Sea & Sea MDX-PRO MKIII Underwater Housing for Canon 1D Mark III and 1Ds Mark III
Review by Eric Cheng and Don Kehoe

Wide-angle Testing

We tested the new 7.2" glass optical dome port with a Tokina 10-17mm lens mounted on a Canon 1D Mark III. A modified gear from a Nikon 18-35mm lens was attached to the Tokina, and the zoom gear on the housing worked flawlessly.

Canon 1D Mark III with Tokina 10-17 lens and
Sea & Sea 18-55 zoom gear modified to fit on the Tokina

We found that the Tokina 10-17mm lens worked perfectly on the Canon 1D Mark III body (1.3x crop factor) until it was zoomed out to around 12mm. At 12mm, the system vignetted just slightly. Zooming in to 13mm produced images with no vignetting whatsoever.

At 12mm on the Canon 1D Mark III (1.3x crop factor)
the Tokina 10-17mm lens vignettes slightly


At 13mm on the Canon 1D Mark III (1.3x crop factor)
the Tokina 10-17mm lens does NOT vignette


Manatee photo, taken at 17mm
Tokina 10-17mm lens on a Canon 1D Mark III

Additional Testing

I mounted a Canon 100mm macro lens onto a Canon 1Ds Mark III (full frame) and took it under the Blue Heron bridge (using a Sea & Sea flat port). The rig felt comfortable and light in my hands. The "thumb up" focus lever wasn't quite as convenient as are normal levers operated by pushing down, but it still was easy to use. Again, the lack of a return spring was a little annoying because I was never completely sure that the focus lever was disengaged, but I was still able to shoot effectively.

Atlantic longarm octopus (Octopus defilippi)
at the Blue Heron Bridge


Atlantic longarm octopus (Octopus defilippi)
at the Blue Heron Bridge


A cute little blenny at the Blue Heron Bridge

Conclusion

The Sea & Sea MDX-PRO Mark IIIunderwater housing for the Canon 1D Mark III and 1Ds Mark III digital SLR is a fantastic housing, and is in every way worthy of its flagship product status at Sea & Sea. At a retail price of $4,650, it is significantly cheaper than both Subal and Seacam 1D/1Ds Mark III housings.

We highly recommend this housing.

The Sea & Sea MDX-PRO Mark III is available from our sponsors:

Backscatter Underwater Video and Photo
Marine Camera Distributors
Reef Photo & Video

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Bonus: for reading to the end, you get a link to a cool video of the housing in action. :)