New to UW photography- strobes for UW pics?

[babs13]

Is there a mininum amount of light required? Any insight would be extremely helpful as I'm new to this. Seems that strobes are needed to bright out true colors and to really help with viz on pix.

Do folks really use weights to offset the + buoyancy?

Any insight appreciated as I'm new to this, and this would be my first uw set-up with strobes/lights etc. Thanks!

[mancub]

As you well know, with depth we lose red, and pictures expose blue or greenish predominately. If you are setting up a "point and shoot" underwater system, I'd recommend starting with one strobe and working on macro as there will be less backscatter to deal with at first. The Inon d-2000 and Ikelite DS51 are both great choices. However, the later has been known to have some battery door problems, which I am sure they have addressed.

I am sure there are TONS of other great strobes, those are just the two I am familiar with and can vouch for.

And as far as minimum light, some people don't use strobes and are plenty happy with the camera's built in flash. It depends on how into it you want to get, and what types of conditions you shoot in. Tropical +/- 30 feet will be different than the Sound. Though, even tropical I'd strongly recommend a strobe for anything deeper than snorkeling.

I know very little about dSLR underwater setups, so I hope this was at least somewhat helpful.

-Jacob

[mancub]

Oh, and with weights, for most "point and shoot" systems, with one strobe/arm rig, the weight of the strobe is usually perfect with the camera's housing. Possibly some weight needed, but usually not.

dSLR systems on the other hand, usually need buoyancy arms if anything. So I am told.

...anyone else have some insight, as I too would love to learn more about people's camera rigs and hear any tips you have.

[H20doctor]

Most people here have point and shoot cameras.. I use a cannon powershot A540.. Its a great camera.. Janna N and John R. Use pro gear and its a big hit to the wallet.. The best photo taker I see on this board is greatfull diver and he uses a simply olympus camera and it takes amazing photo's !!!

[cardiver]

Most people here have point and shoot cameras.. I use a cannon powershot A540.. Its a great camera.. Janna N and John R. Use pro gear and its a big hit to the wallet.. The best photo taker I see on this board is greatfull diver and he uses a simply olympus camera and it takes amazing photo's !!!

Or maybe a Casio......

[boydski]

dSLR systems on the other hand, usually need buoyancy arms if anything. So I am told.

Mancub is correct. Most dSLR systems tend to be quite negative in the water and often use floatation of some type (arms,or blocks of foam) to get the rig closer to neutral. For the majority of underwater photography, a strobe or two (or three in caves) is needed to provide enough light to bring out the colors of the subject.

Very large critters (think whale sharks) or large wrecks are generally too big to light up, so are often photographed using natural light (and sometimes very slow shutter speeds).

A good strobe will definitely improve your photos, and getting the strobe away from the camera will help reduce backscatter in our lovely emerald green waters.

[Dusty2]

I personally discorage the SLR route for our waters. They are big bulky and complicated. They also triple or quadruple the cost factor. A canon A650-IS or G9 with housing, tray and strobe can be had for less than the housing alone for one of the SLRs. Not only does the camera cost more but so does the housing and strobe and that is just the beginning. Then you need lenses, ports, macro and focus gears. and a truck to carry it all the the water LOL

As for strobes with an SLR you need to get a dedicated strobe with waterproof connectors to the housing. One will suffice for our waters because you will be limited to mostly macros anyway.

[Dusty2]

Since there is no edit for my post I thought I'd clarify a little. The Ikelite #6871.35 housing for the Rebel XT is $1235.00. For that money you can get the Canon G9 $300.00, the Ikelite case $400, The Ikelite DS51 strobe with tray arm and TTL sync cord $470. Total $1170.00

Just food for thought

[Grateful Diver]

Fantasea makes some very nice strobe setups for point-n-shoot cameras at reasonable prices. Talk to Jack Connick ... http://opticaloceansales.com/shop.php/p ... /c_21.html

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[Grateful Diver]

BTW - why is there no edit function in this forum?

Jack also carries Sea & Sea strobes.The little one I carry is an older model Sea and Sea. It's nice for reducing backscatter (somewhat), but not very powerful ... and I'll eventually want a longer strobe arm for it, as the one I use keeps it too close to the camera.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[Tangfish]

I like using a strobe with a DSLR.



With point and shoot my results were mixed, and yes, you do need weight to offset the buoyancy characteristics of some of the less expensive strobes, and floats to do the same with some of the higher-end setups.

The most important thing to remember when using a strobe is positioning. You need to get the strobe far enough away from the lens so that you don't get a lot of backscatter. You'll also experiment a great deal with the intensity settings. Here's an old review I wrote of a Sealife strobe, intended for use with a point and shoot camera.

http://www.calvintang.com/blog/2006/07/ ... obe-review

Bob, I just made a change. Let me know if you can edit posts here now.

[Phineas Gage]

Hey Calvin,
What kind of foam is that and where do you get it?
I have an Ikelite vid housing that is negative and I've been trying to think of the best way to add some buoyancy to it.

[babs13]

nice rig tangs...looks heavy?

things to remember- backscatter...buoyancy...okay.

[elemar]

I'd guess it's likely just the STiX foam(for instance here):
http://www.backscatter.com/HostedStore. ... 4f2e4fa0d1

They both sell an arm system and foam cut specifically for the ultralight arms... Though I'm guessing you could likely make it work on other arms. I just received some yesterday to try out on my camera. Just added a 100mm lens/teleconverter/modular port to my ikelite 400d system and it's now a bit unmanageably negative with one strobe, and I'm guessing it'll be totally unmanageable with two (especially given the lens/camera/teleconverter combo is a bit slow at focusing).

eric

[Phineas Gage]

Interesting. I wonder what that "non-compressible" foam really is. Pipe wrap maybe? Nah, not nearly dense enough.
I'd be willing to bet a person could find it for less than the $35 they want just for a couple of small chunks.

nwbrewer probably knows, he's the DIY guru...

[boydski]

Interesting. I wonder what that "non-compressible" foam really is. Pipe wrap maybe? Nah, not nearly dense enough.
I'd be willing to bet a person could find it for less than the $35 they want just for a couple of small chunks.

You can find inexpensive chunks of foam that will work at fiberglass supply. The "last a foam" will work as long as you don't take it too deep!

[whatevah]

Another potential source for the "non-compressible" foam is commercial fishery supply houses (like Lummi Fisheries Supply) - they sell floats which are typically used on lines at depth to help prevent tangling.