The same basic principles apply for stills as video. This will cover the basics of how color is altered with depth, the apparent magnification of objects, ways to reduce back scatter (the microscopic stuff in the water), etc. Basically, try to shoot as shallow as you can to retain color, get as close to your subject as you can to reduce the amount of stuff in the water between your camera and subject. If you are using lights put them at a 45 degree (or greater) angle so that you are lighting just the subject and not the stuff in the water.

Finally, if you're in the ocean don't kid yourself about your swimming skills. Holding a camera can be awkward, especially if you're focused on results and trying to get something that's just that little bit out of reach ... currents, etc can be brutal and bad things can happen real quick. Good luck. When it works it's very cool.
 
Re: Underwater sequence

I was considering the EpicCam.
But after seeing some of these posts I am not sure.

I was wondering, while duck-diving under the white wash, did your cameras get messed up from the impact of the wave? Or did the case and shocks inside the housing minimize the turbulence in extreme conditions?

Thanks
 
Re: Underwater sequence

wave rider , no camera damage from impacts but that would be my guess as to when the housing leaked. this is not the housing to shoot surfing with. as far as sharks go , i was in the mentawais and did see some black tip reef sharks in about the 3 to 6 foot range but they want nothing to do with you . sea snakes, the one time i saw sea snakes was at lances left , it was dark out and i was on the back of the boat shinning a spot light out in the water and saw a quit a few. i will try and post some pics soon
 
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