Needed: equip. for Rebel XTI

Well I am very new to water photography and am looking into starting. I have a Rebel XTI with 17-85 IS, 100-400L IS. I am wanting to find equipment that I can take scuba pics with. Here are the few things I would like to do:

-take scuba pics of other divers as well as fish and coral

-take surf pics

I am not sure if the small lens is acceptable or what lens I should look for or if I will need two different lenses for each type. I am pretty sure that there is no way to take the 100-400 or any reason to take it anyway. So as you can see I am really unaware of what is needed to accomplish my goals in the water. Please help with whatever you can. I would like to find sites to buy equipment and know what equipment I will need including flashes etc. also if I can use the bag type or not. I would love to have prices too and reviews if available. Thank you in advance for any and all help.

D

First, you'll want to look for housings for your camera as well as potential lens combinations and ports. Have a look at digideep.com for housing options. As well, think about strobe choices. Whether you want TTL or not (run a search and you'll find lots of threads relating to this topic, it's a hot one), could determine your choice of housings. Also think about your budget. Expect to spend thousands of dollars. The other option is to look for a used housing, strobes, etc. on the wetpixel classefieds.

Your 17-85 lens is used by others on the forum and I assume that they will reply as to how well it works. I use the 18-55 kit lens for a mid range fish lens (and because I'm cheap). However, your 100-400 is probably too long to be housed. You should consider a wide angle lens like a FE (Tokina 10-17 or Canon 10.5) or wide rectilinear (Canon 10-22) and a macro (60mm, 100mm).

If you are looking for info on surf photos, this probably isn't the best forum. However, have a look at the following as it contains some links to other threads: http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showt...512&hl=surf

For example, here is my rig (definitely not the best out there):

Canon Rebel XT ~$1000

Ikelite Housing ~$1400

Canon 18-55mm (included)

Ikelite 6" dome for above lens ~$200

Canon 60mm macro ~$400

Ikelite flat port for above lens ~$150

Ikelite DS-125 strobe kit w/ arms, extra battery, charger, etc. ~$1000

Accessories (Magic Filters, extra synch cords, o-rings, etc.) ~$400

You should consider a wide angle lens like a FE (Tokina 10-17 or Canon 10.5)

we only wish it was there

Hello Daniel...and welcome to the site.

The 17-85 would work fine for diver and larger fish pictures. I have used it and worked well when I didn't really know what the dive site would offer as far as photo opportunities. You will need a +4 diopter for using it underwater behind a dome port. It's not a macro lens and on your crop sensor body not very wide. Therefore, the Canon 10-22 or Sigma 15 would be more usable as wide lenses. The Tokina 10-17 is also reported to be a very good lens but I haven't used it. For smaller critters you will want a macro lens and the Canon 60 is a highly regarded option. Very flexible for macro as well as fish pictures. The 100mm macro is a great lens but not as easy to get used to as the 60.

I would stay away from the bag type housings. You're correct about the 100-400. Can't (and wouldn't want to) use it underwater.

As mentioned in the previous post you will also want to add strobes to the setup and there are different options for that as well.

Like many others, I started out with Ikelite housings and strobes due to the cost factor. There are other great housings out there, depending on your budget.

Check the site sponsers at the right for prices and availability. They offer a much higher level of personal attention than some of the huge camera retailers. They are great folks and really do want to help.

The classified section here on Wetpixel is a good resource for used equipment.

Once you decide on housing, strobes, lenses you can post here again and the very talented membership will be glad to answer specific questions.

Hope this helps.

Daniel, I presume when you say "surf" shots, you are talking about underwater shots of surfers. If so, I think the Tokina 10-17 as a fisheye lens, would be perfect on a XTi. I'm not familiar with the 17-85 IS and how well it shoots at the wide range. Depending on how close you expect to get to the subject within the same wave, it might not be wide enough.