I purchased a Nauticam Housing today for my wife (and myself) from Reef Photo & Video. I have to say Ryan is fantastic to deal with and I would recommend this place to anyone.

I will be getting the other parts to make this system complete over the next month while we plan a late Dec./early Jan. dive trip so I was hoping for some advice here on what I should add to the system while keeping on a tight budget. Here is the current Canon lenses I have and I assume the 15mm and the 100mm will be what she will use the most unless everyone thinks I am better with a 60mm macro and/or the Tokina 10-17.
My current list:
Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM | Canon EF 70-200mm f2.8L USM | Canon EF 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye | Canon 16-35mm f/2.8L II
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM | Canon EF 135mm f/2.0L USM

Any dome/flash/must have accessory input is mucho appreciated.

My take is that you have most of the bases covered, but for me at least and especially for CFWA stuff, the Tokina is a lot easier to shoot than the Canon 15. A lot depends on what you like to shoot. For little tiny things the 100 is great, but for fish portraits, the 60 is a bit easier since the working distance is shorter, strobes are easier. For the CFWA stuff, the small zen dome is great, but for big reef scenes you might want to look at a bigger dome and that is especially true if you want to shoot over/unders. As for strobes, I shoot Inon Z240s for larger stuff and S2000 for my macro adventures, but most of today's strobes are good.

Bill

Hi,

I don't think you need all those lenses for UW use and indeed some of them are not supported by the Nauticam system for this very reason. I'd say a Canon 60mm AFS macro and a Tokina 10-17 Fisheye (and a 1.4 Kenko teleconvertor for Close Focus Wide Angle). I'd also suggest thinking about a Sigma 17-70. ALl of these setups are supported by the Nauticam system. If you have a look at the most recent Nauticam system chart you can see which lenses are supported (http://uwvisions.com/images/products/Nauticam%20port%20chart%20Sept%202010.pdf)

Alex

LMAO Alex, I don't plan on using all those lenses!!! I own all those lenses because I do professional photography and I was hoping to get input on which lenses to use with this housing for good results to start out without having to buy new ones if I don't need to.

Bill thanks for the response, it would sound like I should invest in the Tokina. I used shoot with a NikonosV for many years but sold it all off in about 2002 and since I am a complete newbie the housing stuff at this can you tell me if both the Tokina and the Canon 15mm lenses would fit in the small zen dome? What lenses would I use with a bigger dome?

I've had funnier questions from Newbies, believe me!

I run a Ducati forum with about 30,000 members and know exactly what you mean

We were all beginners at one point. I'm sure I've asked some ridiculously obvious questions before (and probably still do from time to time).

In fact, I love the basic questions. The more sophisticated questions are always built upon a scaffolding of logical rules. Not that that is a bad thing but in an interesting way, the basic questions also question that same edifice. They make us question our assumptions.

But back to the main question of the thread (haha).

I started with the 100mm canon (the discontinued non-L version) and I think it can be very frustrating at times to deal with. Camera shake can be a big problem because you are so zoomed in (for the t2i and 7d it is effectively 160 mm). Because of camera shake, you have to make your shutter speed higher and your f-stop lower, basically bringing it down to 2.8 (or thats what I shot with most of the time). This turns your DoF paper thin and therefore tougher to get everything in focus (including the subject!).

Maybe I was in too much current or something but I just remember being frustrated and throwing a lot of shots out. I had to rely on serendipity too much and that is something I don't like doing. I want to be in control. When I shoot with the wide angle Tokina, I feel much more in control of what I am doing.

Anyway, those are my lil tidbits. Good luck!

So you think the 60mm macro and the Tokina 10-17 are the best bets for general use and well worth the investment if I am understanding? Can both be used with one port or should I be looking at several?

Soooo, any port recommendations? What makes the Zen ports so popular?

I have the 100mm non IS version and i really like it, great for super macro stuff. I added a 'woody' dipotre which is a wet mount lens which will make ur super macro shots even closer.
I havent found any issues with the exposure that 'Slashmagurk' notices due to camera shake. I have a pair of inon 240s and can comfortable shoot on 1/200th and f16,22,29 for macro shots. And yeah u will throw our shots, but this is the world of macro shooting, the DoF is small and getting the eyes or focal point in sharp focus is hard, but worth the effort!

I have the 10-17 tokina too, bought specifically for u/w use and stuck it behind the nauticam 8.5" dome and its amazing at how easy to use it is to get nice clear WA shots.

I also use my kit lens, the 18-55 for some 'standard' shots, like fish portraits, oversized macro stuff like frogfish and some full body shots of fish like sweetlips, where the 10-17 makes them look miles away!

I will in time add a Kenko 1.4x and the smaller 4" dome for CFWA work but money is an issue at the moment. Trying CFWA the other day with my large dome didnt work, i just managed to put a small scratch in the front of the dome as the 10-17 can focus so close that when looking through the viewfinder its sometime hard to guage how close you really are!
The zen vs the nauticam is price vs acryllic or glass question for me.

Accessory-wise, i added the lanyard grab handle, perfect for the boat boys to hand it down to you! A small Fix focus light for night dive work, Stix bouyancy arms are useful too to keep the weight out of the system. I didnt add the larger viewfinder to my kit for a price reason, and find it fine without, but having never looked through one with a larger veiwfinder i cant comment. Some people say once u look through one, u wont want to dive without one, so my bank balance told me "dont look through!"

Olly

"Some people say once u look through one, u wont want to dive without one, so my bank balance told me "dont look through!"

It true....don't look for it. Once u try... u can't stop your hand to pull up your Credit card ...hehehehehe (just receive my inon 45 FV) love it but pain toooooooooo...........

This is some great information for me to move forward on. The lanyard seems like a good idea, but how about a tether or wrist strap in case you drop the camera? It would sure sound like I should make the jump and get the Tokina 10-17, it is so popular with everyone. I guess I will avoid these uber cool viewfinders for a while, I see the Nauticam and Inon getting good reviews but damn are they pricey.
The Stix arms seem brilliant, do you like the arms made by Stix or the Ultras with the Stix floats?

Yeah i got a tether too, one of the bungee style ones with a shortening clip that clips to my bcd d ring near my shoulder. This means in an emergency i can drop it go hands free and use both hands as need be. A wrist strap wouldnt allow this. Safety first.

I got the sitx arms with the floats already as that is what my supplier had, and could offer in a bundle package. The ultras do seem stronger though. I have found that i needed to remove floats with my WA as the dome is basically a big air bubble that gives bouyancy.

Olly

i highly recommend the Stix arms

i won't argue with the 10-17, although i use the 11-16 rectilinear with a 8 in dome for WA. The choice of macro depends on where you are, what you're shooting, and the visibility. i bought the 60 macro in hopes of faster focusing than the 100 which wasn't realized and am now using the 100L which is a bit faster but not that much. i sold the 60 for lack of use - it may be still too long for larger fish and too short for smaller fish and real macro - if you get a 60, don't leave the 100 behind. for medium to larger fish i'd rather use a zoom like the 17-40 or 17-55 - these also work behind a macro port if you stay above about 35mm eff

i started with a single Inon and the second was certainly an improvement, but you can still do a lot with one flash

are you set up for optical TTL? shooting with manual flash is like one hand tied behind your back (two hands for macro)

not sure there was a clear reply to your port question

you need a flat port for macro and a dome for WA - size of the dome depends on the lens - small dome okay with a 10-17 (do a search, lots of posts), 8 inch dome for rectilinear

also need the proper extensions for dome port per manufacturers recomendations (which aren't always correct - search dome theory). extensions for flat ports just need to clear the lens

Are the extensions for the dome port used to allow different lenses to fit with the same port or for different photographic results when underwater?

The Nauticam housing does have optical TTL. I have nothing but the housing yet, trying to make careful informed decisions before spending $$

Try to get optical TTL, the inons are perfect for it. Work so well and simple.

Also a bonus, not sure its possible on the T2i, but on the 7d what you can do is set the internal flash to fire at a manual power, i.e 1/128th of full power, which allows you to use the motor drive of the camera because the flash doesnt have to reload. The inons will recharge in no time at all, so they will keep up. This really gives you the chance to get the 'peak of the action'. This does mean manual power settings on the strobes tho. After time, man power will give you more control over the lighting and artistic values of the shot.

As for extensions with the ports, what they do is basically make sure the front element of the lens is the perfect distance from the glass of the port. in a macro lens, all this does is make sure it fits without showing the edge of the port. For WA ports the dome is actually the final element of the lens and the lens focuses has to be a perfect distance from the port to get sharp images from corner to corner, so they are necessary not just recommendations. Check the nauticam lens/port chart.
Some poeple do find better results testing lenses with other extensions, but we are talking millimeter differences in ext. and minimal differences in quality at the corners but enough of a difference for publishing.

I took 5 months to make my desicion and go glad i took the time to investigate and now i love my setup. There was no rush as i had no dive trips planned (wedding got in the way). Hope you have the same outcome as i did.

Olly

i recommend the Inon strobes, and Ryan can certainly help you choose. it comes down to size, light, and money. for macro, the s-2000 will be fine, for serious wide angle you want a pair of Z-240s. you can start with one strobe and add a second later. ultimately you'll find you want two strobes - for wide angle you need the light, for macro a source and a fill look more natural

Let me blow the Nauticam trumpet and say how much I've enjoyed the 9" Nauticam glass dome I took to the Red Sea last week! Images later, in memory of my buddy, Maurice Gowen, who died tragically, during a dive on Big Brother island.

Tim

Hey Tim, which camera and lens were you using with this dome?

I bought a Nauticam 550d housing system from Reef Photo in July. I have the Canon EF-S 60mm macro (Nauticam macro port) and the Tokina 10-17 with Zen 100mm dome and dual S&S YS-110A strobes. Far and away the best accessory I bought for the Nauticam housing is the Nauticam 180 degree viewfinder. I can't imagine using the small 'standard' viewfinder on the housing after using the MUCH LARGER Nauticam viewfinder.

What made you decide on the S&S strobes over the Inon?

I already owned the S&S YS-110A strobes with my Canon G10/Fisheye FIX housing system. I previously owned S&S YS-90DX strobes that performed well for 8 years so I stayed with S&S.

I was able to get my hands on a very clean used Tokina 10-17 and am now getting ready to order all the parts to have this system ready for my wife on her birthday. I notice that a lot of you use a TC with your 10-17. Can you let me know when you use the TC as opposed to just the lens alone and what the results are (samples anyone ) ?

The lens alone is for WA work and offers somewhere in the region of 160deg cover. The TC will allow the lens to give a close-focus-wide-angle effect to the shots. This especially works with the 100mm dome. What you can achieve is a macro shot, with an environment as a background. Alex Mustard wrote a good piece on it on Divephotoguide (if im allowed to say that on here?) But you will need 2 different zoom gears and another extension ring to make it all work.

Olly

Thank you for filling in the blanks. I found the article on DivePhotoGuide and it was helpful to understand with the photos. I can see it will be a future purchase once she gets used to all the things she can do with what she will already have.

A couple of more questions as I get close to ordering and a have some quotes from Reef.
Would it be better to get the Compact Port 15 for the 60mm OR the 60mm Flat Port that is made for that lens?
Would you prefer the 8.5" Dome from Nauticam or the Zen 100 to start?
Any input on the S2000 and/or the Z-240?

I went with the extension and port 15 as its just more versatile for a range of lenses. If you add say a 100mm macro to ur kit list then u already have the base section and just need the extended port. Am i right in also saying the base and port version also has the focus light attachment point on the top too, and the single port doesnt?

I went with the bigger dome to start, because i live where i dive so the size and travel wieght was no issue. I also like doing over/under splits. But i am very close to ordering the 4.5" dome too.

As for the strobes i just thought bigger is better. Buy once and then dont wish you had gone bigger for WA work.

Olly

Some input for you:

Compact Ports are a little more versatile, i.e. can support a couple more lenses. Macro Ports (i.e. the Macro Port 41 for the EF-S 60) have the advantage of 67mm threads. The Macro C60 Port has 67mm threads too and also supports the Inon bugeye lens.

The acrylic 8.5" dome can support many wide angle lenses. The Zen DP-100mm supports only a single lens, Tokina 10-17. The small domes advantages: travel, getting very close to subjects.

Cheers,
Chris

The single port does have the focus light attachment, the compact port does not. You do have a good point on the versatility factor of the compact port for using both the 100 and 60... hmmmm

The dome port is hard for me to decide on too because I see the edge sharpness as not being great on the smaller port, less lens versatility as Chris points out and the cost factor.

You can use the Macro Port for both lenses too, just need a locking extension ring. And yes, the Macro Port also has the cold shoe attachment point as well.

The edge sharpness with the small dome may surprise you. Here are some corner shots at different apertures with the Zen 100mm if you are interested:
http://nauticamusa.com/?p=488

Cheers,
Chris

If I understand correctly will the Macro Port 41 work with both the 60mm and the older 100mm (non L) with the locking extension ring?

Well the order is in to Reef Photo and my pocket is a LOT lighter!
I have to say a thank you to Chris at Nauticam for taking my call today and helping me finalize my choices.
Here was the shopping list:
I ended up getting the Zen 100 dome after all along with the Macro Port 41, some Stix floats, the Inon Z240, fiber cable and some ULCS arms. I also decided on a Sola 500 for a focus light however I like the idea of red LED lights for night diving so I may change it up to a 600. This all for my wife however I have a feeling I might be using it a lot myself too.

The red on the 600 is most excellent. Even light shy creatures like basket stars or brittle stars don't mind it.

Cheers,
Chris

edit:
P.S. I don't sell Sola lights, so I can use adjectives about it... :-)

I did change the order to he 600 and am really looking forward to seeing how excited she is to get everything. She will need one more flash unit in the future but this will be a great start and I think she is going to be a shutter happy girl.
I am hoping they have that darn Kittiwake sunk in the Caymans when we are there next month so we can get some of the first underwater shots of her.