Images: Make Your Pictures Better

Coral reefs are perhaps the most colorful places on the planet... The shame of it is that most pictures taken by novice underwater photographers fail to capture that beauty, their shots lacking color and detail. Often, one-hour or discount photo processing is to blame, not the photographer. Kodak's new Sea Processing can turn dull, drab prints into bright, vibrant shots. Better yet, Kodak can also use this process on your previously developed negatives to produce new, more vivid prints to replace that all-blue barracuda shot you took years ago but never showed. Sea Processing is particularly effective when you're shooting photos without a flash and relying on natural light. Red and yellow drop out at a very shallow depth, usually about 10-12 feet, when using print film and natural light. In seawater, the colors are replaced by a blue cast. The effect is even worse with overcast skies or or late afternoon sun. In non-technical terms, the Sea Processing re-adjusts for the effects of water by adding back in reds while subtracting out blues and greens. Because all colors in the spectrum are linked - each containing various amounts of other colors - the corrections enhance the picture's total color composition. The processing also increases contrast, another critical factor that's usually lost underwater. Sea Processing is done by trained Kodak technicians using a proprietary digital software system that Kodak developed expressly for this purpose. The developing includes negatives, prints on Kodak Royal paper and an index print. For an additional $10, you can get a Kodak Picture CD with JPEG picture files. The CD has a simple installation program and is compatible with Adobe's PhotoShop program. It's a worthwhile $10 investment. Kodak's Sea Processing is only available for print film (no slides) and is only done through 24 North American specialty dive-photo retailers and dive shops. For the recreational shooter with a basic camera system who shoots color prints, this is a huge step forward. Finally a way to minimize embarrassment and make friends green with envy. For information Sea Processing, underwater photo and video courses, or underwater photo products, click onto Sea & Sea's home page below.