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Taking the plunge<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTruthfully, working underwater and working topside are completely different,\u201d Mads explains. \u201cPeople think they can just chuck a camera in a housing and go \u2013 but there\u2019s much more to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWater is a completely different medium to air, so it changes the way light works. One thing you have to think about is how colour changes: different wavelengths of light are absorbed quicker. First you\u2019ll lose red, then yellow, then green, and you\u2019ll be left with blue. Adjust your white balance \u2013 sometimes you need filters and underwater lights. And the deeper you go, the more you have to think about these factors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe second thing to consider is how you protect your camera. Put it in a housing, but that\u2019s a lot of prep work. Once your camera is inside, it\u2019s quite buoyant in the water, so be prepared for how it will handle in different conditions. And you can\u2019t switch lenses mid-dive, so you have to plan much more than on land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfter that, think about yourself,\u201d Mads adds. \u201cDepending on the subject, a bit of training or practice will be required. For example, are you going to scuba or free dive? Are you going into waters that require a thick, buoyant wetsuit? Will there be currents? It really is a jump.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For any wildlife photographer, there\u2019s no assurance you\u2019ll come away with the photos you wanted. When working in the locations Mads does, you need to make peace with this fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf you want guaranteed photos, go to a zoo or aquarium,\u201d Mads states. \u201cYou can do all the planning and research in the world, travel thousands of kilometres and take a boat out with all this equipment to photograph some wildlife \u2013 and often it won\u2019t show up. It\u2019s happened to me more times than I can count.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople find it particularly frustrating with underwater photography because preparing the camera requires more work,\u201d she notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor example, if I talk through the practicalities of setting up the camera housing: first you have to make sure the dome is clean on the inside and out, with no dust, scratches or hairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThen you check the O ring \u2013 the seal that keeps the water out \u2013 you have to make sure there\u2019s no sand or dust in there. You\u2019ll often vacuum seal the housing as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNext, you set up your own dive gear, then get out to the location \u2013 driving out to the ocean, taking a boat or wading out into the sea. And after all of that, you might be sat underwater and the wildlife doesn\u2019t show up; or when the wildlife is there, it\u2019s not doing what you want it to do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When it\u2019s your job to play a game of chance, stacking the odds in your favour is essential. In Mads\u2019s experience, that means being patient \u2013 and relentless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe best thing money can buy is time,\u201d she states. \u201cAnd for a lot of it, you\u2019ll be sat in the same spot underwater, waiting for something to swim out in front of you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSometimes, people try and force wildlife into the behaviour they want to see, which is so morally wrong. Patience is key to wildlife photography. You have to be aware that you might not get the photo \u2013 and that you\u2019re going to need to wait.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n With so much time and money invested into securing a specific image, when the long-awaited moment finally happens, Mads describes a complex flurry of emotions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI get this feeling of panic. We\u2019re destroying the world at such a rate that some of these things are becoming increasingly rare to see. There\u2019s a worry this might be the last or the only time I see it, and the only chance I have to photograph it,\u201d she asserts. \u201cBut then, I also think there will always be another chance to see something equally unique and magical.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n While Mads understands what it\u2019s like to suffer for a story, she implores that her fellow wildlife photographers never trample nature in the pursuit of an image.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSometimes people put so much emphasis on getting the photo that they stop prioritising the respect for wildlife. That\u2019s when it becomes a dangerous pursuit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the documentary world, Mads has found that, if the vital photo isn\u2019t going to happen, it\u2019s time to adapt and find a new narrative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf there\u2019s anything I\u2019ve learnt on my journey as a wildlife and conservation photographer \u2013 especially in the last year, where I\u2019ve been a storyteller in residence at Oceanographic<\/em> magazine \u2013 it\u2019s to change my expectations,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPreviously, I\u2019ve spent long periods in places, which has afforded me the opportunity to get exactly what I want. But recently I\u2019ve had much shorter windows to get the photo, and many times I haven\u2019t been able to \u2013 so I\u2019ve had to rework the story.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unlike wildlife photography on land \u2013 where long focal lengths reign supreme \u2013 there\u2019s little call for telephoto lenses under the sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen working underwater, the number one thing is to get close,\u201d Mads remarks. \u201cThe more water you have between your subject and your lens, the more blue in your photo \u2013 and that makes your image less detailed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGenerally, when I\u2019m working with marine megafauna\u00a0\u2013 which I photograph the most \u2013 my go-to lens is a wide-angle zoom<\/a> with a relatively low f-stop, usually F2.8.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis means I can get very close to the animal and get that clear, detailed photo with lots of colour and vibrancy, while still getting the entire body of the animal in the image. I like playing around with that a bit more, so will often zoom in and have more detailed close-ups. I also love using a 50mm lens<\/a> underwater.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The only limiting factor for cameras is finding a housing that fits your preferred body, which means making a choice depending on the aspect of your images you want to prioritise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was a FUJIFILM GFX Challenge Grant<\/a> winner a few years ago,\u201d Mads recalls. \u201cAfter that, I got to use the FUJIFILM GFX100S<\/a>. The detail is just amazing. It\u2019s 102 megapixels, so they are some of the most insane underwater photos I\u2019ve ever made.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For someone who has dedicated her life to researching and protecting the natural world, Mads considers visual storytelling one of the most important frontiers for getting the public behind conservation efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou protect what you love, but you love what you know,\u201d she states. \u201cThere\u2019s a huge communication issue facing our oceans. Lots of people don\u2019t know how beautiful they are or why they should protect them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere\u2019s also a lack of understanding about how important the ocean is to supporting human life \u2013 and about the problems facing it. We are visual creatures that live in a world of social media \u2013 photos and videos. If there\u2019s any way I can get people to care and act, that\u2019s my mission as a photographer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For image makers looking to join Mads in using their photography to preserve the ocean, she has this to say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf you want to start in underwater photography, then before even stepping foot in the ocean: research. Research the wildlife and how your camera works. Practise your photography on land and learn how to be a good diver first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOnce you\u2019ve done everything you can on land to prepare, and you go into that water, be prepared to fail \u2013 that\u2019s part of the game. Learn to fail, and to enjoy failing and practising and having fun. That\u2019s inherently what photography is about.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Marine biologist and photographer Mads St Clair describes how the challenges of image making change beneath the waves \u201cMy photography journey started underwater,\u201d begins Mads St Clair, a marine biologist and conservation photographer. \u201cI learnt everything there, then went back and relearnt photography topside afterwards.\u201d Working as a coral reef scientist, Mads\u2019s research trips gave […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":273,"featured_media":278234,"template":"","category":[2084,1006,1202,3113,1937,10169,1055,3701,320,565],"post_tag":[],"b2b-solutions":[],"class_list":["post-278605","story","type-story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-be-inspired","category-cameras","category-category","category-g-mount","category-gfx-series","category-gfx100s","category-lenses","category-gfx-series-mirrorless","category-products","category-stories"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-04 15:58:56","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/en-ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story\/278605","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/en-ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/en-ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/en-ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/273"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/en-ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/278234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/en-ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=278605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/en-ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/category?post=278605"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/en-ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_tag?post=278605"},{"taxonomy":"b2b-solutions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/en-ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/b2b-solutions?post=278605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Mads-St-Clair_02-768x1024.jpg?width=768&height=1024\")
Sunk cost<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Remembering what matters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The best underwater photography equipment<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The message<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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