Tio Loco

Decisions, decisions.... just a note about the 128MB Smartmedia issue. In the first year that I had my 3030, Smartmedia cards doubled in capacity from 64MB to 128MB. Toshiba is expecting to produce a 2GB Smartmedia card this year (http://www.toshiba.com/taec/press/to-177.shtml) so I'm not sure that is an issue. AdobeDavid is right, it's very uncommon to fill a 128MB card on one dive. As for focus, I actually get very few out of focus shots. With a little practice you can learn to overcome the shutter lag and learn to 'lead' your subjects. Richard

Just a couple of thoughts.... The original Tetras had the button icons painted on, and they did wear off. For the 4040 version (and conversions) the icons on the buttons are laser engraved. If you bought your housing and a 3030 at DEMA, that would have been DEMA 2000, it is definitely a candidate for service at this point anyway. You say the upgrade is expensive... how much is expensive? Without further inflaming the Inon lens issue, I agree with Kasey, it's the consumer's choice to buy them or not. The fact remains that you cannot buy the lens from Inon and use it on this housing without modification. Richard

How many shots on the housing? My shutter and zoom were both very stiff on the Tetra 'til about 1000 exposures, then they loosened to a very comfortable state. Richard

The shark is outstanding... did you see hammerheads at all? Richard

Hi Andy, I'll try to answer some of you questions. I use 1600mAh batteries and have never run them down on a single dive, and I think the consensus here is that they will last thru two dives with no probem. I'm admittedly conservative, and change batteries after dive, just to be safe. Sure as I didn't, I'd see a whale shark or something just as the batteries died. The camera will focus down to 8" in macro mode. I don't think you'll fill the frame with a 2" subject, more like 4". Since I use a 3030, storage capacity will be different, but shooting SHQ I can get about 80 shots on a 128MB card. Yes, it's hard to see the lcd in shallow bright water, but that applies to all digicams as far as I know. Also, don't count on being able to determin sharp focus with the lcd. It's just to small, and almost everything will look to be in focus. Hope this helps. Richard

Not a comment on the lens, but I just heard that Epoque USA is history. Evidently they will still operate in Japan (don't know about the UK), but this does not bode well for those here that bought Epoque strobes etc. Richard

I'm out of town, and my Titan is waiting for my return, so I haven't laid hands on it yet, but my understanding is that you do need to turn off the IR. 1. It does not function to aid the autofocus while in the housing. 2. The camera/strobe controls in the handles communicate with the housing via IR (they are not hard wired), so the camera IR can interfere with that. Can't wait to get home! Richard

Actually, this is something that I've been looking at all week. First we need to clarify that raw is not tiff. For the Olympus E-20, raw files are 10MB, whereas TIFF files are like 17MB. This means that my microdrive holds over 100 raw shots. For the E-20, write time is 17 seconds for a raw file. For most situations, I consider that acceptable.. the buffer holds three before you have to wait to for a write to complete. Raw files are 16bit color, with no color balance or other processing done by the camera. There is a rather unique raw converter available at http://www.bibblelabs.com Looks like it currently supports the d30 so I suspect D60 support is in the pipeline.

I used them in my Ike 50s, and most recently in a pair of YS-90DXs with no problem at all. I have never noticed any internal pressurization when I open the battery compartment, and I generally change batteries after each dive. Richard

Found this interesting white paper about resampling images: http://www.dl-c.com/Resampling.pdf Richard

Well, we all have products that we like and a quick tour of this forum will make that evident. You are correct that I like L&M products, I think they are excellent, but I try not to get in anybody's face about it And, no, I can't explain your claim, but maybe someone from L&M can jump on here and explain it for you... I also do not know if the wetmate lenses are the same for the Tetra and Titan, but I'll try to find out. I can confirm that the retail prices for the Titan lenses are: Macro - $500 W/A - $1100 Package - $1500 ... so I can only assume that they are not the same lenses. Richard

Just got word... Titans are done! The first batch ships Monday. Those lucky enough to live in Monterrey get hand deliveries this p.m. Richard

I agree.... super Nudis!

That's a new one on me... why? Richard

You can accoplish the same thing by just crossing your arms like so Richard [Edited on 5-2-2002 by Tio Loco]

You can get three Maha chargers for a lot less than the Ansmann. You have to carry a little more bulk, but not that much. The three chargers and two of the power bricks fit into one of the small Otter boxes. I rigged up a three-sided pigtail so I only take up one outlet on the charging table. Richard

I heard from them yesterday that they have the first run in QC, and hope to be shipping by the end of this week. You're right, camera prices have dropped! If you used a crecit card to purchase your camera, you may be eligible for price protection. I think production delays are the norm for any manufacturer, particularly with a brand new product. The first batch of Tetras was about 30 days late shipping, and I know Ikelite has had product delays on new housings as well. It's the price you pay for being on the bleeding edge! Richard

Based on my Tetra, I think the angled LCD would be a real disadvantage at shallower depths. At depths less than about 30', it's very hard to see the LCD which is oriented at 90 deg. Seems tilting it up into the light would just exacerbate that problem... I can see the concept of swimming, arms extended, slightly downward and having a view of the lcd (aka most video rigs), but that seems a poor trade off for the shallow water glare problem. Richard

In theory at least, the second bulkhead and individual sync cords adds a layer of redundancy in event of a failure somewhere in that chain: bulkhead->cable->strobe Of course the camera->bulkhead link is still the weak link in that theory.... particularly if the bulkheads are daisy-chained. Richard

Excellent work Bob... love the Clownfish! Better get that copyright fixed! Richard

You're welcome Roger! I'm a pricipal in a dive shop that is a L&M dealer... Richard

I'l try to find out about the Wetmate lenses.... re: Smartmedia: http://www.toshiba.com/taec/press/to-177.shtml ..Toshiba plans to produce 2Gb parts in 2002 by stacking two 1Gb dies into a single thin small outline package (TSOP). I read that as a 2GB Smartmedia card this year.:D Richard

Generally, L&M seems to ship pretty close to projections. The original Tetras were about a month late, and that is holding true for the Titans as well. Hard to say about the bulkhead... for the Tetra is was an option... for the Titan, Nikonos bulkheads are included...

I always wondered about that!

James, In all fairness, dpreview has not blocked linking to their site, but has blocked using their bandwidth for unknown purposes. They have no way of knowing if you are using the image on their site to link back to them or as the 'ban image' cites, to sell a product at auction. They are not in the image hosting business. Bandwidth bloat is a concern to all webmasters, and despite what you might see in advertising, there is no such thing as unlimited bandwidth.... just ask Eric.