steve-k

hi grad filters are one option as james has said, usually you will need a tripod, or to rest the camera on something solid so you can shoot at a slower speed, some of the best sunsets i have seen are where the photographer uses a good flash to highlight a foreground object, alternatively look for a nice silhouette to give the shot interest, forthe colour match, better to shoot raw and adjust the WB after steve

i tend to go through life finding things out the hard way today's lesson is not to buy a second hand strobe of e-bay be four checking that it is in fact compatible with your new system i have an ikelite ds125on an ikelite housing, i got an ikelite 100a, its a ttl strobe, just didn't know that the circuitry is different is my only option to put it back on e-bay?

there are adhisives that will stick, and stick very well, i would personally contact ikelite technical just to be sure, but it wiill probably be a solvent cement or a super glue type, epoxy wont work cant you mount this on an arm?

had a similar problem, but comes up error 99 (on the 20-d) supposed to be dirty contacts as well, only had the problem on the 18-55 kit lens on my searching for the problem it said clean with a rubber (ink) more abrasive than your suggestions this just a canon fault?

thx for the reply, i have uploaded an image from last weekend to give you an idea where im up to the 27-70 wont even fit through the hole in the housing i have been diving for over 10 years, am an instructor so my basic skills are good i started on a 60mm on the 20d, the depth of field was a stumbaling block that i now have sourted, along with using the 9point meter, on my way out, will add more later steve

what have i learned so far? about 6 months and 300/400 pics in, what have i learned? kit, 20-d ikelite housing and a d120 in no particular order 1, NEVER try to take pics with a trainee in tow, obviously you wouldn't it while instructing, but as an instructor you often get the "just have a dive trainee" 2,ikelite's housing wont accommodate the best zoom lens canon make? (24-70 2.8) 3,being experienced at above water photography works against you considerably underwater 4,taking snapshots just doesnt work, you need to slowwww right down 5,nobody wants to be your buddy 6,the Internet and especially forums like this are a fantastic source of help/information, 7,underwater photography is much more disappointing than land based 8,the learning curve is much steeper than i first thought 9,compacts are MUCH easier than DSLR's 10,no after 300/400 shots i don't have one worth uploading 11,how much has it all cost me 12,you move the fish moves, the sea moves, it all keeps moving 13,expect a spanner to be thrown into the works, like when i had a duff strobe lead that intermittently only worked the ttl, took 100 shots to work that one out 14,ribs and expensive housings are a bad combination 15,when concentrating so much on the housing, strobe, lens's, ports etc remember to pack the camera before turning up for a days hard boat diving especially then to find the best vis you have had all year i have enjoyed the learning process, and feel i am getting to understand the mechanics of how to set up and run my kit much better now, hopefully before long i will have a pic worthy of an upload have i missed anything from your learning experiences? Steve

went out today, thunderstorm, dark dismal, and crap vis lol but i have had the 60mm focacing fine had it set on 160 anf f13 with the strobe on ttl, ignoring the crap compsition and scatter, the pics where in focus and sharp still supprised what little depth of field you have, even on f13 the lens will close down to f32, what do you normally use on close up work? i think my main problem was not having the focus set on a single point thx again for all the help steve

thx again for all the help i have checked again at my previous pics i took with the 60m, the blurred images (all lol) are down to the very small depth of field is this lens only for macro work? i tried it in the pool yesterday and even at f8 the dof is very small, what fstop do you shoot at normally, and at what distance i have tried focusing on high contrast areas, and using the assist light, but it just would not focus, i did have the assist beam turned on, and multi point focus on, and the lens wide open, on land i know to take a good shot, i have to slow down and act and think like a photographer not like a tourist, unfortunately i am not adopting this practice underwater, i have been a diver with a camera taking snap shots, we know at this level i have to think like a photographer, who happens to be underwater i will get back in the water this week with the 60mm and see what improvements i can make thx again for all your help steve

the af asist beam is on, i will try it off, not thaught of that thanks

thx for the replies on the 60mm lens i have had the aperture wide open, the depth of field has been only very small, i did not think this would affect the AF, but goes some way to explain the haze of the shot, on my chart it says dof should be about 100/200mm at 1m, but on the shots its only getting 20/40mm, i tried the modeling light and found no difference, i was expecting to be able to use the modeling light in caves, under rocks etc, i have a 100w HID dive torch (amazing light output) and it still struggles with that? i use one shot focus i will give full manual a go keeping the speeds to 125/200 and maybe f5.6/f8 and let the d125 earn its money but i don't see how this will help the AF? could the wrong port affect the AF? i got the 60mm for this purpose only, i am finding it restrictive(i like zooms) i am still going to go for the 17-85, as i want a walk around land lens (my existing lenses are very heavy) and i can get the dedicated port, anybody use this lens? will let you know if i get better results steve

i have a canon20-d, ikelite housing, 1 d125 strobe, using a 60mm2.8 and the standard 19-55mm on the 60mm the unit seams to struggle to AutoFocus? at 0-10m it gets 60% 10-20m 25% and below 30m i can forget it it does a bit better on the 18-55 but not much, he camera tries to focus at the end of its distance range but wont hunt back? i am finding that i have to focus on somthing 2/3 m away with high contrast then try again at the closer object the camera works on land, and in low light i have had the camera on sutter priority, and tried just the center spot focus point is this common? (yes i am new) any ideas? also off the 60mm all the shots are a bit hazey (ok with the 18-55) i had put this down to not being on focus, but the camera focused on somthing, and no part of the shot is clear? i am thinking of getting the 17-85 is lens and the dedicated port with the M focus controle, is this a good allround choice? lol 2k spent on housing and i have had much better results from my old crapy 2meg instamatic and housing with built in flash

thx for the advice, i have ordered the book i am (after further advice) going to get one 125 and just get used to the system on a 60mm befour adding another 125, and going wide

yes i did a serch and found 3 makes, though i couldnt fond a price, 2 of them arnt in production yet

im very new to underwater photography, that new in fact my housing is still in the post lol been looking at strobes and need a little help firstley, im a diving instructor and know quite a lot about (dry) photography, i have the canon 20-d, and should be recieving the ikelite housing in the next few days i was going to get the ikelite ds125 strobe to utalise the ttl what are the real benifits of running 2 strobes? would a ds-50 and ds-125 combo work? how would the ttl work in low light situations, or even on a night dive? are there any books you can recomend

is there a reason that they dont make housings for flashguns? i have the 580ex for my 20-d its a very good and powerfull flash, will it not penitrate the water? just a thaught i had (i am a newbi at this)