easydiver

I've had several dryglove systems and have found the Northern Diver ( http://www.ndiver.com/site/accessories/dryglove_system.html ) to be easy to install, easy to use, with good dexterity (for a dry glove). The ring, like the other systems is bulky. The inner seal is still preserved so if you have a glove failure your suit doesn't flood.

I have the dual lens caddy for my G9, Ikelite housing, & ULCS arms. The lens caddy works well however, the lenses are very finely threaded. I find that they are fairly difficult to thread squarely if I'm wearing my drygloves due to the loss of dexterity. Not too bad if I'm tropical, but you still have to be very careful either attaching them to the caddy or the housing or they will cross thread. I had a S&S before the G9 with 1/4 turn lenses and a caddy. It worked great but I always added a leash with my Sea & Sea lenses because they didn't feel rock solid and I was apprehensive about losing a lens. I also have the neoprene pouches but I only use them for storage not while I'm diving. Good luck.

Red diffuser? Where did you find that? I've looked on the web and don't find a reference. Help. Thanks, Brian

If you've got a nice sandy bottom you can "creep" up on the little buggers and shoot head on. I wouldn't do it on coral or other living surface, but in sand I'll lay on the bottom and slowly approach the subject. I've had several subjects like garden eels that will only come up if you go really slowly and hang out a while. If that doesn't work, I find a collapsible entrenching tool does wonders to get beneath the subject.

I dive in similar water in Puget Sound / BC and also use dry gloves. I'm using an Ikelite housing, dual DS-125 strobes, Canon G9, fisheye 48 LED focus light, ULCS 5 & 8 inch arms. System was right around $3000. Advanced point and shoot, with manual controls, and some room to grow creatively. It has a limited f-stop range compared to an SLR but the package was significantly cheaper than the Nikon I was considering -- and it still does great pictures. If you You may want to read the reviews on Wetpixel of the Stix bouyancy arms or consider floatation arms by ULCS etc. I've added the floats to my arms and the system is still negative. The controls are large enough to be able to use most of them easily with gloves. On the camera and housing there is a spot where there are 5 buttons in close proximity that are a little difficult, but manageable. Ikelite also makes a short port for the Inon WA lens. One key for the strobes in water with lots of particulates, like we have, is to get the strobes out away from the camera around a 45 degree angle. This will greatly reduce the backscatter you'll get. My strobe arms are 15 inches with the clamps and I'm still thinking of changing my 5 inch for an 8. I wouldn't need that tropical or clear, but when it gets murky. . . . The G9 also does have a stitch mode where you can tie a series of pictures together by overlapping the edge of the last picture. This was set up for panorama shots so it should work Ok, but I'm not certain how easy it is to use UW in a housing. Works in my living room. Finally, if you're thinking of really taking wide angle shots of a ship the strobe won't do you much good. Too little light, too much surface area. You might consider natural light and stitch mode. That may save you some money on strobes as well. Good luck.

Congrats on both your new rig and upcoming trip. One thing to consider if you're thinking about any type of night/dusk dive is a focus light. I got the Fisheye LED light -- it has a very nice, smooth pattern. I used it on a 10 day trip nearly every day and the batteries never died. Very nice for night diving as well because it becomes your primary light. If you're trying to get pictures of a subject at greater distance than your strobe will reach try turning off the flash and go with natural light and either manual white balance or the UW setting. Also, try the video mode. I got some great video of some octopus, turtles, etc on my last trip. Good luck

I personally use a quick release, locking retractor. This setup allows me to secure the rig close to me by locking the retractor. I can also extend the line and lock it so it doesn't pull and I've got full range of motion. I can quickly release the rig entirely and secure it easily when it's handed to me by a crew member. I've been in a few situations where I've needed both hands and if I'm up in the water column I can release the rig and attend to the situation knowing my camera is still close by (and below me because it's negative) and secure.

Has anyone had any problems with TSA for carrying a dual handle tray that is removed from the housing? I've got an Ikelite housing and everthing fits better in my carry on bag (Thinktank International) when the tray and handles are removed from the housing. It's a pretty stout piece of equipment and I'm worried that some security agent may view it incorrectly even with a hand screening. Any other travel tips or packing tips would be appreciated. I leave for Christmas Island, Kiribati in a week

I recently got a Canon G9 and am quite happy with it. Has manual control, high resolution video, TTL with Ikelite housing and strobes, . . . Lots of posts here on the G9 so you should be able to get quite a few perspectives.

The port is enroute to Ikelite this morning. Worst case scenario I won't be able to use my wide angle lens because I still have the stock long port.

I pulled my camera housing (Ikelite, G9, short port) out today and found some salt crystals had formed inside my Ikelite port. There is an o-ring outside the glass and an o-ring inside and some small crystals have oozed out behind the port. Has anyone else found this? I removed the port and have soaked it inside and out to dissolve the crystals but I'm worried the port may flood on a trip at the end of the month (and the end of the world). Thanks in advance. Any input would be very appreciated.

I've been through the same thing recently and I chose the DS-125 due to the TTL capabilities of the Ikelite - Ikelite link. Those 240s look very nice though, they appear smaller, and I think they use regular AA batteries rather than the proprietary ones Ikelite use. Brian

Having decided that I needed a focus light so my camera can autofocus in our dark Pacific Northwest water I went with the inexpensive Fisheye Fix Mini LED light. I'd already spent a lot of money on a new camera rig so I attempted to save some coin on a small accessory light. The light gave off a pleasing bluish-white light with a very nice, smooth pattern and the strobe detection auto-shutoff appeared to work well. However, the light flooded during its first dive in fresh water, then again several dives later. I inspected the light and lubed the O-ring prior to diving. The O-ring was apparently in good condition, although it did seem rather thin. I have been diving for over 24 years I've only had one light flood---and that's because I didn't reinstall the O-ring following a trip (it was removed for air travel). I contacted the vendor and was told it was operator error, however I've read several reviews on Wetpixel of this same light flooding under similar circumstances. Unfortunately I didn't do my research prior to purchasing the light. I'd also read several comments that the vendor I used had great customer service, but I had to contact them for a response rather than having them freely provide me with their evaluation of this light after I returned it to them for testing. It seems like it would be a great light if it didn't fill up with water.

I finally got to go diving with my Stix floats for ULCS arms. I have a G9 in an Ikelite housing, wide angle Inon lens, dual DS-125 strobes, 5" and 8" arms. I got my floats a while back but then got a raging ear infection so was unable to dive --- but that's another story entirely. The floats fit the arms very well, they are securely positioned on the arm sections. The large float piece slips on over the ball joint and then the smaller "key" piece slides in and firmly locks the float in position. The foam is very dense and can be firmly grasped; I was afraid it would be soft and make the arms difficult to position, but in fact it is very solid. I only used three sections on each 8" arm section on this dive. With six floats my rig was still negatively bouyant, but was much less so than without the float sections. Next dive I will add the final, fourth, piece to the 5" arms and see how that affects the system.

Congratulations, that's a very nice setup. I've got the same focus light and it flooded on the first dive even after checking the o-ring. I'm sending it back to Reef to see if they can reproduce it. Other than that flood it's a great light, puts out good power and with a very nice pattern. I've read a review on the 10 bar light ( http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/10bar-ultra...g-light-review/ ) and I'm not the only one who's had problems with it. Good luck, Easydiver