Arms and Lights

I've been reading a lot for quite sometime now and there's so much to read, but there's still a lot that I don't understand yet. So I think i'll start by asking questions and from there I think I can be guided in the right direction. Anyway, I have an Ikelite housing for my G11 and i'm looking for a good set arms and strobes to go with my set up, looking down the road I don't mind spending for the good items but of course as for now i'd like to veer away from the professional stuff, since I won't be earning from my set up yet.

Any recommendations and why? I would like to know, so that i'd be knowledgeable about the stuff I own.

I've been reading a lot for quite sometime now and there's so much to read, but there's still a lot that I don't understand yet. So I think i'll start by asking questions and from there I think I can be guided in the right direction. Anyway, I have an Ikelite housing for my G11 and i'm looking for a good set arms and strobes to go with my set up, looking down the road I don't mind spending for the good items but of course as for now i'd like to veer away from the professional stuff, since I won't be earning from my set up yet.

 

Any recommendations and why? I would like to know, so that i'd be knowledgeable about the stuff I own.

For the arms, you can't beat ULCS. There are less expensive versions but the ULCS stuff will be working long after you get your 10th housing. As for strobes, I am partial to Inon but there are many good strobes out there from S&S, Ikelite and others. Depends a lot on whether you will be doing macro or wide angle.

Bill

For the arms, you can't beat ULCS. There are less expensive versions but the ULCS stuff will be working long after you get your 10th housing. As for strobes, I am partial to Inon but there are many good strobes out there from S&S, Ikelite and others. Depends a lot on whether you will be doing macro or wide angle.

Bill

thanks bill, actually i've narrowed down my choice of arms to ulcs, i've read a lot of good things about them. as for the lights, right now i'm looking at ikelite, the ds-160 seems to be a good buy, i'm not yet sure but thanks for the recommendations

Jason.

DS-160 is big and heavy. But it's allso quite powerful and You get TTL with You'r ike housing.

Cheers

Karel

DS-160 is big and heavy. But it's allso quite powerful and You get TTL with You'r ike housing.

 

Cheers

Karel

Karel,

what are your insights about the DS-160 strobe?

Jason.

Karel,

what are your insights about the DS-160 strobe?

Jason.

I'm very happy with it! Recycle time is lightning fast and battery lasts min. for three - four dives. And offcourse as I mentioned, it's quite powerful.

On the bad side it is bulky and heavy. But that has not been an issue for me... atleast not so far. I'm really happy with it and I'm about to buy a second one soon.

Tough I could.. i havent used TTL, so can't really comment on that.

Cheers

Karel

At the risk of sounding biased, I'd say if you are just starting out and have an ikelite housing, the DS160 or actually the DS161 is the best bang for buck. you get TTL, great angle of coverage, and very quick recycle time. and with the DS161, a built-in movie light for movies with your G11. what's not to like?

Some photographers may think TTL is a waste of time, but it's really convenient to use especially for new underwater photographers. i'd be lost without TTL. it lets me focus on getting the shot and composition by removing the need to adjust the strobes. plus you also get to control strobe power directly from the camera panel instead of having to reach out to 2 strobes.

My batteries last 3-4 dives easily without the aiming light turned on, and will last me a whole 75-90 minute night dive with the aiming light (more like my main dive light!) turned on and about 200-250 shots.

The downside of the DS160/161 is probably cost, weight and bulk. I have 2 DS125s and they are pretty heavy compared to the D2000s and S2000s my friends are using.

I'm very happy with it! Recycle time is lightning fast and battery lasts min. for three - four dives. And offcourse as I mentioned, it's quite powerful.

On the bad side it is bulky and heavy. But that has not been an issue for me... atleast not so far. I'm really happy with it and I'm about to buy a second one soon.

Tough I could.. i havent used TTL, so can't really comment on that.

 

Cheers

Karel

why not use TTL?

At the risk of sounding biased, I'd say if you are just starting out and have an ikelite housing, the DS160 or actually the DS161 is the best bang for buck. you get TTL, great angle of coverage, and very quick recycle time. and with the DS161, a built-in movie light for movies with your G11. what's not to like?

 

Some photographers may think TTL is a waste of time, but it's really convenient to use especially for new underwater photographers. i'd be lost without TTL. it lets me focus on getting the shot and composition by removing the need to adjust the strobes. plus you also get to control strobe power directly from the camera panel instead of having to reach out to 2 strobes.

 

My batteries last 3-4 dives easily without the aiming light turned on, and will last me a whole 75-90 minute night dive with the aiming light (more like my main dive light!) turned on and about 200-250 shots.

 

The downside of the DS160/161 is probably cost, weight and bulk. I have 2 DS125s and they are pretty heavy compared to the D2000s and S2000s my friends are using.

would the bouyancy sleeves help on these?

why not use TTL?

Well I like to be in control of the strobe power most of the time.

Well I like to be in control of the strobe power most of the time.

with this, how is manual different with ttl when you are in control? what can you achieve with manual compared to ttl?

Jason.

with this, how is manual different with ttl when you are in control? what can you achieve with manual compared to ttl?

 

 

Jason.

If you are using manual you can easily adjust exposure, especially with two strobes to create shadows or other effects that can make nice pictures. TTL gets you to a "best" exposure but you may not like it, with manual you can overexpose your subject for effect or underexpose etc. The downside is that you have complete control so if the picture is rubbish it is your fault. For a long time I shot TTL especially for macro but have recently moved back to full manual control since I like the results (in most cases) better.

Bill

If you are using manual you can easily adjust exposure, especially with two strobes to create shadows or other effects that can make nice pictures. TTL gets you to a "best" exposure but you may not like it, with manual you can overexpose your subject for effect or underexpose etc. The downside is that you have complete control so if the picture is rubbish it is your fault. For a long time I shot TTL especially for macro but have recently moved back to full manual control since I like the results (in most cases) better.

Bill

Bill,

well since you've mentioned the effects and exposure, I want to know how do you do the black background on a macro shot? i know it's not necessarily a night dive, coz the other day while having lunch in a well lit restaurant, i was able to take a pic of my brother and his son without including the available light in the area. Is it the same with underwater?

Bill,

 

well since you've mentioned the effects and exposure, I want to know how do you do the black background on a macro shot? i know it's not necessarily a night dive, coz the other day while having lunch in a well lit restaurant, i was able to take a pic of my brother and his son without including the available light in the area. Is it the same with underwater?

yes buoyancy sleeves will help underwater, but the bulk and weight makes it a pain when you are traveling and flying.

for the macro shots, all you need to do is to underexpose the background so you make it all black. you can do that by increasing the shutter speed and stopping down the aperture, and rely on the strobe to light up the subject only. works day or night

yes buoyancy sleeves will help underwater, but the bulk and weight makes it a pain when you are traveling and flying.

 

for the macro shots, all you need to do is to underexpose the background so you make it all black. you can do that by increasing the shutter speed and stopping down the aperture, and rely on the strobe to light up the subject only. works day or night

thanks bill... writing this down on my little notebook. about the pain of the weight and bulk, it's a pain i'm gonna have to endure in the near future

I have an ikelite quick release arm which i have never used. I would like $40used plus shipping. Here is some pics from my add on scubaboard.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/classifie...elease-arm.html

hey guys

are there any other strobes that have both flash and video-light?

besides ds161?

thanx