Marine biologist and photographer Mads St Clair describes how the challenges of image making change beneath the waves
“My photography journey started underwater,” begins Mads St Clair, a marine biologist and conservation photographer. “I learnt everything there, then went back and relearnt photography topside afterwards.”
Working as a coral reef scientist, Mads’s research trips gave her a first-hand view of the damage being done to marine ecosystems. She wanted to better document what she saw, and so focused on learning to tell those stories by training as an underwater camera operator and photographer.
Taking the plunge
“Truthfully, working underwater and working topside are completely different,” Mads explains. “People think they can just chuck a camera in a housing and go – but there’s much more to it.
“Water 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’ll lose red, then yellow, then green, and you’ll be left with blue. Adjust your white balance – sometimes you need filters and underwater lights. And the deeper you go, the more you have to think about these factors.
“The second thing to consider is how you protect your camera. Put it in a housing, but that’s a lot of prep work. Once your camera is inside, it’s quite buoyant in the water, so be prepared for how it will handle in different conditions. And you can’t switch lenses mid-dive, so you have to plan much more than on land.
“After that, think about yourself,” Mads adds. “Depending 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.”
Sunk cost
For any wildlife photographer, there’s no assurance you’ll come away with the photos you wanted. When working in the locations Mads does, you need to make peace with this fact.
“If you want guaranteed photos, go to a zoo or aquarium,” Mads states. “You 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 – and often it won’t show up. It’s happened to me more times than I can count.
“People find it particularly frustrating with underwater photography because preparing the camera requires more work,” she notes.
“For 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.
“Then you check the O ring – the seal that keeps the water out – you have to make sure there’s no sand or dust in there. You’ll often vacuum seal the housing as well.
“Next, you set up your own dive gear, then get out to the location – 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’t show up; or when the wildlife is there, it’s not doing what you want it to do.”
When it’s your job to play a game of chance, stacking the odds in your favour is essential. In Mads’s experience, that means being patient – and relentless.
“The best thing money can buy is time,” she states. “And for a lot of it, you’ll be sat in the same spot underwater, waiting for something to swim out in front of you.
“Sometimes, 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 – and that you’re going to need to wait.”
Remembering what matters
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.
“I get this feeling of panic. We’re destroying the world at such a rate that some of these things are becoming increasingly rare to see. There’s a worry this might be the last or the only time I see it, and the only chance I have to photograph it,” she asserts. “But then, I also think there will always be another chance to see something equally unique and magical.”
While Mads understands what it’s like to suffer for a story, she implores that her fellow wildlife photographers never trample nature in the pursuit of an image.
“Sometimes people put so much emphasis on getting the photo that they stop prioritising the respect for wildlife. That’s when it becomes a dangerous pursuit.”
In the documentary world, Mads has found that, if the vital photo isn’t going to happen, it’s time to adapt and find a new narrative.
“If there’s anything I’ve learnt on my journey as a wildlife and conservation photographer – especially in the last year, where I’ve been a storyteller in residence at Oceanographic magazine – it’s to change my expectations,” she explains.
“Previously, I’ve spent long periods in places, which has afforded me the opportunity to get exactly what I want. But recently I’ve had much shorter windows to get the photo, and many times I haven’t been able to – so I’ve had to rework the story.”
The best underwater photography equipment
Unlike wildlife photography on land – where long focal lengths reign supreme – there’s little call for telephoto lenses under the sea.
“When working underwater, the number one thing is to get close,” Mads remarks. “The more water you have between your subject and your lens, the more blue in your photo – and that makes your image less detailed.
“Generally, when I’m working with marine megafauna – which I photograph the most – my go-to lens is a wide-angle zoom with a relatively low f-stop, usually F2.8.
“This 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 underwater.”
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.
“I was a FUJIFILM GFX Challenge Grant winner a few years ago,” Mads recalls. “After that, I got to use the FUJIFILM GFX100S. The detail is just amazing. It’s 102 megapixels, so they are some of the most insane underwater photos I’ve ever made.”
The message
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.
“You protect what you love, but you love what you know,” she states. “There’s a huge communication issue facing our oceans. Lots of people don’t know how beautiful they are or why they should protect them.
“There’s also a lack of understanding about how important the ocean is to supporting human life – and about the problems facing it. We are visual creatures that live in a world of social media – photos and videos. If there’s any way I can get people to care and act, that’s my mission as a photographer.”
For image makers looking to join Mads in using their photography to preserve the ocean, she has this to say.
“If 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.
“Once you’ve done everything you can on land to prepare, and you go into that water, be prepared to fail – that’s part of the game. Learn to fail, and to enjoy failing and practising and having fun. That’s inherently what photography is about.”
