The Eagle has Landed !!

Hey Guys,

The Z arrived this afternoon, along with the Gates order too.....been unpacking like a kid a christmas !! One thing I can say is that the Fathoms 120 is an INSANE piece of glass .......

Now its all down to pre dive tests, checking all screws etc etc etc, you guys know the drill. I'll be posting a report on the housing once I'm more familiar with it. Its a serious hunk o' black stuff sitting next to 'puter at the mo .......... is that growling I can hear from the beastie?

Watch this space.

Mark.

Yeh Mark...congrats ...yes the 120 degree kind of takes over the housing....don't scratch it now

I got the Evo Pro today as well for the little Sony A1 so I have plastic everywhere to

I got another 24 hours of downloads and some mantas today...

Mark, congrats...

what happened to your net? worse than bloody Yap man!

Yeah Wagsy,

Taking over the housing is exactly what this glass does, still can't get over the sheer SIZE of the beastie.

Mike, for some reason MSN keeps giving me an error message that my password is wrong, then the address is wrong for the password yada yada yada......wanted to go thru some other points re: you know what. Should, fingers crossed, be up an running again tomorrah so I'll try then.

We got some people heading your way next week so I'll send a copy of the short with them. Good matas today, makes me wanna come and throw the glass around in September. How many they got coming now. Will there be space for me and the missus?

Mark.

Mark,

What is the weight of the 'beast' with all things attached (lens, lights, etc)?

shawn

Hi Shawn,

I haven't done anything with the equipment other than configure it as best I can thus far. Still taking stock etc. I will appraise the complete rig sometime over the coming weeks and make a full report here on Wetpixel.

Cheers,

Mark.

Congratulations Mark, and welcome to the world of HDV, I know you've been looking at doing this for quite a while. Now I'm dying to see some of those Mandarin Fish in 1080i. Enjoy.

Dan

Thanks videodan,

Believe me, seven months shaking a VX1k at Mandarinfish for a 15 minute film doesn't instill me to wanna get back out there with the new gear and do it all again, I don't have that much hair left as it is !!!

Looking forward to getting the system ready for filming and as such I have already began noting potentially helpful hints for those thinking of buying this unit and accessories. I'll be posting my findings in a full housing appraisal in the close future.

Best,

Mark.

Come to think of it, I don't know what my FX1, Phenom, battery pack and dual HIDs weigh complete...I know it is a lot, because I saw the dive guides at Atlantis in the Philippines having a hard time carrying it back and forth for me to the dive boats....

Congratulations on the new housing Mark. The Gates should be a safe choice, especially in a remote location like yours. My VX2K Gates just goes on and on, although the corrosion around the latches is gradually worsening.

I'm really interested to know if you'll be using lights with it, if you'll be adding buoyancy to it, which monitor if any you're using, and whether you got the handles that come from the top or bottom of the housing.

Congrats Mark,

I know you will enjoy this setup. I am looking forward to reading your review.

Best

Anders

Thanks all,

I will need to dive this unit for about a month before I feel comfortable enough to sit down and write a full appraisal, so please bare that in mind if you don't see the report out next week.

To answer the few questions from Nick. I have the adjustable handles that slide along the guide grooves on the top of the unit. I also have a 4" external monitor and seeing as I have the fathoms 120 lens I aso have two additional buoyancy tubes which again slide through guide grooves along the top of the housing.

The report will be on the functionality of the Z1 housing from Gates. I don't really want to go off on a tangent and start discussing lights. That said I will be reviewing the handling requirements and considerations pertaining to the operation of the unit when lights come into the equation.

Hope this helps.

Mark.