Grantmac

If you have no intention on shooting at the 8mm end and using crop vs the TC I'd be looking hard at the 7Artisans 10mm MAX.

Welcome!

It really does seem the only real option is the Canon for maximum flexibility unless there is a miracle with the Laowa. Maybe it'll be so sharp that simply cropping is going to be effective on modern high resolution bodies. Being able to compose on a circular projection then crop a vertical or square would be decent for social media anyway. Here is a fun one: the Tokina 10-17 with the 2.0TC covers the entire FF sensor across it's zoom range. I'm currently playing with it behind a Zen100 plus 35.5 adapter and 30mm extension. EQ will not be great I'm sure and it's definitely slow to focus but you do get a 20-34 fisheye. I'm betting one of the 1.4 TCs might also get FF coverage since the bare lens will do it from 15mm.

I know someone who lost two cameras to two separate Octo housings. I won't touch a plastic housing anymore.

I have the adapter, extensions and TC. So my decision is not entirely straightforward. If the Laowa can take the TC then things get very interesting.

Would housing vacuum affect how far out it's pulled?

Not the Canon 60, it's easily faster than the Sony 90

I am waiting on the Laowa as well. I'm unlikely to get the Sony so the debate is between the Laowa and adapted Canon

I'll be curious to see what the built in extension is and whether the Sony 8-15 can work with the existing N120 adapter

I don't generally shoot video. My only attempt was using the metabones and a Tokina 10-17 using ambient lighting. The AF was the least of my worries.

Worth a read through here for another, possibly better, option:

When I visited in August I ended up diving Brommie and it was frustrating in different ways. You get perhaps 10 minutes near the bait and otherwise are lead along a fairly boring reef. Plus the majority of divers are so poor at buoyancy that they kick up a huge amount of sand. Still I got a few decent pictures that I otherwise wouldn't have. I'll try Mikomoto again on my next visit.

The 60mm ef-s does NOT have a 1.5 crop at maximum magnification and barely vignettes on the long end. It's fast and sharp.

I have far less trust of major corporations vs what is in essence someone's hobby project.

It's in there, but a separate module which I haven't opened. I believe it runs locally rather than going to some sort of external data center, which is a significant component of my objection. I want to know my images aren't being passed through some sort of training program. Subject masking is not something I consider generative. Neither would backscatter removal (in my mind). Being able to recompose an image by adding, removing or reposing subjects is a different story. As is adding details which were not recorded as part of the initial imagine like we see with upscaling.

Since I started dealing with RAW files I've been using DarkTable. Mainly because I refuse subscription services and don't use any sort of generative AI in my workflows as a ethical principle. I've been overall satisfied with the images I've produced, the software is VERY powerful but equally difficult to learn. There are multiple ways to do most functions, different work flows and most importantly the masking is not remotely intuitive. It's probably just a little too technical for someone like me. I think this is likely because the program has been a community project for years and like many such things there just isn't a cohesive vision driving it. I have been researching RAW editors which are a bit of a fresher take, less aimed at experts and with more logical workflow. A number of people have been quite positive about RapidRAW, which is rolling out updates regularly. I decided to give it a try and I'm impressed. 30 minutes into learning DarkTable and I had barely opened a file. 30 minutes into RapidRAW and I've edited pictures which I'd given up on. The subject matter masking has been very successful with sharks, rays and divers even in lower contrast pictures. I have yet to give it a try with macro subjects but that is next. The initial download is very small but then it'll do an internal download for the masking. I haven't been using it long enough to see how it handles updates and obviously just scratched the surface on everything there is to offer. I don't see going back to DarkTable. https://www.getrapidraw.com/

I uploaded a variety of my most challenging RAW files. I chose ones with either ambient light or a mix of ambient and strobe. All are wide angle and only one is shallow/tropics. The rest are 10-25m depth in cold water. I'd be curious to see how your program handles them.

Or the ability for a camera to "learn" subjects

Where I think this could be useful is when you can only light part of the scene. Like a wreck which you just can't reach with a strobe, or with a diver illuminating part of it. If ultimately it's just a clever mask with colour adjustments then that's going to save a lot of time. Have it do video and I'd be thrilled. I absolutely hate grading video.

@OlDirtyDiver I believe this exact lens is one I bought from you and before my accident had only minor imperfections. Did you focus on the entire dome to maintain shape or just the affected areas?

Any examples of really large scenes like a wreck?

Unfortunately it's a rather deep scratch caused by a barnacle in a challenging shore exit. I will try polishing but I am not optimistic. If I use a wide aperture it's better but still noticeable. I wish I could find a replacement dome.

I'd be waiting a bit for the Laowa 8-15 and see how it stacks up against the Sony. I'd be using either one in the 140mm dome.

I agree the 12mm is an even easier lens to get focus correct although less sharp at it's best. My biggest struggle with the 12mm is the dome is very delicate being acrylic and projecting well forward of the hood. Of course replacements are virtually impossible to find and it tends to take damage on the worst area (front) in terms of impact on the image. I have two and one is pristine so I am afraid to use it. I've procured another copy of the Gen 2 15mm, it's becoming my favourite wreck lens thus far: https://www.instagram.com/p/Db4KC60jyLa/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&stkn=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== I still find focus very challenging with it but acquiring an enhanced viewfinder and using focus zoom has helped significantly. It's a slow process however. I think with some creative focus gear design it would make an excellent video lens. As it stands focusing in drygloves is a significant challenge.

I am completely against the use of generative AI so if that is the intent I'd prefer to not contribute. However if that isn't the intent then I'd be pleased to help. Once I am on a decent connection I will be happy to drop some images. Mine are entirely cold conditions with frequent poor visibility. I don't not, as a general rule, edit backscatter.