Coolpix 5000 & ikelite

Hi

I am fairly new to u/w photography and therefore am not very experienced or hot on technical jargon! I have a CP5000 that I am thinking of housing in an ikelite housing but need some advise on the strobe setup & which w/a lense to use. I am hoping that all you pro's out there can give me some pointers!!!

I live and work on a yacht in the BVI so I need a set up that is rugged as it is going to get a lot of use!!!! I have to take care of other divers most of the time so I need a set up that is not going to be too bulky or too time consuming to set up. I am looking at the Ikelite DS-125 deluxe arm & strobe combo but am not sure whether to go with the manual controller, ttl sync cord or the ttl sensor. Any suggestions? I am concerned about flooding issues with the sync cord option .... especially as my attention often is on other divers both before and during the dive.

Is it better to use the sea & sea 58070 w/a conversion so that you can remove it underwater ..... or the Nikon WC-E68 with the dome port? I like to switch between macro & w/a during each dive ..... can you really do macro with the nikon lense attachted and are there any disadvantages to this?

Lastly can anyone suggest a good book to buy .... as I said I am fairly new to photography as a whole and therefore have a lot to learn. I am also quite isolated .... no shops nearby to look, feel or touch what I am buying so any comments from you guys who have the experience would be appreciated. Thanks!

Manual controller. Use it with a hard wired synch cord. I have never had an Ike strobe to Ike housing synch cord flood. Nor have I ever seen it with anyone else. I find it much easier to use the manual controller than to use TTL.

Also put on the WC-E68 on and never take it off. It will zoom from extreme wide angle to 1:1 macro.

I echo Dave's comment about the Sync cord. Folks have been using them for decades with the Nikonos and they are proven technology.

There is no need for the Ike digital TTL sensor with the Coolpix 5000. If you are going to use the manual controller, you will still need to buy a sync cord - so why don't you go that route, and then you can try shooting TTL strobe some of the time and Manual strobe others. Choose the technique that you are most comfortable with.

HTH

James

james,

I am not sure if you are saying the ikelite ttl sync cord is overkill for the cp5000? I have been looking at the ds -125 kit, and most offered seem to come with the ttl sync cord. Will that allow the option to shoot manually & ttl? I thought I had it all squared away but I just keep confusing myself.

thanks for the help

Yes, you can shoot manual and TTL with the sync cord.

Cheers

James

In reference to a book I would suggest a book Jim Church wrote, "Essential Guide to Compostion." It is sold through www.amazon.com.