TimG

11 hours ago, Grantmac said:

Yeah I was talking with the seller about it and I get the impression they don't really know what they have, just what it cost new.

Dodgy!

Sticks? Work of the devil. They let you poke bits of reef that you wouldn’t dream of touching.

😝😱

Hi Ben!

Always great to get a Wetpixel refugee with us. You’re very welcome. I’m sure you’ll see lots of familiar names.

Yep, I’m pretty much with Dave on this. I seldom remove them - especially the housing main o-ring - unless there is obvious sand or grit visible. Shore diving can create this. But week diving from a liveaboard rarely requires an o-ring removal with the potential for damage or mis-placing.

I’m off to the Maldives next year and was mulling over strobes or no strobes for the classic manta dive. Waters are usually turbid, I guess, so backscatter would be an issue.

Yep, the Nikkor 8-15 works really well on the Z bodies with the FTZ. I use it both with a Z6IiI and a Z9.

Hi and welcome to Waterpixels. Great to have you with us. We hope you really enjoy the forum.

Uk Diving eh? Brrrrrr……

Best wishes

Hey Scott!

A warm welcome to Waterpixels, we hope you really enjoy the forum.

What an exciting time with your project. Very best of luck with it.

Best wishes

1 hour ago, Smstelzel said:

Thanks for the inputs so far.

Leaning towards the Eckos but have another question would the new Atom flash be too much overkill for my setup or would it be good insurance if I felt like I wanted to advance beyond a compact system (not sure if I want to yet but I may)

That’s good thinking. Strobes and their accompanying arms and clamps are some of the few long-term investments in u/w camera gear that can transfer from one system to another. Definitely worth planning ahead.

2 hours ago, JohnD said:

am having a hard time envisioning diving with the 105 and not having the MFO-3

John, why not just dive with a 60mm? I use a 105 on a D500 and like it but, for sure,it’s not the easiest to use. Are you using it on a FF body?

3 hours ago, Narced Diver said:

keep the Osmo 360 as an expensive paper holder

I've seen a Hasselblad as a paper holder - albeit with an analogue clock mounted in the lens mount - so don't feel too bad 😉

Fingers crossed.

Hi AquaZ

A warm welcome to Waterpixels. If you're looking to pick up some u/w photography skills, you have sure come to the right place! Very good to have you with us. We hope you enjoy the forum.

Best wishes

Hey Wahrmut!

Great to have you with his and welcome to your new home. Yep, lots of recovering former Wetpixelers here - as I'm sure you will see.

Enjoy the forum!

Best wishes

I’m a D500 user with the same lenses that Scubajess is selling. It’s a brilliant setup!

Hi David!

I remember you from Wetpixels. A warm welcome to your new home. Great to have you with us - finally!

I'm sure you'll see lots of familiar names on the forum. We hope you enjoy it.

Best wishes

LOL, welcome to Waterpixels, Underwater with Art - love then name.

Great to have you with us and I'm delighted to read that you've managed to find a peaceful outlet away from what, I'm sure, can be pretty difficult at times.

We hope you enjoy the forum.

Best wishes

4 hours ago, Ajay said:

Another scary thought (😅) is that I could just let the AI make my images, and dive to enjoy the UW scene and experience, eyes wide open, rather than through the viewfinder..

True, but where’s the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction? Isn’t that a big element of what we do? That’s mine. I did that. 😆

I've never had a housing serviced and a couple have done close to 1000 dives over a period of several years. If it works smoothly and. for example, they are not frequently in sandy environments, I'd suggest leaving well alone......

The only thing that could be serviced on my viewfinder (a Subal) would be the o-rings that mate with the housing. Again, unless they show any sign of wear, I would't change them.

Flying from Jakarta to Sorong a few months ago, we used Garuda and they were really good. We paid a few dollars more and went Business and had a ton of gear in the cabin with us. No problem at all.

I've used Emirates a lot too for travelling and no problem with them either on weighing.

So much depends, we find, on making the luggage look compact and lightweight. My partner, bless her, carries the really heavy stuff and seldom gets asked about it. I just bimble along with the light gear..... She insists we swap airside. Darn.

I'm with Chris on the M43 or APS-C. I switched back from FF (Nikon D800) to APSC (Nikon D500) to get away from the massive lenses and ports. Can't say I have seen any difference in image quality.

But... you already have the Z8 which, I believe, is excellent. So...... I'd be very tempted to check out that 24-50/WWL-C combination. Relatively small and compact; or an 8-15 a 140mm port.

Hey, jumper I understand.

Like me, my LSD gets cold and I hate people being cold. On the other hand, I also hate seeing my gear getting scratched up. So in a moment of utter nerdiness, I crafted a little coat both to keep my LSD warm and to help it not get scratched. Amazing what you can do with all old wetsuit and a pair of scissors.

I may be crazy but I'm not uncaring...... 🤪

As Dave suggests, a 230 dome is a beast. It's easy to think that its is just another inch larger than an 8" dome - but wait till it arrives. They are huge. I used to use one with my D800 setup and a Nikkor 16-35 but after a few trips, gave up on it. It was either the 230 dome or my girlfriend. She refused to travel with it - and can't say I blame her. It was like travelling with an extra family member.... (I exaggerate of course, but you get the idea)

I'd go with the 8-15 and a 140 dome.

If I'm setup to shoot macro I use the snoot almost all the time - so leave it on.

Like flowdesign, I made a very small modification (see pic) - actually an addition - to my LSD by using a tie-wrap to attach a small shackle at the pointy end. Combined with the loop (and another shackle) already on the LSD, I can clip it on to my BCD or, at a pinch, squeeze it into a Zeagle pocket which I have added to my BCD.

It doesn’t make much difference really. The price is ridiculous though. You can make your own for a few $s. Here’s an article I wrote a good while ago on the forum about how to do it.

Hi Jens

A warm welcome to Watepixels! Great to have you with us.

I love your two categories. Can I add another though: divorced. Diving became such a crazy passion for me, my wife and I split. Hey ho.....

Very best wishes

Tim