Behind the Shot

WHERE
Under Ann and Conrad's Bungalow at the Four Seasons Resort at Bora Bora 

CAMERA SETTINGS

1/1600th of a second at f 10, ISO 250, Aperture Priority.
I shoot Manual Mode 100% of the time - except for this shot. I knew that the light would widely vary depending on how much water was in front of the lens. Additionally I couldn't change my settings very easily with the camera in the Waterproof Case. So I knew that with an ISO of 250, and with a strong mid-aperture, like 10, that I would get a strong shutter speed - whether I was all the way underwater, half in the water, or all of the way out. With my camera in Aperture Priority, all I had to do was push the shutter button.

HOW
My strategy was to lock the focus in manually so that the camera wouldn't struggle trying to find the focus. I knew I would be moving around in the water quite a bit, so the Aperture had to be at least f 10 so that I could get their feet in focus, and the bungalows behind them. At f 10, if I moved closer or farther from their feet, chances are their feet would still be in focus. Treading water, I focused on their feet with Auto Focus, then turned off Auto Focus (back button focus would work, but there is no way to push that button through the Waterproof Case) and fired away.

Swimming back to the bungalow after the letting the current take us out a bit

I stayed in place by using fins (there was a strong current) and sitting on a life preserver to keep me from having to constantly tread water.

UNDERWATER HOUSING

I used the Dicapac Camera Housing. It's is a great deal - it's only $60 on Amazon and works amazing! It is also very light and travels well. I used it over the whole trip and have since used it at several other beach weddings  -it still works amazingly!

POST
There is little post done on this shot, just brought up the exposure on their legs and brought in more sky. I use my own AlienSkin Exposure recipe on every retouched photo which adds warmth, saturation and minimal fade. Here is the untouched original: