Jump to content

TimG

Super Moderators
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    1,009

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    50

  • Country

    United Kingdom

 Content Type 

Posts posted by TimG

    New Set Up <US$5,000 - What would you get

    in Photography Gear and Technique

    Posted

    1 minute ago, Mark Don said:

    Back to the spreadsheets 😞

    Was there life before spreadsheets?

    I think that's a good call on the rectilinear vs aluminium body, Mark. You may well find you don't need a rectilinear.  

    In addition, if you do buy one, you will need a bigger and more expensive domeport than a 100mm one that would work perfectly well for the Tokina. For example an APS-C/DX sensor camera using a rectilinear lens will likely need an 8" domeport and a ?50mm extension ring.

    New Set Up <US$5,000 - What would you get

    in Photography Gear and Technique

    Posted

    Hi Mark

    Good to know its been of help  

    Ikelite housings: the big differences are price and, depending on which model/camera, size. Ikelites are usually made of polycarbons and are often boxier with possibly less access to some camera controls. Chris will correct me, but I’m not sure Ikelite housings necessarily have ports allowing fibre optic connections to strobes. 

    By contrast, the aluminium housings Subal, Nauticam, Aquatica…. , tend to follow the form of the camera body more closely and are more compact as a result. Generally all camera controls can be accessed and usually in a very ergonomic way. Both optical and electric strobe initiation is usually possible. 

    I must admit my preference would be to go for an aluminium housing but many use Ikelite and enjoy the company’s reputation for good customer service. 
     

    Tamron lens? Do you mean Tokina? If you go with the Tokina 10-17 I’d suggest holding off on a rectilinear lens till you’ve used the Tokina for a while and then reassess. 

    • Like 1

    Fibre Optic Cables? Make your own....

    in Tutorials, How-Tos, DIY

    Posted

    1 hour ago, makar0n said:

    Waaait,...did I just have an idea? WaterPixel branded fiber optic cable? 🤣

    Yeah, that thought struck me too, makar0n......

    I've just emailed various fibre suppliers in Europe to see if they have that 613 core, so let's see what happens. 

    Another possibility is if a member is heading to the US and can bring a bundle back. It weighs nothing and if it's not on the cable drum, takes up little space. We might be able to do a bulk order again. 

    The Inon single L-shape bush you suggest from Onderwaterhuis would work well.

    It was Oskar at Retra who told me about the problems of cutting fibre with scissors. One other thing he mentioned that can impact on TTL-quality transmission: offset two-hole bushes.  One central hole in a bush delivers a more reliable signal than a bush with two holes.

     

    Fibre Optic Cables? Make your own....

    in Tutorials, How-Tos, DIY

    Posted

    Very cool printing your own connectors. Respect! Good on Dave sharing that. Could you post a photo so that we can see what they look like? I know Elias (Kraken de Mabini) uses a very inexpensive connector that he gets from Amazon which he semi-glues on to the cable.

    I must admit I've not looked for the 613 core cable in Europe. I was living in Sint Maarten when we did the order and was able to get it shipped in bulk to me with minimum hassle. I cut it all to the lengths that folks wanted and then took packages to Europe to mail in the EU and UK. 

    It must be obtainable though in Europe or at last some kind of equivalent. Maybe one of IT network-ace members knows? 

    New Set Up <US$5,000 - What would you get

    in Photography Gear and Technique

    Posted

    Hey Mark

    I've been using the Tokina 10-17 for some years and it’s brilliant underwater on a crop sensor system. Horrible though above water! One nice thing about it is that it works very well with a 100mm domeport - so small and light weight for traveling. And it’s perfect for CFWA with a 1.4TC.

    If  you go the crop sensor route, you could pair the Tokina with either a 60mm, 90mm or even 105mm macro lens. I use a 60mm and 105mm. I think I prefer the 105mm as it lets you stand back a bit further but it’s harder to use initially. 

    • Like 1

    New Set Up <US$5,000 - What would you get

    in Photography Gear and Technique

    Posted

    Hey Mark

    Some thoughts:

    If you have already decided that you want to shoot macro and WA then I'd suggest an early decision is on format rather than camera manufacturer. So, full-frame (FF), cropped sensor (APS-C or DX) or Micro 4/3rds (M43). All of them are a big switch from a TG6. What do you intend to do with the images may well determine what you choose.

    If you are shooting for purely personal use, view on screen, show your friends, then  you really don't need to go for a large format sensor (ie, FF). DX or M43 would be perfectly good.  If you are thinking of huge prints (say bigger than A3) or serious image sales, then maybe you need FF. The camera marketers will try and steer you down the FF path but that is really not necessary and can, I think, be counter-productive.

    If you go FF you are looking at bigger, heavier and more expensive lenses. Whilst macro is easy to house in pretty much any format, housing wide-angle is much more difficult and expensive for FF than one of the smaller formats. A big domeport is usually necessary unless you choose just a fisheye lens.

    Both DX and M43 lenses are much easier to house, less expensive and less bulky. 

    If you chose FF then for macro and wide-angle you are looking at, say, a 105mm macro lens; and a 15mm fisheye (FE) for wide-angle or a 16-35mm lens which will give you a rectilinear image and not fisheye. FEs are much easier to house than a 16-35.

    You would probably chose the same type of lenses for DX or M43, ie macro and FE or rectilinear but because of the smaller sensor size, the numbering might be slightly different especially for wide-angle. So, for example the DX equivalent of a 16-35 is a 10-24; the equivalent of a 15mm FE is a 10.5mm FE.

    Strobes, arms, fibre optic connectors, vacuum valves are all the same whichever system you choose. All these are items that can be transferred from system to system and are worth careful consideration and not scrimping on.

    Then cost. A new FF system complete is probably in the region of £13-15,000. You can probably get that down to around £7-£8000 if you go second hand and pick up some good deals.

    A DX-based system is probably two-thirds of that. M43 a little less again. 

    My suggestion would be that you give serious thought to the end use of the images. Decide the format, then decide what lenses you would like; then see which manufacturers make them for which camera; then narrow down the camera. I wouldn't suggest you start with the camera body. That is the cheap bit of the package, not the most critical and the least long-term purchase.

    I'm sure others will chip in with views. But for the moment, I would not narrow down your thinking to either Sony or Canon. That might be your final decision but, as I say, get a good idea first what you want to achieve and then work out how. Otherwise there is a really good chance you spend a ton of money and not get what you want; or spend a ton of money unnecessarily.

    I hope that helps a bit.

    • Like 2
    • Thanks 2
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Terms of Use Privacy Policy Guidelines We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.