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LChan

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Posts posted by LChan

  2. Posted

    People are incredibly influenced by the media.

     

    Has anybody tried to contact influential members of the media? If there is an episode on Nightline, or Oprah telling the crude practices, it can certainly influence people.

     

    A recent example is George W signing and setting aside the Northern Hawaiian Islands as Marine Conservation. I read somewhere that he was influenced by Jean Michel Cousteu recent tv special on this area.

     

    We need to think more global (beyond the limited arena of wetpixelers) and get the word out!

     

    As an aside, I've gone beyond my Asian culture and heritage and I refuse to eat shark fin. I try to educate the people around me, but until they see pixs of sharks thrown away and left to suffocate without their fins, the message doesn't quite sink in. We as a culture have it too easy by going to the local grocery, and we don't know how or what methods are taken to get that food to the grocery.

  4. Posted

    I was in the Bahamas shooting a shark feed.

     

    I used my 12-24 and it was great for very close shots, but it is so wide that I had a hard time getting good pixs when the sharks were a little further out.

     

    I don't know how good your vis is, but in the tropics the vis is so good, i get tempted to try taking pixs when the subject is further out, or the subject only allow so much distance. With the 12-24, the subject on the pix is really small, with a lot of surrounding water.

     

    That is why i posed the question of the 17-35. I have two ultrawide (weitwinkel) lenses in the 10.5 and 12-24, and two macros. Unfortunately nothing else. Ultimately, i can only bring one lens underwater.....

  6. Posted

    So, I am going to the Galapagos in three wks.

     

    I currently have the 10.5 and the 12-24mm lenses, plus some macro lenses which i suppose won't see much use.

     

    What do people think of the 17-35? It is supposed to be incredibly sharp, very fast @2.8.

     

    I need to decide now. Will I regret not having the lens or will I use it?

     

    ARRRGH! so many decisions ;)

     

    thanks.

  8. Posted

    couple of thoughts...

     

    the problem you will come across is that you will be going from two 80's to one 120. Essentially you will lose 40 cubic feet of air. For me, in warm water I can stay under for 70-75 minutes on one 80, so that means I would lose 35 minutes of bottom time. That would be a lot of bottom time lost.

     

    I own a high pressure steel tank. It is an 80 but looks like a 65. It runs pressures up to 3400psi which gives me an equivalent air of an 80. It is great for Monterey cold water diving. A 100 would look just like a 80 and give me a ton of bottom time.

     

    So, if i were to buy my own tanks in the Virgin Isl, I would get two high pressure tanks (probably 100s), give myself more bottom time, and not worry about the extra space. Another thing, if you do get the high pressure tanks, make sure the places will fill to 3400 psi, if not, that would be a moot point.

     

    Lastly, steel tanks will rust, so make sure the places you get fills have dry air.

  12. Posted

    Alex

     

    thanks for wanting to share your articles. there is certainly no way any of us could subscribe or have access to many of these magazines. I do agree with IMSushi and Arnon that I wouldn't want really small pictures or diagrams, especially if they were to illustrate an important point.

     

    I imagine there would be a delay (say a couple of months) from the time of the magazine publication to the time you place the article on the web. I will still be waiting anxiously to see the next article but it will give you and all others who are pros to make your money you deserve.

     

    Also, i don't know if magazines companies would have an issue with you publishing your articles, rather than them making money off of it.

  13. Posted

    water is a really good filter. Too good sometimes and hence we use strobes, magic filter, etc.....

     

    i would leave the polarizer in your bag for the topside pixs.

    since you can't rotate the polarizer, you will lose all effect of the polarizer and still get penalized 1 f-stop for having the polarizer.

  16. Posted

    I am not familiar with the port you have in question. since you do have the port and the lens, give it a try. take some pictures in your house and see what happens.

     

    I think if the 60 will fit inside the port, but the port is longer, I would be concerned of any vignetting that may occur.

  17. Posted

    Just got my 8" dome from Ikelite. Took it to Cayman where the water was incredibly flat. I played with the setup while waiting for people to jump in or people trying to get back onboard.

     

    I had difficulty with exposures (such a wide range from topside to below water). What are people doing to get better exposures? Are you using a neutral density filter? I ended up getting lucky on a couple of pictures but it was just from multiple trials and lots of errors.

     

    Also, how do you get rid of the water spots? The Ike dome is acrylic not glass so that might have something to do with it. I thought about using a coating (eg rain-x) but i figured the salt water would wash it away, and plus i'm not sure what it would do to the environment. Wax or paraffin would cause possible reflection and refraction. Any suggestions?

     

    thx.

  20. Posted

    my housing and strobes go into a Pelican 1610.

    my bcd, wetsuit, fins, etc and some clothes go into a Costco bag.

     

    Completely stripped down, the two check in bags weigh 50.0 pounds each. (right at the limit). and the backpack weighs in about 25 pounds.

     

    I know some people have had issues with the Pelicans and the baggage handlers thefts, but I can't do it any other way. That is what insurance is for, although if i'm missing stuff going, I won't be taking any underwater pixs. :unsure:

     

    I guess I still have my Canon SD550, but it's just not the same.

     

    I guess I could try in the future to put my housing in my carryon. That way, even if I lose my strobes, i could really play with the Magic filters........

  21. Posted

    cool

     

    last piece of advice.

     

    Canon in a fit of stupidity made housings that are for divers (rated to 130ft) and for snorkelers (rated to 10 ft). The cost differential is small. But, it could be a HUGE problem for the diver with the wrong housing. Some housings are only made for the higher or lower rating. So buyer beware. Make sure you have the right camera with the right housing.

  22. Posted

    nice pixs jcfig.

     

    this is a great forum for asking for advice.

    I knew about wetpixel when i first started shooting pixs April, 2005. But i didn't start hanging out until two months ago. So all of my pixs have been trial and error and learning on my own.

     

    i need to get some time to post some of my pixs to get some suggestions. This is certainly the best way to learn.

     

    I'll let you know about the Galapagos. it is just around the corner! My big problem right now is figuring out whether to take the drysuit or to buy a semidry or 7mm. i'm just not as comfortable with the drysuit yet, i'm trying to change my comfort level every wknd! :)

     

    Monterey was flat, clear but 47 degrees two wknds ago.

  23. Posted

    this is the rig that I take. It has been revised over time, especially the redundant sync cord that i now take.

     

    i have several extra o-rings (both for the ports and the housing)

    over a dozen of the little lube containers from Ike.

    one extra battery - which on a liveaboard i keep charging at all times.

    i will dive with my two strobes while the extra battery is charging. Once i get out, i swap one battery immediately, and get one battery charging. At the end of the surface interval, the battery charging is done and i dive with two freshly charged batteries. I only take one charger but it is up to you with your comfort level. I'm going to the Galapagos in July so i will probably bring two chargers with me.

     

    The other thing when it comes to redundancy is to see if you go with a group, you might be able to cover each other for redundant parts. The wife of the manager at my LDS also uses Ikelite so we have swapped parts.

  24. Posted

    i have a Canon SD550 with a Canon underwater housing.

    i originally bought it for my gf last xmas, but we had a big fight, and now it is mine!

     

    i like this camera. wide screen in the back, 7 megapixel. the video is probably not as good as the larger Canon digi but it is pretty good. Small footprint. Fits well in my BCD pocket, so when i'm tired of shooting my dSLR, i pull it out. Usually it is because i want to shoot video, or because i'm shooting supermacro (105mm) and something big comes along.

     

    i bought the whole setup for B&H here in the US for $550. $400 for the camera and 150 for the housing. I think Canon has just upgraded to the SD700. I don't know anything about it but it is supposed to have Image Stabilization. Whatever that is worth.

  25. Posted

    congrats on your setup.

     

    i pressure tested my housing (without camera of course) and then i tested my housing with the camera in the pool. It gave me some familiarity with the controls while diving.

     

    before diving... be really careful with the o-rings. they can take a lot of punishment, but I am really careful re: lint, dirt. The nice thing about Ike housing is that they are clear. You get a real good look at the o-ring at the back of the housing.

     

    make sure you have extra of the Ikelite lube, extra o-rings just in case. My last trip, my sync cord failed so i now have a redundant cable.

     

    Lastly, shoot up, get close, and have FUN!

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