David H Lyman

Storyteller

Photography on Boats

By David H. Lyman

Published in the April 2022 edition of Cruisiung World Magazine

WHAT’S IN MY CAMERA BAG

This combination of gear serves me well just about anywhere.

As a photojournalist, I’m not a gear nut, although I’ve owned and used dozens of cameras, from 8-by-10 and 4-by-5 to medium format, half a dozen 35mm film and, now, a digital SLR. But cameras and lenses are just tools. No matter how much gear you have, or how much cash you spend, the cameras will not make you a better photographer. In fact, all of that stuff can get in the way.

A long time ago, Bill Allard, a National Geographic photographer, told me about the KISS principle: Keep It Simple, Stupid. Start with one SLR camera and one lens. Learn to see, photographically, with those two tools. You’ll know when it’s time to acquire another lens or a more advanced camera. Your work, your images will tell you.

The best camera to have is the one in your hand, not the one in your camera bag or on the store shelf. Photography is like anchoring. It’s less about the anchor and more about the technique. If you are a photographer, you can make great photos with any camera, even your iPhone. Just learn its limits, and use them creatively.

MY CAMERA BAG

These days, covering the cruising life, my camera and lens requirements are modest. I like it that way. My camera backpack, fully loaded, weights just 15 pounds. Inside this water-resistant Ruggard Outrigger 65 DSLR backpack, I can cram in my iPad Pro, my now-ancient Canon D70 DSLR camera and two lenses, and a short and long zoom. There’s room for two GoPros, a Joby GorillaPod tripod (the one with the bendy legs) and a Rode microphone for recording sound.

There also are pockets for extra SD cards, tools and wires, a HyperDrive multiport, and a LaCie portable hard drive.

With these tools, I can hit the road or the water on any assignment and feel confident that I am prepared for any shot.

THE CAMERA

My 2016 Canon D70 DSLR still does just what I need it to do. It records video and audio, shoots RAW and JPEG still images, and has a variety of functions that I seldom use. In short, it works.

I shoot in program mode most of the time, or manual. The camera comes with a pop-up flash to fill in faces and social settings at night. I’ve added a battery pack to extend shooting time, while adding mass to the camera—a heavier camera is more stable. Would I like a newer camera, one with more pixels, a full-frame sensor, more bells and whistles? Sure, but not at the asking price. What I have is adequate for the work I do and the way I see.

Remember, photography is about seeing, not about the equipment. The technical qualities of your camera wouldn’t make a boring photograph more interesting.

NORMAL-TO WIDE-ANGLE LENSES

Lenses do more than get you closer or farther way. They define space and affect the perception of depth.

The lens that lives on my camera—the one I use for 85 percent of my image-making—is an 18mm to 135mm short zoom. I use the wider settings most of the time and 135mm for portraits, because the shallower depth of field throws the background out of focus.

Long zoom lenses are handy on a boat. They get you closer to the action. My long zoom lens is 75mm to 300mm. Telephoto lenses distort reality in the opposite way, as do wide-angle lenses. They compress space, slamming together the foreground, middle and background. This can be a useful effect in the hands of a creative photographer, but these lenses also have a shallower depth of field, meaning focus and camera handling are more critical.

IPHONE CAMERA

My iPhone 7 camera captures more images than all my other cameras. Its various functions are helpful, and it shoots still photos in square, landscape and panorama formats.

It also shoots acceptable video in standard MP4, with slow-motion and timelapse options. It records adequate sound.

Its most endearing feature? It’s always available. I carry it in my pocket.

GOPRO AND OTHER ACTION CAMERAS

If spray is flying and the decks are awash, keep the digital SLR belowdecks and bring out the GoPro.

GoPros are totally waterproof, and they record stills, video, time-lapse images, and slow-motion video on deck and underwater. They record acceptable ambient sound and voice. They are indestructible and cheap enough (compared with other camera gear) to be almost disposable. They can be voice-controlled, paired with your iPhone so that you see what the camera is seeing, and thus used when you’re belowdecks and out of the elements. They also come with a basket of accessories, so you can attach your GoPro to almost anything: your chest, your head, a foredeck hatch. Secure it on the end of a boat hook and stick it underwater to record whatever is warped around your prop.

My GoPro Hero7 Silver is attached to an ActionPod Pro monopod with a strong clamp. I can secure the monopod to a stanchion, the pulpit or the edge of a table, and then bend the pod to position the camera just where I want it.

Rain-X on the lens will help rain or spray sheet off. Another technique that scuba divers will understand: Give the front lens a lick with your tongue.

DRONES

These aerial-camera platforms are certainly handy on a boat. My DJI Mini is the basic version, limited and fragile, but fine for now. We’ll upgrade to a $1,000 model once my son gets his drone license. He’s better at the controls.

POSTPRODUCTION

Most of us can’t wait to see whatever we photographed on any given day. Back aboard with my camera and lenses cleaned, I fire up the iPad with a HyperDrive attachment. This allows me to download the SD cards from the digital SLR and GoPro to a 1-terabyte LeCie portable hard drive. I can review my day’s work on my iPad; inspect, crop and level horizons; and tweak contrast and exposure. I move selected images into a separate folder and label my work.

Once I’m back in my studio in Maine, I transfer the portable drive’s content to a working hard dive and a backup drive. I use Adobe’s Lightroom for final postproduction on images for publication. The presets on Apple’s Photo app on my iPad are adequate for most corrections. I shoot both RAW and JPEG files, but I find that JPEGs are faster to work with, take up less space, and are more than adequate for magazine and online use. I seldom use Photoshop. It’s too cumbersome.

KEEPING GEAR CLEAN AND SAFE

The worst things for camera gear on boats are salt water, spray, mist and moisture. Rain and fresh water present fewer problems.

The front element of the lens needs constant attention while shooting. Inspect it frequently, on all your cameras. Droplets, fingerprints or a film of mist will diminish image sharpness, create flare, and degrade your photos.

Do not wipe the front element until it is first rinsed with fresh water. I keep a spray bottle with distilled water on deck. Rinse the front element, and then wipe it clean with pads, not tissues (which dissolve when wet). While you’re at it, spray and wipe off the entire camera, and your hands. If the salt spray has dried, then salt crystals will scratch the lens’s front element. Treat your sunglasses to the same freshwater rinse before wiping them dry.

Throw that lens cap away and screw on a clear UV or skylight filter to protect the front element. If the filter gets scratched or cracked, a $15 replacement saves you two weeks in the repair shop and a $500 bill.

Dampness corrodes the electronics inside the camera and lens. Letting a damp camera and lens sit only compounds the problems. Gear needs be kept clean while shooting and after each day’s work. ■

A long lens need to be supported well. A tripod is best, or your elbow on something solid wil do.

At day's ends, I use my iPad with a HyperDrive attachment, that accepts my SD cardsto download your files to a portable hard drive.

Rain, mist, or a spray bottle are all good for working in the Rain Forests. Wet vegitation photographs better. More contrast.