Underwater Stills Photography with an External Monitor: Pros, Cons, and Verdict
Are you wondering if an external monitor would serve you better than a viewfinder?
In this article, I’ll share the pros & cons I found, after swapping my trusty external 45° viewfinder for a monitor over the past five months.
Index
- Forewords
- Seven benefits of external monitors for underwater photography
- Limitations & Drawbacks
- Conclusion
- About the author
Forewords
Back in the DSLR days, monitors were really practical only for videographers, because you would have to rely on the camera’s “live view” autofocus, which was painfully slow and unreliable. As a stills photographer, you needed to frame your images through the optical viewfinder, for the camera’s autofocus to perform at its best.
Different story with a mirrorless camera: it doesn’t matter to your focusing speed whether you’re composing your photos via the rear LCD screen or through the electronic viewfinder (EVF).
The thing is, most of the time you’ll achieve stronger images by placing your camera at eye-level or slightly below your subject, and pointing it upward (if you’re not convinced, check our introduction to underwater photography course). Unfortunately, shooting this way makes it difficult to properly see either the LCD or the EVF, and this is why many serious stills underwater shooters have invested in an angled external viewfinder, and never looked back.
And I am one of them: for the past 15 years, 99% of my underwater photos were framed through an external angled viewfinder, but 5 months ago I replaced it with a Nauticam 7” T7 Ultrabright monitor, to find out the pros & cons of these 2 solutions.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank:
- Nauticam for providing me with a loan for a T7 Ultrabright monitor, for the purpose of testing it and sharing my thoughts in this article.
- Underwater Safaris, for taking on some exhilarating seals dives off Montague island (NSW, Australia). I plan on running a photography workshop with them in 2027, get in touch if interested.
Seven Benefits of External Monitors for Underwater Photography
The list is long, so let’s get started!
1. Photos are easy to frame at every angle
Unlike an external viewfinder whose angle is fixed (straight or 45 degrees), a monitor can be tilted and rotated as needed, so you can always achieve the desired angle, without having to twist & spin yourself.
T7 monitor I used came with Nauticam’s innovative swivel, which allows single-handed monitor rotation and tilting, so I could keep taking photos while adjusting the monitor angle, as that decorator crab was walking up that pylon.
2. Easier to approach marine life
The further your noisy regulator is away from a shy subject, the more chances you have to grab the shot before they swim away.
When viewing the scene though a monitor, you can easily push the camera in front of you and frame the shot at arm’s length, with your second stage further back from the subject.
Besides, some marine species can tell whether you’re looking at them or not I would sometimes purposely look away while swimming towards a shy subject. No need to pretend with the monitor, just look at the screen, let your lens look at the subject.
3. Better situational awareness – great for action-packed dives
One of my favorite dives is the fur seal colony on Montague Island (off Narooma, NSW, Australia) where I keep on returning. Too many times have I missed a cheeky seal posing right in front of my dome port, because I was reviewing photos through the EVF. When I returned with the Nauticam T7 monitor though, I could track and photograph a seal via a monitor, while keeping an eye on other seals in the vicinity. Even better, when snorkeling at the surface, I was looking for seals activity on the rocks while monitoring what was happening underwater, with the external screen showing me a live feed of what my lens could see just below the surface – brilliant.
4. Split shots are much easier
Framing the perfect over-under image is difficult. If you’re setup with an external viewfinder, you must try to see through, in between splashes of surface ripples. Taking that viewfinder off and framing through the camera’s LCD usually is easier, provided you’re not blinded by sun reflections.
Different story with an external monitor: it sits above the water so you can see your composition despite water movement. And I never had problems seeing through the Nauticam T7 monitor even at mid-day (the ultrabright 3,000 nits really come in handy then).
5. Comfortably show your photos to others
As I explain in the wide-angle course, when working with models hand signals will only take you so far. Sometimes, you need to show your model the shot so they see how they fit in the frame and understand how they need to adjust their position. The 7-inch Nauticam T7 monitor clearly helped us get the perfect shot during my recent trip in Fiji, and my dive guide “Gutsy” (Naitheru Tuks) became attuned to my modelling needs in no time.
6. You “see” your dive better
When I first took the T7 monitor for a dive and started framing a macro subject through the large screen, I realized I was finding the process — simply composing a shot — truly more enjoyable.
It then struck me that, as a photographer, I had spent most of my time underwater seeing marine life through a viewfinder, rather than with my bare eyes. If you’ve read this far, I am sure you can relate. Of course, it’s all a means to an end: we’re capturing beautiful images of our underwater subjects, so we can then contemplate them on a quality screen or print later on, and share them to the world.
Yet, every time I compose or review a shot through my monitor, I get to enjoy some of the visual satisfaction I would only get on a bigger screen, right now, in the water.
Although I’m not there yet, I expect a monitor would offer a much improved viewing experience, for anyone experiencing age-related difficulty seeing up close underwater.
7. Additional features specific to the monitor
Monitors come with their own controls and functionalities, which are specific to the monitor itself, and whether they’ll be useful to you depends on your shooting habits.
For example, you can flip the view upside down. This is interesting to anyone using the Nauticam EMWL, as it allows you to shoot it without the relay component. It’s also helpful whenever you’re having to fully rotate the screen, to achieve the most intricate compositions.
Also, most monitors come with a focus peaking feature, which is helpful when focusing manually.
There are also a bunch of features useful for videographers, but these go beyond the scope of this article.
Limitations and Drawbacks
Whilst using a monitor improved my underwater photography experience in various ways, there were also a few trade-offs.
1. Size, weight, and drag in the water
First of all, adding a monitor instantly makes your rig heavier and bulkier.
While the extra weight and buoyancy change might be partly offset by removing your external viewfinder (if you’ve been using one), you’ll notice the extra drag from pushing a larger rig through the water. It’s not the end of the world, but something to be aware of. On the same note, the bag where you’re usually carrying your housing might become too tight.
With the Nauticam T7, I’ve gotten into the habit of detaching the monitor from its swivel mount, which takes only seconds, and then tuck it next to the housing with a towel in between, while making sure not to kink the HDMI cable.
2. The HDMI cable: a new failure point
A monitor connects to your camera via an HDMI cable, which can fail if not handled carefully. This is avoided by routing the cable without sharp angles, and being mindful of how you pass your camera to the boat crew after a dive. I would definitely consider bringing a spare cable with me while travelling, although it adds to the cost.
3. Extra maintenance
A monitor housing comes with its own o-ring and buttons that you need to look after as part of your underwater rig maintenance. Some monitors offer less than 2 hours run time, which means you need to open their housing regularly, although this wasn’t an issue with the Nauticam T7 which I have been using, since I regularly had over 6 hours of runtime.
4. Battery life impact on the camera
When connected to a monitor, my Canon R5 Mark II’s battery life was noticeably shorter: instead of regularly reaching the 3 hours mark (read my full review here), the R5II would usually last for around 2.5 hours.
I had hoped this would be the other way around, since the camera’s own LCD screen and EVF didn’t have to be powered anymore, but it turns out that sending a video feed through HDMI consumes more power overall. I reached out to Canon, who confirmed this was to be expected. I wonder if this might be different with other cameras models or camera brands.
5. Snoot positioning
When shooting macro on muck dives, I usually have a single strobe with a snoot, positioned right above my housing, angled down at 45 degrees towards the subject (check this recorded masterclass if you’re struggling with snooting). The trouble is, that’s where my monitor normally sits! The solution is rotate the monitor down, and re-position behind the housing, pretty much in front of the camera’s rear LCD screen. With the Nauticam T7, I had to replace the swivel mount with a ball mount (part number 17958), that attaches at the bottom of the T7, and then flip the screen (there’s a setting for this in the monitor menus).
Conclusion
External monitors and angled viewfinders are both tools that make it easier to frame compelling underwater photos. Which suits you best will depend on your own shooting needs and priorities, but hopefully reading the pros & cons in this article helped you make up your mind.
The monitor made shooting split shots easier than ever, and resulted in many more good images when there was a lot of action around me, because it helped me stay aware of what was going on, while I was photographing something. Besides, it lets me frame photos at angles that would be difficult to achieve, when using a fixed viewfinder. Finally, I quite enjoy being able to comfortably watch and show my photos to others right after the dive.
Besides, the Nauticam T7 is comes with over 6 hours of battery life and a very bright 3,000 nits display, neglecting the main downsides found with some monitors nowadays.
Personally, I can see myself using an external monitor rather than an angled viewfinder for the majority of my diving. Besides, the Nauticam T7’s battery life of over 6 hours means little maintenance overhead, which is why I have decided to purchase one.
About the author
Nicolas Remy is an Australia-based pro shooter and founder of online underwater photography school and community, The Underwater Club, with members in 26 countries. He serves as an ambassador for Mares and Nauticam, and chairs the jury of the prestigious DPG Masters photo competition. Nicolas’ images have been widely published in print and digital media, and have won over 40 international photo awards. To see more of Nicolas’ work, visit: www.nicolaslenaremy.com.
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