I am in Grand Cayman til Easter!

Hey Everyone,

I am finally a proper digital underwater photographer! I did my first dive with my D100 in a Subal D10 housing today. Finally.

I did my first dive with the D100 at the Oro Verde wreck in Grand Cayman this afternoon (I am afraid that I have to own up to exposing 2 rolls of film this am!). You can see the images from this dive (60mm macro + SB80DX on DTTL) at the link below:

First digital dive images!

I am in Grand Cayman until Easter and I plan to post a selection of the images each day. Also I will be trying to test out various features of the D100 and if anyone has anything they think I should try, please post below. This is a good chance for Wetpixel people to exploit someone in the field.

I will put new images up each day I shoot digital and name the pages after the date.

Menu page

Alex

All that in one day, well done!

I look forward to seeing your other shots. You should really try to get over to the Brac and Little Cayman, amazing walls and life.

Looks like the housed flash worked OK. Did it create accurate exposures reliably? No overexposure issues?

Hi Kasey,

Check out Alex's website. He did an exposure test with the TTL flash at a full range of fstops and yielded very good exposures at each one.

Cheers

James

DTTL has been very good in the field. Exposures spot on everytime. My main grip with the D100 is the time it takes to write RAW NEFs to my microdrive. Yawnerama. Actually, it has only caught me out a couple of times!

The only problem i've had with the housed SB80DX is that I have lost a few shots to poorly aimed flash (I have got a bit lazy always using 2 guns in the past). But that was quickly corrected!

I've been doing mainly 35mm today, but tomorrow I plan to take 16mm on D100 to the north wall with a pair of manual Subronics for lighting.

Results will be posted on my holiday website

Alex

Interesting comment about the RAW write times - do you have the camera set to write uncompressed raw files - it is much faster than compressing in the camera then writing. If you use a microdrive you should have lots of space on the card - no need to wait for files to compress.

I've found the D100 exceptionally fast to shoot. Shooting manual flash probably makes it seem faster because the flash recycle time makes you wait - I've never had to wait for raw files to write, just for the flash to recycle.

Thanks Kasey. That was my problem exactly. I have just grabbed and changed the camera ready for a nightdive tonight. This is such a great website! I will have to watch the space a bit on two dive trips because I downloaded 96 shots this morning - may have to go back to compressed and 1Gb M-drive only gives 107 shots on RAW (uncompressed)!

I did wide angle this am. The 16mm is quite a bit narrower than on 35mm. But I was pleased with the results. Check out 08/04/03 gallery

The colour saturation is good, and I found using my paired Subtronics on manual very simple, although I still prefer the SB80DX on DTTL for macro. The camera struggeld a bit with sun bursts, but it wasn't an ideal day to test because it was cloudy much of the time and the surface was a bit rough for a clean sunburst. I changed the tone compensation over to low contrast to help this situation, but it didn't help much.

Hoping to try fluorescence photography on the nightdive (although will take film only if the site is too deep to make a mid dive return to the boat to change cameras - talk of doing a wall dive tonight).

Alex

Reports will continue for a couple of weeks.

Alex; are you using the 9" dome with your 17-35? Are you using a diopter with it? Subal says to use a +2 with the 9" dome and the 17-35. I'e been using it with no diopter and wonder if I should get one.

Have to echo Kaseys comments. I shoot uncompressed raw and never have to wait for the camera. I use the DS 125s and they recycle essentially instantaneously.

I also use uncompressed RAW. I loaned it to a friend for a night dive and he shot all 107 pictures! The flash 1GB only gives 104. What a ripoff!

Alex, your 16mm results are terrific. I'm assuming you aren't doing any curvature compensation but I didn't see an evidence of distortion in any of the shots. I think the fisheye is great with the D100.

Dave,

I got my 17-35 a couple of years ago and started using with only a 40mm extension ring and a +4 diopter behind the new (2001ish) fisheye dome.

That config worked well for me and the results were published and won comps (if that is any measure of them being decent?)! I also have a plus 3 and have taken nice split levels with it without any diopter. E.g below 17-35 and F100 on Velvia.

Over the winter I lost my 40mm extension ring and because Ocean Optics didn't have a 40mm in stock the day before my trip I took a 50mm. I prefered the 40mm because I could also use it to convert my 60mm port into a 105mm port, thus saving luggage.

I haven't used the 17-35mm yet with the D100. Personally I don't find Grand Cayman's subjects well suited to this lens. In other places it never comes off the F100! Anyway many do today. Subal reccommend the 60mm ring with a +3 - but in a possibly flippant comment from Ocean Optics they said that subal only adopted this idea when they read Paul Kay's and Scoones and My articles about domes in UWP magazine! www.uwpmag.com

I did uncompressed shootng last night and rattled through 30 coral shots in 15 minutes at the end of my night dive. Cool. Much better.

Alex

Craig, I agree that the 16mm is a great lens on the D100. Or I did once I got over the fact that that it has very different characteristics to when its on 35mm. I am really looking forward to turning it on some stingrays later in the week.

I love this shot. Way to go Alex. Say hi to OF for me. TedJ

"Honey, are you laying on your belly in the water with your camera again??!?!?!?"

Did my first available light shots today (of stingrays obviously) with colour correction filter and white balance calibrated in situ with my grey card.

I am very pleased with the colours of the shots. Subject matter a bit dull. When you have seen one ray you have seen them all.

Alex

Also I'll be doing more and more rays over the next few days.

http://homepage.mac.com/mustardoni/

You're after my heart. A fisheye, ambient light, and filters no less! How did you mount the filter with the 16mm? The Sigma 15mm is a little friendler in this regard.

Although the results are great, I think a magenta filter would be more appropriate than a red one. Have you tried a CC40M? I haven't considered a CC40R.

Did even more today, Craig. I am doing an in situ whiet balance calib with a grey card - I know you think this is unnecessary because it achieves nothing that can't be done on the PC afterwards. But that way my pix come off the camera looking spot on.

I am using a CC40R behind the 16mm mounted in the removable filter holder. Took much better shots today - I am really pleased with them. May take me a day or 2 to get them online.

I will try the magenta too - I have some with me.

thanks for the advice

Alex

Did even more today, Craig. I am doing an in situ whiet balance calib with a grey card - I know you think this is unnecessary because it achieves nothing that can't be done on the PC afterwards. But that way my pix come off the camera looking spot on.

 

I am using a CC40R behind the 16mm mounted in the removable filter holder. Took much better shots today - I am really pleased with them. May take me a day or 2 to get them online.

 

I will try the magenta too - I have some with me.

 

thanks for the advice

 

Alex

I think custom white balance underwater is OK. It sets the default that the RAW converter will use. I think its great that you're using such a rigorous technique, but you could duplicate it on the PC if you had a good white reference in the frame. Nothing at all wrong with doing it your way and it's in some ways better.

You modified a bayonet rear holder? I didn't have the nerve to do that. Do you have a source for them besides the few Nikon ones?

Sorry, misled on the filter. Typing in a hurry on this dodgy connection.

All I have done is place a cut circle of CC40R in the clear detachable filter on the back of the 16mm. Easy to take on and off.

After three days of hardcore diving work I have finally got some more pictures up.

See my latest shots

All going well except I reformatted my microdrive this afternoon before I downloaded it. Doh.

Alex

All done now. I don't have time to post my last days shots with packing to do. But nothing special anyway from yesterday.

My favourite shots are the diver with stingray and mating hamlets.

Thanks everyone for comments and feedback.

Alex

Back in the UK now. Final days shots on the site. Alex

http://homepage.mac.com/mustardoni/

Great gallery,

My favorites are the hamlets shots, good catch!