Strobe Positioning

Jim Decker · Issue 118, Jan/Feb 2021 · pp. 38–43

Products mentioned: Sony a7R III, Laowa Probe Lens

Over the years I have taught thousands of people how to shoot underwater. By far the number 1 question I am asked is “Where do I put my strobes?” as if there is one magic position to put their strobes. My simple Zen master answer to the student is always, “What do you want to light?” Aim the strobes at the thing you want to light! If you don’t know what you want to light, you will never know where to put your strobes. Which brings us to some fundamental truths about where to put your strobes: 1. Knowing where to put your strobes requires knowing what you want to light. 2. Knowing what to light means knowing what you want to have as a foreground subject. 3. Knowing what you want to have as a foreground subject means knowing what you want your composition to be. Which brings us to composition. Composition is not just about cutting Uncle Joe’s head off while he’s blowing out candles on a bi…