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Attempts at First Underwater Photograph
During the Crimean War, which lasted from 1853 to 1856, William Bauer, a German inventor, tried to take the first underwater photograph. From the inside of one of the submarines he designed for the Russians, Bauer attempted to shoot through the portholes of the sub. But it wasn’t until the end of the war that the first underwater photo was successful. -
First Underwater Photographs (LOST)
According to many sources, English photographer William Thompson is credited with the first underwater photographs. Using a camera in a watertight box, Thompson took photos of seaweed and sand underwater close to Weymouth, England, but the photos were lost. (Also, there are no images of Thompson.) After Thompson, Ernest Bazin also made early attempts at underwater photography in the 1860s, as did Eadweard Muybridge in the 1870s. -
First, Clear, Underwater Photograph
Following the footsteps of William Thompson, Frenchman Louis Boutan is also a pioneer of underwater photography. Boutan, the “father of underwater photography,” is considered the first to take underwater photographs for work. In 1893, Boutan and Joseph David, a mechanic, shot the first, clear, underwater photos near Banyuls sur Mer with a magnesium flashgun. -
First Underwater Technology
American journalist, photographer, and writer Jack Williamson invented a device in the early 1900s to allow people to film underwater. A crew sat in the device — a sphere attached by a long tube to a support boat on the surface — with a camera, and because of its innovation, the device had an intricate part in the filming of the first commercial movie adaptation of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, among other movies filmed underwater. -
Charles Martin takes 1st Underwater Color Photo
In 1926, Dr. William Longley and National Geographic staff photographer Charles Martin took the first underwater color photo of a hogfish off the coast of the Florida Keys in the Gulf of Mexico. The cameras were encased in waterproof housing and pounds of highly explosive magnesium flash powder to create light underneath the water. -
Jacques Cousteau and Emile Gagnan
Jacques Yves Cousteau and Emile Gagnan created a film called Epaves and were the first to use the Aqua-lung prototype, a self-contained, compressed-air underwater breathing system, which used a demand valve to deliver pressurized air upon intake of breath. The Aqualung revolutionized diving, and gave photographers freedom they had never had before to experiment with underwater photographic equipment. -
Jaques Cousteau and Marden
French oceanographer Jacques Cousteau was studying a school of fish living among the coral in the Indian Ocean. Along with a photographer named Marden, Cousteau pioneered ocean exploration and photography. Marden accompanied Cousteau on a voyage from Toulon, France, to the Suez Canal in order to photgraoh these fish. By the end of their trip Marden had the largest collection of underwater color photographs ever taken: 1,200 photographs. -
Jean DeWouters creates the CalypsoPhot
Belgian inventor, Jean DeWouters invented the CalypsoPhot 35mm underwater rangefinder camera. This creation was revolutionary and led to the ultimate success of Nikon’s Nikonos series cameras, which controlled the underwater photography market as a serious monopoly until digital cameras became normal. -
San Diego Underwater Photograpic Society
The San Diego Underwater Photographic Society was first started by some of the most influential underwater photographers: Ron Church and Chuck Nicklin. It was the first organization that that dedicated itself to artistic and technological advancements in underwater photography. Photos that have come from members of the SDUPS have won national photographic competitions around the world. -
Flip Nicklin
Charles "Flip" Nicklin, one of the best underwater photographers to date, first started his underwater photography with whales. He started working for National Geographic in 1976 as a deckhand and a diving assistant for two other underwater photographers. His high skill level of free-diving has allowed him to get closer to whales and photograph their activity more than any other photographer in the world. With his work, he’s set a new standard for underwater photography. -
Titanic and the Alvin
The Titanic shipwreck was found and 2000 photos were taken and published by Robert Ballord and Emory Kristoff of the ship. This was a big moment for underwater photography because of the use of “Alvin,” a new technology at the time that allowed them to travel 12,500 feet underwater. Alvin was originally developed in in the 1930s, but it wasn’t until the '80s when it could dive this far and was used this extensively. The Titanic Shipwreck and the Alvin changed the way people explore underwater. -
Cheap Underwater Digital Camera
This was the year that "cheap" underwater digital cameras went on the market at a price point that made it easier for the general public to start taking photographs underwater. This changed the game because underwater photography is now no longer restricted to those few who can afford it or professional underwater photographers. The Bell and Howell waterproof camera can currently be bought on Amazon for fifty dollars. As time goes on, underwater photography becomes more and more accessable.
