Underwater Photography and Videography, News, Forums, Trips, Photo Contests :: Wetpixel.com

As promised, Wetpixel's in-depth review of the new Nikon D800 has started. We took delivery of a housing last Thursday, and have have dived it Friday and Saturday. As was somewhat to be expected, the D800 seems to have an amazing tonal range, and the recovery of detail in any shadows seems amazing. The testing will be going on over the next few weeks, with a full report hopefully here on the front page by the end of May.

In the meantime, images taken during the testing process are being published in the forum, please feel free to add you comments, and also any suggestions you might have for specific points for review.

Wetpixel Publisher, Eric Cheng, will be speaking tonight (Friday 11 May) at the monthly Northern California Underwater Photographic Society (NCUPS) meeting. He will present a "double dose" of goodness (!) with the first half of his talk devoted to Lytro, and during the second half, will be regaling the audience with tales from the Wetpixel Ultimate Indonesia trips from earlier this year.

The talks will start at 7.15 and will be held at New Vision United Methodist Church (Gymnasium), 450 Chadbourne Avenue, Millbrae.

Adobe has posted a new release candidate (RC) version of Camera Raw on Adobe Labs. Version 7.1 adds new Defringe controls to help address chromatic aberration. The new option is available as part of the Lens Correction panel. In addition, it can now read 16-bit, 24-bit, and 32-bit HDR files in TIFF and DNG formats. Support has been added for the following cameras: Canon EOS 1D X, Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Canon EOS 60Da, Canon PowerShot G1 X, Fuji FinePix F505EXR, Fuji FinePix F605EXR, Fuji FinePix F770EXR, Fuji FinePix F775EXR, Fuji FinePix HS30EXR, Fuji FinePix HS33EXR, Nikon D4, Nikon D800, Nikon D800E, Olympus OM-D E-M5, Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5, Pentax K-01, RICOH LENS A16 24-85mm F3.5-5.5, Samsung NX20, Samsung NX210, Samsung NX1000, Sony Alpha NEX-VG20 and Sony SLT-A57.

The big news is that 7.1 RC has added support for the Tokina AT-X 107 AF DX Fish-Eye 10-17mm f/3.5-4.5 in Canon and Nikon versions and both AF and AF-S versions on the Nikon Micro-Nikkor 60mm f/2.8D. It is available as a free download on Adobe Labs.

Wetpixel Senior Moderator Luiz Rocha has co- authored a paper published in the journal Fish and Fisheries. The paper reports on a study carried out as a part of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Species Survival Commission, and involved a team of scientists spending the past ten years assessing the status of 163 grouper species worldwide. They report that 20 species (12%) are at risk of extinction if current overfishing trends continue, and an additional 22 species (13%) are Near Threatened. The team estimated that at least 90,000,000 groupers were captured in 2009. This represents more than 275,000 metric tones of fish, an increase of 25% from 1999, and 1600% greater than 1950 figures. These numbers are considered unsustainable as they are slow to reach sexual maturity and are easily fished when in breeding aggregations. (Photo: Luiz Rocha)

Wetpixel Editor Adam Hanlon reviews the Nauticam NA-DP4 housing with the SmallHD DP4 monitor. External monitors are a fantastic tool for those who shoot video on SLRs. The review that follows is not a comparative review, as Adam has only used the Nauticam/SmallHD version, but does provide his experiences with the unit, and some ideas that may be applicable to others. Given that each new camera seems to have improved video capabilities compared to its forebears, it is likely that external monitors will be as essential to underwater image makers as strobes are to still shooters now.

NASA has published a stunning van Gogh "inspired" timelapse visualization of ocean surface currents around the world from June 2005 through December 2007 on YouTube. This visualization was produced using a computational model called Estimating the Circulation and Climate of the Ocean, Phase II (ECCO2). This attempts to model the oceans and sea ice to increasingly accurate resolutions that begin to allow modeling of ocean eddies and other narrow-current systems which transport heat and carbon in the oceans. Although it simulates ocean flows at all depths, this visualization shows only the surface currents.

Dpreview.com has published an in-depth review of the Nikon D800. and D800e. The 29 page article discusses the features of the new camera, and compares them to both the preceding Nikon models and the new Canon 5D MkIII. It also features large numbers of test shots using the new cameras. Their conclusion shows that the folks at dpreview.com are very impressed with the new camera and they award it their "Gold Award". They do strike a cautionary note though:

".....if you're truly after 36MP performance, be prepared to do some work. Flawless technique, fast shutter speeds and top-shelf equipment (particularly lenses and a tripod) along with a low ISO are requirements not options."

Wetpixel has taken delivery of a D800 and the housing is awaiting customs clearance as we write. It should be "wet" in the next day or so, when we will start to put it through its underwater paces. The results will be posted both here and in the forums, so please keep checking back for updates.

Due to late cancellations, we now have two spaces available for the Wetpixel Ultimate Whale Sharks expedition. The trip is without doubt the best opportunity you will have to see large aggregations of whale sharks, with sightings last year of groups of over 300. The spaces are both in the first week of the trip, from 30 July to 5 August, and is based at Isla Mujeres, Cancun. Mexico. Wetpixel Associate Editor Alex Mustard will be leading the trip.

This trip has been sold out for some time, so we expect that these spaces will fill very quickly. Please contact Dan Baldocchi very soon for more information or to book.

Issue 48 of X-Ray Magazine is now available to download. The May 2012 edition features articles about Komodo Island by Wetpixel Moderator Abi Smigel Mullens and Andrey Bizyukin, Frank Wirth writes about the hunting strategies of the Orcas of Valdes and Andy Murch talks about the sharks of French Polynesia.

In addition, Nuno Sá shares his experiences of Madeira, Peter Symes on Island Biogeography and Lawson Wood shares hints and tricks for underwater photography at night.

Renowned underwater photographer and videographer Norbert Wu gives his thoughts about the Atlantis MKI video light system. He notes that underwater filmmakers have longed for a lightweight, portable lighting solution that has a powerful, wide beam. He compares the lights to the Light and Motion SOLA 2000 lights and gives his thoughts on the use of video lights in shallow water and under bright conditions.

Wetpixel is also currently reviewing the Keldan LUNA 4V and Mangrove VC-4L6 video lights and will publish a comprehensive review soon.