Help for lense choise for canon eos 7d mark II

Hi guys. I have a compact setup at the moment and are happy with the flexibility of taking both wideangle and macro shots in the same dives.

I have a 7d mark II and are thinking of taking the step and buy a undewater hausing for it. I am looking at nauticam.

Are there any lenses that gives me a similar flexibility, so i can still take pics of sharks and pygmy seahorses on the same dive? I know the wideangle will but be as good as a dedicated port for it, but for the macro it can be possible to put on a wetlense. Is this realistic or a impossible thourght?

greetings

Simon

I'm not fully abreast of all the Canon options out there but "do-everything" systems sacrifice quality.

Generally no, it is not an option for SLR rigs. Nor do we really want it to be.

Not only do the shorter range SLR lenses generally offer much higher quality, they force you to 'focus' as a photographer. If you're shooting wide, you wave hello to the pygmy seahorse and then go find some cool wide shots.

I shot a crop sensor camera a few years ago in Lembeh. In my experience, to get a pygmy you'll need your 100mm (or 105? whatever it is for Canon) and a pretty strong wet diopter on top of it (assuming you don't want to crop 2/3 of the image).

While you can flip the wet lens out of the way, getting a shark with a 100 or 105 is not the right tool for the job. Too close and you only get a little of the shark, too far and you have way too much water between your lens and the shark.

Before switching back over to Nikon (D500), I shot extensively underwater with both the Canon 7D and 7DmkII. The must have lenses is the Tokina 10-17 fisheye for wide angle which can be used even with a 100mm mini dome port and the Canon 60mm macro. If your aim is really small subjects from pygmy seahorses to hairy shrimps, than with the Canon 100mm or Tamron 90mm macro.

Hi Simon

I'd agree with the guys who think that with an SLR system you really don't want to go with a do-anything lens. Although this is, of course a personal decision.

The whole beauty of an SLR is that you have the right lens for the job and you can achieve the best possible results with the combination you chose.

As Undertow says, if you are set up to take WA shots and you see a pygmy seahorse, just say hi the pygmy and then go and find the corals, big critters or wreck that you were planning to photograph - and get cracking pictures of that. Its inevitable with an SLR that you will see things that just aren't suited to the lens you are using at that moment.

Just delight in that you can get great pics of what you planned to photograph!