Most streamlined A1 WA setups

I shot the original photo in Iceland to be slightly misleading - as I wasn’t really sure I was allowed to say I was using the lens - so best to disguise exactly what it was! 

The position of this is native fisheye lens
This could be interesting if you are using only N100 ports and smaller optics like the WWL-1 as I do
Yet am unsure I would consider it myself


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

On 4/29/2023 at 1:41 PM, Arianna Skipper said:

Hey all. Looking for suggestions or creative solutions for the most streamlined WA rigs for the a1. I haven’t bought the housing yet— it’ll likely be Nauticam or Aquatica. 

I have a cave trip in July that I last dove with my D500 Aquatica rig. I slapped the Tokina 10-17mm on it and just used a 4” mini dome with video lights. Now that I sold that setup, I’d like to put together something simple again for the a1. 
 

Has anyone here used the Sony FE 20mm F1.8 G? Or a similar prime? I think it would be wide enough for what I’m doing. Is there another lens I should consider that won’t add crazy bulk? I’ll probably eventually put together some monstrosity with focus/extension rings and a large port but I’d prefer to be more streamlined for this trip. If it’s not possible, oh well haha. 
 

Appreciate any advice. 

-Arianna

Hi Adrianna
To answer your original question 
Here are side by side our D500 and A1 housing with our 4 inch glass dome,it gives you an idea of the sizes of both housings.
Hope this helps .

On 5/3/2023 at 3:28 PM, Aquatica Digital said:

Hi Adrianna
To answer your original question 
Here are side by side our D500 and A1 housing with our 4 inch glass dome,it gives you an idea of the sizes of both housings.
Hope this helps .

Thank you for this comparison. Have you had anyone test out the Sony FE 14mm F/1.8 GM lens? Would that lens perform best with the 9.25” glass dome port? 

I have used the 14mm on land. Although I didn’t exhaust the options, I wasn’t able to change the aperture from the camera - only from the lens. Which would be a problem for UW use.

11 minutes ago, Alex_Mustard said:

I have used the 14mm on land. Although I didn’t exhaust the options, I wasn’t able to change the aperture from the camera - only from the lens. Which would be a problem for UW use.

That seems very strange. I haven't tried the lens, but Dustin Abbott mentions in his review that it can be controlled via the camera and he is usually pretty accurate:

Quote

"The upside is that the GM lenses are always very feature rich.  That starts with the aperture, where you have multiple options for controlling aperture.  You can change it from within the camera, manually change it via one third stop detents, or have a declicked aperture by selecting the switch on the right side of the barrel."

https://dustinabbott.net/2021/05/sony-fe-14mm-f1-8-g-master-review/

However, I don't own the lens so I cannot verify that.

Regards,

- brett

I’d believe him over me. I don’t own the lens either, so can’t test.

Alex

6 minutes ago, TmxDiver said:

That seems very strange. I haven't tried the lens, but Dustin Abbott mentions in his review that it can be controlled via the camera and he is usually pretty accurate:

https://dustinabbott.net/2021/05/sony-fe-14mm-f1-8-g-master-review/

However, I don't own the lens so I cannot verify that.

Regards,

- brett

I would agree that you should be able to control aperture from the camera with this lens

If you set the aperture on the lens ring to "A" it can be adjusted from the camera body. I have the lens and can confirm.

Just now, t.tm.m said:

If you set the aperture on the lens ring to "A" it can be adjusted from the camera body. I have the lens and can confirm.

Great. Do you use it UW? 

Just now, Arianna Skipper said:

Great. Do you use it UW? 

I've only used it above water for astrophotography, and use a WWL-1 setup for wide underwater

38 minutes ago, Alex_Mustard said:

I have used the 14mm on land. Although I didn’t exhaust the options, I wasn’t able to change the aperture from the camera - only from the lens. Which would be a problem for UW use.

The Sony FE 14mm F/1.8 can be used above water by changing the F/numbers on the lens with or without the click between stops or can be set to "A" and controlled by the camera. This is a lens I reviewed back in 2021 UWP issue #122 using the Sony A1 and the Zen 230mm dome. I also reviewed the Rokinon AF 14mm F/2.8 For Sony and Canon in UWP issue #112. In the 2020 review I was using the Sony A7R IV in an Aquatica housing with an 8" acrylic (if I remember correctly) port. That review includes the cover shot. The Aquatica port chart only lists the Sony FE 14mm with the 4" dome and the 9.25" domes. While Nauticam lists the best result with the 230mm dome port. The minimum focus distance For Sony is 25cm while the Rokinon is 20cm. The original poster if you like fixed lenses may also want to consider the Sigma 17mm F/4 For Sony E mount and Leica-L mount which has a minimum focus distance of 12cm and can be used in a 140mm or 170mm dome with respectable but not completely stellar results. 

35 minutes ago, Phil Rudin said:

The Sony FE 14mm F/1.8 can be used above water by changing the F/numbers on the lens with or without the click between stops or can be set to "A" and controlled by the camera. This is a lens I reviewed back in 2021 UWP issue #122 using the Sony A1 and the Zen 230mm dome. I also reviewed the Rokinon AF 14mm F/2.8 For Sony and Canon in UWP issue #112. In the 2020 review I was using the Sony A7R IV in an Aquatica housing with an 8" acrylic (if I remember correctly) port. That review includes the cover shot. The Aquatica port chart only lists the Sony FE 14mm with the 4" dome and the 9.25" domes. While Nauticam lists the best result with the 230mm dome port. The minimum focus distance For Sony is 25cm while the Rokinon is 20cm. The original poster if you like fixed lenses may also want to consider the Sigma 17mm F/4 For Sony E mount and Leica-L mount which has a minimum focus distance of 12cm and can be used in a 140mm or 170mm dome with respectable but not completely stellar results. 

Thanks for this. I read your review in the #122 issue. I would be interested in a setup of the Aquatica a1 housing with the 9.25” dome port and Sony 14mm. This is a lens I would use topside as well, which is a bonus for me. Simply having a housing and port is also a plus, without the need for extensions or adapters (even if the port itself is large).

Aquatica acutely recommends a 63.5mm (2.5 inch) extension when using the Sony 14mm with the 9.25 inch dome port. 

2 minutes ago, Phil Rudin said:

Aquatica acutely recommends a 63.5mm (2.5 inch) extension when using the Sony 14mm with the 9.25 inch dome port. 

2 minutes ago, Phil Rudin said:

Aquatica acutely recommends a 63.5mm (2.5 inch) extension when using the Sony 14mm with the 9.25 inch dome port. 

I see that now— thanks for flagging!

-A

On 5/9/2023 at 12:52 PM, Phil Rudin said:

The Sony FE 14mm F/1.8 can be used above water by changing the F/numbers on the lens with or without the click between stops or can be set to "A" and controlled by the camera. This is a lens I reviewed back in 2021 UWP issue #122 using the Sony A1 and the Zen 230mm dome. I also reviewed the Rokinon AF 14mm F/2.8 For Sony and Canon in UWP issue #112. In the 2020 review I was using the Sony A7R IV in an Aquatica housing with an 8" acrylic (if I remember correctly) port. That review includes the cover shot. The Aquatica port chart only lists the Sony FE 14mm with the 4" dome and the 9.25" domes. While Nauticam lists the best result with the 230mm dome port. The minimum focus distance For Sony is 25cm while the Rokinon is 20cm. The original poster if you like fixed lenses may also want to consider the Sigma 17mm F/4 For Sony E mount and Leica-L mount which has a minimum focus distance of 12cm and can be used in a 140mm or 170mm dome with respectable but not completely stellar results. 

Hi Phil— I’ve read your reviews. Thanks for all the excellent information. I’m leaning towards acquiring the Rokinon for my cave trip and using an Aquatica housing with the 8” acrylic port. The only thing is that Aquatica has indicated that I’d “likely” require the 54.5mm extension (48457), not the 28.5mm extension (48453) that I think you used… not sure what to make of that. Thoughts?

-Arianna

For my review Aquatica sent me the 28.5 extension with the macro port for the 90mm macro and extension 48458, 63.5mm for the Sony FE 12-24mm F/4 with the 8" acrylic port they sent me. According to the current port chart the 8" acrylic port should use the 48459/74.5mm extension for the 12-24 F/4. The 63.5mm extension is recommended for the Sony FE 14mm GM lens with the 9.25 inch port.

Aquatica intended to sent me the 9.25 glass port so things got a little messed up and I used what was sent to complete the review to the best of my recollection. I likely used the 63.5mm extension with the Rokinon 14mm F/2.8 and confused it with the macro extension. 

If Aquatica is telling you to use the 54.5 extension with the 8" acrylic port then I would go with that suggestion because I was just doing the best I could with what I was sent. All things considered the images turned out to have decent corners including the image used for the issue #112 cover shot.

As a foot note I am now selling the lens in like new condition if you have not pick one up. PM if you are interested.    

On 6/4/2023 at 2:00 PM, Phil Rudin said:

For my review Aquatica sent me the 28.5 extension with the macro port for the 90mm macro and extension 48458, 63.5mm for the Sony FE 12-24mm F/4 with the 8" acrylic port they sent me. According to the current port chart the 8" acrylic port should use the 48459/74.5mm extension for the 12-24 F/4. The 63.5mm extension is recommended for the Sony FE 14mm GM lens with the 9.25 inch port.

Aquatica intended to sent me the 9.25 glass port so things got a little messed up and I used what was sent to complete the review to the best of my recollection. I likely used the 63.5mm extension with the Rokinon 14mm F/2.8 and confused it with the macro extension. 

If Aquatica is telling you to use the 54.5 extension with the 8" acrylic port then I would go with that suggestion because I was just doing the best I could with what I was sent. All things considered the images turned out to have decent corners including the image used for the issue #112 cover shot.

As a foot note I am now selling the lens in like new condition if you have not pick one up. PM if you are interested.    

Hi again! So I am currently using the 54.5 extension and the 8" acrylic port with the Rokinon and Aquatica housing, but I am experiencing dark corners, which are particularly noticeable with the lens stopped down. Too long of an extension ring? Obviously there are no corner issues outside of the housing. 

In my article I listed the 28.5 extension as the one I used with the eight inch dome. Ikelite list the Rokinon/Samyang 14mm using a 20mm extension. Ikelite is the only brand I have seen list this lens. If you happen to have the 28.5 extension used with the macro port for the 90mm you may want to try that and see if it gets you in a better range. My recommendation for all lenses that wide would be the 230mm or larger. 

If you use the recommendations for the Sony 14mm you may have too much extension.

I use the Sony 14mm 1.8 both topside and uw, with a Seacam A1 housing and the compact port (170mm or 6.7").

The lens is excellent, including for astro. The aperture can of course be controlled with the camera when the aperture ring is set to A.

The dome is probably too small for such a wide FOV, and the corners are too soft to my taste for CFWA. The lens would be great for wrecks, but overall I have found it too wide for casual reef fun dives, and have purchased the 16-35PZ to complement it or replace it as a standard WA zoom.

I have no feedback yet on the 16-35 as I have not been able to dive with it, except in the pool. Corners seem good. The zoom of the 16-35 PZ can be controlled through the camera buttons so no need for additional zoom sleeve.