Is it supposed to be a secret?!?

[edneeves]

I thought that a few more people would be partaking in this forum but I am surprised to find the pickings rather thin.

I am assuming that this is because all of those lovely magazine covers are actually shot with varying forms of Sony camera's and their resepective housings and we are not supposed to tell anyone about it!

I have recently just got myself into the world of underwater photography (equipment wise anyway) and am doing my best to cram as much knowledge as possible before I hit the sites.

I have a Sony P150 with the Sony Housing and was looking for any tips that fellow Sony users might have; Aperture settings, f stops, body positioning, limitations to the equipment, any help would be appreciated and then maybe I can get my photo's on the next cover of Diver magazine and have a little chortle to myself next time I see someone hitting the water with 500 kilo's of pro photo equipment.

Thanks in advance,

Ed.

 

[gc1608]

Hello Mate,
I'm afraid I can't offer any real tips yet- I've just bought the same setup myself though & I'm looking forward to trying it out in a couple of weeks. I also bought a MotorMarine II with Strobe & had decided that instead of going mad & buying too many accessories to begin with, I'd use the P150 for close-up & macro (as you've probably discovered, the macro's quite good), & buy a wide lens for the MMII & use that for other pics. (Also because there's the problem of only having the Sony's internal flash)
That was until I discovered that there's a lens adapter available which fits the Sony housing & allows the use of MMII Sea & Sea lenses !
The dilemma for me now is: Do I buy another strobe (my YS50 would not be compatible) because the adapter mostly obscures the camera's flash, leaving a small hole to attach a fibre-optic cable (for use with a more expensive strobe like the YS90) ?
Anyway, here's where I found the info- not neccessarily the best prices, but clear pics show how it all works.
http://www.camerasunderwater.co.uk/d_stills/sony/accessory.html
Good luck,
Graham

 

[edneeves]

Ouch, that WAL is a pretty hefty investment. I am not sure what the immediate benefits are to be honest. The strobe sounds like a good idea though, I can definately see a situation where the internal one is not going to do the job.

How have you been getting on with the manual settings?

Ed.

 

[gc1608]

It's impossible to simulate the conditions so I'm going to wait until I dive to start experimenting with the manual functions- I do agree with other comments though that the flash needs over-riding on macro. I was surprised that the housing didn't have a diffuser built in (or at least as an option)
That said, I've arranged a pool session for this week so I can have a play around (& to test the housing empty first !)
Photographers recommend putting tampons in SLR housings in case of a slight leak- in the Sony housing I reckon there's just enough space to put on of those little Silica Gel sachets so I think i'll give that a try.
Shame you're a bit far away from where I live or I'd have suggested meting for a beer or something- there's not that many divers I know locally who take digital seriously yet- I'm hoping to prove them wrong by geting a few decent pics when I next go away...

 

[edneeves]

Let me know how you get on. I would be interested in seeing some of the results.

What country are you in?

Ed.

 

[gc1608]

Brighton (UK)
And before you ask, no- I haven't dived here yet!

 

[edneeves]

Don't blame you, I have tried Stoney Cove a few times but I don't have a dry suit and "Brass Monkeys" is an understatement. Thats why I'm emmigrating to Australia in 3 weeks.

Should be a bit toastier!

Ed.

 

[gc1608]

You lucky Bugger !
I'm doing my Rescue course at the moment, so will experience the joys of Stoney Cove very soon- am gonna have to use a semi as I've not used a dry suit either.
Tried the camera in the pool yesterday & found that when using the macro very close up
(6-10 cm) the housing gets in the way of the flash, casting shadow over half of the frame ! Pull back a little (& zoom) or use an external strobe seem to be the only options if you can't use natural light...

 

[edneeves]

I did stoney in November with a 5mm 2 piece Semi Dry and froze my *** off! Your brave if you go ahead with it, but I suppose its a good reason to get stuck into those diver tows, it might heat you up a bit! plus there is always a good old cup of tea afterwards.

I think I am going to try the external strobe route. I don't have the funds right now but that should give me plenty of time to get to know my camera inside out.

Good luck with the Rescue Course, its definately the most rewarding of the non-professional cards.

Ed.

 

[grazie42]

I´m not really sure what kind of advice you´re looking for so here are a few pointers...

First off I´d start off with just using the automatic settings. If things turn out "bad" adjust accordingly. Also to start off, take more than one picture of every object, to make sure that its machine and not man that is "set wrong".

Internal flash isn´t enough for wide-angle shots (I´ve found). I use my 10w hid and my buddies divelight (where available) to make up for it and find that that makes a big difference...

For macro I´ve found the internal flash sufficient (as opposed to gc1608) as I find it is quite strong...