You might have seen underwater photographers using strobes in the past, and wondered whether these lights made much of a difference. In short, the answer is a resounding "Yes!" In fact, one of the most important tools any photographer working under the surface can have is an auxiliary light source. Let's take a quick look at what makes strobe photography such a success.
How Strobes Help
When you look through your mask, what do you see? In great lighting conditions, on very shallow reef sites, you might, in fact, see quite a bit of color; but even then, the colors that you see have been muted by the millions of molecules of water suspended between you and the object of your interest. As light from the surface penetrates the water, much of it is absorbed; however, the red end of the spectrum is absorbed even faster than the blue end of the spectrum, meaning anything violet, red, or orange, is going to look quite faded. Yellows and greens look faded too, and blues lose their nuance. Iridescent colors, which are found across the spectrum, are even harder to appreciate. Even when you can see them, they're nothing like they would be in full light, when viewed through a screen of even the clearest water.
When you add auxiliary light to illuminate the scene with underwater strobes, you put the colors back into your pictures. Just as shining your dive light onto a subject allows you to see it in greater detail, so do strobes allow you to capture even the most nuanced colors.
Matching Strobes and Camera Setups With Scenes and Conditions
Today's cameras and strobes are universally much easier to operate than their predecessors were. You still need to know how to get the right kind of light for your picture, and while that involves plenty of practice and lots of "Thank goodness for digital photography" moments, it also involves some specific know-how.
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Macro subjects normally require low powered compact strobes. You don't want to overdo it or you'll end up with an unnatural effect.
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When capturing macro subjects, you want razor-sharp results. Part of your results come from using the right setting (macro 1:2 or macro 1:3) and part come from light positioning. Placing the strobe near the top of the camera illuminates fine details while reducing shadowing. Using a short, flexible strobe arm can help you get great macro results.
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Larger subjects, like divers, sharks, big fish, and turtles, call for larger, more powerful strobes that act almost like stage lights, completely illuminating the scene you're capturing.
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The larger the scene, the more light you are likely to need. Adding more than one strobe to your setup allows you to play with different lighting effects. Expert photographers often carry more than one type of strobe, so that they have the widest range of options possible.
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Shooting photos in colder conditions calls for more light than shooting in warmer conditions. This makes sense when you stop to consider that cold water is denser than warm water.
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Increasing strobe size is just one way to add light. Use a wider aperture if you can, or increase shutter speed if possible.
Start with basic equipment that you can afford, but look for equipment you can build on. As you expand your underwater photography skills by practicing as much as possible, you will find that adding strobes and strobe arms to cover any situation is simple. Don't forget to take an underwater photography class as soon as you can - you'll gain a wealth of valuable information you can put to work right away.