Christian K

Question Dave, do you use the hard plastic protection cap for the lens when you go in the water? I’m used to a neoprene cover on my domes but none is available for the wwl-c afaik? Or do you ”strip” before you jump in?

Good to go!

Sorry, Nauticam compact wet lens, didn’t I write that? And z24-50 lens. Just missing the camera body here (nauti house, z240x2, cables, macro port, extension, zoom gear, 24-50 lens in peli 1480 air). Wet lens and arms go in personal item (fanny pack). Chargers and batteries and extras go in checked.

So I have made the move. Have been a DX shooter since 2005 and was reluctant to FF due to a number of reasons, mainly bulkiness and weight (travel) and difficulties with rectilinear wide angle, which I use a lot. So now I’m putting my hope to a little compact wet lens paired with a kit zoom… Apparently an awesome combo, I’ll see in a couple of weeks on a trip to nusa Tengerra… I have been using Hugyfot housings before, sleek and small. Now I’ve converted to Nauticam. The latter is a tad lighter and with handles removed for packing, about the same size. Z-body and optics smaller and lighter than DX versions. The wet lense is smaller and lighter than a big dome port. The macro port for the Nauticam is very little and light. So I managed to make the move and actually, it looks like, loose some weight and pack a tad tighter. So far mission accomplished. So now let’s just hope images will not be sheit 🙂

The photogear insurance sound interesting. I will look into that for sure. As for regular travel insurance and incidents / accidents, I am covered by my home insurance for 45 days abroad, assisted by SOS international, evac, treatments everything.

Sad indeed. Manta rays and sharks are seldom eaten though, very poor meat. Finns dried and sold to the Chinese. Meat become animal fodder. Still, it’s their part of the world and they’re free to do as they wish with their natural resources.

2.4 with padding, which I won’t use, only thin foam in bottom and lid, then cloth and bubble wrap. So it’s close to two. A very swift and easy move of a couple of items, 10 second operation, to my private :) fanny .. gets me close to 7. Carrying the Nauti house as personal item an option, many do it. But I very much prefer to have it tucked in a case, so it can be ”tossed around” a bit. Have never considered putting the camera inside during travel. Tried to chose everything with weight in mind for solo traveling. Dropping the pelican might save another 400 grams or so… worth considering. Kind of want the protection though, I’m used to travel that way, old dog, new tricks… Now when I go with my daughter … it will be a non issue. She only has a gopro with a small handle and lamp. We just pack e v e r y t h i n g in two 7 kg carry on pelicans. Then 2 x 30 kgs checked.

Yes, unfortunately so. According to locals there used to be plenty of manta rays, but all fished out since 25-30 years ago. There’s a reef in the Fundu gap that they called manta reef or manta point, which is a cleaning station. No more. Still was an incredible dive even w/o mantas. Explosion of life. The best area inme together with the reefs that dropped off into the abyss north of Pemba. It is an oceanic island different to the other ones in the archipelago , in some ways like Sipadan compared to the other islands in the Sulawesi sea off NE Sabah.

”Best” season for Pemba is November to April roughly. Outside that period chances for good conditions are a less. It is very tide dependent. Only a short window every day is good which means only two good dives a day. Intimate, local experience and knowledge absolute critical. There were fields of dead coral already 20 years ago—dynamite fishing had been practiced by local military according to the dive center—but very limited. It seemed to have escaped the big bleaching in 1998 that hit the Indian Ocean badly, Maldives in particular. But for the most vast areas of living, beautiful coral. Visibility incredibly clear and lots and lots of fish. Roaring currents. Also bigger schooling fish like barracuda and trevally, and game fish. No sharks or mantas. It was inmo a lot better than diving around Zanzibar.

Pelican Air 1485 2,07 Inon Z-240 x2 1,24 Nikon Z6 III+battery 0,76 Nauticam Z6III-hus 2,70 Cables 0,15 WWL-C 1,05 Nikon Z 24-50 mm 0,20 Nauticam Macro Port 6 0,35 Bayonet Mount Converter 0,115 Total 8,635 kg Moving the wwl-c and perhaps the 24-50 to my ”personal item”—a fannypack with 4 arm segments and six clamps—will get it down to 7ish carry-on legal weight. NiMh AA:s, chargers etc. and additional gear in checked luggage—I’ll be able to shoot even if checked luggage is delayed or ”lost”, batteries and chargers can be replaced in most semi civilized areas. A plan in theory in this moment. Will test it in a month or so :)

Pemba Island in that region also interesting. Was many years ago, spent a week on Manta Lodge on its north tip. Very different to Zanzibar as it sits outside the continental shelf and has very deep waters all the way up to its shores. Kind of fjordlike ”gaps” that cuts into the island with 100+ meter deep walls. Pemba channel 1000 meters deep. Don’t know if there are any good DC:s now. Mafia and Pemba would make an interesting combo.

Gotcha. Cheers, the 1.xx kgs apparently the 24 mm variant…

No matter how long you’ve been on it, you have the right idea Helen! Welcome.

🤣 Let’s not jinx any accidents. But yes, good like in the saying ”… for the buck”. Made in Japan.

Most bang … : IKEA ladda.

Is that the travel friendly 1.xx kgs wet lens or the 4 kg ”lump”.

Get really cheap dive gear. The only ”expensive” stuff i have checked (and might plan to check) is ports. Otherwise arms, clamps and batteries. Housing, camera, strobes and cables in carry on. Lenses and wwl-c in big fanny-packis my plan (personal item).

Rules seems to be tighter and tighter. So does the slack given to ”sinners” :) I know, because I am one too. However with flying several times per year luck can’t be a part of the equation and business is out of budget. So most has to be checked it seems. And what I bring kept more or less within regulations.

WWL-C for me too (checked with arms and port(s)). Planning on dismantle handles tho, in theory. Does not have the housing in my hand yet (with my dealer) and new to Nauticam (Nikon z6iii). Big hassle? Seems easy enough on paper. Weight of big concern, hence the 1485. Bon chance in Coz. Heading to Indonesia in early September to ”baptize” my new gear.

Cheers. I’m going to see if I can fit (most of) my rig in a 1485, if not I’ll resort to what you have—the 1525. May I ask what camera body you Nauti is for? I’m new to Nauticam.

Is that the 1485?

Will most likely demand a large dome. The 122 degrees is pretty close to the wet lenses 130, so that would be a good comparison.

Wet lenses was a game changer for me as a Nikon DX shooter since 20 years. Was very reluctant towards FF because of all reasons already mentioned, but mainly for the lack of good rectilinear WA options. They all needed big ass domes and very expensive high end glass was disappointing once put behind that big ass dome and brought UW. APS-C was much better in that aspect. So I was about to swap brand when a fellow shooter and distributor of housings convinced me to go FF with wet lenses. Made it possible to continue shooting Nikon too. Not that is was all that important, but old habits die hard I guess.

Isotta looks sweet and kind of remind me of now dismantled Hugyfot, which has been my choice of housing. But we have no Isotta dealers in Scandinavia. Call me old fashioned, but I like to have someone close for support, which I have with Nauticam. The Z6III is a pretty awesome 25 MP camera with incredible AF and the latest tech. I struggle with motivating ”the need” for the extra MP performance or reason for me to pay € 1500 more for a larger Z8. Z6III with Nauticam, a small port and a wet lens will be a pretty swift kit delivering top notch in every aspect (video too—which I haven’t really considered or really, weighed on that much). So the dice is rolled. I ordered a Z6III Nauticam housing with a macroport and the wet lens already. 😊 Cheers.