Olympus release new underwater housing

[greg_n 0]

Well the E-520 is out and after all the speculation as to whether or not Olympus is continuing to make housings for SLRs, they came to the party with this:

 

http://www.dcresource.com/news/newsitem.php?id=3741

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/olympus/...iew/index.shtml

 

And they answered another concern about a more affordable super wide zoom too!!

 

But I'm happy with my setup for the mean time,

Greg

[dsbierman 0]

I'm looking fwd to getting my hands on the 9-18mm wide angle lens. It's much more affordable than the current pro lens being offered. Unfortunately, it won't be released until September.

[rtrski 20]

I'm seriously stoked, too. (Do people still say 'stoked'? Never mind, doesn't matter, I'm too old and bald to be cool, regardless... )

 

Didn't see dimensions on the lens width, but to an eyeball of the pic it didn't look much fatter than the 11-22. Of course it's also not much 'wider' in zoom either (4 mm in 35-mm film equivalent). So the questions is, 9-18 or 11-22? Seem to be around the same price ($100 difference or so). Or just upgrade a 14-54 to a 12-60 and call it a day?

 

I'm just playing devil's advocate. I for one will be very interested in the 9-18, provided they haven't sacrificed too much to make it an entry-level offering...

[Phil Rudin 454]

The Olympus E-520, 9 to 18 mm zoom and new Olympus housing are once again worthy of front page news. Cost V. image quality it will be hard to beat this combination with any other system. With more than twenty different ports from six manufacturers and an assortment of superb lenses, ideal for U/W photography this system should be a winner.

 

Set for release summer of 2008 is the new Olympus PT-E05 polycarbonate, dual o-ring sealed E-520 housing.

The housing will be equipped with dual fiber optic ports and port mount for all existing lens ports.

 

A new UFL-2 strobe with fiber optic TTL control will also be released with the housing.

 

Phil Rudin

Edited May 13, 2008 by tropical1

[reubencahn 2]

The Olympus E-520, 9 to 18 mm zoom and new Olympus housing are once again worthy of front page news. Cost V. image quality it will be hard to beat this combination with any other system. With more than twenty different ports from six manufacturers and an assortment of superb lenses, ideal for U/W photography this system should be a winner.

 

Set for release summer of 2008 is the new Olympus PT-E05 polycarbonate, dual o-ring sealed E-520 housing.

The housing will be equipped with dual fiber optic ports and port mount for all existing lens ports.

 

A new UFL-2 strobe with fiber optic TTL control will also be released with the housing.

 

Phil Rudin

 

For those knowledgeable as to Olympus release history, does summer of 2008 mean June or does it likely mean September. I leave for Indonesia on July 31. My plan had been to upgrade from my 5050 to a 410 and E03, but I delayed too long. This looks even better but the timing is tight.

[Phil Rudin 454]

You would be very lucky to get it in time. The camera is set to go on sale in June and housings have been a month or two behind in the past.

 

Phil

[ktwse 0]

Phil, have you been able to pick up any news of a port for the 9-18?

 

Still undecided when it comes to housing the E-3 and this might well turn out a very interesting alternative route...

[reubencahn 2]

You would be very lucky to get it in time. The camera is set to go on sale in June and housings have been a month or two behind in the past.

 

Phil

 

An email to Olympus USA received the following response:

 

"We appreciate you interest in the PTE-05 Underwater Housing for the E-520 that was announced today. The preliminary word from Tokyo is that Olympus America will having the housings available for sale late July to early August. I will make a note to update you should the delivery time change."

 

I guess I'll wait and see how this plays out. Perhaps they'll be available from Japan a bit earlier.

[ktwse 0]

Seems UN Company have updated their E-510 housing to work with the 520 as well.

 

Anyone with experience of these housings? Looks like it could be a nice alternative to the Oly original housing given the 60m / 200ft rating.

 

Would also like to know more about the new strobe and info on port availability for the 9-18 but guess that will have to wait until they're actually released.

[Phil Rudin 454]

UN is making both housings, their aluminum housing is priced at about $2600.00 and the Olympus PT-E05 housing should sell in the US around $900.00. Both should work with both E-520 and E-510 with little modification. I dived my PT-E03 housing below 150 ft. (45 meters) several times and I would expect to do the same with the PT-E05. Other than the cost difference trying to find a dealer for the UN branded housing is going to be a problem in the US.

 

Regarding the 9-18 zoom I am sure it will work well with the current 170 mm and 220 mm Olympus and Athena ports, but with a new extension port and zoom gear. Olympus entry level lenses have been excellent v. cost and this lens should be no exception. One of the thing I like about this lens is the ability to add a Magic Filter or other threaded type filters which can't be done with the 7 to 14 mm zoom.

 

A new more powerful strobe (Olympus UFL-2) is also being offered which will fire in TTL using fiber optics. It appears to be a new Sea & Sea design like the current Olympus UFL-1 which was later released in the Sea & Sea lineup of strobes.

 

Phil Rudin

[ce4jesus 1]

I sent my PT-E03 housing in this week. Not sure what they'll decide to do. My hope is a paid upgrade to the E520 with a one for one housing swap.

[ktwse 0]

UN is making both housings, their aluminum housing is priced at about $2600.00 and the Olympus PT-E05 housing should sell in the US around $900.00. Both should work with both E-520 and E-510 with little modification. I dived my PT-E03 housing below 150 ft. (45 meters) several times and I would expect to do the same with the PT-E05. Other than the cost difference trying to find a dealer for the UN branded housing is going to be a problem in the US.

 

Regarding the 9-18 zoom I am sure it will work well with the current 170 mm and 220 mm Olympus and Athena ports, but with a new extension port and zoom gear. Olympus entry level lenses have been excellent v. cost and this lens should be no exception. One of the thing I like about this lens is the ability to add a Magic Filter or other threaded type filters which can't be done with the 7 to 14 mm zoom.

 

A new more powerful strobe (Olympus UFL-2) is also being offered which will fire in TTL using fiber optics. It appears to be a new Sea & Sea design like the current Olympus UFL-1 which was later released in the Sea & Sea lineup of strobes.

 

As always you provide excellent and helpful answers, Phil!

 

After much thought and deliberation I decided to sell my E-3 and replace it with a double kit zoom E-520. I absolutely love the size, and the sensor should be almost the same (about a third of a stop less DR, though, but mostly the highlights - typically not a problem in Swedish water...).

 

If the Oly housing will go to 45m I think I will be better served by that one, cost to performance wise. I looked a little bit at the original Oly port for the 11-22... Is an 18 mm FF equiv too wide for a flat port? Just thinking about what port Olympus will recommend with the 9-18 lens?

 

I like the short single arm setup and might just end up with that as a starting point to just finally get a DSLR under water without having to give up on travel etc due to financial concerns. However, would like your input on the best double strobe setup. I'm thinking Athena, Inon or ULCS tray and handles with ULCS arms. I'm also thinking of starting out with the new UFL-2 rather than going for the far more expensive Inon strobes (although I would prefer them!).

[Phil Rudin 454]

Regarding using the Olympus port (PPO-E02) for the 14 to 54/ 11 to 22 zooms for the 9 to 18 zoom lens.

 

The 11 to 22 is 20 mm longer than the 9 to 18 which would move the wider lens further back in the housing and cause it to vignette, its is also 4.5 mm fatter so the gear would not fit.

 

A new gear and extension port will need to be released for the existing Olympus 170 mm port to make this lens work well.

 

Phil

[Phil Rudin 454]

Athena Japan, has just released new photos of the PT-E05 housing with the Athena 50 mm macro port and the Athena tray and grips. To dispel any rumors you can see that the housing is hinged on the shutter release side just like the PT-E03 but has an all new locking system on the other side. Fiber optic ports are also built-in at the top of the housing. For those who have had problems with the PT-E03 housing and are getting a PT-E05 replacement, I talked to someone who used the housing for a week in the Florida Keys and they said the locking system is a vast improvement over the small latches on the E-410 housing. I was also told that the E-510 does not fit the housing, out of the box. I expect some modifications could be made for the E-510 to fit.

 

A new version of Lightroom (2) and camera raw has been announced today which has raw conversion for E-420 and E-520.

 

Phil Rudin

Edited July 29, 2008 by tropical1

[ce4jesus 1]

Phil,

Any idea on the release date?

[Phil Rudin 454]

They say it will be in the US. in September along with the new strobe. The release date for the Athena tray and grips in Japan is August so Sept. sounds about right.

 

Phil

[Reis 0]

They say it will be in the US. in September along with the new strobe. The release date for the Athena tray and grips in Japan is August so Sept. sounds about right.

 

Phil

 

Do you know what type of strobe bulkhead(s) the PT-e05 will have other than fiber optics?

 

Reis

[Phil Rudin 454]

The PT-E05 housing still appears to use the single Olympus style bulkhead as the past housings, for best TTL with nikonos type cord strobes Athena makes this conversion circuitry, http://reefphoto.com/index.php?main_page=p...ee636cc9f61a269 I have used this item and it works quite well. However, I went to fiber optics with the new Inon Z-240 strobes which lowers cost if you don't already own strobes that won't fire with fiber optics.

 

Phil Rudin

[manta ray 1]

The Olympus E-520, 9 to 18 mm zoom and new Olympus housing are once again worthy of front page news. Cost V. image quality it will be hard to beat this combination with any other system. With more than twenty different ports from six manufacturers and an assortment of superb lenses, ideal for U/W photography this system should be a winner.

 

Set for release summer of 2008 is the new Olympus PT-E05 polycarbonate, dual o-ring sealed E-520 housing.

The housing will be equipped with dual fiber optic ports and port mount for all existing lens ports.

 

A new UFL-2 strobe with fiber optic TTL control will also be released with the housing.

 

Phil Rudin

 

I just recently bought the last E410 PT-03 housing, but I bought it before I knew about the leak problems and the new 520 housing. So I am wondering should I try to get an exchange on to housing for the 520 housing.

[ce4jesus 1]

Hi Manta,

I think Olympus has silently acknowledged the problem. So far I've read of 4 people, myself included, that have received reasonable offers of an upgrade. However, I think most had some kind of evidence of a flood inside the PT-E03. I simply recorded an mpeg video of the housing leaking in the bath tub. It is my belief that at the surface, if tilted with the oring at the highest point, they will all leak at the surface. In any case, Olympus has offered a free exchange of the housing and a reasonable fee to upgrade the camera body. If it were me, this is a no-brainer. I had no peace of mind with the old housing and had 3 floods on a recent trip.

[manta ray 1]

Hi Manta,

I think Olympus has silently acknowledged the problem. So far I've read of 4 people, myself included, that have received reasonable offers of an upgrade. However, I think most had some kind of evidence of a flood inside the PT-E03. I simply recorded an mpeg video of the housing leaking in the bath tub. It is my belief that at the surface, if tilted with the oring at the highest point, they will all leak at the surface. In any case, Olympus has offered a free exchange of the housing and a reasonable fee to upgrade the camera body. If it were me, this is a no-brainer. I had no peace of mind with the old housing and had 3 floods on a recent trip.

I purchased my housing this past spring but havn't had a chance to get in the water yet. I have a trip to Bonaire planned at the end on Nov. I'll try to go to a pool this weekend to test it. But with all the problems I would hate to have a flood in Bonaire as I don't get to dive as often as I use to. What was your process to replace the housing. Did fill out a repair request first or did you call customer service first?

[ce4jesus 1]

I purchased my housing this past spring but havn't had a chance to get in the water yet. I have a trip to Bonaire planned at the end on Nov. I'll try to go to a pool this weekend to test it. But with all the problems I would hate to have a flood in Bonaire as I don't get to dive as often as I use to. What was your process to replace the housing. Did fill out a repair request first or did you call customer service first?

 

Certainly test it in the pool. The leak is very slow so if you aim the port down, you'll have no issues with destroying the camera if a leak occurs. BTW, my leak also occurred with no camera in the housing so that's the first thing I would do before inserting the camera. Go onto www.digitaldiver.net and read about it there. There's a 4 page thread over there with the proper documentation links. I followed RogerC's lead in filling out the form and I included all the information I had including the mpeg.

[manta ray 1]

Certainly test it in the pool. The leak is very slow so if you aim the port down, you'll have no issues with destroying the camera if a leak occurs. BTW, my leak also occurred with no camera in the housing so that's the first thing I would do before inserting the camera. Go onto www.digitaldiver.net and read about it there. There's a 4 page thread over there with the proper documentation links. I followed RogerC's lead in filling out the form and I included all the information I had including the mpeg.

Thanks for the info. I finally got into the pool with the housing today. First test no camera. No leaks. Second test. Leaks!. I did as Olympus suggest and removed the the eye piece and strap rings. The leak happened around the pop flash hump. So now it happen time start the long process of replacement. I've included a picture. I also will include a short video with the repair report.

Thanks again.

[Reis 0]

The PT-E05 housing still appears to use the single Olympus style bulkhead as the past housings, for best TTL with nikonos type cord strobes Athena makes this conversion circuitry, http://reefphoto.com/index.php?main_page=p...ee636cc9f61a269 I have used this item and it works quite well. However, I went to fiber optics with the new Inon Z-240 strobes which lowers cost if you don't already own strobes that won't fire with fiber optics.

 

Phil Rudin

Phil,

Thanks for your reply. I have been using the older Athena dual cord set with 2 PFL-E01's and they have performed well. I just noticed the price of the PT-E05 on the Olympic site and they are asking $1,199 and it is not yet available.

 

Reis Kayser

[ktwse 0]

Just a quick note to say that the housing and strobe are now listed on a Swedish retailer site. It's priced at €1000 for the housing alone and €1300 for housing + 14-42 port. The strobe sells for €570.

 

I've sent them a question regarding availability and hope to be able to get all of it late August for pool testing and then some real dives in September.