Andy Davies

I am in the same position in trying to choose video lights. You can also add into the mix - Keldan lights which are the standard for BBC underwater filming (they used to use Kowalski). Can also operate out of the water. - Light and Motion Sola 8000 - Seastar LED 5000 and LED 15000 from HDVSeatek

The Toslink connectors do not connect to the optical port on the guns. Is the solution to buy Sea and Sea caps and strip the Toslink connector fit the cable into them?

I have Sea and Sea YS-D1 strobes and have bought an Inon double hole bush to go in the optical bulkhead on an Aquatica D810 Housing. How do the Toslink cables connect side by side with the Inon bush? Many thanks Andy

Lightly used Aquatica D200 aluminium housing in excellent condition with no marks plus spare O ring sets. Brand new Nikonos bulkhead connector. £750 ono plus postage. Nikon D200 camera body (inc charger and boxed) in mint condition. Ideal for entry into underwater photography. £190 plus postage. Contact Andy on 01269 871871 or 07977 562321.

I'll do some test shots to see how much the diffraction will degrade the image. I've been reading on the web about this and some people feel that it is not a big deal in practice. External microphone sounds like a good idea!!

I was speaking with Jean from Aquatica at LIDS and he pointed out this problem. I've only used the 14-24 with a DX sensor so far but I expect the edge sharpness will be lacking with the D800 in FX mode.

Thanks Don. I cannot see why my original link did not work. I will be trying the 14-24 when Aquatica produce the housing and this will, hopefully, produce outstanding results for stills and video. I have mentioned to Jean about the importance of being able to connect an external recorder to capture the clean HDMI output.

I've just written about my first impressions of the Nikon D800 and how I initially set it up here http://www.andydavies.info/​pages/news.html You can download full resolution JPEGS of the sample images. Some of them are shot with the 60mm. I will be at LIDS this weekend and will meet up with Jean of Aquatica to discuss their new housing. Andy

I'm still waiting, hoping and praying for Nikon to bring out a D700 type vDSLR but this doesn't appear to be happening until some time in 2011!! I could do so much above and below water with it! Andy Davies

Unfortunately, there is no dive shop for a couple of hundred miles from where she is based. The question I posed on her behalf was not "a low cost" solution. It was a "cost effective" solution. So this is where a forum like Wetpixel is invaluable. A place where we can discuss the pros and cons of different options. Colour temperature, beam quality, coverage, lumen output etc are all important factors that need to be understoood before a purchase. I have tried a pair of very warm lights and it was a nightmare trying to colour balance them with ambient. Andy

I've had a reply from Kevin Lackey at Intova saying that the Super Novas are 6000-7000K. Regards Andy

The problem with the Intova is, as HDVdiver pointed out, the colour temp is very high making them only good for macro where they are the only light source ie. no ambient. Andy

Many thanks for the feedback. What would people recommend as the best option lights when the budget is tight? Could be either HID or LED. Andy

Hi A friend wants to buy some lights to work with a Sony FX1 in a Gates housing with the standard dome port to be used in the UK for wildlife shooting in relatively shallow water (<20m). Cost is an issue. What do people think of the Darkbuster LED - 12 and the Intova Super Novas. Both have been mentioned in previous threads. Are either (or both) a worthwhile option? Thanks Andy Davies

The camera attaches to the trinocular tube without having a camera lens attached. You will need a photo eyepiece such as those made by Olympus which fits into the trinocular tube. The camera height is then adjusted to give you the best field of view. Hope this helps Andy Davies