humu9679

I’m also not sure about the video lights for still photos. You might consider just getting one strobe to start out. The Atoms sound great, but you can also do all right with used Inon z240s/330s, Retras or something similar. The wide angle wet lens is a must.

Very cool Dave! That’s how I clean my suckers, too.

@StephenP That's lovely. Thanks.

Aloha and welcome @StephenP !

Aloha and welcome @HamsteRfury How can we help you spend your money?

Aloha and welcome @lancelot365 !

It does seem that the flash just overpowers what you might see in existing light. Try no flash, long exposure or higher ISO. Where does this anemone live?

Aloha and welcome @Jyk The z330s are still good, but having the option to do high speed sync might be something to look at with other strobes. The A6xxx series is fine and can make a lighter, smaller travel kit. Putting the 90mm or 100mm macro in the mix will work, but you will have a 135mm or 150mm equivalent and some might find this too long. You can try the 50mm Zeiss or Sony macro, which will be 75mm and lighter and easier to carry around but some find the lenses a bit slow to focus. This is better with the newer bodies, like the A6600 or A6700. Another system to consider is OM System. Their bodies are small and ergonomics great. Their macro lenses, like the 60mm (120mm equivalent) is tiny. Great for traveling, sharp and you likely will not be disappointed unless you develop the desire to have a bigger sensor. Craig

Really nice. Thanks.

Aloha and welcome Nick @andersonsmog ! If you’re going to be serious about underwater photography, you might want to spend more money, so the Ikelite may be your ticket. The housings are bigger and more buoyant but they work well, and Ikelite services what they make, which can be an issue with what may be one and done Sea Frogs housings. Later, you may be seduced with the more svelte aluminum housings (Sea Frogs make these, too) made by Nauticam, Marelux et al. I’m on Oahu if you want to DM me.

Nice work!

Aloha and welcome @kdgonzalez

Aloha and welcome @Don Silcock !

Aloha and welcome @jofische !

Aloha and welcome @wdeutsch ! We are happy to help you spend your kids’ inheritance.

very cool.

Aloha and welcome @AlexUW26

Great stuff! Thanks.

Aloha and welcome @BarnyD

Aloha and welcome @kc_moses Congratulations on your retirement!

Holy moley. Just seeing this. Glad no one was hurt. A great reminder of what could have transpired.

Aloha and welcome @KiruKakuni

Wet lenses are attached to the port, and increase magnification. Less magnification is easier to work with, and in my opinion, should be what manufacturers use to label their lenses (+6, +2, +12) rather than the names they give them: UCL-167 or SMC-1, which means little when you’re trying to compare lenses. Teleconverters do something different, which increases the focal length of the native lens, and allows for greater working distance and, ultimately, magnification. This is probably easier to use, though I’ve never done this, if you can get used to the increased focal length of the lens. A 100mm lens with a 1.4x converter will be 140mm, for instance. “High” f-stops? The higher the number, the smaller the aperture, e.g. f/16, and increased depth of field, which is desirable when you have razor thin zones of focus. f/2.8, for example is wide open with your lens. Hope this helps, and I’m sure others out there will help correct any of my misconceptions.

Aloha and welcome @Terri I'm a Sony user, but I have to say that the mad rush to full frame isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Call it sensor envy. I have a full frame body and housing, but I’d prefer to use the smaller lenses that cropped sensors provide. My A6700s are thus far unhoused. I love the idea of large sensor compacts, too. There are a lot of cameras out there but we’re always looking for perfect, eh? Hauling them around is also a thing to consider.

Still up for me. I signed in and all that.