ce4jesus

Mark, I'm definitely interested in looking at a package price to purchase before June. I saw the UWL-105AD WA lens at $135. Does this lens require a dome or is it a wet lens? Other than the $20 adapter is there anything else that I would need to buy? Gary

Tim, What does the Premium version of Rawshooter have over the free download? Just curious. I really like the program its fast and efficient. Larry, I have the AMD Pentiuum IV equivalent and although it is unstable at times with RAWShooter Essentials Free version that I've made the switch from Olympus Master. That Oly Software is awful. Its way too slow on my machine to use. I'm running the P4 equivalent with 1G of RAM.

The SP-350 battery life issue isn't an issue at all. As I've gone onto discover, its wholly a battery meter issue. I just did a party shoot last night with a 1G card. My batteries are Kodak 2500mah batteries. The camera batteries lasted through 2 fills of the 1G card and almost made it through the 512MB card before expiring. This required formatting the 1G card/downloading to PC between uses and then formatting of the 512MB card as well. I made it through 37 of the available 43 RAW shots taken on the 512 card. If you're counting that's 123 RAW photos. Interestingly enough, the Batteries actually register on the meter as green about .5 full to start the shoot. Within the first 20 shots the meter turns Red. The meter begins to blink red about 3/4 of the way through the first card however, the batteries don't give up the ghost until quite awhile later. Some further notes of interest For the most part, the internal flash wasn't used for this test. It was used toward the end of the test because the batteries in my flash died before the ones in the camera...haha. In any case, I see no reason to purchase the CR-V3's or CR-V3 rechargeables at this point. The 1G card holds 86 RAW photos and the 512MB card holds 43. I think I'd really have to be snapping away on a days diving to even come close to filling the 1G card. Anyway, I thought that might be an item of interest to some folks on here. I purchased the Kodak batteries at Walmart so they're not of some extraordinary variety. Later, Gary

Vannar, Thanks. All feedback is welcome. I am already in the process of replacing the tray as I've had some other issues.

Just thought I'd share with you that Comcast is offering free server space (unlimited) to share photos. The hosting service is provided by Snapfish....no pun intended. In any case its quite handy with todays file sizes. The only drawback I've seen is the user has to enter some information to view the online photos and I'm sure will be bombarded with spam from Snapfish. However, I don't think its a bad thing because they offer prints for 12 cents a copy for a 4x6. Overall, its an excellent deal. My wife and I just did some portrait stuff with 3, 8 x 10s and 3, 5 x 7 along with some 4 x 6...all for under $20 delivered to our doorstep. I don't think I could have purchased the material for that amount. B) Later, Gary

"Marconcini Francesca (16 votes and take a look at her shoots) win." Maybe blurry overexposed clownfish in a poor composition appeal to some...haha. BTW, Nice clownfish shot...I particularly liked the pose he gave you.

Well I got the housing last monday and put the thing together on Tuesday and finally jumped in a pool with my kids here in Colorado to take some photos. Nothing even remotely good but I did come out of the pool with a greater appreciation for doing this while diving. As difficult as it was with kids, I can't imagine how difficult it would be with an unwilling fish!!! On several occasions I found my settings were off due to a loose nut behind the viewfinder. In any case I also learned more about the camera and underwater photography just by spending a day with my kids. Hopefully my mistakes in the pool will help me do the right thing when the opportunity presents itself. http://www.snapfish.com/share/p=1001131137...c=SYE/otsi=SALB Comments or questions appreciated..thanks,

"Your like the Michael Jordan of WetPixel" After taking my camera in a pool for the first time today, I guess I'll have to be satisfied with wearing an Alex Mustard Jersey if there's one available. The man has mad skills.

There is some company from Germany that makes a successful Nikonos adapter for the Olympus Camera. I've heard it costs about $200 or so. If that's the case, why not wait until Ike comes out with a case...rumor has it they're going to do Olympus TTL. We'll see. Later,

I'm a Dad with a young family (kids 4 and 12). The 12 year old is not into diving and doesn't look as though she ever will be. My wife and I just got certified and have committed to 1 trip every year to somewhere nice. The rest of our diving happens in lake water just to keep our skills up <_< . While I find most every dive enjoyable, nothing beats the Ocean. Our norm has been the Florida keys since we can haul grandma down there to do some baby sitting. I've heard of places that actually have day care while you dive. Since I figured last year's trip ran me 3K for a week in Florida not counting airfare (food, car, diving, condo), I'm looking to keep that budget somewhat the same. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. PS...I have to bring the kids. We have no one who can sit them back here in Denver. Thanks for your time. Requirements for my trip: Frontier has to fly there (frequent flyer miles!!!) ... unless airfare fits budget as well Daycare for kids...preferrably with activities for them. Liveaboards are okay if they meet the requirements I don't want to rent a car if possible. Beach diving would be a huge bonus 3K-3.5K budget (airfare if Frontier is accounted for). Gary

The olympus strobe and housing, which works good for Macro as evidenced by a fellow with the same setup and a C5060, is a good start and you can get them brand new on Ebay for about $210. "Buy a cable that has an Olympus connector at one end and a Nikonos at the other " ... I've not heard of this....interesting though.

I "understand" your predicament. Despite ferreting away bits of money here and there, I'm sure I can hear my wife loading a gun as I click away on ebay. I own a 19.5ft Regal, 1900LSR..... at least the two sports dovetail together! I had her at a boat showroom the other day. I actually had the guts to tell my wife we could swing a payment if the boat had a toilet. Long stare <_< ...I think she actually thought about it for a moment. BTW...I remember taking my gleaming new dive computer for a test drive before the screen protector arrived. one little bang against a rock and now it has some nice scratches that are there forever. If I went cheap and didn't spring for that filter and scratched the housing lense, I think you'd see a grown man cry.

Thanks. Are you certain on the size? I saw this pic and his conversion adapter says 58-52mm ... which leads me to believe its 52mm. http://www.digitaldiver.net/yabbse/index.p...=16418;start=15 BTW...the hard filter is a good idea ...not just for better photos but also to protect the housing lense. ....also...did you order off their site or call them?

ttl works through the hot shoe. Cables however, come with the underwater housings for the flash itself.

Alex, As a specialist in blurred photograpy I can tell you that's the finest blur I've ever seen. Seriously, great special effects. To get those shots either your buoyancy is unmatched or you've thrown a small anchor into the sand! Nice job. Gary

Larry...how much was that filter and where'd you buy it?

Several reasons could be: Feet vs meters air vs water some variance is also due to a narrowly focused strobe versus one which covers more area. My suspicion with the YS25 is that it is giving you the results in air and distance in feet.

Yes...that would be effective..haha. BTW, a leg won't develop into a starfish but stabbing it with your knife will only slow it down...not kill it. Since the animals are not asexual, releasing eggs prematurely from one wouldn't increase the population. If someone could just come up with a nice culinary dish made of the COT, human predators would take care of the rest.

Thanks, the WA link helped immensely. the battery issue is basically two fold. 2500mah batteries should get you through 1G card with no problem. However the battery gauge will almost always reside in red and will begin to blink well before you get to the end of the card. With the V3s there seemed to be a problem with replacing a battery that was low with a fresh one. The camera didn't seem to acknowledge the fresh battery and turned off. Once powered is cycled and battery is removed and reinserted ... worked fine. I've not personally encountered the V3 issue since I've been using the AA rechargeables and getting enough out of them that I'm satisfied. I ran 2.5 512MB cards through one set in a quasi-test the other day. Mostly RAW was shot on the first card with a mixture of JPEG and RAW on the 2nd. Followed by 25 RAW on the 3rd card. I shot these photos with the internal flash going. I used the camera battery to reformat the cards before each load. Personally, I'm happy with that and won't switch to the RCR-V3 batteries. Later,

Don't worry too much Domino....I searched the manual high and low for that blackened screen issue. There was even a guy on here who called Olympus Tech Support and they didn't have the answer. Thank God and Eric for Wet Pixel. BTW...I just called on the waterproof housing to find out the diameter of the threads in the barrel. No one could answer the question. So if you have questions...fire away.

Larry - I'm a guy who takes pretty good care of things but I don't think I can bring myself to do a test dive without the camera. A dunk test on the end of a rope to about 15ft might work. However, I'll probably do a dunk test at the hotel in a tub and proceed with diving once on site. I'm going to try and avoid opening the camera case on the boat to avoid any accidents. I read the manual once again and couldn't find anything associated with Chlorine; however, its well known in dive circles that BCD's have a shorter life in pools than they do the ocean so I will clean it thoroughly afterward. I'm also going to invest in flood insurance. Later,

Larry, I think you've hit the nail on the head. Although I'm relatively new to the sport (30 dives?) I'm fairly good with my buoyancy and weighting. My biggest concern isn't controlling buoyancy so much as it will be surface floatation. I have a back inflation BCD and it makes it difficult to keep your head out of the water. I've found throwing a snorkel in and just not fighting it to be the best solution. Rough days, I just leave the reg in and don't bother with the snorkel. I've seen where some guy put some foam on his camera arm to help make it neutrally buoyant. I will probably do something along these lines before taking it in the open ocean. That way if I have to let go of it, It won't be this weight pulling down...as a matter of preference, I'd even like to get it partially positive on buoyancy. Maybe that's a pipe dream but hey...I've just set foot down a path where won't be any heading back. I will in all likelihood not get to use the arm in Florida with the manatees. I'll bring it but I'm thinking just the camera with the magic filter will be sufficient. The arm and flash will be in tow and I might go ahead and try a few macros for fun if I have time. I won't get the opportunity to do an actual dive until late spring. Being landlot in Colorado doesn't leave you a lot of options. Take care.

Joe, All of the flash cables came with the Olympus Flash Housing which I absconded on Ebay for around $125? (Actually I've seen them even go lower than that) The flash was another $85. So everything was all-inclusive...a good thing because just a couple of those cables would have run more than the housing altogether. I've thought about buying a backup flash housing (pfl-01) because it would contain all the spare cabling if needed. BTW, its all waterproof and made by Olympus. Olympus was attractive to me for my first underwater camera due to the number of accessories designed for it and they're relative inexpensive in nature. If I had deeper pockets, Ikelite housing with dual Ikelite DS-150s would be mine!!! Maybe one day when I upgrade to that inevitable DSLR I'll go all out. This rig, however, should get me started down the road in a nice fashion. I've taken some awesome indoor photos of my family and general macro stuff inside the house just to practice. So I'm pleased with the overall quality of the photograph it takes. Just one item of note, I remember reading your post and you mentioned freediving. This camera with the arm and strobe would be a tough swim back to the surface. Anyway...good luck. If I can answer any other questions, I'll be happy to try. Larry above has already taken some underwater pics with his without a flash and they look good so I'm optimistic about my setup.

Matt, It took me a second or two but I see what you're talking about. No...the lowest I can get it with that arm and still have a subject framed correctly would be as how you see it. I suppose I could take a fairly flat shot in portrait instead of landscape frame. I was originally planning on replacing the 45 degree mount with a ball joint but couldn't manage to get the larger screw out. Maybe I'll try again...thanks for the tip.

Larry....get hip on that RAW mode. You can filter that split pea soup! BTW...check out the DIY thread and pictures of my new rig. Just got them uploaded tonight. Pool Chlorine kills the housing? I thought there is nothing more corrosive on the planet that sea water. PS...I just finished reading the manual and cannot find this recommendation about pool water. Do you have a page number or reference to the site?