I took my Optio out with the new YS-01 strobe for the first time this past weekend. Observations:
1) The strobe was very simple to setup and operate. Fiber cable connection to the Optio with the S&S adapter was foolproof. With the strobe set on the "pre-flash" mode, the strobe never failed to fire with the camera.
2) Having been used to just the little built-in on-camera flash... WOW this thing puts out a lot of light! In general, I had to set it at about half power to avoid washing out the image.
3) I know this seems obvious, but I never realized just how handy the focus light would be for grabbing those freehand shots I commonly make on drift dives - you know, where you don't have time or position to frame up the shot but must grab one on the fly. It's like having a fuzzy laser pointer for your camera! After playing with it a bit you can get a really good feel for what will be in the shot at what distance just by observing the illumination radius.
4) I'm going to need some good rechargeable batteries. Plain alkalines started to lose their oomph after about three dives with the focus light on pretty much all the time.
5) Unfortunately, a good strobe does not make up for a crappy camera. The older Optios are not known for their crispness; I was hoping the focus light would help, but there's only so much an older compact PnS can do - keep in mind, the S4i/S5i's claim to fame is that it fits in an Altoids tin, so I don't think it's surprising that image quality took a back seat to miniaturization. See below for an example of about the best I can squeeze out of it. Pretty, but lacks definition (and I had to apply a bit of sharpness filter to get even that).
Oh well, it just requires a shift in perspective - don't think of the little Pentax's output so much as a poor photograph, but rather a nice impressionist painting. The good news is that I now have a decent strobe & basic arm, next step will be a better base camera & housing. I'll keep a lookout for a cheaper used PnS & housing with a better base camera than the Optio, since there's no way I could afford a "real" setup like the E-PL1 I've had my eye on. Not for quite a while anyway.
