Dano Loc: North Carolina

You have perfect timing… I was just out caving this weekend. IMHO I’d be less concerned about lenses and more concerned about lighting. I typically shot with an 11-16 lens on a APS body and rarely feel the need to switch lenses underground (except for macro). The real beauty of caves is that you have full control of your light (although in this case there is lighting along the path). I rely on 2 basic strategies. Either a tripod for long exposures (allows for low light or multiple pops with a single handheld flash) or multiple radio controlled flashes (my preference). 3-5 flashes with a radio trigger (I use Godox) allows for a ton of flexibility (I would avoid on-camera flash since the results will be extremely flat). Considering this is a commercial cave, I would opt for a tripod and 1-2 off-camera flashes). A good starting point is f8-11, 1/100 shutter speed, ISO 200, with flashes at 1/16-full power (plastic diffusers and hot shoe bases can help a lot). People/models provide scale, a good focal point to draw your eye, and color (to break up some of the earth tones). Hope that helps a bit. Have fun, stay safe, and please post some of your results.

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

I have been trying for several years to connect with with Peter Jones for a workshop at Carlsbad Caverns. He is a noted cave explorer and photographer whose work has appeared in numerous publications. He did a lot of work at Carlsbad Caverns until a change in concessionaires interrupted his activity there. We have corresponded quite a bit, though, and I'll summarize the knowledge that he shared with me.

Available light cave photography is rarely really successful, There are two main reasons for this. The first is that most caves are simply too big to light evenly and effectively. The inverse square distance falloff in light intensity results in too many really bright areas and too much under-illuminated space. He prefers lighting with off-camera flash and also mostly tries to "pocket" scenes of limited size, rather than trying to capture the large underground vistas that are so tempting. Caves tend to be a very high dynamic range environment. Trying to solve the problem by cranking the ISO up just makes things worse, since dynamic range drops with increased ISO. Gene's suggestion to shoot raw and bring up the less exposed areas in post processing is a good one, if your camera has suitably wide dynamic range.

Cave lighting used to be a problem because it was low-Kelvin incandescent, many times around 2600 or 2800K. Now it is a problem because LED lighting is becoming more popular, and it is impossible to predict the color temperature of the light...sometimes around 4000K, sometimes closer to 3000K. Sometimes this is the result of random choice, sometimes lighting is selected to avoid promoting growth of undesirable molds and fungi, sometimes the choice arises for some other reason or from no reason at all. You can find more information from Peter at pjcaver.com, then click on the Shot in the Dark Photography choice. He also offers a training CD called On Three.

The last topic is unpleasant but important. A disease called White Nose Fungus is decimating the population of bats living in caves in the US. It has destroyed probably 90% of the population of the bats that formerly lived in Luray Cavern. Be prepared to have any camera equipment you take into the cave thoroughly cleaned before you are allowed to enter. Also be prepared to have that equipment cleaned any time you take it into a subsequent cavern after taking it into Luray. And please be honest each time you are asked about your camera's cave history. The entire US population of hibernating bat species is threatened by this disease.

JRiepe Loc: Southern Illinois

Luray Caverns is the most beautiful cave I've been in. When I visited Seneca Caverns in West Va. I didn't take take my camera inside the cave deciding to use my phone instead and this is one of the shots I got.

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fourpar Loc: Central Florida

Thanks for the in depth reply. Great info that I hope to take advantage of.
Thanks also for the info on the bat problems. Never would have thought about that, I'll be happy to clean my hardware any time.
Thanks again,
Bob

fourpar Loc: Central Florida

Very nice. Phones now take some great pictures, and they are getting better every year.

roxiemarty Loc: Florida

These are from Carlsbad Caverns and I go about every 3 years since the 1970's. I have learned to use low ISO, definitely use the tripod, and use an off camera shutter release. I use bulb on my camera alot in the caverns, and the exposure is sometimes a guessing game. I also carry a strong, small flashlight that I can use to light paint and sometimes to aid in focusing my lens. I wish you the best..........it was many years of frustration and trial and error on my part before I started getting photos I was happy with. But I did not have the wonderful people on here to give me advice. Flash will be useless in there, so do not even bother with that.

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billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

18-55. You are going to be in small openings and large caverns. Your best bet is a wide lens.

nimbushopper Loc: Tampa, FL

The wide angle(18-55) will be more useful. It's slower than the 35 but you'll be using a tripod. I would also use an led head lamp, not expensive and gives you both hands free.

ELNikkor

To correct a previous post, at 18mm on APS-C, you will actually be at around the angle of 27mm in FX, (not 35mm). That is plenty wide enough to get in the rooms of Luray. (I never took a tripod in there, partly because I can hand-hold down to 1/8 sec with no shake, and mostly because I have to keep up with my "Hurry up!" wife : ). The 18-55 will be all you need.

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

Why not change lenses? Probably because caverns tend to be drippy! Make sure and aim any crucial openings downward while changing lenses! Most caverna in my experience do not let you use a flash.

Delderby Loc: Derby UK

I have photographed in Spanish caves a few years ago - Nerja and Majorca - I lived close to Nerja and visited several times - tripods not allowed. My most successful photos were taken with a 'standard zoom'. I learnt that finding a ledge, placing my camera on a beanbag, and using a two second shutter delay, made it possible to take sharp pics at slow speeds - at f11 or f16 (I did have an articulated screen on my EVF camera). Use Auto WB. It's not what you've got - it's what you do with it that counts.

bbrown5154 Loc: Baltimore, MD

I would take the fastest lens. While its not completely dark its not daylight either. They have lights on highlighting formations and to be able to walk.
Don't worry about changing lenses if you have to its just damp, its not like Antelope Canyon where blowing sand can be an issue.
I am surprised they allow tripods.
Should be a fun trip.

bbrown5154 Loc: Baltimore, MD

Blair Shaw Jr Loc: Dunnellon,Florida

I would choose the 18-55 mm lens. I shot there 50 years ago and it's relatively an easy shoot with safe places to shoot from and your distance to subject is close enough that telephotos are overkill. It is damp and cool but I never got wet while there and the lighting is fair to poor....it's a cave !

The tripod will slow you down....a mono pod might be a better choice or a pistol grip instead. I used the pistol grip myself....worked fine. I was using a 35mm film cameras of course and modern digital models will certainly preform much better than my older units did back then.

You should be able to change any lens without fear of ruining your gear but if I were to do it over again, I would choose a good bridge camera with all the zoom capabilities they provide for those really tight & distant spots ,within the caverns that would,otherwise, not be achievable with a fixed focal length.

I guess they still have a Gift Shop where you can also purchase gems and geodes associated with cavern creations.
..should be a fun day.




Good luck..

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

A good zoom lens is all you need. Well, you need a camera, too.

http://www.ephotozine.com/article/a-shot-in-the-dark---guide-to-cave-photography-4680
http://www.goodearthgraphics.com/showcave/photo.html
http://digital-photography-school.com/14-tips-for-cave-photography
http://www.weatherfriend.com/travel/txcave/cave_photography.htm
http://museumca.org/caves/onli_photo.html
http://www.shutterbug.com/content/cave-photography-color-gear-and-light-painting-underground-style