So I am ordering my G9 in the next few days but now need to figure out the best option for a housing. I can either go with the Canon WP-DC21 or I can wait a little bit for Ikelite to distribute their housing. I am interested in either Ikelite or Canon’s housing only at this point. I will either go with the Ikelite strobes or Sea&Sea;strobes.

I realize the Ikelite tends to be more well-received than the Canon housings and allow for external lenses and filters to be attached. How well do different options (eg telephoto and wide lenses, and filters) lock onto an Ikelite housing? Do they simply hang from the mount when not in use, or do you need to put them in a pocket, etc.?

I would appreciate any and all advice on this.

Thanks!

My background to help facilitate responses:
In the recent past, I have not used any strobes, filters, etc but would like to get into it more. I have created some great shots just using an older powershot off the Southern California waters, Fiji, Aruba and Jamaica. I have not experimented with wide-angle level shots (not the right equipment yet), but do take a lot of macro and “depth” shots (eg foreground and background inclusive). My goal is to create home decor shots for my family and friends, not be published, etc. I can use Photoshop CS2 well enough to tweak shots. I would love to become acquainted more with filters, lenses, etc.

Also, what are people’s experience with the G7 (since the G9 is brand new) in regards to adding external lenses to the housings?

Hi.

I haven’t used the G7, so I can’t comment from that perspective, however, I can offer the following info/opinion, FWIW!

The Ikelite housings have a screw thread ring around the end of the port, and filters and lens adaptors screw on to this.  When not in use, you would need to unscrew the filter / adaptor, and store somewhere, most likely a pocket, or you can get neoprene bags to put the item in, which also affords the filter or adaptor some protection.

Its unlikely you will find underwater telephoto adaptors, as the water provides considerable magnifiation already, and the quest is generally for wide angle rather than telephoto to enable you to get closer to subjects whilst still getting all of the subject in the frame.  In addition to the wide angle adaptors that are common, you can also get macro or close up adaptors, which enable you to get very close to small subjects and still focus.

I have read that the Canon WP-DC21 does not give you control over the command dial on the back of the G9, and this controls aperture / shutter speed in the relevant manual or semi-automatic modes.  Alot of underwater photographers use these modes / settings, so find the WP-DC21 very limiting in this respect.  I haven’t seen anything from Ikelite indicating whether their housing will give access to the command dial, but they have managed to provide a solution to similar controls on other cameras, and they tend to aim to give full control over the camera where possible, so I expect that their housing will give you this control.  Something to check on though.

The Ikelite housing will (assuming they are consistent to the G7 housing) provide a bulkhead for a strobe sync cord, and conversion circuitry to enable you to use TTL with Ikelite strobes (i.e. the camera controls the external strobe to achieve correct exposure).  Whether TTL is effective underwater is debateable, but if you go for the Canon housing, you won’t have the option at all, because there’s no bulkhead for the sync cord.

One other issue is that the G9 appears to have a similar zoom range as the G7, and if you look at Ikelite’s website they refer to the extreme lens length precluding any advantage from using wide angle adaptors on the housing.  (http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/5can_g7.html.  My understanding is that at wide angle, you end up with vignetting (dark corners on the shot), and to solve this you have to zoom in, which of course negates the point of having the wide angle adaptor in the first place.

The wide angle issue notwithstanding, there’s a thread over on wetpixel with loads of sample pics taken with a G7 which look awesome, so the camera is certainly capable of some very good results.

Good luck!

Graham

Graham,

Great help, Thanks!!

I am just getting more into the complexities of more advanced underwater photo-taking so I find forums like this very helpful. I am not terribly concerned with dark corners on photos - I would just either crop them out, or call it “creative touches.” I am angling toward Ikelite, but I know they do not have the housing ready yet. I think I am going to buy the camera this week or next, and then buy some of the land-based lenses (eg Telephoto and Wide) and get familiar with them more. I have never even used these types of accessories on land, so…

Then when Ikelite comes out with their housing (I have been told by Ikelite reps that the company is actively working on the housing), I will go with that and pick an Ikelite strobe.. maybe the DS-125? I will add the wide-angle lens probably, and get a filter or two as well.

I am buying a drysuit real soon so I can use one of those pockets for the external filters/lenses I suppose when diving California. I will have to buy a neoprene bag though for the international dives.

I will take a look at the G7 samples on wetpixel.

Any other suggestions/advice/input would be much appreciated…

Again, thank you.

Hi again.

I suspect you know this already, but I don’t think the land based adapters will work inside the housings because the housing is typically designed to accommodate only the camera’s lens.  The G9 already has a pretty long telephoto focal length (If I recall correctly its around the equivalent of 200mm in the 35mm world), so with an adapter its going to be getting on towards extreme telephoto.  I think the wide angle adapter would be very useful though.

I have a DS125, which I use with my Canon S70, and I’ve been very happy with the performance.  It has had to go back to Ikelite once for warranty repairs - various bits of the electronics had apparently gone wrong, causing the flash not to fire.  I have subsequently found quite a few reports of reliability problems with the DS125 on wetpixel, however Ikelite’s customer service is excellent, so any problems are generally sorted out without drama.  The main nuisance is the cost of sending the strobe back to Ikelite if you are not in the US.  Fingers crossed my strobe gives me trouble free performance from now on.  Having said all that, I am usually wary to label a product ‘unreliable’ on the basis of a few comments on internet forums.  Its important to weigh the number of comments against the number of products out there in the world.  People are generally quicker to raise their problems than comment on their positive experiences, so on balance, there’s probably no strong evidence to suggest that the DS125 is any less reliable than any other strobe.

Other comments about the DS125 would be:
- its a pretty big and heavy strobe, so if you are travelling alot, you might want to consider lighter / smaller strobes.
- it runs on its own battery rather than AAs, which many other strobes use.  Personally I prefer to operate one battery rather than a handful of AAs, but you don’t get the option of using standard alkaline batteries if you can’t recharge your usual ones.
- recycle time on the DS125 is very quick

Finally one ‘in use’ point, which may be based on excessive paranoia, but, as you have probably seen, the DS125 battery clamps onto the back end of the strobe.  When pointing the strobe, it pays to hold the strobe by the front section rather than grabbing the battery at the back, because the movement might cause the battery seal to open slightly, which would result in a partial or complete flood.

Filters are handy.  Have a look at magic filters (mentioned quite alot on these forums), and of course the UR-Pro filters.

Drysuit is an excellent choice.  I dive mostly in New Zealand waters which vary between 13C and 22C, and having bought a drysuit a couple of years ago, I have never looked back.  They are particularly relevant for photographers because we don’t move around as much!  You would probably want the neoprene pouch for your lenses / filters even when putting them in your drysuit pocket, unless the pocket itself is lined with soft neoprene.  If you are getting a trilaminate drysuit, the pocket will probably be the same material as the drysuit outer layer, which could be quite abrasive to your glassware!

That’s about all I can think of for now..

cheers

Graham

Hi

I have a G7 + Ikelite housing + DS51 strobe and wide angle converter. First comment: I was very satisfied with this solution!

G7 is a very interesting camera, allowing full control of all parameters, and especially, when in manual mode, you have a very precise control of the strobe. The manual focus (not very convenient when on land) is very useful underwater. The only weakness for me is in the lens: a true wide angle would have make this camera perfect. The new G9 has apparently exactly the same size and ergonomy, controls being at the same position at least on the picture, which should allow to fit in the exisiting housing (I hope so, because I had a stupid accident with my G7 and I broke it a couple weeks ago, so I hope the new G9 will fit into the housing: I will try in a few days when my shop will receive the first sample of G9).

Underwater, this system is very handy. I was initially a bit afraid of the size and weight, but when diving, you completely forget it. You need a little time to get used to the controls but then it is very easy to access to everything on the camera. Following advice of some more experienced photograph, I use use manual mode (usually f5,6 / 1:125) and I just play with light and manual focus. Of course, if I need to change parameter (for example to have background more black or blue, or to have depth) I can play with aperture/speed. What I like with this approach is that with a little experience you knwow what the parameters should be, you take a first shot, control on the LCD and adjust light or aperture for the final shot.

Concerning the DS51, I am very happy of the results I get for macro. When G7 is in manual mode it allows a control from 1:64 to 1:1 of the strobe: you select the strobe control mode, and then with one knob, you can very easily adjust the power of the strobe. Most of the time, I use this mode, so after checking the first shot, I can adjust it in one second and take a new picture. Unlike Graham, I like the AAs battery: I use them for many equipements and I always have additionnal set in my bag. With 2700mA battery, no problem with power and speed to recharge the strobe. The only point is that I was not using the diffractor, and that would probably have helped to make the light a little bit softer. The size is not to big, and you can adjust the position very easily. The only thing is that it is not easy to chose the right position, so I added a small focus -light (Fantasea nano-light), that I have fixed on the strobe. IT helps a lot to orientate the strobe, and also for auto/manual focus in macro.

For the wide-angle converter, I must say I was a bit disappointed. The vignetting is really very important and you need to zoom a lot to eliminate it. In practice, I would say you come back to something like a 28-30 mm (versus the eq. 35mm of the G7). I would not recommand this solution if wide-angle is your moto, but for occasional use, why not. The problem of carrying the converter is real: I use the pockets of my jacket, but it is not very convenient. I have seen that Sea&Sea;propose a system of holder, and I would like to find something similar.
Note: as Graham says, you can not use the land based adaptater, that don’t fit into the port.

So now I am very eager to check if G9 fits in my housing! If not, as all shops around are sold-out for G7, I will have to ebay my housing.... I will let you know.

Regards

MarcoD

Thanks Marco. Sorry to hear of your G&. If it were me, I would find a new G7 IF the G9 won’t fit into the housing. You can probably find a pretty good deal on even new G7s still.

I have been leaning toward the Ikelite housing (over the Canon housing). It is good to hear your review of the DS51 strobe too. I need to look into that as well, and I was not all gung-ho for the higher end Ikelite strobe. I can get a fairly good deal on the Sea&Sea;strobes, but if I am going with the Ikelite housing, I should opt for the Ikelite strobes I think.

Since my current camera is a PowerShot S230, I have lots to learn still on aperture/ISO/etc. ANy good links I can learn from what be much appreciated. I am learning a lot now, and have got pretty handy with the custom White Balance setting on my camera. I do realize the housing will not allow internal lenses/adapters. I will probably still get the land-based converter lens adapter, wide converter and tele-converter though. I figure the better I get on land-based shooting, the better I will know the camera.

I will look at the under-water converter and wide angle lens though for the ikelite. I have heard the vignetting is kind of bad, and to some extent it even seems like the wide angle can almost be passed on underwater, but there are always those shots where you wish you had it.

I just ordered a new DUI drysuit earlier today so once I get that, I will order the camera (prob in early October) and then start to play with it. Ikelite has not yet released the housing for the G9, but according to Ikelite’s R&D;, it should be released in October sometime… As long as I get it all before my Chrsitmas trip to who knows where..

Thanks for the heads up on the G7. The tips you note will really help me understand the G9 out the gate.

Thanks,

Today I tried the G9: the first contact is nice. On top of the improvement already discussed, I had the feeling that this camera is even more reactive than its predecessor, and that the use is easier.

But regarding the housing, I was disappointed: the camera fit in the housing of the G7, you can access to controls on the top of the camera, but the controls on the back have moved by something like 5mm. The control wheel is accessible, but the button on the cross are not, so you lose all interest of this system.

So now, two options: or I can findf a G7, or I have to upgrade the housing. I was wondering if Ikelite could just supply one “back”. It is worth to ask to them.

regards

ScubaPatton - 05 September 2007 04:42 PM

I have been leaning toward the Ikelite housing (over the Canon housing). It is good to hear your review of the DS51 strobe too. I need to look into that as well, and I was not all gung-ho for the higher end Ikelite strobe. I can get a fairly good deal on the Sea&Sea;strobes, but if I am going with the Ikelite housing, I should opt for the Ikelite strobes I think.

Before you buy the Ikeilte strobe I suggest you take a hard look at an Inon D-2000 or Sea & Sea YS-110. Both of these strobes have built in focus/target lights which I believe to be an invaluable tool. I have the older Inon D-180 with a focus light. I can’t tell you the number of times I have used this light to help the lens focus or for use on a night dive. This focus light will eliminate the need to attach a small dive light to your strobe setup. My Inon focus light has the option of remaing on for 10 seconds or permanently staying on. Either way it goes off when the shutter is activated to prevent the light from being in the photo.