HMP

2009, well rather disappointing in terms of new gadgets (unless your a Canon owner...). It seems to have been the year of the consonant tagged onto everything. Small tweaks and speed increases, rough corners rounded. Camera models getting firmware updates to do what they should have done at their launch (congratulations to Canon 5DMkII owners, that has to have been a first). Other upgraded (but in new bodies) include the SonyEX1R, Nikon D300s, D3s, even the iPhone got an 's'. Macbooks may now be aluminium and thus able to actually survive travel, but they lost their firewire, Macbookpro's seem to have been on the edge of a decent graphics upgrade but it never happened either. Its been a year of treading water. For Nikon owners who are interested in video its been particularly depressing. The disappointment of D300s (yes it was an improvement but still far short of what was required) then the build up to the D3s ('it must have 1080p surely, its a D3!') and then like a small bombshell 720p mJPEG raises its head again! Nikon may have been the first with the D90 but its video sucks and Canon has run riot on them them whilst still producing very good stills cameras. Still to be fair, Nikon has produced sensors with incredible low light performance, D700 and D3s are stunning in this respect. So all I want to do is look forward to 2010! Nikon's that can do manual 1080p video with a decent codec with their lovely sensors not to mention a huge back catalog of lens suitable for video (breathing aside) would be a lovely thing. Red is also coming of age, though they added to 2009's lack luster feeling by announcing a delayed production schedule of at least a year. However new work-flows, colour science and new codecs are all just as important as their cameras are for them to be used widely in productions and get the most from the images. These are now in-place or are being launched. When Scarlet and Epic do finally hit the shelves they should be a mature product with the required post work-flow in place. Given that they can do stills and video in RAW (or compressed RAW) this could be a truly exciting camera. So my vote is the great Canon 5DMkII, despite the fact I dont own one and I really hope never to have too. (Nikon, it may now be a bandwagon, but please get on it properly, better yet grab the wheel). Happy New Year, 2010 should be a good one! Hugh

This does look great. Does anyone know who the Inon importer is to the UK (or Europe for that matter). Cameras Underwater stock their strobes but dont seem to have their housings. Inons English webpage is a work in progress.... Cheers Hugh

The only similarity here is that the both housings leaked around a control. How they leaked is a different matter, and thats down to being a completely different type of housing with different methods and materials used. On a molded polycarbonate housing, unless its the o-ring on the control rod thats been damaged, there is nothing really that can be replaced or re-machined. If the problem lies in the hole of the control then the whole housing has to be replaced. Relatively cheap option for a mass produced plastic housing, compared with a large machined aluminium housing. The end use is different too, Gates housings are rated to and will work at 130m+, a depth were the fittings on, say your Olympus housing, really wont remain water tight, if the housing hadnt already imploded at 90m. To achieve such high depth ratings requires fittings which are subtly different from ones on mass produced housings, and require a subtly different level and type of care from the end user.

Completely agree, the only reason to use the spanner is to tighten something that the loctite has given up on. Occasionaly its easier to use a spanner to check, not to crank on the pressure, but to hold the hex head in a positive manner and apply no more torque than you would with your fingers. In fact with a spanner you can apply even less pressure and be more accurate because your not trying to get a good grip with your fingers. Very handy if the hex head is recessed into the housing wall in anyway. A tiny movement in the nut/gland is very visible because of the length of the spanner. It was only a tip. Dont forget that using loctite is not mandatory for a gland fitting on a housing. Most fittings I've worked with dont have it. They work perfectly fine with out it. I'm more concerned with the O-ring and not the loctite when it comes to prepping a housing.

Did I say before every dive? No, I did not. That would be ridiculous. And before you jump in with 'it was fine for the previous two dives'. Its a face o-ring and can still be water tight but slightly loose on the thread, increasing water pressure will help it seal. It only takes a fraction more of a turn for the o-ring to lift off the sealing surface and you have your flood. Although I'm rapidly losing sympathy here, especially with some of the comments. I do understand the frustration. I nearly lost a camera through a loose gland a few times (and yes, once it was a gates) and I've completely flooded rebreather electronics by not tightening glands (and thats life support), but they are good at what they do when looked after. Its deeply annoying to be caught out by something that I admit looks like you should never have to touch it, but its still your responsibility. You learn, and you change your habits for each housing and thats it really.

I dont understand why the concept of a gland here is so difficult. Control rod glands and cable glands are super simple devices, made by many different manufactures and used across underwater housings for cameras, electronics, torches, ROV's etc etc. They are incredibly tolerant of pressure meaning that they are still usable when sprung buttons will have been squashed and rendered completely useless. They tend to be the most reliable through-wall fitting around (if they are tight). The reason they (and by they I mean anyone who uses a gland fitting, not just Gates), dont utilise locking washers on the outside is that glands have a face sealing O-ring. So introduce the locking-washer on the outside and it wont seal. A possibility is to use a nut on the inside of the housing to lock it tight, but they require care to use so as not to damage threads and make manufacturing the fittings more difficult in terms of thread length, housing wall thickness, control rod length and attachment. They also take up more room, so if the side of a camera with buttons you want to control is very close to a a wall your going to have to make an even bigger housing to allow room for the nut. Lastly the most annoying thing about having nuts on the inside of a housing, is that they are far more difficult to check. On a large housing, grovelling past various control rods, wires etc to get to a nut thats placed awkwardly, deep inside, just makes your life a lot harder. Its a lot easier to tighten from the outside. Comparing fittings that are not designed to be waterproof under 10 bar of pressure such as those on car wheels, and domestic appliances etc is a pointless exercise. They have completely different design parameters, work in completely different environments and do different things! You could use all those automotive parts, it wont come undone but your housing isnt going to be watertight! "Gates will simply reply, you should have sent it in for tightening instead of doing it yourself." Really? You really think that? That is hilarious. Really I'm laughing. Its a nut. Quarter of a turn and its tight. Oh yes, come to think of it I suppose I am being completely "ridiculous" as you say for using a spanner to tighten a nut and not expecting a bit of glue to last forever under saltwater immersion. Perhaps I will stop taking anykind of responsibility for any housing I close and give up on doing basic maintenance. I could perhaps take it back to the manufacturer for checking before going into the water just to make sure. And then there is all the dive kit...... oh its all too much! I'm going to take up bowling.

I'm not suggesting that you go around and break the Loktite seal. I am suggesting you check the seal. If you gently apply a bit of pressure with a spanner (because its easier to apply the correct pressure with a spanner and not your fingers) and it doesnt turn, then the loktite is fine and and the gland doesnt need tightening. If of course it does turn, then you need to tighten it! Loktite is not epoxy, its not some permanent glue. There are several grades, each with different levels of strength, some more permanent than others (Loctite 242 is temporary and forms a soft bond, and loctite 270 (studlock) is semi-permanent/permanent, there is a third, loctite 290, that is for penetrating pre-assembled parts but I doubt thats the one they use), but they are all, releasable with a spanner no matter what 'permanent' claims are made. Loktite helps stop things coming lose under vibration, its great stuff, but if you think its a permanent solution that requires no checking, ever, then I'm afraid your probably going to flood another camera. Sorry to be brutally honest.

Hi Flooding a camera that your attached too (emotionally and/or financially) is a gut wrenching experience. But it happens and happens to everyone no matter what awards they have won (reminds me of a king sitting in a chair trying to stop the tide). Gates is not at fault here. There are no faulty parts. A part that can potentially come loose, came loose. And yes, you should every now and then, check the control rod glands and see if they can be tightened (gently though, use a spanner but dont use to much force, a bit better than hand tight will do). No matter what padding you use, vibration through transportation will take its toll and loosen anything eventually. The control rod glands on the Gates are very good and can be easily replaced/removed and blanked as a product of their design, as a consequence of this though they can come loose (but its rare). At the end of any journey to a film location and as part of pre-dive sequence prep I would check those glands. It only need be done once on a trip (at the start obviously). The fact that your housing survived a couple of dives prior to flooding means nothing. The thread may be many revolutions deep but it only takes a tiny fraction of a turn for the seal to finally break. You were unlucky and I sympathise greatly, but your wrong to blame Gates. (Blame Loktite - joking) Know the quirks of your housing (each manufacturer has their own), and try not to be too attached to the camera, your taking it underwater after all. Hugh

Still wanted..... still looking....

mmmmm thanks for that! I was about to pm you to find if it really did go for that amount! I was surprised it was that little and rather hoping you'd pulled the auction before the end. Oh well. ok any one else about to sell an Aquatica D200 housing please pm me! I get to my emails far more easily than this forum especially if I'm traveling. Still looking.....

Bother!, I was out of the country and didnt get to bid on your Auction Bonnie. So guess I missed a good opportunity. I am still looking for an Aquatica D200 housing so if any one has one please do get in touch. Better yet send me a PM so I'll get it in my email! Thanks every one Hugh

Hi As it says, I am looking for an Aquatica housing for a Nikon D200. Must be Aquatica to fit in with my current equipment. So if your looking to upgrade then this could be your chance to sell! Must be in good working order. Thanks Hugh

Thanks Jim and Jean. Jim, I have spoken to Cameras Underwater and they have been very helpful, unfortunately their D200 housing was sold before I got the chance to see it! Jean, I'll email you, thanks for your help. Cheers Hugh

Hi I've been looking at D200 housings for a while and have trecked around the uk looking at different manufactures offerings. Some are great and some are ok but not what I want. The one housing I havent been able to see is the Aquatica. On paper it looks great but I could really do with seeing one for myself or at least seeing some decent photos of one. I know Cameras Underwater have not sold very many of these housings in the UK so I guess they are rather few and far between but does anyone have one they might allow me to see and lives in the southwest (I live in Devon). Failing that does anyone have any pictures of the housing they could email me. I really want to see the camera inside the housing to see how it fits together. How much space there is around the camera and in particular how the base plate fits to the bottom of the camera. Odd things to look for in a housing I know but there are a few modifications I want to make which makes this an important feature for me. Any help would be gratefully received. Cheers Hugh

Hi I have been thinking this for a while and thought that someone here may be able to explain this to me. I'm confused about lens-lengths and their classification as 'fisheye'. I am well versed with the effect of a fisheye lens and the correction it needs in post, so how can another lens with the same, or less, length, not be a fish-eye. For example Nikons 10.5mm is a fisheye but their 12-24 is not. Perhaps a better example is Canon or Sigma who both have a 15mm fish-eye and a 14mm non fisheye and even a 10-22mm lens that is also non fisheye. With which lens can you see more with? Perhaps lens length is not as closley linked to field of view as I thought. Any comments greatly appreciated. Thanks