posted by Jonas Vannar on 2006/02/01
Sea & Sea 350D Impressions
Introduction
Before the launch I had been struggling which housing to choose for my new camera. There where a few housing manufacturers offering solutions for my camera. Ikelite stood out as a good alternative offering both eTTL and powerful strobes. But I was a bit reluctant of boxing my new small and compact DSLR in basically the same housing as for the much bulkier 20D.
The Sea&Sea housing with its light weight and small outer measurements appealed to me so much so that I finally decided to go with it. The price was a bit higher than the Ikelite housing but here in Sweden the difference was not enough to go with the cheaper alternative.
The Sea&Sea housing with its light weight and small outer measurements appealed to me so much so that I finally decided to go with it. The price was a bit higher than the Ikelite housing but here in Sweden the difference was not enough to go with the cheaper alternative.
First Impressions
A few days ago the housing arrived and I was very pleased with the first impression. It looks and feels solid but yet compact and easy to handle, yet it was quite a bit bulkier than my previous Olympus PT-020 housing.
The housing is made out of two halves the front is made out of aluminum and the back from thick molded polycarbonate.
It comes complete with dual Nikonos 5-pin strobe bulkheads as well as a built in water alarm. It is also prepared for the Sea&Sea shutter activated focus light. You can access every button except the flash popup button and the shooting mode button.
The housing is made out of two halves the front is made out of aluminum and the back from thick molded polycarbonate.
It comes complete with dual Nikonos 5-pin strobe bulkheads as well as a built in water alarm. It is also prepared for the Sea&Sea shutter activated focus light. You can access every button except the flash popup button and the shooting mode button.
Underwater Handling
With no time to waste I was off to the community swimming pool for some underwater tests. Equipped with the Canon EF-S 60mm macro I started testing and shooting every single object that I could find in the pool.
The first thing I noted was how easy it was to handle it underwater. The shutter was extremely smooth and it was very easy to feel when you had depressed the shutter release halfway down. The *button (AELock) was easily depressed simultaneously with the shutter.
I have learned that the viewfinder on most APS-sized DSLR´s is a problem. I really have nothing to compare with here but I believe that it will work just fine.
I have a few complaints, though:
My housing was during these first tests equipped with the NX- Compact Macro Port Base and The Compact Macro Port (S) and the first ting I noted was that the small and lightweight Canon 60mm lens didn’t really fill out the port. There was quite a distance from the front of the lens to the port glass. This left a lot of air in the port and it made the whole housing unstable. Every time I let go of the housing it tilted back towards me and ended up on the pool floor with the port pointing up towards the surface. This however is something I expect would not be the case with a larger and heavier lens.
The other thing that bothered me was the location of the jog dial knob. When shooting topside with the EOS 350D it is very easy to move the finger from the shutter release button to the jog dial. But underwater it is a whole different story. The jog dial turn knob is placed on the front aluminum halve and it was a bit tricky to reach, especially when shooting in Manual mode and having to simultaneously depress the AV button to be able to change the Aperture.
The last thing that I did not like on this housing was the fact that is was very hard to se which mode I was shooting in, perhaps this will show not to be a problem when I get more comfortable shooting with my DSLR.
The first thing I noted was how easy it was to handle it underwater. The shutter was extremely smooth and it was very easy to feel when you had depressed the shutter release halfway down. The *button (AELock) was easily depressed simultaneously with the shutter.
I have learned that the viewfinder on most APS-sized DSLR´s is a problem. I really have nothing to compare with here but I believe that it will work just fine.
I have a few complaints, though:
My housing was during these first tests equipped with the NX- Compact Macro Port Base and The Compact Macro Port (S) and the first ting I noted was that the small and lightweight Canon 60mm lens didn’t really fill out the port. There was quite a distance from the front of the lens to the port glass. This left a lot of air in the port and it made the whole housing unstable. Every time I let go of the housing it tilted back towards me and ended up on the pool floor with the port pointing up towards the surface. This however is something I expect would not be the case with a larger and heavier lens.
The other thing that bothered me was the location of the jog dial knob. When shooting topside with the EOS 350D it is very easy to move the finger from the shutter release button to the jog dial. But underwater it is a whole different story. The jog dial turn knob is placed on the front aluminum halve and it was a bit tricky to reach, especially when shooting in Manual mode and having to simultaneously depress the AV button to be able to change the Aperture.
The last thing that I did not like on this housing was the fact that is was very hard to se which mode I was shooting in, perhaps this will show not to be a problem when I get more comfortable shooting with my DSLR.
Conclusion
Since this is my first DSLR housing I cannot make any comparisons with other housings. But I feel confident that this housing will work just fine once I get to master it better. This compact and lightweight housing is very easy to use underwater and I do not believe that my initial impressions of the jog dial will cause too much hassle in the future. The unbalance issue with my macro lens bothered me but I guess it is easy to add little weight to the front of the port if I feel that it is necessary.
I can’t wait to get out in the ocean to do some real underwater shooting!
Sea & Sea 350D - Open back
Sea & Sea 350D - Handling jog dial
Sea & Sea 350D - Housing and Ports
Sea & Sea 350D - inside from back
Sea & Sea 350D - Front inside
Sea & Sea 350D - Shutter and AE-Lock
I can’t wait to get out in the ocean to do some real underwater shooting!
Sea & Sea 350D - Open back
Sea & Sea 350D - Handling jog dial
Sea & Sea 350D - Housing and Ports
Sea & Sea 350D - inside from back
Sea & Sea 350D - Front inside
Sea & Sea 350D - Shutter and AE-Lock
more articles from mentioned manufacturers in this article
comments
Hi Jonas,
just a question: what type of strobe do you use (or intend to use) ?
Rgds,
Juergen
posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 2006/02/02
The Canon EF-S 60mm macro sounds/looks like a great choice. It looks extremely professional and easy to manage. Obviously the ease of use under water is important. My friend who runs is a novice diver and he could use a great camera such as this.
posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 2008/02/26
Thank you for your impressions Jonas. The AV +/- can be bound in by alternating the button 1/4 about-face while acute it in, pass4sure 70-350 authoritative alteration f-stop a one handed (albeit two step) operation. When I shoot macro, I’m frequently alteration the aperture, pass4sure 70-401 so I’ll leave this button bound in the absolute time (you can still yield pictures with it apprenticed down). pass4sure 70-403 For advanced bend shooting, I’ll do just the exact opposite. Since I’m alteration bang acceleration added generally than f-stop, pass4sure 70-441 I’ll leave it unlocked.
posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 2011/03/05
