Underwater Photographs of Coral Reef

I went to tropical island of Mansinam on 6 October 2010. I and the Schepers used a rented boat to reach the southeastern part of the island where there are coral reefs. The weather was bright and we landed on white sandy beach of the island without any difficulties. The island is located near Manokwari city, the capital of West Papua province of the Republic of Indonesia. This tropical island is often visited by domestic and foreign tourists every week.. I have been there for several times but this visit was the most significant one. It was the first time when I tested my waterproof case.

Dicapac, the manufacturer of the digital camera waterproof case claims that their product can withstand or protect the camera up to 10 meters or 33 ft below the surface of the sea. The area where the camera lens is located is covered with UV coating polycarbonate lens. The manufacturer of the case claims that this lens will help underwater photographer create clearer pictures of the coral, fish and other marine animals while swimming or snorkeling. The WP-410 that I bought through an online camera store is suitable for my camera. This Korean company provides a long list of cameras manufactured by Canon, Panasonic, Fujifilm, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax, Casio, Samsung, Sanyo, Sony, Kodak, Konika Minolta, Kyocera, Ricoh that are compatible with this waterproof case. It's amazing to see such simple case can accommodate hundreds of conventional digital cameras that are usually used above water or on land for use underwater.

Modifying Conventional Digital Camera into an Underwater Digital Camera

I bought the waterproof case to house the digital camera Sony Cybershot DSC W80. It cannot be used directly underwater because its body is not watertight. I don't know whether Sony corporation now has produced digital underwater cameras or not. When I did some research on the internet, I found that Canon has. So, with this very affordable housing, I hope that I would be able to convert my conventional digital camera into an underwater digital camera. Several days ago I wrote an article entitled Underwater Photographs of Coral Reef in Mansinam island. Tonight I think that I should write a similar article about that for my hubpage. Actually, if you are now thinking of buying an underwater camera, you don't have to buy separate products such as the digital camera and the waterproof case. On the market right now, camera manufacturer such as Canon has produced high quality underwater camera that is perfect for taking pictures of fish, coral reef, sea star and various kinds of marine animals while you are snorkeling or scuba diving. Here is one of them that is made by Canon.

Testing the waterproof case for the first time

I was very curious to test this product which I bought from an online store specializing in selling digital cameras. Immediately after reaching the beach, I put off my T-shirt, took my snorkeling mask, and ran to the sea. I had already inserted the camera inside the waterproof case. When I had already been in the sea, I felt that there was sea current. It pushed my body while I was trying to take pictures of the coral reef, sea star, and the ornamental fish.I was quite anxious at the time because I have never been an underwater photographer and I might lose my digital camera if the case was not a waterproof one.

I could not float and stand still. I was facing difficulties in seeing the objects or corals and fish which I wanted to shoot although I was wearing a snorkeling mask. The sunlight created glare on the screen that was now covered with a thick but flexible plastic film. So, I just aimed the underwater camera to the fish and the corals which I'd like to shoot. I pressed the button a lot. I hoped that the results of some of the underwater photographs which I took that morning were fine enough to be presented in this hub-page.

After taking pictures of the marine animals, fish and everything that was interesting in the sea, I got out of the water and walked to the beach. Actually it was not deep. I was only snorkeling at depths of 1 to 2 meters. The sea water was quite clear that morning so, I should get clearer photographs by that.

I stood under the shadow of a tree and started to take the camera out of the case. There was no leaks inside the case. Then I pressed the play button of the camera to see the result of my works. Wow, I was very happy to sea them. They are great. As a matter of fact, I am not a professional underwater photographer but I feel that I must share them on this hubpage too.

Coral reef and Global Warming

Coral reefs are a very important component of marine ecosystem. Coral reefs look like plants but they are actually animals. Various kinds of fish and other marine animals live in them. They are the best hiding place for small fish. In fact the function of coral reefs is the similar to that of tropical rainforest. So, we must preserve them too. When doing photosynthesis, algae zooxanthellae that live in symbiotic relationship with the coral reef absorbs CO2 gases. In other words, coral reefs help reduce global warming. Besides coral reef, sea grasses are also important food resources for turtles and dugongs. All of use are responsible in preserving the coral reef and the whole marine environment. The easiest thing that we can do is by not throwing plastic bottles along the streets and ditches wherever we go. These wastes will end up at sea when the rain comes.

I hope that after you see the underwater photographs of the coral reef and fish from tropical Mansinam island, you will be more appreciative to the beauty of the underwater world and the importance of coral reef in absorbing CO2 gases that we emit everyday. by Charles Roring. Contact email: peace4wp@gmail.com

Also read:

• Underwater camera case
• Coral reef preservation and ecotourism in Kaki island
• Snorkeling in Mansinam island