froop

I've registered a domain name that suits an underwater photography forum, and am in the process of setting up a server with forum software. If wetpixel does cease to exist, I think trying to re-use the name would come with way too many issues.

(much yay for USB-C. So much better in every way compared to micro usb)

I have no first hand involvement in this, and don't know Adam any more than what I have read his posts on WetPixel and seen his videos on YouTube. Reading that article and Adam's responses, regardless of the actual events, it speaks volumes of his character if he cannot even acknowledge the hardships - perceived or real, monetary or emotional - that he has caused others - intended or not. Let alone make any apologies for his actions. Instead all he offers is excuses and attempted justification. This is not the reaction or response of anyone that I care to hold with any regard or respect.

There's nothing in that article that isn't already known from the threads on the forum - actually, the article is just a summary of quotes and stories that have already been posted here. I'm not sure how you can describe blatant fraud as a "sad and sorry tale".

Setting up a forum isn't the hard part, and it's generally pretty cheap - in the vicinity of a couple hundred bucks a year if you know what you're doing. I'm actually setting one up at the moment for shits and giggles, and would be great if it actually gets used -- but the tricky part is not the setup, or the cost, or the hosting -- it's building (or in this case, migrating) the community.

When I started out I was so focused on getting a setup that would with TTL. Which was extremely challenging considering that I used to shoot Pentax and now Fujifilm. I could've made life so much easier by choosing Sony or Nikon . But after spending a lot of time researching and then finding and purchasing components that would work for me, I never actually use TTL. Ever.

You might want to post your photos as jpg instead of heic so people can actually view them easily

The single most important thing about deciding how much to tip is what country you're in. In Australia where I live, an appropriate amount is $0.

iNaturalist.org

I'm pretty sure they're spoken for. But if not, I'll split with you.

Hi chipdiver, I'd love to grab one.. Not your ideal. And I'm in Australia. Also not your ideal! But if there's someone else who just wants one I'm sure we could figure something out

I started 30+ years ago with a jacket, then to a back inflate (which I still have) and now a wing. Personally I see no reason to ever use a jacket or back inflate, other than when I'm helping OW courses and there's benefit to having the same gear as OW students. If a wing is not allowing you roll along your body axis, that's a pretty clear sign that you're over weighted, and you have too much air in your wing to compensate. For regular diving and photography, the benefit of a harness and wing is that I have nothing cluttering up the front of my torso except for a D-ring on each shoulder strap. That's freedom and comfort that a back-inflate gives to a certain extent, and that no jacket can. I have a stainless steel plate that I'll use with my doubles. If I want to use a single tank, same plate and harness, just change to a smaller wing and use a SS single-tank adapter. When I travel, I pack my carbon fibre plate and single tank adapter, and the same single wing as my cold water kit. Means I'm diving with subtle variations of the same gear no matter what type of diving I do. But as @Draq said, it's a personal decision to suit your own needs and comfort. The fact that there are literally dozens of each type available on the market is testament to that.

https://www.instagram.com/inon_torii_san

Thanks for the offer, but I'd rather get a S-TTL strobe. I've never used TTL, and I am unlikely ever to use it, but for the type of photography my partner wants it for, I'd rather have the option than not. That's why the YS-01 and MF-2 are on my list, and not the YS-03 or MF-1.

For my main rig (Fujifilm X-T3 in a Nauticam housing) I have a couple of Z240s, plus two Kraken video lights - handy for video on my DSLR or the GoPro mounted to the cold shoe. But I've also now got hold of a second hand TG6 with the PT-059 housing, with no other accessories. I'd like to set it up as a small but somewhat capable rig, either for me when I don't want to take my real kit, or for my partner who's more a happy snapper memory maker than keen photographer. So looking for opinions for a pair of strobes. I'm thinking, in order of preference (unless convinced otherwise) of Inon S2000 (or wait for the S220?), Sea & Sea YS-01, or Backscatter Mini 2.

Has been a while since I've posted any pics here on wetpixel, so here's a sampling of a local(ish) shore dive from Sunday night. A toasty 12ºC in the water! Fujifilm XF-80mm f/2.8 macro 2x Inon Z-240 2x Kraken 3500S+ (Focus lights and GoPro video lights)

Nanuk cases weren't on my radar at all - haven't come across them much at all. Maybe just not common in Australia? Case choice really came down to weight and dimensions. The Pelican 1610 is a touch too small, and not quite deep enough hold my housing or float arms upright. Plus not being part of the Air range, weighs a bit more that the 1637 and the HPRC. The Pelican 1637 is a similar volume and same linear length as the HPRC 2760, but its deeper and shorter, whereas the HPRC is shallower and longer. This gave me less depth, but more area to work with. The depth of the HPRC was perfect for my housing and also to fit my float arms vertically. Getting the depth right meant more efficient use of the three dimension space

First thing I did was set up a tripod looking straight down, then took photos of each piece of equipment, getting pics showing the front, side and top of each piece. Then brought them into a photo editor, and scaled them to the right size. Created notes about my preference on how to store them, or how many (eg, multiple arms, clamps, strobes, etc), and created a PDF with all items scaled and measurements marked. Then placed them all how I thought they could fit onto the right sized template. Then sent the place a PDF of everything, got a quote, then actually left all the gear with them. They double checked all my measurements, and designed it all up in CAD, then cut it all out in a throw-away cheap foam to check tolerances, adjusted CAD and then cut it for real.

https://giggear.com.au/

Heading off to Beqa Lagoon Resort in Fiji this weekend, and picked up my equipment case with new CNC cut foam inserts just in time! The open square areas I'll use for assorted small stuff like strobe cables, spare orings, grease, chargers etc. The case is a HPRC 2760, which is exactly 158 linear cm (62 linear inches) so is as big as a checked bag can get with most airlines before being considered over size. By the time I add in the extras, it'll probably end up around 23-25kg, which falls under most (but not all) airline international check bag weights. Much better than the previous effort from a different supplier, who found it too hard to do a two-layer fit out:

To be honest I just forgot - From when I was looking, I only really recall the Nauticam as being the only viable option for me. Looking again, I may have got my wires crossed - the Subal IMO is way overpriced for what appears to be a rather unergonomic housing. The Ikelite is a little better, but for me it feels like Nauticam started out thinking where the external controls should be and how they should work, and then figuring out how to transfer the control the camera body. Whereas all the others are have been designed by starting with the camera controls, and then thinking about the simplest way to transfer them to the housing - adding ergonomics if it seemed practical. You could argue that has resulted in much simpler internals in the Ikelite, and made the Nauticam overly complex and more difficult to service, but for me its worth it.

Of the two that @msdeedee .. The $2200 one with the dome appears to be good value. The dome, zoom ring and exenstion for the 10-24 will set you back well over $2k new. And another $1k if you don't already have the 10-24mm The more expensive ($2500) one comes with no ports, so you'll need to buy them separately. See my thread ( https://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?/topic/69061-nauticam-wwl-c-vs-180mm-dome ) about the 15-45mm and the WWL-C vs the 10-24 and 180mm dome. Consensus is that the 15-45 w/ WWL-C is a better combination, but assuming that $2,200 housing with dome is in good condition, and you already have the 10-24mm it's probably your cheapest path to taking your XT-3 underwater.

I would suggest you take a look at DaVinci Resolve over Premier or Final Cut. It's a production quality suite that started life as a color grading tool, but now competes (or outdoes) both PP and FCP in editing, VFX and SFX. The free version is limited to 4k, does not utilise GPU as much the the paid version, and does not unlock a lot of the fancy FX. If you want any of that stuff, the paid version is US$295 and includes upgrades for life.

I'm not sure about the newer versions, but with the old 45º view finders (33205 for mirrorless, 33203 for DSLR) the actual viewfinders are identical, with the only difference being the length of the mount through the housing. A conversion from one to the other is a simply changeover of the mount piece. My NA-XT3 housing, which is actually a mirrorless camera, requires the DSLR viewfinder. This is from Nauticam:

Having gone through this same process around 12 months ago, pretty much your only "real" options are Nauticam or Subal. I don't know what their availability is like new, and you're going to have to be pretty lucky to find a second hand one. You can keep an eye on https://www.uwcamerastore.com/gebruikt-demo I found a second hand Nauticam NA-XT3 there, which I have been extremely happy with.