Nikon 16-85mm w/ Ikelite Housing & 8" Dome (D90)

Had the pleasure of taking my Nikon D90 in an Ikelite housing with the 8" dome and dual DS51 strobes during a dive trip to CoCo View Resort on Roatan at the beginning of December. Without having a frame of reference for comparison, I'd have to say I was (and am) quite happy with a lens that is neither purely macro nor tele by design. I don't know why this lens doesn't get better or more frequent commentary on sites like this...and maybe ignorance is bliss? These following pictures are cropped JPEGs taken from NEF original files and have been adjusted for color balance and saturation.






Next step is a dedicated macro lens. Since I live in British Columbia, where the water is green and usually vis limited to 15-30 feet, contemplating the 60mm or 85mm. Any recommendations from folk with experience shooting critters in the Emerald Sea?

Cheers,
Craig.

I have the same lens in an aquatica housing. Great lens. Very sharp lens. For macro i add a +4 diopter as a closeup lens. You get 1:1 macro. Would work very good on west coast for most nudibranchs and as a closeup lens. Not to many people use this lens, don't know why. According to ikelite's web site you use a +4 diopter to get the lens to focus close enough. Same as my aquatica. For macro i use the two+4 diopters. Two diopters are much easier to transport and budget than doing macro with a flat port and 60mm.

I, too, am a fan of the 16-85. Been using it since I got my D90 and have had great success with it. Great lens for those dives that you can't decide on macro or wide angle. I also really like it on night dives as it opens up opportunities that aren't there with a dedicated macro lens. Ike housing - large port and +4 diopter. Other than being a bit bulky, I really do like the combination.