In development · built with the diving community · Mac with Apple Silicon
New: Strobe & Depth New: Map & Log
Water swallows light — first the reds, then the yellows. DepthLight brings it back. It is software made only for underwater photography, and it is being built together with the people who use it: divers, snorkelers and underwater photographers.
One click gives you a great starting point. From there, you’re in control — every detail can be fine-tuned.
Original
DepthLight
Look uplikely
Green sea turtle
Chelonia mydas
up to 1.2 m shell0–40 mSeagrass meadows and reefs
Rounded head with one pair of scales between the eyes; adults graze seagrass.
Do not touch, keep its path to the surface clear.
Recognized by the app on this photo · own model, on-device
Dive data sample log
Marsa Alam · Egypt
Sep 22, 20267:23 AMDive 3
14.2 mMax depth
8.6 mAt this photo
52 minDive time
28 °CWater
OM System TG-71/200 s · f/3.5 · ISO 400
Camera data from the photo, dive data from a sample log. Import your dive computer and DepthLight matches every photo to its depth, time and temperature.
The features
Every topic has its own page: what it does, how it works, the details for pros, and what changed recently.
Auto correctionOne click as a starting point, natural by default
New · TestStrobe & DepthSet your strobe after the dive
NewSmart PointOne click, DepthLight finds the area
NewBlack & WhiteDark water, bright subject
BackscatterFloating particles removed
In trainingDenoiseOwn network, in training
Masks & Pro toolsMasks, Pro mode, your own layout
Built with the community
I’m a software developer and an underwater photographer. DepthLight started from one simple wish: an app that understands water — not a general photo editor with an underwater preset bolted on.
The best underwater app can’t be built alone in a room. Every camera, every kind of water, every depth and every light situation behaves differently. That is why the community is at the heart of DepthLight: the photos you share make the automatic correction, the species recognition and the denoise better for everyone — and your wishes decide what gets built next.
The goal is a professional tool that lasts — built with care, not to squeeze money out of you every month.
Unedited photos straight from the camera, RAW or JPEG — easy ones and difficult ones. Upload them directly to Dropbox — no account needed, nobody else sees your files.
What slows you down after a dive? What do you wish an app could do? Every idea is read and answered.
Ideas go onto the public roadmap. The community votes on what comes next, and beta testers try new features first.
Photos are used only to test and improve DepthLight, and you get the edited results back. They are never passed on. A photo is only shown as an example if you explicitly agree — always with your credit.
The features
Everything you see is the real app on a Mac, with real photos from Marsa Alam and the Maldives. Each feature shows its current status, so you always know what’s ready and what’s still being built.
Alpha Color & light
DepthLight analyses every photo on its own: how much red the water swallowed, where the water is and what is the subject. It brings the colors back without turning blue water purple or sand orange, and leaves good photos almost untouched. The one click is where you start, every slider stays yours.
Drag the sliders. Every result is DepthLight Auto with default settings — no presets, no masks, no manual adjustments.
New · Test Strobe & Depth
Strobe too weak, or pointed the wrong way? DepthLight now understands how far away every part of your photo is, and lets you place light where it belongs, after the dive.
Original
Virtual Strobe
Alpha Color & light
Start with a few clear cards — strength, brightness, white balance, colors. When you want more, switch to Pro: tone curve, color mixer, color grading, clarity, texture, dehaze, lens corrections and sharpening. Every step appears in a list you can switch on and off. Nothing is ever destructive: your original file is never touched.
Alpha Backscatter
Sand, plankton and tiny particles light up in front of the lens — especially with a strobe or in murky water. DepthLight finds these spots and removes them, but only in open water: fish, corals and sand keep every detail. The app decides on its own how strongly to remove them, and you can always adjust it with one slider.
Particles marked
Removed
Alpha Masks & local edits
Select the subject, the water, a diver, an animal or a face with one click — or paint, draw gradients and pick colors. Quick actions do the typical underwater jobs for you: calm the water, restore red on the subject, darken the background, blur it without halos.
Alpha Library
Browse your folders like in the Finder — nothing is imported or copied. Photos are grouped into dives automatically, sorted by scene and by the species you saw. And after a long dive day, DepthLight suggests the best shots of every dive: sharp, well exposed, nicely framed, no cut-off fins, no closed eyes.
New · Alpha DiveMap
Where was that turtle again? DepthLight puts your dives on a map: with your best photos, the species you saw and your dive log, from the depth curve to the water temperature.
Alpha Dive-data overlay
Show the dive data right on the photo — for Instagram, prints or your logbook. Choose what to show (site, date, depth at the photo, max depth, time, temperature, GPS, camera, dive computer, depth profile) and pick one of six styles.
Alpha · improving Critter recognition
A recognition model trained on reef life names the animals in your photos — 787 species of fish, corals, turtles, rays, sharks, nudibranchs and more. Every animal in the frame is identified on its own, and each species comes with a short profile: size, depth, habitat, and what to watch out for.
Alpha Export & Lightroom
Export in the format you need, from JPEG to a linear 16-bit DNG, in social formats or as a before/after clip. If you work with Lightroom Classic, DepthLight fits in as the underwater step and hands the photo back. Your metadata stays with the photo.
Alpha · in training Denoise
Deep water, little light, high ISO: grain is part of underwater photography. DepthLight has its own denoise network, trained specifically for underwater scenes — it should remove the noise and keep the structure of corals, scales and skin. It runs on your Mac, and you decide how strong it is.
The network is still in training. Example images will follow as soon as the results are convincing — noisy photos from the community are especially valuable here.
Latest
What’s next
The roadmap is public. These are the topics on the table right now — tell us what matters most to you.
Measuring the automatic correction against reference edits, so that every photo gets better — never worse.
A new recognition model, more species, better results on small animals and schools of fish.
The denoise network keeps training, followed by careful sharpening for scales, corals and skin.
Spot suggestions from the community, place names and regions that are still missing — like the Addu Atoll.
The same correction on the go, right after the dive.
Something missing? That’s exactly what this page is for. Send it.
Vote on what comes next See the full roadmap →
This page grows with the project. If the community wants it, it will be updated regularly with what’s new — and with news by email for everyone who would like that.
Join in
Send photos, share ideas, or apply as a beta tester. The first beta round with ten testers is planned to start in December 2026 at the earliest — tell me your camera and the kind of diving you do.
or write to elementsmagics@gmail.com
