Fantasea FD-40X and Nikon D40x or D60?

[jgheaton]

I have just upgrade my strobes for my A620. Whilst pondering an upgrade to the Canon G10 I came across a brand new Fantasea FD-40x housing for a great price.

I love the Nikon camera and have owned a D50 for several years but the cost of housings have placed it outside of the realm to take it underwater.

The Fantasea FD-40x was such a great deal that I decided to buy it. My question are as follows?

1. Anyone with experience with the Fantasea FD-40x housing, comments would be appreciated. Is this a decent housing?

2. Have just purchased a YS110a strobe so will be adding this to the setup. Does anyone know if the TTL functions will be available with using the Sea & Sea Nikonos 5pin adapter? The specs say it will but list it for the SB8000 flash.

3. I do not have camera to fit the housing and can get my hands on both the D40x and D60 with the 18-55mm VR DX lense. I noticed there is not much difference between the two. Which would be the better purchase?

Thanks John

[mike_s]

There is absolutely no difference in the size, dimensions, and button placement on the d40, the D40x, and the D60. All will fix in that housing exactly the same.

The D40 and the D40x are the exact same except the sensor.
the D40 has a 6mp sensor that shoots 2.5fps and goes down to 200 ISO
the d40x has a 10mp sensor that shoots 3fps and goes down to 100 ISO


The D60 came out as a replacement for the D40x. the only difference is a dust blower on the sensor, a firmware upgrade with a few extra firmware features, and by default it now comes with a VR (Virbration Reduction) 18-55mm lens instead of a "Non VR" lens.



Which is the better purchase?

if you want 10mp, 100ISO, and the dust blower, get the D60.
otherwise the 6mp D40 is an awesome camera also.

if you can get a D40x for a lot cheaper, I'd get that over the D60. the D40x is discontinued and you can prob find some deals on them.

[jgheaton]

Mike thanks so sounds like the D60 would be the better option at the moment if the price is right.

Thanks John

[scottfiji]

congrats on your new UW housing

2) With the 110a, there's no TTL with a sync cord unless you get a TTL converter. The 110a supports optical TTl, but I don't think the fantasea housing supports firing a strobe via fiber optics.

3) like you said, there's very little difference between the two. The 1/500th sync speed a 3rd choice, the D40 (not the D40x) would be temping to me for sunburst shots.

Also, make sure you get AF-S lenses for the Nikon D40/40x/60

hope this helps

Scott

[mike_s]

Mike thanks so sounds like the D60 would be the better option at the moment if the price is right.

Thanks John

Iv'e got the D40x. My father and brother have the D40.

having used both, both are great cameras. The only reason I got the D40x was that I didn't want to have to upgrade it later if I wanted 10mp and I wanted 100ISO enough to justify it.

the 10mp also allows a bigger pic image for cropping if needed also. (editing after the shot).


but I don't think the D60 has enough features differences to make me even consider the change over the D40x. so if you can get a d40x for $100 to $200 cheaper than a D60, then I'd jump on that.

[jgheaton]

Mike / Scott

Thanks, just check the strobe and it mentions TTL, also the synch cord is for TTL so will have to try once I have all the pieces.

The D40x new is around $500 with lense and the D60 new is about $549 so not much in it. I know one of the things I wish I could change on my D50 is the dust remover. So thing for the $50 may be worth it. Will have to wait until I have housing in hand and then get the best deal on the camera.

I see many blinded people and obscure shots in my future :-) Thanks again

[mike_s]

The D40x new is around $500 with lense and the D60 new is about $549 so not much in it. I know one of the things I wish I could change on my D50 is the dust remover. So thing for the $50 may be worth it. Will have to wait until I have housing in hand and then get the best deal on the camera.



if the price difference is only $50 bucks, I'd get the D60 over the D40x.

you'll get the VR lens and the dust blower.

I think the D60 firmware will let you do some other tricks also, like group X amount of pictures together in an animated jpeg or gif. (hopefully I'm not confusing that with another camera).

also with the D40x being discontinued, if you had to sell the camera, you'd get a higher resell on the D60.



This is also a GREAT above water camera also. You might consider a bigger zoom "walk around lens" such as the 18-135mm, the 18-105VR, or even the 18-200mm VR.

just make sure any lens you get is AF-S type. that's lens with the focus motor built into the lens. It's required for autofocus on the D40/D40x/D60 series. If you get a Sigma lens, HSM (Hyper Sonic Motor or something like that) is the same qualfication as AF-S lens. (motor installed in lens for autofocus).

hope this helps.

Mike

[jgheaton]

Mike

I agree my current Nikon D50 has the 18 - 200mm VR lens and I love it. The only problem is my wife and I haggle over who will be using the camera. This way will be able to have one each. May invest in a very wide angle for land shots to complete the lenses we have. Looking forward to it.

Thanks for all the info, helps a great deal.

Cheers John

[mike_s]

Mike

I agree my current Nikon D50 has the 18 - 200mm VR lens and I love it. The only problem is my wife and I haggle over who will be using the camera. This way will be able to have one each. May invest in a very wide angle for land shots to complete the lenses we have. Looking forward to it.

Thanks for all the info, helps a great deal.

Cheers John



I just picked up the Sigma 10-20mm super wide angle for my father.

it's pretty good and half the price of the Nikon. (one to consider)

[ilookold]

I would like to ask where you bought that underwater housing from. I myself have a D-60 and have been looking for a housing. On the website I looked on they dont sell it anymore.

thanks

Brian.

[JackConnick]

Hi;

Just to note. The YS-110/110a will NOT fire from a standard Nikonos bulkhead like on the FD-60. There is a pin incompatibility. You can use the S&S TTL converter, but they are pricey like $600 or so. This is ture for most all Nikons due to a TTL incompatibility. Inon z240s will work fine.

You may be able to cover the pin on the sync cord that causes it to lock up.

The Fantasea DSLR housing were pulled from the market due to production Q/C issues that became impossible for them to manage. I would be sure to check it very carefully and have a return policy available. I did sell quite a few of them without problem though.

The Sea & Sea RDX-60 is lightyears better.

Jack

[jgheaton]

Brian

I managed to get the last one in stock from Helix Camera Helix Camera & Video (http://www.helixcamera.com/) . I think however it was the last in stock. I ordered it at first online and the order was bounced back. When I phoned they confirmed that they had one in stock and I ordered it. Still waiting for it and hoping. Store is in Chicago. 312-421-6000 Can give then a try maybe they will know of another place.

Was actually looking for a housing for my D50 but had the same problem, then came across this one. So had to buy a D60 as well. Thought it was better than a G10 and a housing. Will see.

Good luck

Cheers
John

[jgheaton]

Jack

Thanks for the information. So the SEA & SEA 5-pin Sync Cord N will not work at all, or just the TTL capability of the cable. Will it still fire the strobe in manual mode?

Thanks John

[jgheaton]

Mike

How does your Dad like the Sigma lens? Was actually the one I was interested in. Seems to have good right ups and not a crazy price.

Cheers
John

[ilookold]

thank you for the info. just in case i cant seem to find one of these. is there another housing that will fit the D60?

[jgheaton]

There is Jack mentioned it, the Sea & Sea RDX-D60, Nimar NI303D Underwater Housing f/ Nikon D60, Ikelite 6804.1 Underwater Camera Housing For Nikon D40, D40X, D60 DSLR, Aquatica Underwater Housing for Nikon D40 and D40X

Depends on how much you would like to spend, what features you need and the accessories you have / will have to attach. For me the FD-40x was about price. I would have loved the Sea & Sea as I think it is the best housing, and would match my strobes but just could not afford all the pieces and the housing.

Hope this helps. Cheers John

[JackConnick]

No. It will not fire the strobe, it will lock it up.

You may be able to block the pin on the YS110a on on the hotshoe of the nikon with a bit of tape. Try contacting Sea & sea and see if they can tell you what the pin-outs are for the strobe. You are looking for the TTL pin. What happens is the strobe and the nikon are transmitting ont he same pin, but not speaking the same language.

Good luck with the housing. I would contact Fantasea.com to see what their current support is with the housing. As a dealer I was told that these were to have been returned/recalled. Other customers that did have problems with theirs just were given a refund. Others have had theirs work just fine. But it was all too inconsistent quality.

I have been shooting an FD-80 for some time without too many problems, had to replace a bulkhead and a control or two.

I have it for sale if anyone's interested, with a dome port and a lot of parts.

Jack

[ilookold]

thanks John, thats very helpful. im going to get looking. I bought the camera before i even thought about housings. Im just getting into underwater photography this will be a start for me. I have an olympus right now. guess a good starter but the pics dont come out to well. guess i should take a course and learn how to do it properly. thanks again.

[jgheaton]

Just an FYI. I contacted Helic Camera to ask if they had heard about the issues. There were so unhelpful and rude that I cancelled the whole order. Good news is they still have a housing, bad news is there are tough to deal with. Cheers John

[mike_s]

Mike

How does your Dad like the Sigma lens? Was actually the one I was interested in. Seems to have good right ups and not a crazy price.

Cheers
John

We can split this off into a new thread if you want to.... (your decision as you are OP of this thread).



He really likes it but has only had it for a few weeks and hasn't used it much.

It's got the HSM (Hyper Sonic Motor, I think) that allows autofocus on the D40/D40x/D60. (similar/same as AF-s on Nikon Lens).

For the price, it's great. You can pick it up new for about $450 at most of the reputable online shops. (we bought it from someone on another forum board for I think $350).

I personally think that the Nikon Lens is most likely slightly better, but not worth "twice the price" by any means. most of the reviews that I saw supported this.


If you plan on using it indoors, you'll want an add on flash. (such as the SB-400 or SB-600)

The "pop up flash" on the camera is a little too close to the lens for the size/diameter of the barrel. It's a 77mm lens I think. Zoomed back to 10mm, the pop up flash will leave a shadow from the top of the lens along the bottom of the picture, but that's expected. (this happens on several larger diameter lens)

Here's an example shown on Ken Rockwells page with the Nikon 12-24mm at 12mm with the pop up flash and then using the SB-400 flash attached to the top of the camera. (he's likely boucing the SB-400 off the ceiling also)

source: from Nikon SB-400 (http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/sb400.htm)

(note: he can be a little full of himself in his reviews, but this is a good example of why you'll want a external flash for indoor shooting on this lens, or any lens this size.)

Using Pop Up Flash (Notice the lens shadow?)

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/images1/sb-400/12mm-bif-DSC_2373.jpg


using external SB-400 flash

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/images1/sb-400/12mm-sb-400-DSC_2374.jpg



I couldn't really find many reviews that covered all the "super wide angle" lens except for Ken Rockwells. Like I said, he can be a little full of himself in his reviews (in my opinion), but sometimes he's got some usefull stuff.

also note that (in my opinion) he's very biased towards Nikon gear over any 3rd party gear and biased towards anything "he owns" as opposed to borrowed/loaned gear he uses for a review. So he often "bad mouths" other stuff that is not Nikon, as he does here. but if you go in reading the review with knowing his perspective and filter out the "crap", you can make a good decision on your own.

in the end. I took a lot of what he said with a grain of salt and bought the lens and I'm not unhappy with it. I would reccomend it

but with that known. here is the review on several wide angle lens including the Sigma

Digital Wide Zooms (http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/digital-wide-zooms/comparison.htm)



EDIT: I would never buy anything based on what Ken Rockwell thinks. Search other reviews first. I just remembered the flash difference image he had when I was looking to buy a SB-400 / SB-600 and that it was on a wide angle lens and went back and found it to show the difference for this thread. he's very opinionated. so beware.)

[JackConnick]

The Sigmas are good lenses if you get a good copy. The trouble is they can have varying build quality. An awesome lens is the 17-70 mcro, very sharp and fast.

The 10-20 is good above water, but seems to suffer for soft corners when used uw with a dome.

Jack

[mike_s]

The Sigmas are good lenses if you get a good copy. The trouble is they can have varying build quality. An awesome lens is the 17-70 mcro, very sharp and fast.

The 10-20 is good above water, but seems to suffer for soft corners when used uw with a dome.

Jack


I'd like to note also that we bought the 10-20mm for "above water use". My above post is based on that.

[jgheaton]

Mike / Jack thanks for all your help. Will have to start saving a few more pennys for my housing now.

Have a good backup that I can at least try the strobes out with :-) Happy diving and thanks once again for the advice