I am looking at getting a Ikelite housing for my Nikon D702 and would like some suggestions as to what else besides the actual housing I will need.

My initial purchase will likely be:

-Ikelite 3944.75 SubStrobe DS-125 Digital Package with TTL Sync Cord and Deluxe Ball Socket Strobe Arm

-Ikelite 6807.1 iTTL Underwater Housing for Nikon D-70 Digital Camera

I plan to use my Nikon macro 105. Am I going to need anything else? Most of the setups I have seen have two strobes, will I be wasting my time with just one?

I appreciate any help I can get with this.

Alex

Hi Alex, welcome to Wetpixel! You will do fine with only one strobe to begin with, but you will notice some shadows, the question is, can you live with them?

Also, you should look into getting a wide angle lens too. The 105 is good, but it is only for small critters.

Luiz

One strobe will be just fine.

The 105mm is a great lens but depending on where and what you'll be shooting you may find the 60mm better. You have to get closer which can be difficult with skitish creatures but by getting closer you cut down the amount of water you're shooting through. What lenses do you already own?

Don't forget you'll need buy a port as well.

Not sure I like the idea of shadows but I may need to live with it for now. I also have the 12-24mm f/4G ED-IF AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor I could use. Thanks for the tip.

Alex

Thanks for the reply. What is a port?

Alex

Hi Alex, port is the glass or acrylic (acrylic in the Ikelites) part that goes attached to the housing in front of the lens. The photos on the link below show a D70 Ikelite housing with a dome (curved) port for wide angle lenses:

http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/2dslr_dttl70.html

Macro lenses require a flat port. For a list of Ikelite ports for the Nikon system click here:

http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/2port_nikon.html

You cannot use the housing without a port, which you have to buy separately. If you choose one of our sponsors on the right to buy your housing from, they will give you all the information necessary about what port for which lenses.

Luiz

I use this lens underwater a lot. I wish it focused a bit closer but other than that it's a great lens and using the zoom makes it very flexible. I posted some shots taken with it here http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=10997

See this page for sample pics taken with different lenses to give you an idea of what lenses work for different subjects.

http://www.splashdowndivers.com/photo_gall...ple_gallery.htm

Also, FYI, for Florida waters my favorite lens these days is the Sigma 15mm as it works great when vis is not that good. If I consistently had better vis my favorite would be the Nikon 10.5mm.

Actually, you CAN use the housing without a port . . . unfortunately it means you'll be flooding the camera and buying a new one so it's not really recommended.



Seriously, you've got a good setup. I also shoot with a D70 (until I pick up my D200) in an Ikelite housing. Although nothing's perfect, I've been generally very happy with it and feel I've gotten some pretty good results.

Because of the 1.5 crop factor, it turns the 105 into a 157 which makes the lens harder to use but also allows you to take images that you might not get with a film camera. Since I like shooting macro, it's a good choice for me. And I can get stiff like this:



I also use a 28-105 zoom (effectively a 42-157) and the 18-70 (effectively a 27-105) that came as partt of the D70 kit. That combination of lenses gives me a lot of versatility IMHO. As I'm not personally into shooting really wide, I don't use a 10-24 or anything like that.

Although some ports can serve multiple lenses, you'll generally need a different port for each lens. Zoom lenses will take dome ports (and general require a +4 diopter on the front of the lens to allow it to focus on the virtual image) and the 105 takes a flat port.

I shoot with two strobes but you can start with one and get a feel for shooting with the system. As mentioned previously, you'll get some shadows depending on where you place the strobe. On the other hand, if you're okay with a flat lighting look, position the strobe above and in line with the lens and you shouldn't see too much shadowing (but may pick up backscatter), especially if you're shooting with ambient light and using the flash for fill.

Enough babbling from me. Good luck with the setup and welcome to the wondeful world of digital.

Ask yourself: how you would shoot with it? What subjects at what distances interest you? Decide what you want to shoot, then what lenses will support that. Then you can pick what ports you need for the lenses you will use. Not sure which lenses? Read these articles:

Here is an excellent article recommending lenses, ports, and technique with this housing. The photos illustrate what you can achieve with various lenses and good technigue.
http://www.splashdowndivers.com/photo_gall...uipment_d70.htm

Here is an interesting discussion by other members here on what lenses they use professionally. Remember, they shoot for a living, and what they need to shoot to sell may not be what you personally like to shoot.
http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=10569

My personal suggestions: If you shoot small stuff the 105 lens is magnificent. If you shoot large subjects, like pelagics, wrecks, you want a superwide lens, like the 12-24 zoom, or the 10.5 fisheye. Consider the Sigma 10-20mm, and 15mm fisheye too. The choice depends on your interests and budget. I would suggest diving with your 105 and getting a feel about what else you need from that experience.