Can you safely enter the water while holding your camera?

I think that, if at ALL possible, divers with cameras should enter the water first, receive their camera second. This is a surefire way to avoid impact-related damage to your precious underwater camera equipment. Hard impacts of the water, parts of your body, or other bits of dive gear can knock things out of whack on your housing, potentially causing floods. It can also lead to scratches, nicks, bruises, etc.

HOWEVER, sometimes conditions do not allow us the luxury of hopping in and having a boat tender pass down our gear. This is exceptionally rare, at least in the conditions I’ve been in – usually, there is always some way of having a buddy pass you your camera when you’re in the water. It might take planning or a little extra time or effort, but it’s usually possible. But in some cases, like a negative descent in fast current, or off a very small platform where there’s no one to pass gear to you, it may be required.

In these scenarios, there are a few approaches. And, one more time – if possible, it’s best to jump in without your camera!

Entry with a compact camera or similar, small size rig

This is the only type of camera that I feel “good” about entering the water with. With small compacts, my preferred approach is to “hug” the camera to my belly with one arm, inflate my BCD, and backroll into the water as I hold my mask and reg with the other hand. In this scenario, the risk of damage is relatively low, as your body contacts the water first, and there should be little movement of your camera.

Some divers also report success in holding their camera high above their head as they giant stride into the water, so that the camera is the last thing to enter. This hypothetically reduces the shock of impact as well. I prefer the former method.

Larger cameras and domes

This is where things get interesting. And, also, where I continue to strongly recommend not risking thousands of dollars of equipment if it’s even remotely possible to avoid…

However, there are some potential approaches to entering the water with a large rig and dome. The most interesting I’ve heard all involve holding the camera in the water first, and then entering the water by rolling over or around it. In this scenario, the camera is not impacted, but it may require some practice, and/or coordination and athleticism…

I would probably prefer, if I had to, the above scenario with a compact and hugged tight to the chest. Entering via backroll, rig secured tightly to your chest with dome port cover on, may be less risk.

What do you think? What are your favorite methods?? Let us know!

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Morgan Bennett-Smith

Morgan Bennett-Smith is a field research scientist and photographer. He completed his B.A. in marine science at Occidental College in Southern California, and his Master’s Degree in marine science at the Red Sea Research Center in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, where he studied coral reef symbiosis. Along the way, his photographs have won numerous international competitions and been featured by organizations such as Smithsonian, the Guardian, and Nature, and been commercially licensed over 3,000 times.

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