Dave_Hicks

The design constraints of a float and port are very different. A float should minimize dry weight and maximize buoyancy. It is not protecting anything, so failure IS an option for a DIY project. A port is mission critical and more forgiving of dry weight. The walls are going to be much thicker than a float can possibly allow due to buoyancy requirements. That said, i made a couple of buoyancy floats that slip over a Nauticam 105mm (port 87) that have lasted over 8 month and about 100 dives. Printed in ABS, just four .6mm perimeters , acetone smoothed, and sealed with epoxy and a carbon fiber external wrap for durability. They are still going strong, but no more than 100 feet max depth so far.

Orca Torch D710v. Simple, powerful, 21700 common battery with great run time.

That is a total marketing BS designed to paper over the high cost of Mac memory upgrades. They are not any more efficient with RAM than other PCs, and sometimes worse because they share memory with the graphics cores. Apple recently stopped selling Macs with 8 gigs of ram with a new baseline of 16gb. 16 gigs of ram should be the minimum anyone considers. More if you are doing photo or video work as a primary use case.

+1000 In my opinion the combo of the EVF and a 45deg viewfinder makes my switch to the Z8 a total winner. It's a killer combo.

With the Z8 you use the EVF to both shoot AND review. You don't use the LCD screen. This makes the Magnified viewfinder very useful, more so than with your D850. You should consider hanging on to it for a while until you settle in with the Z8 and maybe decide if you need it or not.

Congrats on your upgrade! You know this will still work on the Z8? Just set the EVF view size on the camera setting to the smaller option.

It's hard to beat Stix floats for light weight and maximum buoyancy per unit weight.

I shoot the Nikon 8-15 behind the Zen 170mm port. You need to remove the port hood at 8mm, but i don't really use that often to date.

Actually, I just remembered / realized that the MFO-1 comes with such an adapter in the box. So, no worries if you buy the MFO without a flip adapter. I should have realized that earlier. I edited my earlier post to clear up the confusion.

Great topic and excellent examples in the article! I'll add another tool to the arsenal: The Silver Sharpie! These are excellent for scuba gear as they will permanently mark up rubber, plastic, scuba tanks, aluminum, and more. The article reminded me of a funny story. A female friend doing volunteer diving in the local aquarium and spent time in the tank in front of the public spectators as she fed fish, cleaned things, and engaged with the visitors. Then someone showed her a photo they took while she was in the tank. AND her phone number was all over her fins for everyone to see. Needless to say, she scrubbed it off before her next shift in the tank!

Not any closer than my +5 Subsea did already, maybe 10cm? Just looked at the Nauticam product page than they report 12cm with my exact 105mm lens setup. But then you can point off to another subject up to 114cm away. This tracks with my experience on this first experience. Without any diopter you can't get much closer than 25-30cm or so with this lens. I may try some dives with the MFO directly on the port. The MFO-1 in only about 10g less than the Subsee +5, but is a bit shorter. However, the Nauticam dual flip adapter is over 300g. Inexplicably, the MFO can NOT screw directly on the Nauticam flat port as the threads are not deep enough. However, it does come with a minimal spacer / adapter that lets you screw it on the port.

I shot my new MFO-1 last night with a Nikon Z8, 105mm F-mount, and Nauticam housing, dual flip with the MFO-1 and Subsee +5. Quick observations are that the Subsee is likely going on the shelf. The MFO both reduces and extends focus range to over a meter and reduces it beyond what the 105 can do by itself. The Subsee +5 has been my go-to macro accessory as it also reduces the shooting distance while not magnifying too much. However, it has a very limited range of maybe 30cm. I often have it flipped down and then mistakenly try to shoot something larger beyond its range, causing a delay to flip it up. The MFO can get in tight but also provides useful range. The first critter I spotted last night was a pretty large Pacific Ruby Red Octopus, about 12 inches long, This is about as big as they every get. I was able to take full body shots from about 1 meter away no problems. Here are two sample photos: f16, 1/200s, iso250 f16, 1/200s, iso100

One other thought. May not apply here given the symptoms but its easy to check. On a recent trip a friend had a problem with his Nauticam flash trigger. After swapping around triggers we decided if was likely an electrical connection going bad. We first checked and resoldered the hot shot cable to the circuit board. That didn't do it. Next we opened the hour shoe itself. It has a couple of little screws. The wires were frayed and a total mess. It was simple to clip them off, strip clean wire, and resolder. Problem solved. I would closely inspect the wire connections and take the hot shoe apart to examine it. A multi meter to test continuity of the wires can help as well.

This is likely a Flash Sync issue with the nauticam flash trigger. I have had variations of this problem both D850 and Z8 cameras and the nauticam trigger but with the Backscatter MF1 strobe. I resolved it by working with Backscatter who got Nauticam to send me an adjusted trigger that disabled PreFlash Learning logic. Before you get in to all of that, be very careful to take a SINGLE shot when you first turn on the strobe. If you take more than one in quick sucssession some strobes strobe may incorrectly learn the wrong sync pattern. The Inon should follow the PreFlash setting of the control knob, which should be DOWN in your case. Make sure that is so. Barring that, you may need to swap out the nauticam flash trigger. Perhaps you can get the S&S one to fit in the nauticam with a little creativity? (And some Sugru moldable rubber)

Any chance you might be able to borrow an MF-2 and try that out? It's likely that Backscatter but more effort into compatibility with the MF-2. The MF-1 was great but had a lot of reliability issues. The MF-2 is far more reliable, more powerful, better battery life, etc. If the MF-2 works with your new trigger, it would be worth considering an upgrade. Repurpose the MF-1 as a backup or off-camera strobe.

Thanks for confirming. I will dive it in a few days!

I just got my MFO today. Not wet yet, but on the bench I only see about 20cm max focusing distance on a Nikon 105 lens. Is this expected?

You are supposed to dive with these balloons on your camera? It seems a bit like a cludge. It doesn't get in your way, entangled, or create drag?

Fortunately I don't feel the need for this accessory. I have not found battery life to be an issue with the Nikon Z8. Battery life was called out often in the early reviews and spec crawls when it first came out so it was an initial concern. But it has been a non issue so far. I've done dozens of 3-4 dive days with 400-600 shots on one battery. I honestly don't even pay attention to the battery gauge most of the time unless I am going in to a high action environment like sharks or sealions. Does this sound consistent with other Z8 shooters?

I am going to try the MFO-1 with my Z8 and 105mm F-mount lens. I don't have an issue with this lens hunting in my current setup generally. I am more focused on any possible image quality improvement and expanding the working range of the lens. I ordered one this week, perhaps I'll have it by next week and can give a review shortly.

I've been to Cabo airport (SJD) a number of times since they started this Tax scam. I've not been victimized yet - thankfully. Friends on the same trips have been hit for Hundreds of dollars. My best tip is to pack your camera gear in a standard suitcase that does not scream "scuba" all over it. Pack your dive gear in bags that DO scream scuba. If you are traveling with someone, give all the non-scuba bags (with the camera gear) to one person. The other takes all the !SCUBA! bags through first. The camera-bearing person follows and tries to not look like they are together. I've skated though several times successfully using this approach. I put my Dive gear in Pelican bags which really draw attention. My wife with the regular suitcases containing the camera gear slipped past unnoticed.

I've used the 105mm F mount with a port 60 +20 as well. It should not be any different with the FTZ adapter as the Nauticam Z housings are designed to exactly position an F mount lens + FTZ in the same position as F mount bodies did.

I really only used my 60mm with a Kraken KRL-09 wet-wide adapter lens. It flips down on a 60mm to make a wide angle option. It's a good way to combine Macro and Wide on a single dive. However, when I got my Z8 I also invested in the WWL-C with the 24-50z lens. This provide much of the same range and capabilities the 60+Kraken can do, so it's a bit of bench warmer these days. The WWL-C win in nearly every point of comparison between the two. Sharper, smaller, more flexible, etc.

I use the Nikon F 105mm on the FTZ with a Z8 camera. Previously I used it on my D300, D800, and D850. (I eventually broke my original lens and replaced it with a Like New used copy) It remains razor sharp and super-fast with the Z8. I don't think anyone would complain about sharpness or slow focus with this lens. That said, if I didn't already own the F-mount I would buy the Nikon 105Z lens if your primary camera is a Z-system body. I've not used it, but the evaluations all claim that it is a bit faster and sharper than the F mount. However, the improvements are marginal and not easy to demonstrate. It is going to be a bit lighter and smaller than the F-mount+FTZ however. If you already have the F-mount, it's going to be an expensive upgrade at ~$1000 for the lens and possibly a new Nauticam port or spacer. A very optional upgrade with a low cost/benefit ratio. Long ago I used to shoot the 60mm on DX cameras like the D300. It was a natural fit on that format. When I moved to FF the 105 drops into that comfortable slot the 60mm used to hold. I rarely use my 60mm any more as a result, it is just not as good. The difference from 90mm to 105mm is not significant and I don't think it's in the favor of a 90mm format. I would be interesting to see a head-to-head with Tamron 90 and Nikon Z 105mm. If nothing else, the F16 limit of the Tamron would make it an uphill climb against your Nikon options. The Sony 90mm is not universally loved, so the Tamron probably looks like an attractive option for Sony Shooters.