Mini dome port

[m.eppoliti 0]

I am considering a zen 4" mini dome port, but I don't want to drop $900 without giving it a try. Does anyone know of a place where I can rent one for a week? I'm going to Belize next month on the aggressor. I thought it was worth a shot to ask.

 

I shoot wide angle primarily with a a 15mm FE, nikon d300 in a sea & sea housing.

 

Thanks for any suggestions

 

Michael

[stewsmith 14]

I am considering a zen 4" mini dome port, but I don't want to drop $900 without giving it a try. Does anyone know of a place where I can rent one for a week? I'm going to Belize next month on the aggressor. I thought it was worth a shot to ask.

 

I shoot wide angle primarily with a a 15mm FE, nikon d300 in a sea & sea housing.

 

Thanks for any suggestions

 

Michael

 

If you dont get to borrow one and you make the decision to go ahead and buy one, I dont think that you will be too disappointed. I have not used mine with the 15mm FE but have had great results with the 100mm Zen and the Tokina 10-17mm FE. Are you intending to use it with the 15mm FE ? What kind of photography are you wanting to use it for?

 

Stew

[adamhanlon 0]

Hi Michael,

 

You may have done so already, but why not ask the manufacturer whether they have a loaner you could use for evaluation? I would happily lend you mine, but is is a Type 3 Subal, and in the UK!

 

Adam

[blibecap 29]

Michael

 

Can you provide more information on your lens 15mm FE? Is it a Nikon lens, sigma or what? The more details the better.

[Alex_Tattersall 90]

Hi Michael,

 

Try emailing Zen Underwater and asking if they have any demo models available for try.

 

Also, if you haven't seen it yet, Alex Mustard wrote a good article about minidomes which is certainly worth a look

 

http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/thoughts-on-mini-domes/

 

Alex

[Timmoranuk 10]

If you dont get to borrow one and you make the decision to go ahead and buy one, I dont think that you will be too disappointed. I have not used mine with the 15mm FE but have had great results with the 100mm Zen and the Tokina 10-17mm FE. Are you intending to use it with the 15mm FE ? What kind of photography are you wanting to use it for?

 

Stew

 

I'll go with Stew on the 10-17mm with or without the 1.4 TC. Good glass...

[m.eppoliti 0]

I am considering a zen 4" mini dome port, but I don't want to drop $900 without giving it a try. Does anyone know of a place where I can rent one for a week? I'm going to Belize next month on the aggressor. I thought it was worth a shot to ask.

 

I shoot wide angle primarily with a a 15mm FE, nikon d300 in a sea & sea housing.

 

Thanks for any suggestions

 

Michael

 

 

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm using a sigma 15mm FE

[Ryan 48]

We don't provide samples for evaluation directly from Zen Underwater.

 

The Reef Photo store has units available that can be rented. Demos are also available on group trips that we run, as well as some events from dealers like the Backscatter Digital Shootout.

 

Problem with Sigma 15mm is that it physically requires a bigger dome for proper placement (because of its large shade). We have cut the shade off the lens for full frame customers that really want to use it. If you have a cropped sensor camera I'd think long and hard about taking the lens to ebay and replacing it with a Tokina 10-17.

[m.eppoliti 0]

Thanks Ryan. How much to rent one for a week? I'll see if I can rent a 10-17 as well.

[blibecap 29]

If the Zen dome is truly tuned for the Tokina 10-17 lens that has a nodal point of 58.2mm then to use it with the Sigma 15 who's nodal point is 39.7mm the dome will need to be 18.5 mm (almost 3/4") closer to the lens for the edges to be sharp. These nodal points are from where the lens mounts to the camera body.

 

I ran into a very similar problem dealing with my mini dome and had a customer that wanted to use it with a Canon EF 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye lens who's nodial point is also 39.7mm. I had to design a shorter dome base.

 

Also Please note that if you add a tele-converter the dome must be moved out the same distance as the length of the tele-converter to keep the edges sharp.

 

Ryan does the Zen 100mm dome allow for extensions? I don't think the version for the ikelite housing does.

 

I hope this helps you with your decision.

[m.eppoliti 0]

I have no problem switching to a tokina 10-17. I found a couple of places to rent the lens and if I like the setup I'll buy it.

 

Thanks for the help!

[Ryan 48]

If the Zen dome is truly tuned for the Tokina 10-17 lens that has a nodal point of 58.2mm then to use it with the Sigma 15 who's nodal point is 39.7mm the dome will need to be 18.5 mm (almost 3/4") closer to the lens for the edges to be sharp. These nodal points are from where the lens mounts to the camera body.

 

I ran into a very similar problem dealing with my mini dome and had a customer that wanted to use it with a Canon EF 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye lens who's nodial point is also 39.7mm. I had to design a shorter dome base.

 

Also Please note that if you add a tele-converter the dome must be moved out the same distance as the length of the tele-converter to keep the edges sharp.

 

Ryan does the Zen 100mm dome allow for extensions? I don't think the version for the ikelite housing does.

 

I hope this helps you with your decision.

 

We currently have 17 skus for different length integrated extensions and housing bayonets supporting Tokina 10-17, Nikon 10.5, Canon 15, and Sig 15 less lens shade.

 

We only offer the Ikelite mount for Tokina 10-17. It is not possible to use extension rings (and therefore teleconverters) with the Ikelite mount.

 

Personally I don't see the attraction of the teleconverters with 10-17 on a cropped sensor. I think they make up for bad technique in many cases, but we have a lot of customers using them.

[blibecap 29]

Thanks Ryan

[m.eppoliti 0]

As a follow up, I rented the zen mini dome with a tokina 10-17. It is a fantastic combo. Anyone who is considering purchasing one of these ports, don't hesitate you will love it.