Underwater Photography #1

October 25, 2026

Studies with Cathy Church – 1

My son Nathan, his mother, and I used to do a great deal of scuba diving, and photography has always been part of everything I do. Back in 1998, I had the opportunity to spend a week studying underwater photography with Kathy Church in Grand Cayman. At the time, Kathy was one of the most respected underwater photography instructors around, with work that was widely celebrated. This was, of course, the film era — long before digital.

The course was a wonderful experience. We’d head out on the boat each morning — maybe six or eight of us in the class — gear up, and drop into the water. We were diving shallow, so bottom time wasn’t a concern. Each of us would shoot a roll of film, come back up to the boat, and hand off our cameras. The boat attendant would reload the camera, swap out the tank on your BC, and hand you a warm chocolate chip cookie and a bottle of water while you waited. Then back down you’d go. Three, four, five dives a day, a roll of film each time.

In the evenings we’d review the day, cover new topics, and by the time we were done talking, the film had been developed. We’d look at our shots together, critique them, and carry the lessons into the next morning. Learn from what worked, learn from what didn’t.

I thought it would be fun to share some of these images. I have quite a few — from the course itself and from dive trips we took around the world in the years that followed. I’ll post them separately from our regular adventures here, probably in sets of twenty to thirty, slipped in during quieter stretches. I hope you enjoy them, and I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Click the image to view full size and browse the gallery.