Did anyone upgrade camera and change from Nauticam to Isotta housing? positive and/or negative experience?

6 hours ago, ChrisRoss said:

That should allow you do do what you are proposing, It will add some extension which you will need to account for .

It's too bad there are no measurements listed on the website, though i imagine it would be only a few mm of extension. Hard to say.

1 hour ago, Whiskeyjack said:

It's too bad there are no measurements listed on the website, though i imagine it would be only a few mm of extension. Hard to say.

Message Isotta, they are usually responsive I hear from others who have contacted them.

If you don’t own a small dome yet, why not just buy an Isotta Port? They should be compatible with the correct extension.  

Yep, so I emailed Isotta and actually sounds like it's fairly simple if you just stick with their ports.  Here is what they recommended:

Housing -> 40mm extension+gear (SKU 2548) -> zoom ring  (SKU 3546 not yet on website)-> 20mm extension (SKU 0174)  -> 4.5" glass dome (SKU 1429)

This would seem to make sense as the Nauticam solution is using the 34.7mm extension with an additonal 5mm, so the numbers do seem to match. Probably not super helpful for OP as he owns the Nauticam ports already, but just wanted to post here for anyone else considering Isotta for this application.

A bonus would be that the camera should be able to be inserted into the housing with the lense attached since the Isotta port opening is larger than the Nauticam.

That's one reason I'm considering to upgrade, but right now, I'm waiting if Panasonic or Olympus actually release a decent camera.

On 11/18/2021 at 9:08 PM, hyp said:

That's one reason I'm considering to upgrade, but right now, I'm waiting if Panasonic or Olympus actually release a decent camera.

Which camera you have now? What do you expect to see come out?

I'm currently using the original Olympus EM5. For Topside I use a Panasonic GX8. Honestly just upgrading to that would probably be a worthwhile upgrade, (1/320s sync speed, better AF, Focus Peaking are the main features I would be looking at here). A new Olympus or Panasonic would hopefully have PDAF so much better AF. I would also like some of the high rez modes that Olympus already has on their EM1mkIII, but this is obviously a feature for topside photography. 

In the end, I'll probably buy nothing or upgrade to a second hand EM1mkII, because I can never justify the cost of those fairly incremental upgrades. I do want to get from the EM5 though because as a 2012 model, it is quite ancient in terms of menu structure etc. Just getting the GX8 underwater would be good enough though.

4 hours ago, hyp said:

I'm currently using the original Olympus EM5. For Topside I use a Panasonic GX8. Honestly just upgrading to that would probably be a worthwhile upgrade, (1/320s sync speed, better AF, Focus Peaking are the main features I would be looking at here). A new Olympus or Panasonic would hopefully have PDAF so much better AF. I would also like some of the high rez modes that Olympus already has on their EM1mkIII, but this is obviously a feature for topside photography. 

In the end, I'll probably buy nothing or upgrade to a second hand EM1mkII, because I can never justify the cost of those fairly incremental upgrades. I do want to get from the EM5 though because as a 2012 model, it is quite ancient in terms of menu structure etc. Just getting the GX8 underwater would be good enough though.

The Em-1 mkII already has PDAF used in combo with contrast detect, focus peaking etc, sync speed is "only" 1/250 though.  I had the EM-5 mkII prior to the EM-1 MkII and the improvement in AF was quite dramatic.  Apparently there's a new body in the pipeline but who knows how long it will take to appear?

I know upgrades are already available. I'm not getting to dive as much as I want and I am also on a fairly strict budget, so I always need to decide if upgrades are worth it. I'm mostly curious if the next generation features significant upgrades in Image Quality and other features (some land features too). Also buying last generation means good availability of used housings and good deals on cameras too. Maybe I'll snatch a used GH5 after everyone upgrades to the GH6, although tbh the GH5 housings are way too large...

On 10/1/2021 at 9:03 PM, Eismann113 said:

I have switched from a Nauticam to an Isotta housing due to an upgrade of my camera (EM5-->EM1 Mk II)

How did you find this upgrade, or better question what didn't you like about EM5? I am looking to go mirrorless and debating between the two. I currently have Nikon D7100. Also debating between Nauticam and Issota housings.

On 1/20/2022 at 11:40 PM, ChrisRoss said:

I had the EM-5 mkII prior to the EM-1 MkII and the improvement in AF was quite dramatic. 

Do you know if AF on EM5III is improved in comparison to the previous model?

I haven't used the EM-5III but the reviews state the EM-5III has the same AF and sensor as the EM1-II.  Land based reviews indicate performance is close to the EM-1 II.  For example this review: https://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/olympus-e-m5-iii/olympus-e-m5-iii-conclusion.htm

I have recently upgraded from EM5 to EM5m111, and the focus is very much improved.

18 hours ago, PhotoJunkie said:

I have recently upgraded from EM5 to EM5m111, and the focus is very much improved.

Good to know! Which housing did you chose for your camera and how many dives can you get in in one charge?

10 minutes ago, andi_db said:

Good to know! Which housing did you chose for your camera and how many dives can you get in in one charge?

Edited 10 minutes ago by andi_db

I have the AOI houseing, I had one on the EM5 and was happy with it.

I could get 2 dives, but I usually swap batteries between dives. This is with the AOI flash trigger, without the trigger I would only be able to get one dive/battery.  This body can be charged directly with a USB and that is faster than a battery charger.

17 hours ago, PhotoJunkie said:

I have the AOI houseing, I had one on the EM5 and was happy with it.

I could get 2 dives, but I usually swap batteries between dives. This is with the AOI flash trigger, without the trigger I would only be able to get one dive/battery.  This body can be charged directly with a USB and that is faster than a battery charger.

Ok great, thanks for the info, it's very useful. This refers to the EM5 series 1? Do you know what's the average number of shots you take on a dive? I guess it's not the same if one takes 50 or 150 photos on a single dive. 

17 hours ago, PhotoJunkie said:

I have the AOI houseing, I had one on the EM5 and was happy with it.

I could get 2 dives, but I usually swap batteries between dives. This is with the AOI flash trigger, without the trigger I would only be able to get one dive/battery.  This body can be charged directly with a USB and that is faster than a battery charger.

This is interesting, I never experienced so far that that battery is rate limiting for diving...

With EM1IIin Nauticam housing I can easily do three dives (maybe I make 200 photos/dive in average and this holds even when WA and both when using internal FML3 flash or also Nauticam flash trigger (what I recently prefer)). A battery charge, for me, is good for the entire diving day (usually 2-3 dives: 60' minimum/dive). I must say, however, that I seldom make video, maybe with extensive video more battery is used up...

Wolfgang

38 minutes ago, Architeuthis said:

 

This is interesting, I never experienced so far that that battery is rate limiting for diving...

 

With EM1IIin Nauticam housing I can easily do three dives (maybe I make 200 photos/dive in average and this holds even when WA and both when using internal FML3 flash or also Nauticam flash trigger (what I recently prefer)). A battery charge, for me, is good for the entire diving day (usually 2-3 dives: 60' minimum/dive). I must say, however, that I seldom make video, maybe with extensive video more battery is used up...

 

Wolfgang

I have to use the screen on the back, there is no way to use the viewfinder. It really kills the battery.

35 minutes ago, PhotoJunkie said:

I have to use the screen on the back, there is no way to use the viewfinder. It really kills the battery.

I also do not notice a noticeable difference between viewfinder and screen. It must be peculiar for the EM5...

Wolfgang

2 hours ago, PhotoJunkie said:

I have to use the screen on the back, there is no way to use the viewfinder. It really kills the battery.

I only use the viewfinder with my EM5 III.  But topside I never noticed a difference.