bghazzal

Hello all, This video by Dr. Phil Dustan was posted on the Bird's Head Seascape network, and I thought some might be interested. Continuing coverage of the Raja Ampat Coral Bleaching Event: "Caught in the Confluence of Global Warming and Ecotourism". In October 2024, a marine heatwave struck the iconic coral reefs of Raja Ampat. Corals in the Dampier Straits experienced severe bleaching and mortality, fueled by increasing levels of sewage from rapidly expanding ecotourism. Unless the sewage threat is eliminated, the World’s richest reefs and the economy they support will collapse. ***** It's good to see sewage/waste water finally mentioned so clearly. Development-related run-off, silting and pollution have been an issue on house-reefs for a while in certain areas. On a personal note, I remember seeing the change betwen 2014 and 2017 (which was my last visit to Central RajaAmpat / Dampier Strait), with house-reefs being seriously affected in the Mansuar (Besar and Kecil/Kri) area. 2016-2015 was a massive turning point, with lots of homestays built in the area which once only hosted Max Ammer's Kri-Eco and Sorido resorts, and very fast. Trees near the shoreline were cut, structrues were built (there was even a plan to build a pool at some point...) and in only a few months you could see silting and algae growth in the shallow "house-reefs" around the island, linked to run-off from from rainwater no longer held by the treeline and also waste water from the new infrastructures (notably showers and toilets)... Coral colonies in the area are/were believed to have evolved to better withstand heat-stress (not sure where the research on the subject is at now), but combined with stress from infrastructure and activity development, it's quite a lot. Add to that snorkeler/diver damage (seeing an overweighted "discover-scuba diver" smash a table coral in front of my eyes at Yenbuba, or the growing effect of fin-kicks-and-chill on the often current-swept top of a site like Blue Magic come to mind...) to the now unavoidable global emission-related emergency (difficult to reach Raja Ampat without flying to Sorong from somewhere, unfortunately...), trash, plastic, oil and the rest (no, let's not talk about that cruise-ship smashing into the reef at Crossover...) and there are a lot of reasons to be worried for what is still often marketed as "The Last Paradise©" It's something that also struck me in less remote areas like Bali's booming Amed for instance, where over-construction and associated waste-water is rapidly killing of what is left of the reef in the area. What was that saying about being in traffic or being traffic again? 😐 cheers ben

On a strongly related note, here is a review of Tom Hanks-narrated nature series The Americas, with similar issues brought up (anthropomorphism, climate denial, etc.) https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/mar/02/the-americas-review-tom-hanks-beautiful-new-nature-series-pretends-the-climate-crisis-doesnt-exist

Hi Val, I hope you'll get answers from Inon tripod users, but to the risk of derailing this thread, if you're also considering alternatives, there are plenty of DIY solutions for adapting a tripod or - even better if you ask me since the extra leg means less negative buoyancy required for stability -a quadripod system to a Nauticam Flexitray. This is the system I use for macro video, and I find it very flexible angle wise and haven't felt the need for a ball-head type solution for angles (slider is another story though...) - you can also check out footage I shot with the quadripod here When it comes to DIY options (which is as simple as finding a solution to attach to 5" flat ball arms perpendicular to the legs of your tray), you can check out this rich thread here: And since you mentioned shooting macro in current I'll add that based on experience, current and macro, especially supermacro video don't really go well together. Your footage will be stable, sure - especially with a quadripod solution - but the critters will not, and for supermacro they will be swinging out of focus. This is also true for surge - for macro video, more than camera stability critter stability is more the issue IMO. And when they are staying in focus long enough to get a sequence (a critter on the bottom for instance), current generally doesn't make them look the best... Current influences behaviour since they're usually resisting, or, more frequently than not, hiding to resist the current - it can be interesting at times, but more often than not for macro video it's quite meh... Best of luck with the Inon cheers ben

I've had, like probably almost all passengers, issues with Lions/Wings - also had an Air Asia flight cancelled when I was in Raja Ampat in 2015, when internet reception meant hoping your Telkomsel card worked at the end of the jetty, that took quite a bit of work... Back to your issue, it might not make sense anymore, but maybe it might be possible to look into Manado-Sorong Garuda options instead, eventually cancelling the Lion air leg? More expensive and might not have the ideal timetable, but usually less cancelations/changes than Lion, especially for slightly more remote areas with less traffic. I don't know if it's still up and running, but a few years back there was also a Garuda Makassar-Sorong night flight that would land in Sorong at 6am, usually enough to catch the ferry to Waisai for instance - took that quite a few times best of luck

Lovely - Really beautiful footage of the sea kraits and the sponges, and really great atmospheric music combination in the first half of the clip 👍

As a follow-up on the subject, here's a little snippet from an interview of underwater cinematographer Roger Horrocks conducted by Peter Rowlands, published in issue 142 Jan/Feb 2025 of the UWP mag (pages 31-32) Q) The advent of subscription TV has broken the traditional mode of natural history documentary productions. Has it brought better funding and opportunities or diluted the genre? So Peter, that’s a great question, and it touches on where natural history programming has been and where it’s heading. If you look at the “Bristol model”—the style of natural history filmmaking pioneered by the BBC’s Natural History Unit in Bristol and personified by Sir David Attenborough—it was created under a public service mandate. It wasn’t designed to make a profit but to serve the interests of the British public,who largely funded it. This approach fostered a particular culture and style of storytelling, which has become a national treasure in Britain and countries with close ties to Britain, like South Africa, Australia, and parts of Europe. However, in the U.S., it’s a different story. Natural history programming doesn’t hold the same cultural significance. If you mention Sir David Attenborough to most Americans, many won’t know who he is. With the rise of streaming platforms, particularly Netflix, we’ve seen a digital disruption of the traditional broadcast model. As the editorial power shifted to the U.S., I always suspected there would be an evolution—or even a departure— from the classic “blue-chip” style of natural history filmmaking that we all love: respectful, reverent, and almost spiritual in its awe of nature. We’re seeing that shift now. Take Our Oceans, for example. Instead of being narrated by Sir David Attenborough, it’s by Barack Obama. This reflects a move towards more global storytelling tailored for a broader audience. The influence of American editorial mandates is evident in how these programs are evolving. Streaming platforms like Disney+, Nat Geo, and more recently Apple TV, have all begun exploring natural history content. Amazon hasn’t made as much of a push in this area, but it’s clear that the genre is diversifying. One thing that stands out is the oversupply of natural history content during the peak of the “streaming wars.” With so much money being pumped into the industry as platforms competed, we saw a production glut. In many ways, I think this oversaturation diluted the quality of the work. Now, as the industry starts to contract, I see this as a healthy correction. Natural history programming will always have a place. People find these shows incredibly comforting. However, with fewer commissions going forward, I believe the value and appreciation for these programs will only increase. Less can be more, and the contraction will lead to higher- quality work that audiences cherish even more when it’s released.

No real reason it shouldn't work with the GoPro, since you can shoot in at a set white balance (native) and set white balance in post-production. However, do keep in mind that that this is very tricky even with manual white balance and will probably give good results in a narrowish-set depth range. The standard still being to use filters for ambient light dominant shots and no filter for artificial light dominant shots - also, ambient filters on the lights will halve the light output (though recent keldan models have pre-filtered LED modules to counteract this issue) I would also advise against using Backscatter filters for this, and go with a more "tried-and-true" filters like the UR-Pro cyan (or equivalents) or the Keldan Spectrum (-2, or the -1.5 in gel sheets). Here are some threads to expand on the subject: cheers ben

Capital, old fruit – now do be a good chap and give us the lowdown on what Inon’s up to, eh? We need to make sure the Cousins don’t get wind of it, if you catch my drift. Just sidle over to the Japanese strobemaster – do keep out of sight, mind – and while he’s off on one of his little distractions, grab a few snaps for us eh? Then, once you’ve got the goods, scurry back sharpish and let us know what’s what. Keep it neat, keep it clean, and for heaven’s sake, don’t get caught – You know the drill, my dear fellow. Good man.

wow - the 90mm shots are really impressive, given how skittish these guys are! Behavioural sequences are great - I'd never actually spent much time with garden eels (despite passing by them daily...), and this is pretty fascinating. I guess with the burrows being so close they must have some kind of competing / symbiotic relation. Slipping down the slippery off-topic slope, there - to regain footing, a 3 minute-ish cut would highlight the material better I think, looking forward to it! cheers

yeah, I usually do what I'm told so I click like and subscribe 🤣 (I do have a few actual faves in that list, but I think it's good practice to keep an eye on stuff you don't really like as well...) - oh and I did exclude out most primarily talking heads + tutorial / gear channels, focusing on those that host actual UW video content rather than tests, hence no Lebo, Durand et al. 😁

a few selected others from my subs: https://www.youtube.com/@ChrisUnderwater https://www.youtube.com/@OceanaOrgInternational https://www.youtube.com/@diveivanov https://www.youtube.com/@ReefPatrol https://www.youtube.com/@MermaidLiveaboards https://www.youtube.com/@ramyoro5765 https://www.youtube.com/@scubav5371 https://www.youtube.com/@mikebartick4907 https://www.youtube.com/@glaznature https://www.youtube.com/@BlueWorldplus https://www.youtube.com/@bajaproductions1 https://www.youtube.com/@seacamvideo https://www.youtube.com/@36x24 https://www.youtube.com/@undersea_gameqmi https://www.youtube.com/@beyond-scuba https://www.youtube.com/@gillescharvet https://www.youtube.com/@rogeruzun2810 https://www.youtube.com/@marineanimals https://www.youtube.com/@agentLenok https://www.youtube.com/@SylvieNoquero https://www.youtube.com/@Sea_Tales/videos https://www.youtube.com/@JohnDownerProd https://www.youtube.com/@indieoceanfilm https://www.youtube.com/@muckdivervideos https://www.youtube.com/@MarkusReinhardtdiving https://www.youtube.com/@uwlunatic https://www.youtube.com/@Sea_Tales https://www.youtube.com/@BudaDive https://www.youtube.com/@VincentRemede https://www.youtube.com/@balisteolivatre4012 https://www.youtube.com/@InsiderDivers https://www.youtube.com/@wallaceadivecruises https://www.youtube.com/@wksgonediving8154 https://www.youtube.com/@diveexplo360 https://www.youtube.com/@dtirto https://www.youtube.com/@MasterLiveaboards https://www.youtube.com/@johnfreele https://www.youtube.com/@TiffKMaui https://www.youtube.com/@oceanexplorergov https://www.youtube.com/@fishnerdfilms https://www.youtube.com/@StephenMartin001 https://www.youtube.com/@alfonsoribote6698 https://www.youtube.com/@apexunderwaterfilm675 https://www.youtube.com/@ADiversLife https://www.youtube.com/@AndreiVoinigescu https://www.youtube.com/@RanMorPhotographer https://www.youtube.com/@WalindiResortMVFeBrina https://www.youtube.com/@OlympusTg6ByDennisCorpuz https://www.youtube.com/@hannesklostermann3939 https://www.youtube.com/@kkfok1031 https://www.youtube.com/@secretsofthelake1966 https://www.youtube.com/@JUANMONTEREY https://www.youtube.com/@reneheuzey4822 https://www.youtube.com/@dowdarin https://www.youtube.com/@FatFishMovies https://www.youtube.com/@scottw6960 https://www.youtube.com/@UnderwaterPhotoBali https://www.youtube.com/@cjcpixels https://www.youtube.com/@afieldofblue https://www.youtube.com/@richardbrooks-lightning https://www.youtube.com/@SheepdogShaun https://www.youtube.com/@andremusgrove https://www.youtube.com/@nomaddivelogs https://www.youtube.com/@liquidadventureswithmichael https://www.youtube.com/@Interceptor121 https://www.youtube.com/@HugoMattsson https://www.youtube.com/@SoulwaterProductions https://www.youtube.com/@riptideimages https://www.youtube.com/@guillaumenery https://www.youtube.com/@FlyanDive https://www.youtube.com/@pimvanschendel https://www.youtube.com/@FEROXED https://www.youtube.com/@umisora385 https://www.youtube.com/@krysuwfilms https://www.youtube.com/@andy.underwater.videos https://www.youtube.com/@AquaticImages https://www.youtube.com/@LiveaboardLife https://www.youtube.com/@worldadventuredivers https://www.youtube.com/@DivePhotoGuide https://www.youtube.com/@guicostadiveazores https://www.youtube.com/@fridgemagnetfilms7904 https://www.youtube.com/@RafaHerreroMassieu https://www.youtube.com/@GREGLECOEUR https://www.youtube.com/@LukasWalter https://www.youtube.com/@oceansoulsfilms1259 https://www.youtube.com/@jscratch69 https://www.youtube.com/@JurrienWiss https://www.youtube.com/@GlobalDiveMedia https://www.youtube.com/@OceanShutter https://www.youtube.com/@makingwavesproductions https://www.youtube.com/@rayarchit https://www.youtube.com/@RyutaOg https://www.youtube.com/@UnderH2Oshow https://www.youtube.com/@thebluequest8757 https://www.youtube.com/@yutashigeno6205 https://www.youtube.com/@KIRINSEKITO https://www.youtube.com/@oceanvizion https://www.youtube.com/@PetitesbullesdailleursFr https://www.youtube.com/@ark.adventurers https://www.youtube.com/@TheDeepGreene https://www.youtube.com/@kyufurumi https://www.youtube.com/@seadragonfilms2192 https://www.youtube.com/@WetSouls https://www.youtube.com/@PacificBlueFilm https://www.youtube.com/@DiversLens https://www.youtube.com/@DOUBLED0581 https://www.youtube.com/@oceanovideo https://www.youtube.com/@LiquidMotionFilm https://www.youtube.com/@revaemoana https://www.youtube.com/@fredbuyle https://www.youtube.com/@FreedomMediaTV https://www.youtube.com/@pedro_valencia https://www.youtube.com/@JoeRomeiro333 https://www.youtube.com/@CuttlefishProd https://www.youtube.com/@LiquidVDO https://www.youtube.com/@abc4explore https://www.youtube.com/@scuba-simon https://www.youtube.com/@EunJaeIm https://www.youtube.com/@simonspear https://www.youtube.com/@KayBurn https://www.youtube.com/@HANIKim https://www.youtube.com/@OceanImaging https://www.youtube.com/@PallSigurdsson https://www.youtube.com/@OceanoVideoSub https://www.youtube.com/@Nad-lembeh https://www.youtube.com/@flowavefilms https://www.youtube.com/@ChangingSeasTV https://www.youtube.com/@DIVEPROFESSIONALSTV https://www.youtube.com/@birdsheadseascape https://www.youtube.com/@RogerMunns https://www.youtube.com/@Nad-lembeh https://www.youtube.com/@bugDreamer https://www.youtube.com/@UnderseaProductions https://www.youtube.com/@alexlindbloom4877 https://www.youtube.com/@Underwatertribe https://www.youtube.com/@LivingdreambyNuParnupong65 https://www.youtube.com/@pelagiclife8505 https://www.youtube.com/@jeroprieto https://www.youtube.com/@MrEdifro https://www.youtube.com/@Scubazootv https://www.youtube.com/@Thalassa_francetele https://www.youtube.com/@alfredsch.5440 https://www.youtube.com/@Seasickproductions

I like it a lot - really nice angles and intriguing effect with the 360° shot in the begining, lovely closeups (are these cropped in?) and but also really great to watch the eels interacting which each other like they do 3 minutes in, which is something I've never paid attention to - but I agree it's too long, with repetitive shots - I would restructure and trim it down to tight 3:30 and avoid the music change altogether. Kudos on the patience to shoot these guys - now that I've seen them interacting like this makes me want to get some footage as well! cheers

Thanks Maria - makes me wonder how the TG5 would cope with the old Inon UWL-H100 I use for wide angle on the compact - i do have a 67mm to 52mm adapter lying around somewhere... 😄

The story, the story, the story... To offer a slightly differening opinion, I also think story-telling is sometimes going overboard in some cases, with the voiceover trend or over-dramatisation (recent BBC productions for instance, or more specifically the recent Netflix doc trends - on this, there is a very interesting snippet in Peter Rowlands' interview of Roger Horrocks in the latest issue of the UWP mag 142 btw). One question to ask, do we really need a story to enjoy watching wildlife? And what are the differences in expectations when watching edited footage of said wildlife? Do bird-watchers need to give their subject names, sound-effects and a dramatic storyline to enjoy watching birds be... birds? Observing wildlife in its natural environment is not really the same as watching a movie or TV series, which is indeed really telling a story (most of the time anyway 😅) We don't have to be making "art" to enjoy observing nature and documenting it as best as we can, and we don't necessarily need to add a extra scenaristic element to appreciate it. We sure can, but then is it really to complement the footage or because the footage itself is seen as not enough to be a appreciated on its own, as a well shot freestanding element, offering us a peek into something? In many ways, the animals themselves are the story, and tell a story through their behaviour, their interactions with their environment. Just like a good picture doesn't need a massive text explaining it to be enjoyed, I find that most of the time good naturalistic footage actually "speaks for itself", with very little explanation needed. The story is there, unfolding before your eyes. But yes, this is a naturalistic approach, more than an "artistic" one. And it's also a question of taste, sensitivites, interests, etc... Personally I dive to see the underwater world and its inhabitants. This is what drives me, and videography comes from a desire to document and somewhat preserve and extend this experience, more than by a drive to create "art" or express myself. However, it seems letting the the animals and/or the footage best speak for itself is not really the dominant trend at the moment - let's face it we live in a world where story-telling and branding (to which we could add selling?) are notions imbedded deep into our (sub)consciousness, and seen as the only way to keep our social-media-weary eyeballs focused (= engaged) for a few seconds more - just look at Netflix "natural history" docs (are blue chip productions going chocolate chip cookie on us?), Behind the Mask endeavours and quite a few of recent award-winning entries in uw video competitions - to quote Ridley Scott's Maximus, are you entertained? (remember to click like and subscribe!) Nothing that there's anything wrong with this of course, but let's say there are different cups of tea out there, eye of the beholder, all that... However, to return to the fold and agree with the above, yes for sure, naturalistic footage does need something of a backbone, structure, coherence to make the most of it, and also to make it palatable. And of course, if you really have something to say/show/tell, by all means, say it! Once it was all countryside here... And yes, it's true animal behaviour does sometimes need to be given context, to be explained to be better appreciated - fly-on-the-proverbial-wall footage from camera-traps can only go so far... But again, this contextualisation can be as simple as a title, it doesn't need to be a lyrical voice-over or an actual dramatisation following an invented animal protagonist... This little natural-history trick can get a little old (remember documentaries giving names to animals as we "follow them around on their adventure"?) And also, this necessary structural backbone can be a thoroughly planned shooting sessions to capture a specific behaviour or to showcase a specific element, but it can be found after shooting as we edit our clips to some sort of coherence. Nothing wrong with that. We don't need to all be diving/filming with a storyboard to fill... An intention (shooting to edit), sure, but this is a little different from following an actual script... To rebound on the Nick Hope long-scale documentary I mentioned above, I also really his "saturation" study. The structural backbone here is the attention given to colours and textures, which was most likely found at the editing desk rather than as a specific shooting project. To further flesh this idea out, ket's take the latest BBC Beneath The Waves Asia sequence on the moorish-idol spawning in Palau - Sir David Attenborough's unmistable narration gives us the context as the action unfolds: moorish idols in the Western pacific, aggregating on the reef before spawning, then leaving the reef to spawn while they are chased by grey reef sharks snapping away at the aggregation in blue water. The sequence then follows the build-up on the reef, the sharks waiting in the blue, the moorish idols shooting off the reef into the blue and the grey reefs chasing them, seen from above and underwater. Structurally, the sequence is articulated over 2 simple backbones: the voice-over giving us context, then the editing of the footage into a sequence following the chronological order of the action (which was planned in advance, as the sequence of events is actually already well-known and documented). The resulting sequence is quite condensed, as the actual build up at Blue Corner was actually over 3+ days, but the chase sequence they captured happened on a a specific day. It was not the only chase off the reef of course, but the actual spawning and chasing events all happened pretty much on the same day. This is a good example of animal behaviour being, in itself, the story. Sure, there are many editorial choices in structuring the sequence to illustrate the event, which we could call narration, but the focus is still primarily to document it, in a naturalistic way. The border between telling a story and documenting an event is sometimes thin - is a filmed sports competition telling any story other than that of itself? This might be a shocking comparison, but I love watching baitball footage, predation and other scenes for what they are. The story of life, telling itself as it unfolds. Well filmed and edited, of course... Back to the moorish idols, a still picture option might have been the fish shooting off the reef with the sharks in pursuit, or the sharks snapping at the ball of fleeing/spawing idols for instance, or the aggregations of moorish idols or sharks in the blue, chosen moments capturing a chosen aspect of the same story. Or, for a more abstract angle, a close-focus wide-angle shot of moorish idol eyes, for a slightly different artistic "take" on the event... While in this BBC video sequence the voice-over gives us the context, you can also find brillant examples of the same behaviour being captured by other videographers on youtube which no voice over, just a title / description, and which are also captivating imo... However, BBC logistics for capturing the chase (long multiple day shoots, with a diver on a rebreather on the reef, and camera-boat + following the action action-cam loaded floats) definitely has the edge, as they managed to capture a moment of the chase which is very difficult to see in water (most of the other footage is either drones or shot from the boat, as in local Blue Marlin diveshop's clips of the same chases, captured on the same days). To return to the original subject, this amazing sequence is less than 5 minutes long 😉

Good question - it really depends on the content - as a format I like short focused clips in the 30 seconds to 1 minute range, or well constructed videos in the 3-5 minute range, I certainly watch videos more than 5 minutes long, but then for me it has to have some kind of driving direction otherwise I tend to skim watch, or technical-watch (looking at the lighting, angles, grading etc) - having long been a culprit myself, I often find myself quite bored by slide-show type content (even by the masters of the form...), and skip drone work as a rule. For longer formats, I love naturalistic documentaries styles like Nick Hope's /Bubble Vision work This one is is almost 120 minutes long for instance, and certainly watchable https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ncUVddkK3Q their are plenty of other reasons to go long, especially if you have something to say and document - but if it's to showcase underwater life in an area and the great footage you got of it, then around 5 minutes is generally enough. So in general I would say that for my attention span and interests short clips (vignettes, a minute max) or longer ones in the 3-5 minute range are really the sweet spot. But watching on a computer and not on a phone, and being allergic to talking-head videos on youtube, I'm probably not much of a reference as a viewer base... 😁 cheers ben

As a follow-up, as expected based on the graph the 3310 Flurofilter seems to be the closest yet to the UR-Pro Cyan. This would need to be confirmed by in-water testing, but results are pretty impressive on land, with the 3310 being potentially a little stronger Rosco 3310 and UR-Pro Cyan, side by side: UR-PRO Cyan Rosco 3310 Telemetry readout are virtually the same for these two 4K clips on the GoPro7: UR-Pro Cyan: ISO Shutter RGB Gains Rosco 3310 ISO Shutter RGB gains:

Gates housings typically used acrylic UR-Pro Cyan or Magenta filters, which are no longer manufactured but can still be found online (certain diameters at least). A good alternative for video - but not really similar as it is aiming for accurate colours rather than an aesthetically pleasing colour balance like the UR-Pro (or, to a certain extent, Canon colour balance...) would be the Keldan Spectrum filters, or certain Lee/Rosco gel alternatives Here's a thread on the subject: Keep in mind that shooting with a filter and lights will generate a light source unbalance (the "mixed light problem") which can be resolved with ambient (cooling) filters on the lights, but using these on 6000 lumen lights will halve transmission, turning them into 3000 lumen lights, so not really useful for anything else than closeups

Great stuff - currently drying out in cold Japan, I miss these guys 😍 Seems pretty consistent with what I saw on bonfires in neighbouring Amed before conditions broke down the last month or so. I see you're getting different handling of backscatter across shots, which I imagine must be from trying out different light placements. I found it was actually quite tricky to make out what works best on the spot, with sometimes surprising results in post - what worked out best for you in general? did you get any swarming on the lights or is it not much of an issue over deep water? Also, how was the AF with Sony 30mm? cheers cheers

Thanks Simon, this is very interesting - yes, the 90mm seems like it would be really tricky, despite having the fastest, video optimised AF of all the macro range, being a GM lens. On APS-C like the FX30 or a6700 it will be just too tight I think. For bw I was initially looking at the Zeiss Touit 50mm but alas, it's not optimised for video, which Zeiss considers unsupported "specialist applications" (so much for insects...). I'd also considered the Nikon 60 with adapter, but it's a no-go for video AF. And the Sony 50mm or 30mm macro are both supposed to very slow, unfortunately. Let me know how it goes with the 50mm and FX3 AF. For the time being, if i do manage to make the change to Sony (life is heavily in the way having just moved from Indonesia to Japan/Okinawa...), on APS-C I'm planning to try using the new Sony 16-50 kit lens (E PZ 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 OSS II ). It's certainly not great but has supposedly been revamped for improved video support, including high frame rates, and stabilised, so could be interesting, combined with a smallish diopter on a flip. The 28-60mm lens with the WWL-1B sounds like an interesting solution! And it's great to know tracking toggle works for this - my main reason for moving to Sony is tracking AF (I usually shoot video in MF, but bonfire experiences in MF at 30fps have definitely sold me on AF to help follow critter movement 😅) Apparently the FX3, it's little sister the FX3 and the a6700 (along with most recent alpha cams) have a similar tracking AF, and an assignable toggle-on/off, which is a life saver! cheers

@Scuba_Si after reading in your intro post that you shoot with an FX3 and since organize a lot of bonfire/blackwater dives, I was wondering if you had any feedback on recent Sony video AF, especially for tracking small critters in the water column, as there's very little video-focused info. Based on user manuals, the FX3's video AF should be quite similar to the a6700's I'm guessing. cheers ben

Welcome Simon, great to have you onboard - I really enjoyed your blackwater video Q&A and amazing blanket octopus footage, wow! 🤩 cheers ben

Nice one Val - we moved to Japan a few weeks ago after two years based in Amed - muck diving there is quite underated - there are seasonal variations and clearly less diversity than Tulamben, but still really lots to see muck-wise at Melasti Amed and Amed Selfie / Amed bay. But what I enjoyed the most is the comfort and simplicity of hopping on my scooter for a 5 to 10 minute hop to the dive site where my nitrox tanks would be waiting 😉 After working on boats big and small for years, shore diving is where my heart is at the moment ❤️ Amed is changing fast though, we hadn't been back since 2017, and wow - the past two years have been a dizzying blur of constructions, restaurants opening, live music and what not. A night-club even opened up in Jemeluk of all places, not far from what is now the boombooming Sunset Point... Anyway, can't stop progress so best enjoy it while you still can! cheers ben

Yes, I was also wondering about that - need to compare results with Wags' test on the DJI4 - I can't remember if there were lens/fov changes between the two cameras. I'll also check on my AOI lens on GoPro7 test see if it's similar, as water clarity was pretty bad when I tested it as well. Regarding the file itself, it seems DJI's dlog M is not a real log profile - you can see the color space (farbraum) is listed as bt709, so it's some form of Rec709. Looking into it, I found this: Dlog-M is like a wanabee dlog. It has more contrast and more color baked in. Great for those who want a little more latitude than the "normal" color profile produces while not as difficult to grade as dlog. I also downloaded DJI's dlog to vivid 709 lut and tried in FCPX, but the results were not as nice as a simple re-WB and quick grade- bit too contrasty and flashy for my tastes (prefer more desaturated / pastel colours, which is why I don't like most auto SOOC results I see coming from which usually pump up the saturation and sharpness, which is, I'm guessing, for phones and instagramable flash-bang purposes😁) That said maybe the DJI lut is not for dlog-m, but actual dlog? Probably better not to use a lut for 709? There was a bit of a pink/magenta hue on my files which I noticed on the bubbles, but nothing massive - I think this is due to my default presets I normally use on the LX10. I spent less than 3 minutes on it, and it's very easy to go for a cooler profile, so this isn't an issue. Anyhoo, I don't have a paid version of dropbox, so limited to the 1080 dlogm file, but it's nice material to work with, clearly - however the background blurryness mentioned by Dreifish should be looked into further. cheers ben