Kate Jonker - Underwater Photographer | Coach

📸 Sorry, NOT Sorry... 🙋‍♀️ So, I absolutely LOVE anything that is challenging when it comes to underwater photography, and vintage lenses are top of the list. 📸 Because these lenses are not AF, and because I don't have the luxury of a 3D printed focus gear, it's just me, the camera and a fixed aperture and working distance for the entire day. 📌 On the day I made this photo, I had set my lense to F2.8 and had a working distance of about 20cm. 📌 I used focus peaking on Canon R5 to show me what was in focus (the camera makes a red 'halo' around what is in focus). So when the fish's eye has a red edge or halo to it, I know it's in focus. 📌 What the lense does with the rest of the image is always interesting... 😎 So, here is one of my more "arty" shots that did not used to make it to social media. I love it and I hope you find it interesting, too! 🤷‍♀️ Have you tried using vintage lenses, too? Do you have a favourite? let me know ⤵️ #vintagelenses #macrounderwaterphotography

📸 It's the small details that matter 🙋‍♀️You don't need to photograph the entire creature. If it has an interesting characteristic, hone in on that and shoot just that instead. It makes for a much more interesting photo. 📌I came across this mosaic pleurobranch at Outer Pinnacle dive site in Gordon's Bay a couple of weeks back. It was the first time I'd seen one on the eastern coastline of False Bay, so I had to take the ID shot. Swipe to see how boring it is 🙈 😅 As it was so huge, I could not fit it in the frame without being nearly 1m away from it (and I still cut him off 🤣). It also meant that with so much water between myself and my subject, the picture became pretty bland and lacked contrast. 🐙 So I decided to focus on the best part of the creature and this is the result. 🔖 Save this as a reminder to yourself to think further than just "shooting the subject" - think about how you can make your photo more interesting instead... Follow @katejonkerphotography for underwater photography inspiration, quick tips and step-by-step tutorials to elevate your underwater photography skills! #underwaterphotographytips #underwaterphotographycoach #underwaterphotographyworkshops #underwaterphotographycourse

💔 Lately, I’ve been feeling paralyzed by imposter syndrome. 😏 I write posts, post them, then almost immediately delete them (you might have noticed 🥹) 💙 I LOVE teaching underwater photography, it lights me up - but showing up on social media has felt terrifying. 🤷‍♀️ What if people judge me? What if my photos are not good enough? 🥹 I would post and then check to see how many likes my post got, or how many views my reels got. If they didn't get x amount in z amount of time, I would delete them. 🙋‍♀️ And here’s the ironic part… 🌟 Not too long ago, I made a post telling my followers to stop worrying about what other people think—to share what they love, to post what feels true to them. I believed those words when I wrote them. 😰 But when it came time to follow my own advice? I froze. I even broke out into a cold sweat 😭 ☺️ Yesterday, a friend reminded me of that post. He told me that message helped him because he had been going through self-doubt too. And that hit me—because if I hadn’t posted it, he wouldn’t have gotten that encouragement when he needed it. 🤷‍♀️. And isn’t that the whole point? To share, connect, and remind each other that we are not alone in this? 😎 So here’s me, pressing post instead of delete. Because I am going to refuse to let fear of imperfection and judgement keep me from doing what I love. And I am going to try very hard to show up as the real me from now on. No filters (that sounds so scary 🤯). 🤗 And if you needed this reminder today: ✨ Your voice matters. ✨ Your work matters. ✨ You matter. 💙 Have you ever felt like this? Drop a 💙 if this resonates with you.

Swipe through to see our Coral Reef Confetti Puzzle 🪸 This amazing photograph was taken by local talent @katejonkerphotography who was a finalist with Commended for the Underwater Photographer of the Year Awards 2025!

📸 Your underwater shots deserve to stand out—so why do they keep falling flat? 💙 If you’ve ever felt frustrated that your photos don’t have that wow factor, you’re not alone! The secret isn’t fancy gear—it’s in mastering a few simple techniques. In today’s post, I’m breaking down 4 easy yet powerful underwater photography tricks that will transform your images instantly. Swipe through to see how you can create bold, eye-catching shots on your very next dive! 👇 Which technique are you most excited to try? Let me know in the comments! #UnderwaterPhotography #PhotographyTips #ScubaLife #underwaterphotocoach

📸 Little Red Bow! 📌 I spotted this frilly nudibranch one freezing dive at Coral Gardens in Rooi Els. The water was a balmy 21C on the surface but at 15m, we hit a thermocline - and below that, the water was 11C! It was intense and the thermocline layer was really shimmering. 😅 The problem was that in the warm water (above 15m), there were no nudibranchs and below 15m, down there in the cold water, were absolutely loads. 🤷‍♀️ Now, you might be asking me, you wear a drysuit, how could you get cold? Well, a drysuit only keeps you dry (normally!) and not warm (unless you have a crushed neoprene one which can help, which I don't have), so what keeps you warm is your undergarments. 🥶 However, even with a wicking undergarment, a thermal vest and my Fourth Element Halo 3D undergarment, I was frozen. But, to shoot the nudis, we had to go down into the clear 11C water. 😆 I spent as much time as possible at 11C to take the photos, then would ascend above that thermocline to warm up again. It was an odd experience! However, it was well worth it, and I absolutely fell in love with this cute nudibranch with her little red bow :) 🙋‍♀️ What's the coldest water you've dived in before? Let me know in the comments (I've added my coldest in the comments too) 👇 #underwaterphotography #macrounderwaterphotography #nudibranch

📸 If your underwater shots aren’t turning out how you hoped, you might be making these common errors—let’s fix them! 🙋‍♀️ I’m talking about mistakes we all make when we start out in underwater photography. ❗It’s time to reveal the common mistakes beginner underwater photographers are making on repeat! 🤗 But don’t worry, I won’t leave it at that - I’m going to share with you exactly how you can avoid each of these mistakes and what to do instead! 🤿 So dive in and let me know in the comments have you ever made one of these mistakes (no judgment here, we’ve all been there)! 👇 ❌ Shooting down ✅ Try to shoot at eye (or rhinophore) level and slightly upwards so that your subject doesn't disapper into the reef. ❌ Too far from your subject ✅ Get as close as you can to fill the frame with your subject - remind yourself to get close, and then get closer! Don't rely on your camera's zoom to fill the frame - get as close as your camera will allow you to focus - and only then zoom in. ❌ Using Auto ISO ✅ Use the lowest possible ISO for best image quality. ONLY use AUTO ISO if you have limited the ISO in your camera's settings. Anything above 400 on a compact will create a lot of noise. DSLRs and MIrrorless cameras are more forgiving ;) ❌ Upward lighting in wide angle verticals ✅ When you turn your camera vertically, decrease the power of your strobe at the bottom of the frame to avoid unnatural uplighting. ❌ Using Digital Zoom ✅ Digital zoom will make your photos grainy. Get your camera as close as you can and then use optical zoom (the zoom lever) or zoom your lense instead (see above). 🙋‍♀️ And if you found this helpful, don’t forget to follow @katejonkerphotography for underwater photography tips that will show you how to take crisp and creative underwater photographs without the stress of trying to figure it out on your own! #underwaterphotographytips #underwaterphotographycoach #underwaterphotographyworkshops

📸 The Exact Process I Use to Help Underwater Photographers Master Their Camera, Lighting & Creativity ⬇️ If you’ve ever felt frustrated because your underwater photos are hit or miss, you’re not alone. Many divers struggle with: ❌ Not knowing what settings to use – Feeling overwhelmed by ISO, aperture, and shutter speed. ❌ Not knowing how to light their subjects – Strobe positioning and exposure feel like a guessing game. ❌ Feeling stuck in their photography – Taking standard "ID shots" instead of creative, story-driven images. Here’s the exact process I use in my 1:1 coaching to fix these problems & transform your photography: 📌 Step 1: Deep Dive Into Your Struggles & Goals We start with an in-depth conversation to uncover what’s holding you back. I tailor my coaching to YOUR exact needs. 📌 Step 2: Photo Review & Diagnosis I review your unedited photos to analyze your settings, lighting, and composition mistakes—so I know exactly what needs fixing (sometimes what you think you're struggling with isn't actually that...) 📌 Step 3: Personalized Learning Plan We agree on the best course of action: ✨ Need help with settings & techniques? → I break down the settings you need to know for YOUR camera. ✨ Struggling with strobe positioning & lighting? → I teach you how to position your strobes for perfect exposure—no more under- or overexposed images! ✨ Need foundational knowledge? → I might recommend my TG Underwater Photography Made Easy Online Course or my Introduction to Underwater Photography Course via Zoom. 📌 Step 4: Action & Practice Once we cover the technical side, I send you off to practice underwater so you can apply what you’ve learned. 📌 Step 5: Follow-Up Image Review & Refinement After you’ve taken new photos, we do a second image review to fine-tune any areas that still need improvement—so you leave with repeatable skills and total confidence in your photography! 🔥 Ready to finally master your settings, lighting & creativity underwater? DM me 1:1 to learn more about my tailored coaching approach! 📩✨ #UnderwaterPhotography #PhotographyTips #StrobeLighting

📸 The Secret to Jaw-Dropping Wide Angle Macro Shots! ➡️ Swipe to steal my settings and gear recommendations! 📌 Want to capture stunning close-ups whilst showing a sense of place at the same time? Here’s what you need to combine macro magic with wide-angle wonder to tell a more compelling underwater story: 🔹 Fisheye Lens – Allows you to get mere cms away from your subject. 🔹 Mini Dome Port – Fits your lense snugly (check your housing's port chart - this is vital!) and helps you get super close without disturbing marine life. 🔹 Wet Wide-Angle Lens (for TGs & Compacts) – Fills the frame with your subject and includes some background too. 🤿 This is one of the techniques we’ll be diving into at my Lembeh workshop in June 2025! Who’s joining me? 🙌 PS this photo was cropped slightly to 4x5 to fit the Instagram grid. You would not normally crop this style of photo... #WideAngleMacro #UnderwaterPhotographyTips #UnderwaterPhotographer #OceanLife #ScubaDiving

🙋‍♀️ From Frustration to Confidence: My Journey with Underwater Photography ⬇️ 😅 I’ll never forget the first time I used an underwater camera. 📸My husband had just bought his first one in 2005, and I was beyond excited to capture the underwater world! But the excitement quickly turned to frustration… 😭 I had no clue what settings to use. P, Tv, A, M… what did they even mean?! I tried everything, but my photos were always blurry, out of focus, and completely blue. I felt defeated—so I gave up. 🐠 Three years later, when we opened our dive centre, Indigo Scuba in Gordon's Bay (South Africa), I needed photos for our website. I picked up a camera again… and the same thing happened. Overwhelmed and disappointed, I put the camera down and started making videos instead. For years, I believed I just wasn’t cut out for underwater photography. 🐠 Until one day, everything changed... I discovered a book on underwater photography and read it front to back. Suddenly, settings made sense. I took my camera back in the water, and this time… it worked. 🎉 🦑My first real photo? A glass squid, an incredible creature I’d never seen before. I was elated! From that moment on, I was hooked. ✅ I mastered manual settings—no more guessing. ✅ I learned lighting & strobe techniques that transformed my images. ✅ I experimented with creative styles—inward lighting, shallow depth of field, snoots. I finally felt confident and in control of my camera. 😮Then, something unexpected happened. My dive buddies kept asking me to set up their cameras. Their photos were pretty good—until I wasn’t there. That’s when I realized… they didn’t need me to set up their cameras. They needed me to teach them how to do it themselves. 😀So I did. And when they returned from their dives, beaming with pride and excitement over their own photos, I knew I had found my true passion. Now, I teach underwater photographers to master their camera, lighting, and creativity—without the years of frustration I went through. 💜If you’re tired of inconsistent photos and want to feel confident behind the lens, I'm here for you! #UnderwaterPhotography #PhotoTips #StrobeLighting #UnderwaterPhotos

📸 Subject separation 📌 Using a shallow depth of field to create a bokeh background is a great way to separate your subject from a busy reef. 🙋‍♀️ I shot this photo in Romblon and made sure I focussed on the rhinophores of the nudibranch and used quite an open aperture to make sure that I got the bits I wanted to in focus. Camera: Canon R5 Housing: Marelux Lense: 100mm macro lense Strobes: Marelux Apollo S

📸 The Secret to Jaw-Dropping Wide-Angle Underwater Photos! 🤯 🙋‍♀️ Want to make your wide-angle underwater shots stand out from the crowd? Here’s exactly how to do it: ⬇️ 1️⃣ Use a wide-angle lens – Fit more into the frame and capture the full scene! 2️⃣ Get close to your subject – Fill the frame and light it better with your strobes. 3️⃣ Balance natural light & strobes – Get that dreamy blue (or green) while keeping your subject well-lit. 4️⃣ Always have a subject – A main focus makes your image more compelling. 5️⃣ Add a background – Create depth and interest that pulls the viewer in. 6️⃣ Change your angles – Experiment with different perspectives for unique shots. 7️⃣ Use surface texture – Ripples and reflections add an extra layer of magic. 8️⃣ Respect the reef – No shot is worth damaging marine life! 🙋‍♀️ Did you find this helpful? ➡️ Please share this to your stories so your dive buddies can level up their wide-angle shots too! 📌 If you need some help with your wide angle settings or lighting for the equipment you own, I'm here for you! #UnderwaterPhotography #WideAnglePhotography #ScubaDivingLife #OceanLovers #PhotographyTips #ProtectOurReef