Newbie Must Read: What new system did you just buy?

[phxazcraig 115]

I just bought a new Nauticam housing to fit my 1-year-old D850. This is an upgrade from my Nauticam D810 rig I'd been using for the past 3 years. I also replaced my V24 Fishlite focus light with a Kraken 3500. Nice light with amazing battery life. Kept the YS-D1 strobes and arms.

 

Why? Because at 65 I may not be able to soon, and I wanted my best underwater. The D850 specifically gives me better autofocus and a few more pixels to crop with. I shoot it with the same two lenses I've been using the last 3 years, a 105vr for macro and a 16-35vr behind a 230mm dome port for wide angle.

 

I've tried a few things that didn't work for me. 60mm macro and matching port. Used one dive, working distance too short. 1.4 teleconverter and 30mm extension ring. Used two dives, not sharp enough. +2 diopter for the 16-35vr. Used half the time, never saw a difference. Edges and corners terrible.

 

I also just added a Sea and Sea 77mm Internal Correction Lens to my 16-35, and it has transformed it! This is a winner, big time. I'll never shoot the 16-35 underwater without it again. I can get away with shooting wide open at F4 now and not even have to crop the corners. Worth every penny.

[hobo 0]

Hi all, have been doing underwater photography for the last 8 years. Initially I had s canon powershot but moved on to Sea and Sea Dc1300 and then onto a Canon G7x mark 2 with Sea and sea strobes . Now I have purchased a Canon mirroless M6 with Ikelite housing and keot my strobes and added a bluelight for focus. I am fine nearby shots and macro ( not that it is great with the M6), but I am struggling with my deep blue shots of predators. Any help here on white balance and settings etc?

[chrisdudley 1]

Just got a Sony RX100IV with Nauticam housing. I've seen some absolutely amazing videos on Youtube done by this camera, I'm hoping to do the same

[OwenF 4]

Hi, first post for me.

 

I've just taken a previously flooded (and serviced) AD7000 off a friend for not much. Complementing it with a Vivid Sentinel and 2x LFM 3600lm video lights on camera and 2x Scubalamp V6K 12,000lm off-camera.

 

Current lens is a Tamron 17-50, but suspect i'm going to have to get a Tokina 10-17 pretty sharpish. Mainly for cave video but going to attempt stills with continuous light.

 

Been on a GoPro 4 to date and looking forward to more manual control. Example of what I've managed: https://vimeo.com/324750338

[Woody1474 0]

Currently using a D300s but looking to upgrade to the D500. Any thoughts on Ikelite v Aquatica v Nauticam. Worth paying that little bit more?

[TimG 62]

Currently using a D300s but looking to upgrade to the D500. Any thoughts on Ikelite v Aquatica v Nauticam. Worth paying that little bit more?

Woody - add Subal to your list. Mine for the D500 is terrific!

[Woody1474 0]

New to this forum but been shooting underwater for around 3 years. We run a freediving club in the UK and mainly shoot UW for the training sessions as well as local and national competitions.

 

My current set up is

Nikon D300s

Aquatica 11-17 2.8

8" dome.

 

Currently considering upgrading to a D500 or D850 if the budget allows....off to check the classifieds.

[benbrinker 0]

5D Mark IV with a Nauticam 5D Mark IV housing... But I'm actually looking to sell and probably switch to Sony or go for a Blackmagic pocket 6k housing. I'm looking to get into more 4k-6k video work rather than just stills and cropped 4k video on the 5D.

[danrees 0]

Love hearing about all of your housings!!

[Joe Weaver 1]

Hello Everyone!

I'm the proud new owner (about a month) of a Canon G7X Mark II and Fantasea housing.  I researched it forever before deciding it was the best bang for my budget.  I know the Nauticam housing is supposed to be better, but this is built like a tank as it is.  Loving it so far.

It also has an adapter for the flash to take fiber optic sync cords, which is my next acquisition.  (Along with strobes, of course.)

[Nickgturner 0]

Currently using an rx100 ii and a nauticam housing. Going to buy my first strobe this year. Does anyone have any advice on the best strobe to buy as a beginner? 

[phxazcraig 115]

On 12/13/2019 at 3:15 PM, Nickgturner said:

Currently using an rx100 ii and a nauticam housing. Going to buy my first strobe this year. Does anyone have any advice on the best strobe to buy as a beginner? 

I only have experience with the YS-D1.   Shot a pair on my RX100 II for a year, and another 4 years with my Nikons.   Lots of power, works with the on-camera flash triggering it in TTL mode.

 

[Angusparker 3]

GH5 w/ Panasonic 12-35mm f2.8 in a Nauticam housing and dome. Use my GH5 topside so now it’s going underwater! Learning a lot about uw lighting right now - strobes and LEDs. This forum is a great resource.

[jesmor3 1]

I’m a noob myself but here’s the setup I’m building for mostly stills but also decent video.

- Sony RX100 VII
- Nauticam Rx1007 housing with pressure port and handles kit and trigger
- 1x Inon Z330
- 2x 8” Ultralight Arms and clamps
- 4 Jumbo Floats
- New Nauticam WWL-C Compact Wide Angle Wet Lens
- Short port for the WWL-C
- Nauticam SMC-1 with hinges holder from Nauticam (seen in photo)

I chose this setup mostly because I’m already committed to the Sony system and know the menus and capabilities like the back of my hand. I wanted to go all-in with the A7R3 but thought this compact setup would be better to learn UW on.

The VII has blackout-free rapid fire which I hope serves well as a second body when shooting land wildlife. I was hoping that the underwater setup would be pretty flexible with wet lenses but there are some limitations when committing to certain ports.

The SMC-1 works between about 80mm-200mm on the MkVII but of course at 200mm you’re getting REALLY big magnification. On the short port that works with the WWL-C, it does limits the zoom pre-80mm so I will probably sell the SMC-1 for a different, less strong diopter. It works perfectly on the standard port, which lets you zoom the whole range of 24-200mm. For me that’s not wide enough for my preference though. Hence the short port and WWL-C, which I can add photos of upon request.

Shown with Standard port:


Cheers!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dandyrandy 1]

Just bought the backscatter macro strobe, just hoping to get a chance to play with it.

[Spizeck 3]

Just purchased a full rig (my wallet said, "OUCH!"). I had a TG-6 with the Olympus housing, a gopro tray, two 5 inch arms with Backscatter Mini Strobes and the Backscatter Wet Wide Angle. Got a lot of really good shots with it, but wanted more control. Went with Sony A6600 and Nauticam housing, two S&S YS-D2J Strobe. I already had a video light with a cold shoe attachment for focusing / night dives. For a first lens I went with the Sony 10-18mm Wide Angle with an 8" Dome. You will have to excuse me if I am butchering any lingo (please correct me if I am). I am looking forward to learning.

Just hit 100 dives recently and currently diving 6-8 times per week. We have amazing critters here where I am working. Tons of Giant Morays, Grey Reef Sharks, Green Sea Turtles, and very friendly Octopus. Add Napoleon Wrasse and Giant Bumphead Parrotfish, should get some good shots.

[waynesworld 0]

Hi, Looking at using a Nikon 16 MM Fisheye in a housing on a Nikon D850. any feedback on this lens fro UW use? 

[TimG 62]

Hey waynesworld (great movie!)

A fisheye for WA makes great sense on the D850. Although the go-to FE lens for that has tended to be the Sigma 15mm rather than the Nikkor 16mm. You might also check out the Nikkor 8-15. The 8-15 is better than the Sigma though much pricer.

WP have recently broadcast a discussion between Adam Hanlon and Alex Mustard on the merits of the Nikkor 8-15mm. Well worth checking out.

[waynesworld 0]

TimG,

Thanks for the input. Appreciated.

[TimG 62]

[Divebiddie 2]

I am quite possibly the world's most careless camera owner.  My camera history includes 17 (yes, 17) SeaLifes,  Olympus EpM-1 (4 of them), and now a Nikon Z7.

 

I decided to try the Nikon 60mm macro lens mounted with a Nauticam housing and MWL wet lens.  I love the fact I have a choice of macro and fisheye on the same dive, but it a heavy, bulky system.

 

The learning curve of each camera gets larger!  The first Nikon pics looked as bad as my first Sea life DC 100.  But when I rarely get a good shot, the resolution, color and depth is awesome (to me).

[Gallienus 1]

Just got the Olympus TG-5 (Tough) but have decided to return it as it seems too fragile.  I guess it's a point & shoot with very modest underwater capability?  For one, the battery cover is just a thin plastic flap with 2 little very thin plastic hinges.    I think a better route would be to get a good case for my Sony NEX-6 (mirrorless DSLR) for which I've two lenses.  I'd also like to get a wide angle lens for underwater shots.

 

I've heard that the Nautica cases were discontinued.  Is that true.

Edited October 30, 2020 by Gallienus

[tomunderwater 1]

I have the following set-up: 

-Sony a6400

-Sony 10-18mm lens f/4 OSS (15-27 full frame equivalent) for wide angle shots 

-Sony 50mm f/1.8 OSS (75mm full frame equivalent) for fish portraits and (quasi) macro shots   

-Tokina 10 - 17mm f/3.5 -- f/4.5 fisheye lens (no supporting zoom gear with my housing so I set it to 10mm) 

-Two INON z-330 strobes 

-Nauticam tray/ball and clamp arms 

-Sea frogs salted line housing with a standard (glass) flat port and 6 inch (acrylic) dome port 

 

So far I'm pleased with this rig.  Happy to answer any questions re: this equipment! 

Tom 

[Tony Dee 0]

What is the life expectancy of the ikelite housings in your opinion? I had one a long time ago for my Sony compact (it got destroyed by being dropped, but am more interested on normal use)

[Gallienus 1]

I was looking for a housing for my Sony NEX-6 but these are tough to find.  They also had an issue price of nearly $2,000. 

 

I've decided to buy a Sony RX100 V or VA (used: they're pretty common) which is the last RX100 using the F1.8 lens.  Then I'll buy a Salted Line case for it which should be a pretty good starter system.  I've seen these $49 or $129 cases by these Chinese companies but I'm skeptical they're any good.

Edited December 15, 2020 by Gallienus
update