From above the water the important things to note are head position, a high elbow, relaxed recovery, and where the hand enters the water. I have all of the above except my hand enters too close to my head. I've indicated where it probably should first touch the water.
When observing your stoke from below the crucial thing to look for is body position. To swim streamlined you need to be level. As you can see, my body is parallel to the water surface. To do so I continually remind myself to "lay on my lungs" thanks to Terry Laughlin and his Total Immersion DVD. This helps keep my body well balanced. Also, you may notice my leg kick is a bit wide. I was told it should not exceed the "hole" in the water my body passed through.
Apparently my largest stroke deficiencies are in the catch and pull. In the picture you can see I keep a relatively straight arm. Proper arm position (shown in green) keeps the arm bent in an almost 90 degree bend. This allows you to catch more water while utilizing your stronger lat muscles. To correct this issue I need to concentrate on hinging at my elbow and then keeping that elbow higher during the pull.
Shortly after the analysis I purchased swim paddles to help strengthen my lats. They also help technique by forcing your arms to follow the correct path. Without the wrist strap the paddle will fall off your hand unless you use the good form. So far I enjoy the paddles but I haven't noticed any gains in my swim times.
