Which Camera for Chuuk

I own an Olympus 5050, PT-15 and a DS51. This takes good pictures and I have been happy with it for several years. Going to Chuuk and have seen some of the amazing pictures that others are taking on this forum. I don't think that I have enough strobing to achieve the results that I want. I also own a Canon XTi that I use for land pictures. The cost for the Ike housing and 2 DS125s is quite high. So do I bite the bullet and buy the housing and strobes, buy the strobes for the Olympus, or move into a higher end PS such as the G9 with strobes. Seems like the cost between the G9 and Xti is about $1000. I am suffering from sticker shock but worry that the 5050/PT-15 combo might not get it done. Thanks. Jen.

Hi Jen,

You might think about going for the housing for your XTi and only getting one strobe now. You'd come closer to your budget and you can always add another strobe later. Just another option to throw in the mix. It's a tough call, there are some beautiful images being made with the P&S and G9 type cameras. There are lots of paths to the treasure.

Steve

I reckon a G9 would be a bad choice... Great camera and great for macro, but you want to go as wide as possible for wrecks and the G9 lens does not go very wide. Not sure how well a G9 with an external wide angle wetlens would work.

Have you thought about getting an Inon wide-angle wetlens for your Oly 5050 and then maybe getting a 2nd strobe?

Take a look at some of the samples that splashdown divers has of that setup.

http://www.splashdowndivers.com/photo_gall...ple_gallery.htm

I say stick with your 5050.

I was in Chuuk last month.

I had a Canon S80+Inon UWL+Inon Dome & a new G9(no len attachments).

I did approx 22 dives. Most with the S80.

You really need to go wide as possible. One strobe will do.

Get a UWL & dome if you can.

Also good Iso performance would be a big advantage.

Viss is average. Better in the morning than afternoon. Typically 15-20m.

I have a few photos in my gallery on scuba board(same user ID)

This is a long term decision. I almost started with a P&S but ended up buying a slightly used DSLR system and I am so happy I did. Buy the best system you can and add parts later. For Chuuk I shot the Tokina 10-17mm 80% of the time with duel strobes, but one strobe would work fine in most situations.

Link to our Chuuk gallery: http://www.aquabluedreams.com/Chuukgallery.htm

my 1st thought was exactly what pakman and kevster said, get a wide-angle wet-lens for your 5050, and 1 more strobe (DS-125). then you should be all set.

the 5050 is more than capable of great shots with the right photographer, as long as you have the right lens and the right lighting.

Scott

Hi Jen,

I'm sitting at the Honolulu airport right now, just coming back from the photo workshop I just did on the Truk Odyssey and a couple of days added on in Kosrae. I'm headed home, but wish I had spent another week on board.

My camera is a housed SLR and I brought every lens imaginable. The lenses I used most often were the 10-17 and 12-24, about half and half. I did a little macro, but not much. I also have two DS125 strobes and two Inon strobes.

I agree that a good quality wide angle or fisheye lens for your 5050 might be your best option. Inon makes excellent lenses for that camera's housings.

I also found myself doing a lot of natural light shots with the fisheye with just a touch of 1/4 power strobe light on a select close subject in some cases. Most the time full power was too much.

For most the interiors I found the 12-24 to be most useful, since its very difficult to light the area using a fisheye and I didn't get great results anyway. Most the penetration we did was in very tight spaces.

You should also get a good focus light. A narrow beam flashlight will not work. This is mandatory if you're going to shoot anything inside or in dark spaces.

The most important thing you'll need to know about shooting things like the compressor on the Fugikawa Maru and the truks on the Hoki Maru is GET THERE FIRST! Even if you have to pay off the dive guides to hold back the rest of the divers. If even one diver gets there before you, the whole thing gets silted up and you will not be able to shoot anything without horrible backscatter. We had one old fart on our trip that always messed up the shots for everyone else.

I got some great shots and will try to get them online soon. Also working on a trip report.

Have a great trip!

Bonnie

You should also get a good focus light. A narrow beam flashlight will not work. This is mandatory if you're going to shoot anything inside or in dark spaces.

Thanks for the advice. What would you consider to be a good focus light? I am leaning toward the lense and the strobe but am unsure about this light. Jen.

You should also get a good focus light. A narrow beam flashlight will not work. This is mandatory if you're going to shoot anything inside or in dark spaces.

 

Thanks for the advice. What would you consider to be a good focus light? I am leaning toward the lense and the strobe but am unsure about this light. Jen.

I use a Fisheye focus light (most UW camera stores have them) and I love it. Before that I had a Light & Motion Mod Light, but flooded it (my fault). There are many others on the market now since I bought mine, but I haven't researched it lately. For Truk, you won't want to be without it. I also have focus lights on all my strobes, but they are not nearly as bright and burn off the same batteries that sets off the flash.

Hi, i went to Chuuk two years ago and it was my first time using a DSLR under water. The week before in Palau my strobe connector was flooded, so i took all the pictures in truk lagoon without strobes but with great result. It was also more handy without the strobes and arms.

I too just got back from Chuuk - must have just missed Bonnie when they turned the boat around. I absolutely echo everything she said, esp. about getting there first if you want to shoot any of the interiors - they silt up real fast, no matter how careful everyone is. A focus light is also essential - I used the Fix 48 LED and it was great. Dual strobes can be unwieldy getting into and around some of the interiors, but I got the hang of it. I only brought my 10-17 and never took it off - I figured you're there for the wrecks, make the most of it. FYI, vis varied from 25-65 feet.

This was the virgin outing for my DSLR and it was challenging - I shot 99% utter crap but great to finally get the rig wet! I'll post some pictures ASAP as well.

Phil

I was very close to staying on for another week. Sorry I missed you Phil. I have put some of my shots on my meetup group website, but I was working on a new computer and messed up my color space setting and profiles, so the web version colors are flat in this gallery. I'll fix that when I have time. For now, you can see them at http://scuba.meetup.com/132/photos/359650/.

Chuuk is one of the places that I would recommend both wide angle and macro on the same dive. I had a non-photog friend help me out by carrying my macro rig (for a few beers pay) while I did the wide angle work deep and then used the macro rig on the masts near the end of the dives. I realize this may be beyond some budgets, but it worked great for me.

An additional note- bring a cheap tripod along- there are several shots that can benefit from some additional stability and they (at the time of my visit) had no problems with setting a tripod down on ship decks or other un-silty locations. It really helped alot with longer exposures.

It is true "getting there first" is one way to go. But if you are on the Odyssey another strategy is delay your first dive a good 1-2 hours so you are getting in when the last of the divers are getting out. This worked for us but it is hard to fight the pavlovian condition of diving in right away. Also helps to talk to shipmates before the dive to see what their goals are.