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TimG

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Posts posted by TimG

    On 8/29/2026 at 4:40 AM, tiger said:

    TimG I agree . I love the images I made with a Nikon D200 and D300. It is all about some skill and experience with your tool after all. I was wondering what you thought of the D800 ? Was it a camera you fell in love with at the time?

    Yeah, I really liked it. It was a pleasure to use and I got some terrific images from it. But..... I did find having to use a large domeport (230mm) for wide-angle images an utter pain for travelling. My partner found it an even bigger pain!

    I used the D800 for about 4 years but decided the travel issues were getting just too much - and switched to a D500. This got me back to a 100mm dome (just tiny in comparison) and a Toklina 10-17mm lens. This was a brilliant setup and I missed nothing from the D800.

    As you may have read in other posts I've made, I no longer see the point in having FF unless you have some specific reason for it. Having lost all my D500 gear, I've now gone for M43 in the rebuild.

    2 hours ago, reubencahn said:

    My left brain is telling me the OM-1 in Nauticam is the way to go. My right brain is lusting after the D500/Subal.

    Oh, I hear ya!!!!

    Interesting to read of your Subal experience. They serviced a 45-degree viewfinder for me after I scratched the viewing glass a few months ago. That was quite quick. But, yeah, not sure I'd want to invest in a new system. Such a pity. They have been superb housing.

    Will post for sure on how it goes.

    As for the Nauticam, 45-degree viewfinder. Mercy, it is LARGE compared to the very neat Subal one. Easy to install/remove though, has a diopter adjustment which is nice.

    I love the idea and it was something I asked Retra about a few years ago. They thought then that variable apertures tended to jam after a time and the slide masks were simpler and reliable.

    In practice, like @Dave_Hicks I only use probably 2-3 sizes of openings and have just the two round-shapped Retra slide masks in carabiners in a BCD pouch.

    Hi Reuben

    Have to say I agonised. The decision to move to OM and Nauticam was for multiple small reasons which seemed to make the case. I usually only traveled with the Subal housing plus a Nikkor 60mm macro and Tokina 10-17 plus the relevant ports (100mm for the Tokina), Retra strobes and LSD. Even then I was finding the weight and bulk a bit of a pain.

    When I lost all my gear I thought it time for a rethink. Was it wise to buy a second hand D500? I had contacted Subal about a housing and got no reply. And much though I loved the housings, I couldn’t help but feel Subal were fading away. Nauticam is everywhere in terms of product support, quality, second hand desirability etc. Then there didn’t seem to be a D500-like Nikon body available. I didn’t want to go FF for the weight issues. Several members on Waterpixels talked about the merits of M43 and the OM-1.

    Those factors persuaded me to switch. There were probably more thoughts in the back of my mind.

    Not yet got the new system in the water. Soon! But first topside impressions are good. Lenses for underwater use are mind-boggling small and light compared to

    Nikkor. The Nauticam housing feels good, fits together nicely and I really like the integrated vacuum system and USB bulkhead charging/downloading capability. Port mounting is a little easier than Subal. Push and lock rather than push hard, twist and maybe lock.

    The housing feels good to handle, perhaps not quite as refined as the Subal. I really liked the size, feel and placement of Subal’s shutter and aperture control wheels. The Nauticam’s are a little smaller and, at the moment, my Subal muscle memory doesn’t find them so easily. Practice eh? Over 25 years of Subal practice.

    The OM-1ii is similar in size to the Z6 series. It seems hugely capable. AF seems excellent topside. Massive learning curve from Nikon. But one step at a time. Image quality? Waterpixelers, whose views I trust, tell me I won’t tell the difference. I bought a topside lens with the aim of slowly switching entirely to OM. Again, steep learning curve. I got the 12-100 which is similar to the Nikkor 24-200 which is/was my go to travel lens. It’s very similar in size. But other long tele/zooms in the OM range are significantly smaller and lighter than Nikkor equivalents.

    Everything other than strobe arms now fits in a 1510 Pelican case. Yeah, it’s still heavy! So no real weight saving but it is compact and my second cabin bag will be much lighter.

    Sorry, this is rather a long reply now. I can tell you more when back from my trip. But so far looks good and I thought it might be helpful to explain the context for my decisions.

    • Like 2

    30 minutes ago, Nikolausz said:

    Yes, but

    We are gear-heads and we like to discuss technological details of various equipment used underwater. Especially when "vs" is used in the title we can expect a long discussion. Even if the conclusion is that there are more important aspects of photography/ videography than incremental improvements of the hardware it's still fun to discuss it.

    Fair point. We're all here to learn, share and have fun with something we love. Enjoy!!!!!

    • Like 1

    Hey Fred!

    Great to have you with us. A warm welcome to Waterpixels.

    You've come to the right place to look at upgrading. We offer expert advice! And we love to help members empty their bank accounts 😝

    Best wishes

    Is there anything you can’t do with your D850 that you think you might be able to do with, say, a Nikon Z? I doubt that focussing or underwater image quality will be significantly better with mirrorless.

    I’ve been a long-time D500 user (and like you D100, 200, 300 and 800) and hankered about going mirrorless. But the only real advantage I could think of was in-viewfinder review. A very nice feature, especially for macro, but at huge cost: new body, new housing.

    As Dave suggests, you can probably pick up a used D850 housing in great condition for an excellent price. Two have been advertised recently on our Marketplace.

    Chris makes an excellent point on “I want one”. Given the costs of underwater photo gear, Buyer’s Remorse is awful thing!

    If you feel you are really missing out and would be disappointed by not having FF and, as Chris says, you have the means and appreciate the downsides, then go for it! Dont be faced with Buyer’s Remorse.

    Just don’t think it’ll necessarily give you significantly better images. Composition will do that - and that comes at no cost.

    37 minutes ago, CaolIla said:

    Thanks, but if the problem is in the script on the side of Waterpixels... I can't do anything.

    Only try to localize the problem... the ball is on the side of the administrators of the site.

    Problem is, for the moment at least, we can’t find a problem and, so far, no-one else has reported this as an issue. Rich has been checking various logs and nothing has turned up so far.

    Dave suggested creating a hotspot on a mobile phone and then accessing Waterpixels from your PC via the hotspot. This might eliminate a possible router issue. Did you try that?

    There’s no lack of effort (or willingness) from the Waterpixel’s team to try and solve this. But The Man is stumped at the moment.

    • Like 1

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