11 replies to this topic

[f10ab1b]

hi,

i am new to this forum and new to using digital underwater, but i am not new to digital. i got my first digicam in 1999, and currently have a d60 and a 1ds. i have been wanting to take a digital camera underwater since i got my d30 in the fall of 2000, but my main interests in the water are larger, faster moving subjects (whales, dolphins, seals, people, etc...). the d30 and d60 focusing systems are pretty pathetic for moving subjects in moderate to low light situations, so i have been hesitent to make the move.

i have followed eric's reports on wetpixel when he started using his uk germany housing with his d30, and then his d60. i see that he has now switched to the sea & sea housing. his reports have been helpful and informative, but i need to know even more i am taking 2 dive trips this summer (1 in may & 1 in august). i would love to start using digital underwater on these trips. so, i am looking for any input any of you who have canon uw dslr experience might be able to give me.

-has anyone had any experiences (good or bad) using a d60 uw photographing larger moving subjects?

-eric ( and anyone else who has done the same), what made you decide to move from the ukgermany housing to the sea & sea? easier to use? better port optics?

-about a year ago i thought i had read that uk germany was making housings for canon 1d cameras, but now i can't find any info. has anyone here seen one or know anything about it?

-i've heard that ikelite will make custom housings. i was thinking that might be an option for my 1ds. have any of you used ikelite housings? good or bad experiences? have any of you had a custom ikelite housing?

-does anyone have any info about whether any of the manufacturers who are talking about 1ds housings might actually be selling them by may?

-there seem to be so many d100 housings these days. should i sell my d60 and get a d100? i hate to do it... i have alot of canon glass... any canon users ever tried the d100 underwater? or above?

-i have never used a housed camera underwater... i have always used nikonos film cameras. i'm curious about flash options for use with housed cameras. are nikonos ttl strobes (sb104 & sb105) compatible with the nikon d100 in a housing? what about with a canon d60 in a housing (i would think not)? i saw a picture of eric's uk germany rig with a pair of ikelite strobes. eric (or anybody who knows), how do you use those strobes with the d30/d60? i assume ttl is not an option due to the d30/60 being ettl, so is the only option manual exposure and manually controlling the output of the strobes?

-has anyone used a canon 1d or 1ds in any sort of housing underwater? if so, what housing, and how did you like it?

sorry for so many questions! many thanks in advance to anyone who can help point this uw digital newbie in the right direction. i haven't used film on land in over 3 years, and i really, really want to be able to stop using it underwater (preferably with my 1ds). eric's site has really been helpful and a great place to lurk and learn. i hope that by the end of the year i might have some underwater digital experience too so that i can contribute something useful instead of just lurking.

thanks!
corey

[scorpio_fish]

-has anyone had any experiences (good or bad) using a d60 uw photographing larger moving subjects?

Check out Jim Watt's site I think he does alright with the D60

-about a year ago i thought i had read that uk germany was making housings for canon 1d cameras, but now i can't find any info. has anyone here seen one or know anything about it?

Can't help you there.

-i've heard that ikelite will make custom housings. i was thinking that might be an option for my 1ds. have any of you used ikelite housings? good or bad experiences? have any of you had a custom ikelite housing?

I've used an Ike housing in the past. Nothing bad. A little bulkier than custom housings. E-mail to see about a custom housing. They are very responsive.

-does anyone have any info about whether any of the manufacturers who are talking about 1ds housings might actually be selling them by may?

I doubt anyone will have a 1Ds housing by May. It's taken 6-9 months for the D100 housings to show up. Seacam has anounced they intend to make one.

-there seem to be so many d100 housings these days. should i sell my d60 and get a d100? i hate to do it... i have alot of canon glass... any canon users ever tried the d100 underwater? or above?

Not a good move. I'm a D100 owner with Nikon glass. Too costly to switch. You would have to add Nikon glass and keep your Canon glass for the 1Ds. What's worse, you would have to learn two languages to understand what kind of glass you owned (e.g. VR=IS)

-i have never used a housed camera underwater... i have always used nikonos film cameras. i'm curious about flash options for use with housed cameras. are nikonos ttl strobes (sb104 & sb105) compatible with the nikon d100 in a housing? what about with a canon d60 in a housing (i would think not)? i saw a picture of eric's uk germany rig with a pair of ikelite strobes. eric (or anybody who knows), how do you use those strobes with the d30/d60? i assume ttl is not an option due to the d30/60 being ettl, so is the only option manual exposure and manually controlling the output of the strobes?

Neither Canon or Nikon will work your strobes in TTL. You can still use your strobes, but in manual mode. You don't have to shoot manual exposure, just manual flash output.

-has anyone used a canon 1d or 1ds in any sort of housing underwater? if so, what housing, and how did you like it?

I don't know of any housings for this camera yet, not even prototypes. I could be wrong.

With two trips planned this year, why not just house the D60 and be done with it? It's plenty good enough.

[wetpixel]

Everyone I've talked to about using the 1Ds for wide-angle shooting agrees that the edges of the images are not acceptable. Bob states that you have to cut off at least 15% to get a usable image, and Jim Watt agrees. (this is a well known problem with the 1Ds).

The 1Ds should be excellent for land-based portraiture, or macro work underwater, but it seems that it's not usable for wide angle.

Don't switch camps just for one specific body. I hate to read about people who switch from brand A to brand B because one side comes out with a body six months earlier than the other. That's just ridiculous!

Also, at some point it becomes a financial impossibility.

As far as housings go, you can't go wrong with the UK Germany or Sea & Sea setup. They each have strengths and weaknesses (cost, size, expandability, access to parts, etc.). Do a search here on the forums -- there's a lot of information here.

[james]

If I'm not mistaken, I think Eric has an excellent D60 housing and ports for sale in the Classifieds forum. I saw it at thanksgiving ( the UK germany) and it is very small and well made.

Cheers
James

[wetpixel]

It's really strange -- I've gotten countless worried e-mails from pros and amateurs alike wondering why I switched to the Sea & Sea. I'm going to have to be more careful, in the future!

[Simon K.]

I understand, that both housings are very good...

...but to clarify it once and for all:

On what facts was your deccission to go from UK Germany to Sea&Sea based on.?
What was the key point?

Simon

[wetpixel]

I understand, that both housings are very good...

...but to clarify it once and for all:

On what facts was your deccission to go from UK Germany to Sea&Sea based on.?
What was the key point

I posted this on another thread, but here it is again:

Sea & Sea:
1) larger - more bulky
2) better ergonomics, possibly better support in the U.S.
3) expandable (extra bulkheads)
4) housing and macro ports have hotshoe
5) cheaper

UK Germany:
1) beautiful machined aluminum
2) very small + easier to pack
3) access to the same set of buttons
4) newer iterations have hotshoe on top
5) $$$ (unless you are buying it used.

My decision to switch to Sea & Sea was motivated by:
1) having a friend who is a rep.
2) the ravings of jim watt
3) the desire to try another housing

in other words: no real reason.

[f10ab1b]

hey,

i'd like to thank all of you that have responded. sorry my post was so lengthy! i've been reading the info on eric's site for quite a while, but i only discovered the forums this month (duh!). i usually try to research a forum before i post any repetitive questions, but i'm embarrassed to say that i had only been searching on the digital slr forum (which i hadn't realized was so new).

after reading eric's post, i searched the whole site and found a wealth of info in other forums (lighting, consumer digicams, etc...). sorry to make you repeat yourselves! i'm still not sure what i'm gonna do, but i have a bunch more forum posts to catch up on

thanks again for your replies, and i'll let you know what i end up doing (or i'll bug ya with more questions).

corey

[chrisg]

Everyone I've talked to about using the 1Ds for wide-angle shooting agrees that the edges of the images are not acceptable.  Bob states that you have to cut off at least 15% to get a usable image, and Jim Watt agrees. (this is a well known problem with the 1Ds).

The 1Ds should be excellent for land-based portraiture, or macro work underwater, but it seems that it's not usable for wide angle.

Don't switch camps just for one specific body.  I hate to read about people who switch from brand A to brand B because one side comes out with a body six months earlier than the other.  That's just ridiculous!

Also, at some point it becomes a financial impossibility.

As far as housings go, you can't go wrong with the UK Germany or Sea & Sea setup.  They each have strengths and weaknesses (cost, size, expandability, access to parts, etc.).  Do a search here on the forums -- there's a lot of information here.

Whats the problem at the edges for 1ds? I haven't seen any discussion of it on land photo sites, unless they're referring to chromatic aberration.

[Simon K.]

Bob: Can you maybe post an image that illustrates the problem with the 1ds?

Bye Simon

[murderone]

Have just finished 14 days shooting sharks in Bahamas at Sturat Cove's facility. Picture quality was very good after minor adjustments with photoshop elements. Used 50 mm Macro lens and was able to shot other subjects. Wide angle did not seem necessay. Automatic white balance slightly overexposed, not a problem if images photoshoped with cheap elements.

[f10ab1b]

murderone...
were you using a d60 or a 1d or a 1ds?