Switching to Olympus - a few specific questions

Why dont you look at a Canon 200D in an Ikelite housing? Very small and compact and can use your existing Tokina and Canon macro lens or get the very good Canon 60mm macro.

I used to use a Canon 700D in a Nauticam but switched to an Olympus EM1 and a EM10 for my wife. Both are great and controls underwater are nearly the same but the EM1 has a better trigger. Never used a finder and always use the EVF and again the bigger EVF in the EM1 has the advantage. The Oly 60mm can be used on its own or with a macro diopter for even greater super macro. I have the Nauticam CMC and while tricky to use gives you 2:1 magnification. You cant use the CMC with the 30mm macro lenses as they are too far from the port glass. The 60mm is made for the Macro 60 port.

I also have the Oly 8mm FE and the Pany 7-14 behind the Nauticam acrylic ports but the Oly 8mm is the one Id recommend.

So why do I suggest the 200D ikelite combo? The main drawbacks of the Olympus are battery life, about 2.5 dives on a 3 dive boat trip so you end up taking less pictures to conserve battery or run the risk of opening the housing and swapping the battery. The EM1 mk2 has much better battery life and so does the Pany GH4 or GH5.

Also the Oly EM1 in Nauticam with macro lens and port is only 1.5kg lighter than the 700D in Nauticam with lens and port (but also less bulky). But the strobes, arms, focus lights, GoPro etc etc weigh the same so you end up with a 5 to 6kg system as opposed to a 6.5 to 7.5kg system.

The Canon 200D Ikelite is the same size and weight as their Olympus and Panasonic housings but you dont have to buy new lenses. Hope this helps.

Thanks for that idea and also appreciate your point of view, as someone who shoots with DSLRs and ILCs (eg, the battery life issues - hadnt considered that the battery would run out so quickly!).

I have to admit, I never looked at the Rebel series of Canon cameras because they dont have 2 separate control dials for changing the 2 exposure parameters. You have to push a button and then turn the dial - and I cannot deal with that. I should look at the newer bodies and see if they have remedied this - if they have, this could be the way to go.

That said, as far as housings go, I dont plan to ever get Ikelite. I have seen too many divers at our dive shop have issues with them (servicing them in this part of the world isnt easy) and more importantly, those housings are ergonomic disasters. Clunky and the buttons/levers dont fall where they should. But if there is a metal, ergonomic housing for it, that might be an option especially if the control dial issues are fixed.

A couple of clarifications, if i may:

- When you say "better trigger on the OM1", what do you mean? Faster response time to take the shoot? Or faster AF?

- Re the CMC: I was planning to use the Macro Port 45, with a spacer, and not the Macro Port 65. Would this let me use wet lenses with the 30mm? Because that would make it a truly versatile lens. I have a 2:1 Macromater wet lens permanently attached to my Aquatica macro port (and i mean it - i dont think i'd be able to release the screw now even if i wanted to ) and it is very handy combo to pair with the 50. Something similar with the 30 would be nice as well.

I am shooting the em-1-II and have shot the em-1 and the em-5. I am shooting with the Inon 45 finder so I suspect that your nauticam dealers were trying to sell you the nauticam finder. I have the Nauticam 45 as well (often take two housings along). In fact you can buy the Inon 45 finder for Nauticam housings from Divervision for $500.

http://www.divervision.com/inon-45-degree-viewfinder-for-nauticam-em5-housing-VF45-IN2NA-EM5.html?search=inon&category_id=85&sub_category=true

 

Cheers Bill

A-Ha!!! So I did correctly remember reading that the Inon finder fits the Nauticam. I need to do some digging to figure out whether this is the same 45 degree finder as used on DSLR cases, but with a different mounting kit, or whether it is a different unit (sized differently for ILC housings?).

Thanks for that.

The Nauticam 45° unit for the EM-1/5/10 is different unit to the 45° unit for the DSLR housings. I believe the newer housings mirrorless housings can fit the Nauticam viewfinder directly, but older housings needed a different LCD window. See: http://scubapix.com/viewfinders-for-dslr-housings/

So you need to check if that INON is for a DSLR or mirrorless housing.

This post might be of interest: http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=41142

not sure but suspect it may be DSLR housing adaptation given the date.

Also this: http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=59063

- Re the CMC: I was planning to use the Macro Port 45, with a spacer, and not the Macro Port 65. Would this let me use wet lenses with the 30mm? Because that would make it a truly versatile lens. I have a 2:1 Macromater wet lens permanently attached to my Aquatica macro port (and i mean it - i dont think i'd be able to release the screw now even if i wanted to ) and it is very handy combo to pair with the 50. Something similar with the 30 would be nice as well.

Yes it fits well in the 45 Nauticam port and it is a useful lens. Same port works with PL 45mm. No need for extensions. I use the same port with extension for the 60mm lens.

Using diopters like cmc or the subsee is near useless with the 30mm macro.... for what I test with Panasonic 30 or Olympus 30, with the cmc you get less or same magnification than the 30 alone.... same with canon 60mm+diopters... most of the power of wet diopters is the reduced working distance.... but the panoly 30mm have already a tiny working distance... 😉

The Oly 60mm in the Macro 65 port is so close to the glass you have to remove the UV filter if one is fitted. As the Macro 45 port is not made for the 30mm macro lenses and is far away enough from the glass as to negate the extra magnification I believe.

Never had a Ikelite housing but is was an idea as you are trying to save weight for travel.

If you still want M43 then I would definitely get the latest EM1 mk 2 for the battery life issue, I have had quite a few dives whilst traveling where the battery has given up during the third dive and I never had any Canon battery give up.

My wife and I still use Canon DSLRs and M43 cameras above water but only the Olympus underwater. The trigger on the EM1 housing is a pistol type where the EM10 is a push down lever, I think it is still the same now but most new Nauticam housing come with a trigger converter when you fit the optional handles (higher end housings come with handles).

its real that the oly 30mm isn't really close to the glass with the 45 macro port.... but not so far away.... the pana 30mm it's 4mm longer and it's close to the glass.... the results are similar.... i own both lenses... ;-)

Using diopters like cmc or the subsee is near useless with the 30mm macro.... for what I test with Panasonic 30 or Olympus 30, with the cmc you get less or same magnification than the 30 alone.... same with canon 60mm+diopters... most of the power of wet diopters is the reduced working distance.... but the panoly 30mm have already a tiny working distance...

not my experience... I get 2x the dimension as with the lens alone.

its real that the oly 30mm isn't really close to the glass with the 45 macro port.... but not so far away.... the pana 30mm it's 4mm longer and it's close to the glass.... the results are similar.... i own both lenses... ;-)

sorry I did not specify that the 30mm I used ... it is the Panasonic one and it fits well as you mentioned.

Thanks again, guys - some really useful info there, especially re the fit of the 30mm lens. I am not wedded tot he Oly 30mm, and can happily get the Panasonic, which appears to be a better fit.

@ChrisRoss - thanks for those links. Gonna go read them now.

@Griff - thanks for that explanation about the trigger. I am a fairly low-volume shooter, so i should be able to get a single day's use out of the battery. Am also going to look into after-market batteries (Wasabi and others usually make options with better-capacity batteries and i have one for my Fuji as well)

Although you don't have plans for the 9-18mm at all, I would not recommend buying it. The Panasonic 7-14mm is better in every way. I don't have issues that the other person posted about where it doesn't perform that great. Mine works quite well. I plan on picking up a fisheye for wider angle in the near future.

For Macro, you really are better off getting the 60mm. Switch to the 12-50 on days when you don't want to do strictly macro. The 12-50mm fits in the same port as the 60mm macro, so you don't need any additional ports for that, just a zoom gear.

I have an E-M5mkII in a Nauticam Housing. The 60mm macro is on my camera the most, with the 7-14mm for when I shoot wide angle.

You can get an accessory which provides trigger function on the EM5-II, I have one on my old EM-5 MkII housing, it bolts to RH handle bracket. makes shooting with rear button AF easier in my experience.

Too bad you're not in OZ, I'm selling my EM-5 II Nauticam and considering selling the camera along with it if the buyer were interested and agreed price was right.

I buy and use the nauticam pistol trigger for two dives. Then I remove it because its better than the original trigger of the housing, but with this i lost the ergonomics and for changing aperture or shutter Ive to move my hand from handle/trigger to knobs.... without this I can leave my hand on the housing and do everything (shutter+knobs+focus point)without moving it! And in macro its a great thing!

Nudibranco, I do my test with the Panasonic 30 and the cmc1... not in the water... but I remember focusing on the cmc glass.... to close and without real benefit.... 2:1 its the maximum magnification you can get with 60mm and cmc1 at 2cm from the lens.... I think its really impossible to get the same with the 30mm that already have a minimum working distance.... 😉 I plan to do the test with the oly...