Lighting questions - ikelite ds 160

I am a total newb to underwater photography... just so you are warned, although I have been a professional photographer for quite a few years.

I have a 5D that I am trying to get setup for underwater photography (only snorkeling - so shallow depths)

So far I have picked out

Housing

Ikelite 6871.05 eTTL Underwater Housing

Ports

Ikelite Dome Port for 3.5 to 4.5" #5503.55 for Canon 16 - 35mm 2.8 lens 5503.55

Ikelite Flat Port for Canon 100mm f2.8 EF USM Macro Lens 5508.45

Other

Ikelite Smart Charger 4066.1

Lighting

2 x Ikelite TTL Sync Cord 4103.51

2 x Ikelite SA-100 Deluxe 1" Diameter Ball Socket Arm System with 6" Double Ball #4086.61

2 x Ikelite 4060 SUBSTROBE DS-160

So my questions are..

how does this look am I forgetting anything important?

Since I am so shallow and will obviously get quite a bit of natural light, do I really need two strobes?

How does hooking up two strobes work. I am guessing with TTL that the one strobe gets connected directly to the camera through the housing but what about the other second strobe? does it connect to the housing too or does it get triggered by the TTL flash as a slave?

I think it is quite confusing figuring out all what I need, as there seems to be a lot of parts that are necessary that aren't included. (Like the charger for the lights)..

Hej det er svært at finde rundt i...

You need a connector for the two strobes (http://www.camerasunderwater.co.uk/ikelite/flash/sync_cords.html) it should be item #4103.52. you will also need another type of cable for one of the strobes, since only one of them can power the ttl inside the housing.

where are you buying the housing. its a good idea to call them and ask what they recomend.

I only have one strobe wich can make a nice effect but most of the times i really miss another one.

I think that the rig might be a bit big for snorkling unless youre really hardcore and very well balanced.

hope that some of it was usefull.

kind regards

mads

ps hvor er du fra i norge?

thanks,

I like in Vikersund, Norway.

i looked at that cord a little, and it looked like it goes from one cord into the housing and splits out to the two strobes? So where would I need another cord, it looks like that would be everything I need?

and is there spare parts that I shouldn't go without?

How would it be too big? or what is the problem with it being too big? hard to manipulate? or it floats too much??

I was thinking of buying the gear at BHphoto.com

i looked at bhphoto.com and the housing alone cost 6,818.52Nkr at www.camerasunderwater.co.uk it cost 4,562.94Nkr. If I where you I would call them both up and hear what that setup would cost.

I havent actually seen the cable so i dont know if it vil be long enough.

when i ordered my housing i ordered another set of o-rings.

its heavy and not easy to move around, because of the waterresistance. I do freedive with my camera but the time to take each picture is very limited.

i hope it was helpfull

mads

i looked at bhphoto.com and the housing alone cost 6,818.52Nkr at www.camerasunderwater.co.uk it cost 4,562.94Nkr. If I where you I would call them both up and hear what that setup would cost.

are we looking at the same page?

http://www.camerasunderwater.co.uk/ikelite/slr/eos5d.html

camerasunderwater sell the house for

£ 757.45 without vat which is 7,642.68 NOK

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/4055...er_Housing.html

Bhphoto sells the housing for

$ 1,329.95 which is 6,819.98 NOK

sorry forgot to change currency...think i´ll use BH next time im investing.

and you might as well buy silicone grease there as well. i have used grease for my old olympus housing that destroyed the o-rings.

The sync cord used for two ikelite strobes splits indeed from one end (for the housing) to two ends for the strobes. They are relatively expensive, and relatively fragile. Wouldn't hurt to have a spare.. Other spares would include o rings, o ring grease etc. For the small tubes ikelite sells this in, old film boxes are ideal....

I would definitely not recommend the 6" dome with the 16-35 on full frame unless you are going for a lens babies like effect. The 8" dome, and a +2 diopter will yield much sharper corners.

Seriously, you should give Ryan or anyone at Reef Photo a call (see the link in his post above) - I have no affiliation with them (they don't even sell my housing brand) but these guys are 100% dedicated to UW photography and are unbelievably helpful.

Their ikelite 5D housing is the same price as B&H i just checked $1329.95 - that's impressive. I think they'll ship most places, they're a small business in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

The only other suggestion would be to at least look at surf housings, if you only plan to snorkel, or plan to shoot surfing, for which diving housings are NOT designed. I think aquatech are the main brand, but check the surf photography forum. Cheers,

Chris

You probably want a dual synch cord for the ds-160s and you'll want a backup. There's a single connection for the strobe cord on the housing.

If you use the dome in shallow water and surf you'll probably have leaks from the wave action on the dome, it needs some pressure to seal the housing - surf might be able to pull the dome away from the o-ring seat.

If you use the dome in shallow water and surf you'll probably have leaks from the wave action on the dome, it needs some pressure to seal the housing - surf might be able to pull the dome away from the o-ring seat.

Scaring me there Rinjani. Have you heard of that? Or is it just if you are really rough with the housing?

mads

I've snorkeled with the Ike dome port with no problems. But I certainly wouldn't want to standing around in surf trying to use it - I don't think it's designed for that. You could send a note to Ikelite themselves and ask what they think. Since I've never tried it, I can't say that using the Ikelite 8" dome in surf will defintely cause leaks, but I wouldn't be surprised if it leaks happened.

I've snorkeled with the Ike dome port with no problems. But I certainly wouldn't want to standing around in surf trying to use it - I don't think it's designed for that. You could send a note to Ikelite themselves and ask what they think. Since I've never tried it, I can't say that using the Ikelite 8" dome in surf will defintely cause leaks, but I wouldn't be surprised if it leaks happened.

OK just got scared, because i also think that the connection between house and port looks a bit weak.

I have nevet had any problems with it. But I think youre right about standing right in the surf with it could be a bad idea.

mads

It's not that the housing to port connection is "weak" per se, it's that the actual water seal is created by external water pressure which compresses the o-ring. So at the surface or in very shallow water without this pressure differential, anything that 'rocks' the dome against its o-ring might let water in.

I know it's something I'm paranoid as he** about even when doing a leak test in a dip tank, or when practicing in my pool. I've not had a problem yet, but then again I've also not been pounded by surface waves while still that shallow.

Others advised you correctly on the strobe cable: a single connection on the housing goes to a T-cable that branches to each strobe. One is the 'primary' and powers the TTL circuitry in the housing. The other is the secondary. But both strobes will operate in TTL when set to do so. The dual-sync cords are pretty long despite being coiled...I have 8" and 12" arm segments (each side) and the cord reaches fine without seeming too stretched. You can use cable-ties or whatever to help hold the cord to the arms near the ball joints (I actually use some small velcro wraps I picked up from a hardware store for like $3 for a huge roll of them...something like these:

http://www.textol.com/t_ties.asp

The only other suggestion would be to at least look at surf housings, if you only plan to snorkel, or plan to shoot surfing, for which diving housings are NOT designed. I think aquatech are the main brand, but check the surf photography forum. Cheers,

 

Chris

Thanks for the surf housing tips. The aquatech surf housing is about the same price as the ikelite, but unless I am mistaken I can't add any flashes to that housing.... and perhaps i would want a flash or two at 1 meter under??

well it looks like aquatech does have a flash housing for the canon flashes..

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/5286...ANON_580EX.html

anyone have experience of how well this works?

I have a flash housing for the 580EX. It's a nice flash, but it doesn't recycle fast enough to capture fast action - unlike the Ikelite.

Cheers

James

I would definitely not recommend the 6" dome with the 16-35 on full frame unless you are going for a lens babies like effect. The 8" dome, and a +2 diopter will yield much sharper corners.

I second that. I have used a 17-40 with a 6 inch dome, which really did not make anyone happy. Despite the added size and cost, I find the 8 inch dome well worth it.

Regards

Bent

any other comments on using the 580ex on an aquatech house?

is there an arm included that moves it far enough away from the camera?

Perhaps for shallow snorkel photography this would be enough light?... hmm... decisions decisions.

I don't know about the Aquatech flash attachment - but I have used the 580EX underwater with a Subal flash housing. The flash would be powerful enough to cover a "standard" angle of view. It would like up about 1/3 of the scene if you're at 17mm on a FF camera. It has great features, but it's slow to recycle. On the PLUS side, it does high speed sync, which may be VERY useful in shallow bright water.

Cheers

James