maldives in mono

Oh the joys of vscocam - you can kill a lot of time messing on your phone with the various editing tools and filters, and one very free afternoon I discovered that making my underwater photos black and white revealed a lot more detail than the originals in colour. The iPhone camera is not that impressive to begin with (I am using the 4s) and the general "blueness" of being underwater tends to make photos very one-dimensional (professionals and enthusiasts often use red or magenta filters plus elaborate light set-ups to bring out the colours of the marine world). So it was a nice surprise to see how my photos transformed in black-and-white.

You might wonder what's the point of diving in a tropical paradise like the Maldives only to leach the glorious colours out of the pictures. But the marine world is about so much more than colour - light and shadow brings out the richness, the sense of drama and the depth that makes diving such a fascinating activity for me.

(Some of these are screen captures from my videos and some were taken at night.)

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Comments

Unknown said…
You're right - these are amazing in black and white!
Shutterbug K said…
What housing system do you use for your iPhone 4S? I'm vaguely curious about outfitting mine for the pool and just for general splashing about the beach use, but I know cases can get $$$ especially when it comes time to upgrade the phone.
Alison said…
Out of curiosity I went into my some of my old iphone travel pics and made them b&w ... not as stunning as yours but I definitely see what you mean!

& you have a very interesting blog - I'm doing some archival peeping right now :)
Joy said…
these are beautiful!!! yes b&w are my favourite. they bring out good shadows and lines that goes otherwise unnoticed.
lin said…
Thanks guys :)

Shutterbug K: Mine is Seashell, which is a company from Hong Kong. I think it costs just over US$100. Another company that makes these is Watershot. I rarely meet divers that use these so I can't really say which are the best ones on the market. I was reasonably happy with mine but after about two years of use I've noticed very small quantities of water seeping in through one of the buttons when I am under water, so I guess these are not the most durable things. I'll see how my friend's Watershot holds up before I decide whether to replace mine further down the road.

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