Woody's diopter

Hi Bruce,

I have recently purchased the CL-110 from Woody (he's great to deal with, by the way).

It actually fits the Seacam macro port perfectly, without a sign of stretching (see photo). You don't have to force it on at all.

As a matter of fact the CL110 comes with a rubber ring so that it can fit smaller ports. This ring is knurled (see photo), just like the front of the Seacam port, so the diopter lens is securely held in place.

Anyway, I'll be trying the CL110 underwater next week, but I don't anticipate any major issues using it.

Cheers,

Mathieu

Hi Mathieu

It would be great to see some photos (ideally of the same subject) taken with and without the diopter.

How easy do yout think it would be to attach the diopter to the Seacam port whilst u/w ?

Jeremy

Hi Bruce,

In answer to your question about poop I offer the following explanation.

According to the new "Diving Technical Terminology" manual, poop means "peering out of port". More peering means more magnification. You can purchase the book at angolob.com.

Joe

Jeremy,

There is no visible difference on the image, aside from magnification, when you use the diopter...you can check this post with some samples:

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=9075

stu

I have recently purchased the CL-110 from Woody (he's great to deal with, by the way).

It actually fits the Seacam macro port perfectly, without a sign of stretching (see photo). You don't have to force it on at all.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks Mathieu! B) That's the best news I've heard in a long time. I know Woody is a great guy, and I think even HE will be happy to know that the CL-110 works for bigger ports! I'm not sure it'll work all the way up to an Aquatica port (which appears to be about 125mm diameter, or 10mm wider than even the Seacam!), but I'll test it and see.

At any rate, I'll be ordering a CL-110 right away! Looks (in your photos) like it covers a bit of the port's glass, but considering the lenses I'd use it with (mainly the 100mm Canon and 150mm Sigma macros), I can't imagine that will be a problem! It might not even be a problem with the Sigma 50mm lens...

I love it when the best solution is the simplest!

Hi Mathieu

 

It would be great to see some photos (ideally of the same subject) taken with and without the diopter.

 

How easy do yout think it would be to attach the diopter to the Seacam port whilst u/w ?

 

Jeremy

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hi Jeremy,

I'm down with dengue fever, so I'll have to wait a little while longer before I can test the diopter underwater.

The lens relies on a snug fit around the port, so it is a bit tight, but that's what keeps it in place.

On the other hand, the diopter is also with a couple of holes at the base of the skirt, nearer the lens, so any water trapped will be purged as the diopter is pushed onto the port. With this in mind, it should be just as easy to fit underwater as it is on land.

Cheers,

Mathieu

Thanks Mathieu!  B)  That's the best news I've heard in a long time.  I know Woody is a great guy, and I think even HE will be happy to know that the CL-110 works for bigger ports!  I'm not sure it'll work all the way up to an Aquatica port (which appears to be about 125mm diameter, or 10mm wider than even the Seacam!), but I'll test it and see.

 

At any rate, I'll be ordering a CL-110 right away!  Looks (in your photos) like it covers a bit of the port's glass, but considering the lenses I'd use it with (mainly the 100mm Canon and 150mm Sigma macros), I can't imagine that will be a problem!  It might not even be a problem with the Sigma 50mm lens...

 

I love it when the best solution is the simplest! 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

No worries, Bruce.

I dont't think you'll have much luck with a 125mm port, as the diopter fits just snugly onto the 115mm Seacam port.

The skirt does overlap the port glass a fair bit, but given the narrow angle of view of the lenses you will use it with, it should be no problem. With my 60mm Nikkor lens, it certainly is no issue.

Cheers,

Mathieu

Hi guys,

Going back to what Woody and Ryan both wrote a while ago -- go here or some place like it (Ryan provided a link earlier that has slightly different sizes that may work better for you):

http://www.niagaraplastics.com/prodnonthrc...=strai_vcev.htm

and order FREE samples of a couple sizes of vinyl cap. Then remove the glass portion of the Woody's diopter from the original boot. Trace the hole from the original onto the very center of the new one. Cut out the hole. Insert the glass portion of the diopter -- voila! I did this, just as Woody instructed, for my S&S custom macro port and it works like a champ . . .

Mike

PS -- this is also an outstanding way of obtaining FREE spare port caps, spare caps to cover Ikelite slave sensors, etc. I've found that for the smaller sizes, they send a package of four, with the larger ones, you get two. Did I mention it was FREE?

I dont't think you'll have much luck with a 125mm port, as the diopter fits just snugly onto the 115mm Seacam port.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Just to follow-up, I just received Woody's CL-110 (i.e., 110mm) diopter and -- as Mathieu and his photos suggested -- it fits almost perfectly on the Seacam macro port (which is 115mm). It fits very snugly, and I have no concern about it coming off in the water, so I consider the Seacam/Woody's diopter issue I raised with this thread SOLVED.

However, as Mathieu also suspected, there's NO WAY the 110mm diopter will fit on the Aquatica macro port, which is roughly 125mm. Accordingly, I've taken Mike O's advice and ordered samples of a couple of sizes of the vinyl hoods (see his post above), and -- assuming one of them fits the Aquatica port reasonably well -- will attempt to manually install a diopter in it according to Woody's instructions.

Just two more examples of the extremely helpful nature of this group -- thanks again!

P.S. The other problem I've had is getting a simple modeling light on the Seacam to use with its macro port. I want to be able to use the Fantasea 44-LED llght (http://www.fantasea.com/ssl/prod_det.asp?id=68), for which you can get a nifty bracket (http://www.fantasea.com/ssl/prod_det.asp?id=97) that cinches around macro ports up to 110mm in diameter. Unfortunately, there's NO WAY (at least that I can find) to use it on anything larger than 110mm, so it won't work (as is) for either Seacam or Aquatica ports. However, I've nearly solved that, using a (very cheap, i.e., under $15) modification of the bracket, and will post details and photos once I've got it finished (soon).

Can't you fit an ultralight ball to it and mount to the top of the seacam? I've done this with my various mod-lights.