Underwater Photography Education

Overview

Underwater photography education evolved dramatically during the Wetpixel era (2001-2023), from informal dive-trip mentoring and printed books to structured workshops, online video tutorials, and the weekly Wetpixel Live series that produced over 258 episodes. Wetpixel itself was fundamentally an educational community — its forums, articles, reviews, and organized events collectively formed the largest knowledge base for underwater imaging in the world.

History

The book era: Martin Edge and the textbook standard

Martin Edge’s The Underwater Photographer became the definitive instructional text for the field. First published in the 1990s, it went through multiple editions that tracked the transition from film to digital:

• Third edition (2005): The last to include film coverage alongside digital. Widely owned by Wetpixel members.
• Fourth edition (2010): A complete rewrite — entirely digital, no more “switching back and forth between film and digital explanations.” Reviewer Steve Williams noted that “for about $26 you can own the accumulated knowledge of underwater digital photography.” The book was a collaboration with contributors including Alex Mustard, Mark Koekemoer, Shannon Conway, and Stuart Gibson. Stephen Frink wrote the foreword, calling Edge someone with “the rare ability to make you feel like you are learning from a dive buddy” (^[1]). The forum thread on the fourth edition generated 165 replies — one of the most-discussed books in Wetpixel history.
• Fifth edition (2020): Reviewed again on Wetpixel by Adam Hanlon (^[2]). A Wetpixel Live episode was dedicated to discussing the book (^[3]).

Edge also produced video tutorials and gave presentations, including speaking events in Perth (2008) and Lembeh (2015) (^[4], ^[5]). A 2009 “Conversation with Martin Edge” article explored his teaching philosophy (^[6]). A 2010 video collaboration between Edge and Mustard covered underwater photography fundamentals (^[7]).

Alex Mustard’s Masterclass

Alex Mustard’s Underwater Photography Masterclass (2016) was the next landmark instructional text. Adam Hanlon’s extensive review described it as a “game changer” and “the first instructional book to actually show how to use [modern techniques] in a modern idiom” — covering off-camera lighting, snoots, inward and cross lighting, super macro with diopters, and current versions of Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. Hanlon distinguished it from Edge’s book: “Alex’s book provides pretty detailed instructions for a series of techniques, whereas Martin’s tends to be more generic… Both should have a place in the underwater photographer’s library” (^[8]).

The book was released in the UK in February 2016 (^[9]), reached the US in July (^[10]), and an iBook version followed in December (^[11]). The forum thread generated 67 replies.

The workshop model

In-water workshops became a major educational format, with several distinct models:

Wetpixel/Mustard Lembeh Workshops: Wetpixel’s signature recurring workshop series, co-led by Alex Mustard at Lembeh Strait. The 2013 edition generated 50 forum replies. A 2016 live report covered the event in real time (^[12]). These workshops combined structured technique instruction with in-water practice at the world’s premier muck diving destination.

Red Sea Workshops: Multiple years of Red Sea photography workshops were organized through Wetpixel from 2006 onward, with gallery posts and trip reports (^[13]).

Wetpixel Cave Photography Workshop: A specialized workshop for underwater cave photography (source).

Wetpixel/RED/Gates Tiger Beach: A filmmakers’ workshop combining RED camera systems with Gates cinema housings at Tiger Beach, Bahamas (source).

The Wetpixel Live episode “UW Workshops and Courses” (2021) discussed the wide range of available options, with Mustard emphasizing “the difference between photographically productive dive travel and dedicated learning experiences” and introducing his new online learning option (^[14]).

A forum thread titled “The Value of Underwater Photo Workshops?” (19 replies) debated whether the investment was worthwhile.

The Digital Shootout as education

The Digital Shootout, created by Berkley White of Backscatter, was explicitly designed as an educational event with competition as motivation. Eric Cheng provided daily webcasts from the Fiji 2004 and Bonaire 2005-2007 events, while instructors including Jim Watt offered hands-on teaching in the water. The format — a week of guided diving with structured shooting assignments, evening critiques, and competitive judging — influenced many subsequent workshop-competitions.

Erin Quigley and post-processing education

Erin Quigley became the community’s foremost post-processing educator through her GoAskErin.com tutorials, DEMA presentations, and COVID-era webinars. She developed specialized techniques for underwater image editing including the “Master List” workflow and “Water Replacement” technique. Her Lightroom and Photoshop tutorials were frequently referenced on Wetpixel.

Online tutorials and video

Beyond Wetpixel’s own content, the site curated external tutorials:

• Tutorial on Nikon autofocus by Steve Perry (source)
• Tutorial by JP Danko on editing underwater photos (source)
• Color grading tutorial using DaVinci Resolve (source)
• Ron Lagerlof on 4K imaging underwater (^[15])
• Doug and Lorenza Sloss’s Underwater Photoworkshop DVD (^[16])
• Scubazoo educational videos (^[17])

Wetpixel Live: the COVID-era education revolution

When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down dive travel in 2020, Adam Hanlon and Alex Mustard launched Wetpixel Live — a YouTube series of weekly discussions covering technique, gear, and community topics. By January 2021, over 130 episodes had been produced. By the time Wetpixel ceased publishing in 2023, the series had accumulated over 258 episodes covering topics including:

• Technique: Shooting split shots, fluorescence photography, blackwater, fisheye lenses, underwater panorama, choosing subjects
• Gear: Dome port essentials, housing choices, strobe triggering, focus lights, memory cards, vacuum systems
• Post-processing: Super resolution, new editing tools, color spaces
• Business/career: Shooting for assignments, competition success
• Travel: Liveaboard vs. land-based, dive planning, the Thistlegorm wreck guide

The series transformed what had been forum-based education into accessible video content, reaching audiences beyond the registered Wetpixel membership.

The Wetpixel Forum as classroom

The Wetpixel Forum was itself the most important educational resource. The “Beginner Forum” (forum_id 29) and “Photography Gear and Technique” forum (forum_id 18) hosted thousands of threads where experienced photographers shared knowledge with newcomers. James Wiseman’s foundational 2002 article “Strobe Use for Digital Cameras for Beginners” helped thousands transition from film to digital. The “Ask the Pros” article series brought structured expert knowledge on specific topics like split shots and macro photography.

Key Figures

• Martin Edge — Author of the standard textbook; five editions spanning film to mirrorless
• Alex Mustard — Masterclass author, workshop leader, Wetpixel Live co-host (258+ episodes)
• Berkley White — Digital Shootout creator; combined competition with education
• Erin Quigley — Post-processing specialist; DEMA tutorials; COVID webinars
• Adam Hanlon — Wetpixel Live co-host; commissioned reviews and tutorials
• Peter Rowlands — UwP Magazine editor; mentored Mustard and Edge
• Eric Cheng — Organized educational expeditions; modeled knowledge sharing as a community value

Impact

The Wetpixel era saw underwater photography education shift from a master-apprentice model (learning from a buddy on dive trips) to a structured, multi-format system: textbooks, workshops, forums, video tutorials, and live streaming. This democratization of knowledge, combined with increasingly accessible gear, expanded the community far beyond traditional professional circles. The COVID-19 lockdown accelerated the shift to online education, with Wetpixel Live demonstrating that high-quality instruction could reach a global audience without requiring travel to a dive destination.

References

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