which housing for d7100

hi all trying to decide what make of housing to buy for my first dslr rig. size is important and also reliability. like the idea of leak detector and port lock on nouticam but cant find any actual reviews on it. any help ? thanks steve

Hello,

Where are you based? You are welcome to come and have a look at one and I can talk you through if you are near us in Bournemouth.

Alex

Have you considered Nexus? They are very compact & light weight compared to some of the other makes. Threaded ports so no need for a locking system. Simple design with all the controls. I've been very happy with Nexus housings for my D70 & D300. Will upgrade soon (probably to D7100) & will buy another Nexus.

Very happy with my Aqatica. Love the control placement, very well thought out.

 

 

Have you considered Nexus?

As far as I can see, Steve leaves in UK.

Where do you think he can buy a Nexus housing in UK from? Can you recommend their customer service here in UK?

Cheers

Pete

I'm on my 3rd Nauticam housing, and have nothing but positives to say about them. The vacuum system gives a lot of peace of mind, and the port locks work great. When I change cameras again, I'll be on my 4th Nauticam housing if that tells you anything.

Hi everybody,

I'd like to resurrect this topic because I'm desperately struggling with the same issue! I need a housing for my D7100 and just can't decide what to buy! Feels like I've read the entire Internet (twice... and then again;-))

I also own an Ikelite DS161 strobe and would like to use this with the new setup. Since I want to shoot wide angle with my Tokina 10-17 I think I'll have to buy a second strobe, too.

So far I short-listed Aquatica, Nauticam or Sealux. Maybe Seacam but I fear they might too expensive for me.

I'd appreciate any help, advice or recommendations and would also be gratefull for input concerning ports and other lenses etc...

Thanks in advance and greetings from Germany,

Holger

Holger,

Since you are in Germany, why don't you look at the Austrian Subal housing. I am on my second Subal housing and I have just bought my wife a Subal for her new D 7200. The ergonomics are great, you can feel every click of the command dials and the half shutter.

Elmer

Hi Elmer,

Thank You very much for your answer! I didn't consider Subal because I had kind of an unpleasant experience with their representatives at the "Boot" - Germany's biggest trade fair for all kinds of watersports! They were bearish and arrogant and showed absolutely no interest in winning me as a new customer. I don't want to reward this behavior by giving them a huge amount of money although I'm sure they definately build great housings. Subal also seems quite pricy to me! If I spent this much I'd rather get a Seacam which actually would be even cheaper!

Holger

Hi Elmer,

 

Thank You very much for your answer! I didn't consider Subal because I had kind of an unpleasant experience with their representatives at the "Boot" - Germany's biggest trade fair for all kinds of watersports! They were bearish and arrogant and showed absolutely no interest in winning me as a new customer. I don't want to reward this behavior by giving them a huge amount of money although I'm sure they definately build great housings. Subal also seems quite pricy to me! If I spent this much I'd rather get a Seacam which actually would be even cheaper!

 

Holger

Holger,

I would send an e-mail directly to Subal and complain of their poor customer service at the "Boot" and directly point out who was rude.

PM sent.

Elmer

Why not go for the ikelite housing for the D7100 (or the recent D7200 housing, that also takes the D7100). You might even find a good second-hand Ikelite housing for the D7100. There are leak detectors on the market for the Ike housing. Good luck!

Hey Holger

Another vote for Subal. Sorry to hear though that you had a bad experience with them at Boot.

I've had 5 Subal housings (CP5000, D100, D200, D300 and now D800) and they are superb. I agree completely with Elmer on the feel of them and the way they perform.

Give them another chance. I doubt very much you'd ever regret buying one.

Please over look their arrogance - they have worked very hard to perfect it!

Notwithstanding, they make a very good housing. We have had 3 sets of them: N90, D200, D7000.

Thank You everyone for your answers and sharing your experience ! This really helps me a lot!

Despite my experience with Subal at "Boot" I still think they are quite expensive! But after you are all recommending them I think I might reconsider my budget.

So far Aquatica and Ikelite are out! I've been using an Ikelite housing for my previous camera (Nikon P7000) and it was ok but for my new cam I want something better.

Has anyone experience with Sealux? A friend of mine has two of their housings and loves them a lot. I also got an interesting offer from Sealux.

The remaining unsolved issue is if and how I could use my DS161 strobe with any non-Ikeltite housings?! But I think I should ask for this in the strobes chapter of the forum.

regards,

Holger

Nauticam has an Ikelite bulkhead option, I’m not sure about other brands.

I've had my Nauticam housing for my D7100 coming up to 2 years now. To be honest I can't fault it. I've never had any issues with it, easy to use, easy to maintain. It even has a useful button for flipping up the on camera flash if you forget to pop it up whilst assembling (I had a friend who had the housing for 2 years before he realised this).

Alex, just so you know your competition ;-) Aquatica has offered original Ikelite bulkhead for its housing since 1982. they are a rugged, trouble free and resilient connector

Hi Alex

I just went through the same buying considerations as you. They are quality, ease of use, complete control of the camera, weight in air (airline expense), weight in the water (diver fatigue with heavy housings, and really, last is price.

If you travel, the expense of each trip to the dive site outweights the price of the housing.

I have owned these housings: Ikelite, Aquatica, Recsea, Nauticam, Anthis-Nexus and Subal. My close friends use Subal and Sea&Sea, and they are spoiled and demanding. My most recent housing is the Subal ND800 and it is super! If I had to buy again, I would buy either Subal or Sea&Sea. The Nikon D7100 is a super camera. You are lucky to have such a wide choice of housings.