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01/04/2008 02:55:41 PM · #1 |
Hi there
I was wondering if anyone here has any experience with underwater photography and the gear that is required. Every time I get the magazine of B&H in the mail I spend forever looking at all the cool underwater gear.
I am going to upgrade my gear to the D300, so I would like to use my D80 as an underwater camera. I have seen various under-water casings on the web for the D80 ranging from 350 to $2,600. Obviously you get what you pay for, but how can the $350 offer a five year coverage and have all controls available for the user, while the other one for two grand more has the same?
Also, what do you do about the lenses?
I want to get started in underwater photography and these are basic questions and I'm looking for some help getting started.
Thank in advance for everyone's help!!
David |
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01/04/2008 03:05:40 PM · #2 |
| I'd take a guess and venture the price difference is a function of how deep the housing will remain waterproof. |
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01/04/2008 03:12:23 PM · #3 |
I was looking at uw gear at BH recently also. I think the housing for a 30D was around $1600 and for the lenses, you have to buy specific attachments for those as well at around $350ea. I would love to have some of this stuff next time I go to Maui! A little nervous about dunking my 30D though.
Another option is to rent the gear - that seems like a good first step. |
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01/04/2008 04:18:08 PM · #4 |
if your D80 fits this may be a cheap alternative if you are not going too deep.
//www.rei.com/product/752138
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01/04/2008 04:59:48 PM · #5 |
| The 5D doesn't work well underwater without any protection. |
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01/04/2008 05:00:46 PM · #6 |
I use to do a lot of u/w photography years ago and I'm sure the equipment is much better now but I will share some of the problems I dealt with: I'd really research the reliability of the housing you are going to put an expensive camera in....leaking is a major problem the deeper you go. Nikon use to make a line of cameras (The Nikonis I think) that was built to work underwater and had it's own casing. Whatever you use, make sure you use a lubricate on the O rings and that there is absolutely no dirt on the O rings. Flash attachments are a pain so make sure you can use a self contained flash....and you do need a flash even at shallow depths. To do close ups we use to make a wire bracket about 10 inches long that would be out of the photo but make it easy to stick the camera on the bottom and shoot....did a lot of nudibranchs, etc. and worked well on fish also.
Good luck with it....shooting underwater is a challenge but there is so much you can't see anywhere else in the world.
Rick Taylor (Xuko) |
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01/11/2008 11:03:33 PM · #7 |
Hi
probably the most widely used housings and strobes are the Ikelite //www.ikelite.com
also if your after more indepth comments and help check out //www.digitaldiver.net
they are extremely friendly and always offer sound advise and the forum is the best dedicated to UWP i have seen
i personally use an Oly 5060 in an Olympus Pt-20 housing and a strobe set up
all underwater equipment needs to maintained with greased O-Rings and serviced yearly to prevent floods
as Rick said there is so much to see and yes it can be challenging but the results outweight the effort involved {eventually}
another thing diving in itself can be challenging ensure that you are proficient in those skills prior to taking a camera underwater
i had at least 200 dives logged before i even thought of the idea of taking images
best of luck
hope this helps
Message edited by author 2008-01-13 03:44:08. |
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