D60 housing

Can't have zoom with a digital DSLR? I thought the advantage of a DSLR was interchangeable lenses. I won't consider one that won't use my 17-35 2.8S lens. I understand it was designed for the D1x.:cool:

According to Eric, there's some sort of hold up on the port for the D60 housing for the 16-35.

But, even if it were there, that is a far cry from 35 to 105 with 8" focus distance.

I know the optics on both the Nikon and Canon lenses for SLR's are vastly superior to the lenses on the current all-in-one digitals, but the flexibility is one of my favorite features of my digital compared to the Nikonos.

Originally posted by SharpDiver

For the potential D60 convert, it would appear that the lenses of choice would be the 16 to 35 mm wide angle zoom and the 100mm macro.

 

Would you agree?  What do you use?  Ballpark investment?

Having decided to get a D30 housing from UK-Germany, this is also a question that I am struggling with. I have twice posted a similar question to the UW-Photo list but have not received any reply.

Well, I am planning to get a 6 inch dome port for the 16-35mm/f2.8 zoom, and flat ports for the 100mm/f2.8 macro and the 50mm macro lenses. With the D30, the 16-35mm zoom and a dome port (as opposed to a flat port) would have a FOV equivalent to a 25.6-56mm lens and IMHO, this would be the most versatile of the three lenses underwater. Although 25.6mm is really not that wide, I think one get full-body diver shots from 2-3 feet away. That's enough coverage for the place where I usually dive. If I find that the coverage is still too restrictive, I can just get a Canon 15mm fisheye or Sigma 14mm later (Canon's 14mm is just too darn expensive for me) and use the same dome port with the appropriate extension ring. At the tele end of the lens, the <12 inch minimum focusing distance of the lens allows a magnification of around 1:3 with the D30 and this is more than enough for subjects as small as one inch. Thus, for general fish photography, I think this lens would be the most appropriate and versatile.

What I am really unsure of is whether the 100mm lens which will have a FOV equivalent to that of a 160mm would be too restrictive in terms of appropriate subjects, bearing in mind the basic rule of minimizing the water column between the camera and subject. I am afraid that the 100mm macro would only be appropriate for really tiny critters or extreme macro, especially in not so clear waters. This is the reason why I am also planning on getting a port for 50mm macro lens (80mm FOV). FWIW, I think the Sigma 50mm macro would be better than Canon's 50mm macro as you don't have to buy a life size converter to get 1:1 magnification (both lenses are razor sharp).

Lastly, some of you may be interested to know that UK-Germany is now modifying the D30 series housing. Aside from better compatibility with the D60, the modified housing will also have dual strobe connectors and a right-hand side handle.

Cheers,

- Nico

Yes, I agree totally with your thinking, regarding the 100 with the multiplier.

I mean, a 100 straight, in really clear water, can be used to shoot fish up to several inches long, before too much water is in the way. So a 160 is going to be greatly limiting, and I think a multiplied 50 is a better bet.

Originally posted by MikeO

Due to the FLM, I would want to be able to use both the 100 (or the outstanding Tamron 90mm f2.8, which I currently use on my film camera) and the 50.  I see that Eric has both, but only one flat port -- I seriously doubt that one flat port would fit both lenses. . .  Finally, is there a manual focus / zoom capability with the UK-Germany ports.  I find that I almost never use autofocus for macro with the 90mm so a manual focus ring is a must (the new Canon 100mm has a full time manual focus ring BTW -- very cool!) and a ring to zoom would be nice for the 16-35 mm . . .

MikeO,

I, too, find manual focus control a must for macro, specially at high magnifications. Uwe (UK-Germany) has flat ports with manual focus control for Canon's 100mm macro and Sigma's 50mm macro lens but I am not sure if he has a flat port with manual focus control for Canon's 50mm macro. That said, I am also interested to know if a single flat port with manual focus control can be shared for both 100mm and 50mm lenses using approriate extension rings with the port.

Uwe has said that he can deliver a zoom control for the 16-35mm zoom but I am unsure if both zoom control and focus control can be available at the same time. FWIW, film camera housings from various makers offer a zoom control or manual focus control but both controls can not be available at the same time. At the wide end of the zoom, I wouldn't worry so much about focusing because of the wide DOF. However, I am not so sure about this at the tele end owing to the D30's poor AF performance in low light conditions. Fortunately, we have full time manual focus with the Canon 100mm macro and 16-35mm zoom lenses :-)

- Nico

Originally posted by echeng

I'm trying to get a port for the 16-35L, but it's taking some time to hear back from Uwe.

Eric,

It seems to me that you already have the 6 inch dome port. I have previously asked Uwe if it is possible for the 14mm Sigma and 16mm-35mm Canon zoom lenses to share the same dome port. He thinks that it may be possible to use the same dome as the 14mm Sigma by attaching an extension ring to the port when using the 16-35mm zoom. Are you trying to get a flat port for the zoom lens? I think you'll lose some coverage angle when using a flat port so unless there's a valid reason , I'd suggest a dome port for the 16-35 zoom lens. Hmmm... Eric, during your first Kona trip, the D30 came with a flat port for the 17-35 zoom, IIRC. Is the zoom control provided on the port or is it provided on the D30 housing body? (from the D30 housing pics that I have seen, there is a control on the front part of the body but I am not sure if this is the zoom control).

- Nico

Originally posted by derway

Problem with E20 is same CCD as all the other P&S cams, (so less dyn range, higher noise, compared to DSLRs), and slow CF interface, so inter shot delays are longer than other, cheaper P&S.  It has other good qualities, but now that the D60 is here, and the d100, almost, I have to ask what the point of the E30 now would be.  Assuming you don't already have one, that is...

 

Say, is the Jeff Farris, the NED fame?

 

Don

I own an E-20, and I keep hearing the argument re:CCD size. I agree, in theory, but when dpreview reviewed the camera, they stated that it was not an issue, and that the noise levels were no higher than D-SLRs. They suspected that olympus compesates with better optics.

I have not taken this camera under water yet because I'm awaiting my Titan, but topside, I have no complaints about its speed. It has no apparent shutter lag, and saves 4 pics to buffer before making you wait to shoot again. Frankly, I've never had to wait since I rarely take pics at such frequent intervals, and underwater doubly so. I bought the E-20 after picking the Titan over the other housings. I own a Light and Motion Dig Video system, and have been very satisfied with their design, quality and support. I'm confident that the Titan will be an exceptional system.

Re: the Ike D60 housing.... It weighs over 10lbs with no camera, no strobes! I thought digital was supposed to be compact, lightweight?!?

Its nice to get an opinion based on using the camera instead of reading spec sheets.

Hey, Nico -

Yeah, that's what I'm trying to get from Uwe (the extension port). The flat port we had for the 17-35 was the only one we could get for that trip. The zoom control is on the housing itself, so you can use it with any of the ports available, assuming you have the proper adapter for your lens.

Originally posted by Nico

It seems to me that you already have the 6 inch dome port. I have previously asked Uwe if it is possible for the 14mm Sigma and 16mm-35mm Canon zoom lenses to share the same dome port. He thinks that it may be possible to use the same dome as the 14mm Sigma by attaching an extension ring to the port when using the 16-35mm zoom. Hmmm... Eric, during your first Kona trip, the D30 came with a flat port for the 17-35 zoom, IIRC. Is the zoom control provided on the port or is it provided on the D30 housing body? (from the D30 housing pics that I have seen, there is a control on the front part of the body but I am not sure if this is the zoom control).