Underwater virtual reality photography in New Caledonia
par Richard Chesher
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Photo panoramique par
Richard Chesher
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Underwater virtual reality photography in New CaledoniaThe World > Les Iles de l'Océan Pacifique > Mélanesie > Nouvelle Calédonie |
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Underwater photography has always been limited by poor visibility and the rapid loss of the red end of the spectrum in water. Not to mention the loss of angle of view from having a flat filter with air on one side and water on the other. As a result there are zillions of images of "specimen shots" of fish, invertebrates, and people but very few underwater landscape images. It is as if our photographic vision was limited by a very restrictive face mask where we can only peer at a limited part of the underwater world. And like night diving, the images only show what we can light up with our flash.
Spherical photography changes this completely, allowing the photographer to capture the whole scene. Although still limited by the water visibility, the images approach the feeling of being there. The blue filter effect remains a problem. When diving, our eyes adjust for this and we percieve more colors than when we later look at an underwater image that we took while diving. But I can process the raw images and white balance the colors to render a photograph that looks pretty close to what it looked like at that place and time.
I took this photo of the outer face of the fringing reef at Ilot Uatio, in the southern lagoon of New Caledonia, to show the immense size of a single coral head just off the edge of the reef. It is in 8 meters of water and Freddy dove down next to it to give you an idea of how big the colony is.This single coral colony was about 7 meters in diameter and probably began life over a thousand years ago. The coral pinnacles in the area are alive with a tangle of corals of every description.
The resulting scenic of the coral reef really does look like it did when I was there taking the image. It gives you an understanding of the outer edge of a lagoon fringing reef that you would never have get without diving there yourself.
It is a very satisfying photograph. I have been taking underwater photographs since 1958 and I am very happy to be able to present an image that finally shows the reef as it looks to me - and to have it interactive so you can swivel around and admire the wonderful complexity of the coral reef just as I did. You can even hold your breath, if you like, to make it even more real.
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Une Nation du Pacifique Sud, la plus proche de l'Australie et de la Nouvelle Zélande. Une chaîne de hautes montagnes, d'impressionnantes cascades et de nombreuses rivières avec une flore et une faune variée et souvent unique au monde - C'est le paradis de la randonnée pédestre ou équestre ainsi que de l'excursion en véhicule tout-terrain.
Le plus grand lagon du monde, peuplé d'une faune tropicale endémique particulièrement riche, avec des récifs et des populations de poissons rares et protégées. Des centaines d'épaves sous-marines, des îlots, de nombreuses plages de sable blanc.
La population calédonienne est issue d'un large brassage culturel : Mélanésiens, Européens, Polynésiens, Vietnamiens, Chinois, Japonais, et la langue et culture française. La Nouvelle-Calédonie est dotée de très bonnes infrastructures médicales et sociales.
Une infrastructure touristique qui offre un large éventail de types d'hébergement allant de l'hôtel 5 étoiles au camping aménagé en passant par l'accueil en milieu tribal, les chambres d'hôtes, les refuges et l'auberge de jeunesse.
