d2b

For me a company where the CEO answers email is a plus, but I can imagine not everyone agrees 😉

I wrote to <[email protected]>. No idea now where I found that address, or if it still works. A Mr Howard Chen answered my email.

Last time I had a question about a Howshot product I wrote them an email and they answered fairly quickly (in English). So if you have a yes/no kind of question, it's worth a shot.

I guess Backscatter won't mind me sharing this response from 2024: "Thank you for reaching out with this inquiry. We are a Sea&Sea authorized repair center here at our shop in Monterey. If the issue with the strobe is damage to the battery contacts and/or battery cap, the typical cost to repair that issue is $215. If there is damage to component(s) on the main circuitry assembly inside the strobe, parts and labor to replace that circuitry costs $350. Once we evaluate the equipment at our shop and determine exactly what is needed for the repairs, we would send you a quote for that service. At that time you can decide whether you wish to proceed with the service or reject it. There is no cost for the evaluation itself. If you decided to pass on the service, we could recycle the unit here at no cost to you or can return it back to you for any reason at the cost of return shipping." The $250 figure was from the Sea&Sea Japan repair facility, but of course you have to get thing to Japan.

When my YS-01 Solis died (different symptoms, no flashing), I investigated repairs. It was going to be a minimum of USD250 and involve mailing back to a repair facility in California or Japan. In the end I found it simpler to buy a gently used YS-01 (not Solis) for less money. Maybe if I lived in the same city / country as a repair facility my calculations would be different.

I've had good luck paying a bit extra for a private guide for my wife (similarly not that into photography) and I. My wife trails the guide and has a quick look at things, and then I spend time on a critter, often with help from the guide. It won't be cheap / possible everywhere, but it's something to keep in mind.

For what it's worth, AOI also sells Olympus/Sony TTL compatible triggers. For the sony case it might only be integrated into housings, I'm not sure.

I wouldn't expect so. I've used mine quite a lot in the similar length stock port for PT-EP13. That port is just long enough for the 12-50 or the 60. Of course you get less magnification with the 30 in a longer port.

Probably just a typo, but the 60mm won't fit in FLP04(P) as far as I know. Maybe you meant the extension ring for that case. Another option instead of the 12-50+WWL1 is the 12-45 + DLP03/4 semi-dome. Probably cheaper, and the lens itself has much better image quality (I've shot both). No experience with the WWL-1.

A naive question, but the pictured lens gears look like they are just the gear and would need to have some kind of barrel added to grip the focus / zoom part of most lenses?

My wife has an aging OG paralenz that she likes a lot, especially the depth based white balance / colour correction. Since these cameras are no longer easily repairable or replaceable, I'm curious about replacements. Do any of the newer action cameras have an auto whitebalance system that works comparably well to the the paralenz?

By the way, what do you think about the images from the 9-18, and what port are you using? It seems to have kind of a mixed reputation, but the fact that it works in my existing DLP-04 semi-dome port makes it a relatively cheap experiment. I already have the 12-45 pro which is nice, but not so wide by UW standards.

Do you prefer the MF2's to the AOI Q1s for some (macro?) tasks?

I might be wrong (or just old and confused), but it seems to be about people who started diving after 50, not those still diving but who started earlier.

Mozaik also sells AOI. They may well buy it from Backscatter, since I think Backscatter is the North American distributor, but sometimes the retail prices are a bit better. My experience with them is that the stuff shows up eventually, but it can be surprisingly frustrating trying to get order tracking information out of them. The main attraction for me is that they also ship from Canada, presumably not an issue for people not in Canada.