The underwater world is a harsh environment. It’s difficult to visit and survive in. Capturing stunning motion pictures underwater is not a simple task.
Mike Meagher Productions specializes in producing amazing 4K and HD underwater video.
Our experienced crew has that unique special mix of know how, equipment, technical expertise and artistic skills that will create an amazing visual story for your project.
Our Director of Underwater Cinematography Mike Meagher has been actively diving, photographing and filming underwater for over 40 years.
The Same Camera, in Skilled Hands – Makes a Difference
Turning your visual design and storyboard into a spectacular underwater sequence starts first with us gaining a clear understanding of your needs. We speak the language of the director and editor and we can advise you regarding what it takes to make it work.
Anyone can rent an underwater camera and housing, put on diving gear, splash, and push the record button. But to be a truly effective underwater cinematographer requires having unique skills not common to the terrestrial camera operator.
First, being a 100% comfortable and experienced diver in the environment is critical. Most of the world’s best underwater cinematographers were divers first and then learned the film making craft after. It takes years to develop the necessary core
diving skills required to concentrate on the task of film making, handling the camera with fluid and smooth motions. Also, regardless if your project requires operating in deep water, cold water, in heavy currents, under the ice, inside sunken ships, at night, in caves, in dirty or gin clear tropical water: no underwater environment is too extreme for us to film in. We have done it all. We operate at ease in all of these diving conditions.
The underwater cinematographer must also understand the unique technical requirements of filming underwater. Light behaves differently passing though the camera port and optics. Also colors are significantly absorbed, and light gets diffused and reflected off of particles in the water. This environment requires using specialized optics and lighting tricks foreign to the terrestrial film maker. We have developed over many years special tools and tricks to deal with these issues. We sometimes will custom manufacture or modify
our housings, grip and lighting equipment in order to meet the special needs. And few underwater cinematographers will employ land style grip equipment such as tripods, fluid heads, sliders and the like as we do.
We are also experienced with operating cinema cameras, shooting LOG underwater, underwater color balance, and we understand the professional requirements such as professional codecs, post production needs, all that goes along with a professional production.
Our combination of extensive diving experience, specialized skills and artistry sets us apart.
Mike Meagher Productions will furnish you with that unique combination of diving experience, underwater cinematography skills and artistry often difficult to find. This is what sets us apart. Because handling a camera underwater is second nature to us we are able to concentrate on the work of creating. There are only a handful of capable underwater camera operators in the world, and I would love to discuss with you your vision and needs.
So, take a look at our sample video and still images posted around this website. Pretty much every video clip or image you see starting with a vision or storyboard, then with planning and execution was turned into realization.
The videos seen here will give you a feel for our niche. We don’t do snowboarding, we don’t do skydiving. We do under and around the water world, with a couple of exceptions here and there.
Should your project simply require licensing of stock video our storage arrays contain an extensive collection of UHD 4K and HD clips. We have hours of video of various Marine life or of divers and people exploring our aquatic world. Take a look at our stock video pages, search for you subjects, and tell us your needs. We might have just what you are looking for… if not, we can shoot it.
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