Canon 40D set-up...

Hi all

I'm new not only to this forum but to UW photography as well.

I'm am considering the following set-up:

Canon 40d

Ikelite Housing ( Is there a better housing out there?)

2 Substrobes DSS-125

2 Substrones D-51 ( do i need both DS-125 and DS-51? What about a DS-200?)

Canon EF-S 10-22mm macro

Canon EF 15MM Fisheye

Canon EF-S 60mm macro

Canon EF 100mm macro

Canon EF 28-105mm

All comments and suggestions for replacements will be very usefull.

TIA

René

You might want to ask yourself what do you plan on shooting? The answer might depend on where you plan on doing most of your diving. Primarily macro or wide angle?

A full DSLR setup is a significant investment and some people choose to start out with macro only setup or ambient wide angle seteup; and then start gradually adding ports, lenses, and additional strobes. Others might start out with the kit lens or something that goes from 17mm to 60-70mm for an all round range.

Don't restrict yourself to Canon lenses. Look at some of the Sigma wide angle zooms (17-70 macro and the 18-50 f/2.8 macro) and the Tokina 10-17mm fisheye.

Personally, my recommendation to someone starting out (budget permitting) would be a Canon 60mm Macro + Tokina 10-17mm fisheye + 2 strobes. The 60mm is a fab lens, letting you get up to 1:1 for closeups or fish portraits and the Tokina is a versatile wide angle lens with a nice added benefit of very close up focusing ability.

I am not that familiar with Ike strobes, but if it's within your budget, I think most people would tell you to get a couple DS 125's.

Cheers,

Hi René,

I would heartily second Pacman's suggestions. The Tokina 10-17 is a very nice lens for the same money as the Canon Fisheye, remember for the 1.6X chip 40D you won't get the full effect of the 15mm. I would think about only getting one good set of strobes at first. Have fun and welcome to Wetpixel

Steve

Canon 40d

Ikelite Housing ( Is there a better housing out there?)

2 Substrobes DSS-125

2 Substrones D-51 ( do i need both DS-125 and DS-51? What about a DS-200?)

Canon EF-S 10-22mm macro

Canon EF 15MM Fisheye

Canon EF-S 60mm macro

Canon EF 100mm macro

Canon EF 28-105mm

Tokina 10-17mm fisheye

I'm with pakman and Steve. Just print this list out and take it to the store A very good starter kit.

Canon 40d

Ikelite Housing ( Is there a better housing out there?)

2 Substrobes DSS-125

2 Substrones D-51 ( do i need both DS-125 and DS-51? What about a DS-200?)

Canon EF-S 10-22mm macro

Canon EF 15MM Fisheye

Canon EF-S 60mm macro

Canon EF 100mm macro

Canon EF 28-105mm

Tokina 10-17mm fisheye

 

I'm with pakman and Steve. Just print this list out and take it to the store A very good starter kit.

Hi guys....I'm also a complete noob to the forum and this is my first post. I'm a pro-photographer and a diver....I've just recently caught the bug to wed the two to increase my portrait business. I'm working with a local swim school and have use of their pool and I would like to primarily photograph portraits of moms and babies. I have a 40D and am considering the Ikelite housing for it, but am uncertain about the lens and port to use. I realize that the longer the focal length, the further I will be from my subjects and the greater the loss of color, etc, so am considering some sort of wide angle or fisheye lens. I have a 50mm f1.4 at this time, but think that I will have to be too far away to get useable pictures. I'd sure appreciate some suggestions from you all. I've been looking at the POTW posts and for few pics of divers and free divers, it looks like 12 to 20 mm lenses look very good. I realize that the 40D has a magnification factor so my 15mm will be approx. 24mm. Also, I will be doing first images in an outdoor pool, so I can use natural light, but will want to add strobes as the budget for these (and my sucess in marketing and promoting sessions) increases.

To crystallize...here are a couple of questions:

1) Should I get the port for my 50mm f1.4 lens and see how it works...or

2) go ahead and bite the bullet and get a wider lens with the correct port?

Thanks a TON for any advice.

Regards,

MP

MP,

If you go with Ikelite, I don't think you'd have the option of using the 50mm f1.4 L series lens even if you wanted to. Check Ikelite's Canon Port Chart to see what your options are. http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/2port_canon.html

The Tokina 10-17 is a very good lens to start with. Many would also recommend an 8" dome port instead of a 6", because you can get better over/under shots.

MP,

 

If you go with Ikelite, I don't think you'd have the option of using the 50mm f1.4 L series lens even if you wanted to. Check Ikelite's Canon Port Chart to see what your options are. http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/2port_canon.html

 

The Tokina 10-17 is a very good lens to start with. Many would also recommend an 8" dome port instead of a 6", because you can get better over/under shots.

Thanks for the input daniel...er...drew...

I sent an inquiry to ikelite and they may have been confused so they replied that I could use a #5505 flat port with my 50mm....they may have thought that I was referring to the 50 mm macro lens.

Being completely new to u/w housings and ports, will the tokina lens require a zoom ring adapter as well?

Hi guys....I'm also a complete noob to the forum and this is my first post. I'm a pro-photographer and a diver....I've just recently caught the bug to wed the two to increase my portrait business. I'm working with a local swim school and have use of their pool and I would like to primarily photograph portraits of moms and babies. I have a 40D and am considering the Ikelite housing for it, but am uncertain about the lens and port to use. I realize that the longer the focal length, the further I will be from my subjects and the greater the loss of color, etc, so am considering some sort of wide angle or fisheye lens. I have a 50mm f1.4 at this time, but think that I will have to be too far away to get useable pictures. I'd sure appreciate some suggestions from you all. I've been looking at the POTW posts and for few pics of divers and free divers, it looks like 12 to 20 mm lenses look very good. I realize that the 40D has a magnification factor so my 15mm will be approx. 24mm. Also, I will be doing first images in an outdoor pool, so I can use natural light, but will want to add strobes as the budget for these (and my sucess in marketing and promoting sessions) increases.

 

To crystallize...here are a couple of questions:

 

1) Should I get the port for my 50mm f1.4 lens and see how it works...or

2) go ahead and bite the bullet and get a wider lens with the correct port?

 

Thanks a TON for any advice.

 

Regards,

MP

As you suggest, you might want to consider a wider lens than the 50 for the pool shots. Either a tokina 10-17 fisheye zoom or a rectilinear zoom like the 10-22 or a Sigma 10-20. There's also a Sigma 10 mm FE, but I don't know anyone who uses it, but it is probably good. The rectilinears can however be a bit of a bitch to get to work behind a curved port (which you need for the really wide lenses). You'll need to know that you have a housing and a port (and perhaps an extension and +dioptre) that will deliver corner to corner sharpness. Some of the reccomendations from manufacturers leaves a little to be desired, but normally they are honest.

Some examples of portraits (uncropped images) with the lenses mentioned (or similar for Canon flavour):

Nikon 10.5 fisheye (the 10 mm end on the Tokina 10-17 FE zoom will give similar FoV and distortion):

Sigma 10-20 on wide end (similar FoV and distortion as Canon 10-22):

good luck

Christian

A followup question:

I see that an 8" dome has to be used with a port body. Is this port body something that comes in different lengths which would allow for different lenses, thereby making the 8" port a more versatile port to purchase? Followup to the followup....is shooting through the 8" dome port necessarily a good idea with your different lenses?

Thanks for the help all.

MP

Nice images Christian.

Another question (each answer begets another question I'm afraid)....should I stick with prime lenses for my portraiture work? It seems like it might remove one more level of complexity, especially in light of having to react quickly to capture fleeting moments...which is precisely why I sold my G9 u/w rig (shutter delay)...

Thanks.

MP

A followup question:

 

I see that an 8" dome has to be used with a port body. Is this port body something that comes in different lengths which would allow for different lenses, thereby making the 8" port a more versatile port to purchase? Followup to the followup....is shooting through the 8" dome port necessarily a good idea with your different lenses?

 

Thanks for the help all.

 

MP

General advice is normally of limited use, but generally, a wider dome port is better, becuase it will give you acceptable results with a wider range of lenses than a small one. Fisheyes are much easier than rectilinears, because they can handle the curved image from the dome port much better.

You really need to look at a few specific lenses and see what solutions (housing/port/extension/dioptre-combination) are available that can deliver acceptable results to you.

/christian

Nice images Christian.

 

Another question (each answer begets another question I'm afraid)....should I stick with prime lenses for my portraiture work? It seems like it might remove one more level of complexity, especially in light of having to react quickly to capture fleeting moments...which is precisely why I sold my G9 u/w rig (shutter delay)...

 

Thanks.

 

MP

To my knowledge, there are no wide prime lenses available for cropped sensor cameras. What many do with zooms, is to just leave them in one setting and not zoom in and out all the time.

christian

if you're shooting in a pool, consider a Canon 10-22. Corners aren't that bad as long as you don't open up the aperture too much. Plus corner sharpness probably isn't that important with portraits with a blue pool background.

A followup question:

 

I see that an 8" dome has to be used with a port body. Is this port body something that comes in different lengths which would allow for different lenses, thereby making the 8" port a more versatile port to purchase? Followup to the followup....is shooting through the 8" dome port necessarily a good idea with your different lenses?

 

Thanks for the help all.

 

MP

Yes, Ikelite has different port bodies to suit the different lens lengths. The Tokina 10-17 uses the superwide port body, which is wide and very short. The Canon 17-40 uses a different port body (longer). Both of them screw into the 8" dome port but they connect to the housing in slightly different ways.

If you look at that Ikelite Canon port chart it tells you which ports and which port bodies go with which lenses.

Yes, Ikelite has different port bodies to suit the different lens lengths. The Tokina 10-17 uses the superwide port body, which is wide and very short. The Canon 17-40 uses a different port body (longer). Both of them screw into the 8" dome port but they connect to the housing in slightly different ways.

 

If you look at that Ikelite Canon port chart it tells you which ports and which port bodies go with which lenses.

Okay, so what will I be losing with the 6" dome port? What it will do is fit into my budget. I can get a 10-17 lens for under $500 and a 6" dome port for $189 and be good to go. With an 8" dome, it's about $600 with the port and the dome + $500 for the lens. Since I will be doing mostly horizontal shooting, will the 6" dome port work well for me you think?

Anyone have experience with the 6" dome port and the Tokina 10-17 lens?

I think some people find the image quality and sharpness better behind the 8" dome port, and there's also the benefit of being able to compose over/under (split) shots more easily with the larger dome.

If you do some searches through this forum you'll find plenty of threads about your 8" vs. 6" question, the port bodies, and the Tokina 10-17, as well as sample shots taken with those set-ups. Most of your questions have already been asked and answered here; you just have to read through the threads. It's very helpful. And entertaining.

By the way, you can get the 8" dome port for $380 and the port bodies for $115-165. You don't have to spend $600.

I think some people find the image quality and sharpness better behind the 8" dome port, and there's also the benefit of being able to compose over/under (split) shots more easily with the larger dome.

 

If you do some searches through this forum you'll find plenty of threads about your 8" vs. 6" question, the port bodies, and the Tokina 10-17, as well as sample shots taken with those set-ups. Most of your questions have already been asked and answered here; you just have to read through the threads. It's very helpful. And entertaining.

 

By the way, you can get the 8" dome port for $380 and the port bodies for $115-165. You don't have to spend $600.

Yeah, I figured I was being a typical board noob by asking all of these questions again, so I apologize. I do however really appreciate you getting me up to speed so fast. I've ordered the Tokina lens, it got a 9.6 rating on Fred Miranda....gotta love that.

I'll probably go with the 8"...it just seems more versatile...though a little more $$ initially.

Thanks for your help.

MP

I doubt you'll regret the purchases you've just made.

When you get the dome port and a port body, you may find that you have to adjust the alignment of the port shade so match the alignment of the shade on the Tokina. It just involves loosening the screws on the shade and rotating it around the port.

Also, be careful not to screw in the port bodies too tightly. It's very easy for them to get stuck in place if, like many of us, you opt to just leave the port body in the dome port when in storage or while traveling. When it gets stuck in the port, you need a strap wrench (if the port is long enough) or a plumber's wrench to twist it out of the port. It's a little unnerving… So don't tighten the port body in too tightly in the first place. Again, there's a thread or two about this here on Wetpixel.

No problem on asking old questions. As someone who is too distracted by an upcoming trip to Tonga to be of any use at work today, I appreciate the opportunity to pass the time…

I doubt you'll regret the purchases you've just made.

When you get the dome port and a port body, you may find that you have to adjust the alignment of the port shade so match the alignment of the shade on the Tokina. It just involves loosening the screws on the shade and rotating it around the port.

Also, be careful not to screw in the port bodies too tightly. It's very easy for them to get stuck in place if, like many of us, you opt to just leave the port body in the dome port when in storage or while traveling. When it gets stuck in the port, you need a strap wrench (if the port is long enough) or a plumber's wrench to twist it out of the port. It's a little unnerving… So don't tighten the port body in too tightly in the first place. Again, there's a thread or two about this here on Wetpixel.

 

No problem on asking old questions. As someone who is too distracted by an upcoming trip to Tonga to be of any use at work today, I appreciate the opportunity to pass the time…

I wish I were going to a tropic dive location!! Oh well, the pool will have to suffice for a while.

Do you cats have a preferred vendor for ikelite stuff? Is there a wetpixel discount available?

MP

Yeah, I figured I was being a typical board noob by asking all of these questions again, so I apologize. I do however really appreciate you getting me up to speed so fast. I've ordered the Tokina lens, it got a 9.6 rating on Fred Miranda....gotta love that.

 

I'll probably go with the 8"...it just seems more versatile...though a little more $$ initially.

 

Thanks for your help.

 

MP

I'm not sure if a true fisheye lens is the best for the portraits of moms and babies. It will introduce some distortions and the moms won't be always happy (although it makes longer legs).

I used a 24mm sigma lens with a film camera for my children and my wife and it worked fine. It could also work well on aps-c but maybe a 20mm one would be even better.

What kind of portraits are you planning to do?