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oatmeal7

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Location
Silver Spring, Maryland
Hi all-

I'm a long time diver (23 years and counting...) in Silver Spring, MD who just joined the scubaboard...

I've recently returned from Playa del Carmen/Cozumel (great cenotes / cavern dives!) and will be going to Maui in August...

Future interests include doing some NC Outer Bank wreck dives, as well as getting Nitrox certified, and doing more UW photography (I'm a commercial photographer topside).

I'm interested in hearing from other divers in my area, as well as anyone with shared interests.

Thanks-
Jeff
 
Welcome to the board!

Joe
 
oatmeal7:
Hi all-

I'm a long time diver (23 years and counting...) in Silver Spring, MD who just joined the scubaboard...

I've recently returned from Playa del Carmen/Cozumel (great cenotes / cavern dives!) and will be going to Maui in August...

Future interests include doing some NC Outer Bank wreck dives, as well as getting Nitrox certified, and doing more UW photography (I'm a commercial photographer topside).

I'm interested in hearing from other divers in my area, as well as anyone with shared interests.

Thanks-
Jeff

Greetings Jeff

I am about 20 min away in No. Va., welcome. I'm a snivel servant and not a professional photographer but do it as a hobby and small sideline. Within the past year I transitioned from film to digital, and to a dslr housing. Its been expensive but I think, well worth it. 'Got to try it out in Jan at Roatan and it was a kick. So so much to learn, and has increased my enthusiasm for diving manyfold. I am going to Grand Turk in June w/ a couple friends where I'll figure to get nitrox certified.

What camera do you have for uw?
Glo
 
Hi Glo-

Right now I'm just using a little Canon A80 in a Canon housing..have not yet decided to spend big $$ on an SLR housing and decent flash gear. I have a Canon EOS-10D, and also use an EOS-1DS for professional work (owned by my studio, not me), either one of which would be great UW, albeit bulky. I have a Nikonos w/ 2 Ikelite strobes and I kind of like the small size of a non-housed camera...

I'm curious which dSLR and housing you use.

Jeff
 
hi oatmeal from sunny miami
 
Howdy Jeff!

Welcome to SB!!
:happywave Put us in your computer's favorites and check in often. This is a great place to learn, compare, argue :argue:


Yeah, the NC wrecks are good dives, worth the extra effort and all. Went twice last summer, going again this Oct.

don

:D
 
oatmeal7:
Hi Glo-

Right now I'm just using a little Canon A80 in a Canon housing..have not yet decided to spend big $$ on an SLR housing and decent flash gear. I have a Canon EOS-10D, and also use an EOS-1DS for professional work (owned by my studio, not me), either one of which would be great UW, albeit bulky. I have a Nikonos w/ 2 Ikelite strobes and I kind of like the small size of a non-housed camera...

I'm curious which dSLR and housing you use.

Jeff

Jeff,

I agonized for months going nikonos (esp your reasons, smaller and more compact, with so many examples of stunning photos from Nikonos) versus strategy of switching to digital and using same camera topside and u/w. And then I went through the canon vs nikon debate, looking at the 10D against the D100.

I ended up with the nikon compatible -Fuji S2 pro (which unlike other dslrs is TTL and can use nikonos compatible strobes like YS-120.) I take it down in a subal housing, although several other stock housings for this camera are also available which all have their champions. I picked the subal because it seemed more compact and a bit lighter than most others (important for a petite person.) I've only gotten to try it on two trips but am tickled with it so far and once u/w find it less bulky than I'd feared.

Following reasons were behind my decision to go digital: poor film processing (a problem you may less have as a pro) has driven me to digital at least topside. Having made that decision, I didn't want to invest in and have to transport two completely separate systems when traveling to distant dive destinations, when I could have one for both jobs. Dive baggage is so doggone heavy already. Although I am by nature an iconoclast, I have to admit I'm enjoying the intant feedback of digital and don't yet regret the investment required for the switchover. (I have a lovely contax aria sitting in the closet lately unused. Maybe if there had been a stock housing for that, I might have gone a different path, although that wouldn't have fixed the processing problem for me.)

As you probably already know there are a number of stock housings on the market for your 10D, if you decide to make the leap. I have a next door neighbor who is semi-pro who is nuts about her 10D...

I've not been diving nearly so long as you, my enthusiasm really increased after I got my buoyancy good enough to dare take a camera down where I wouldn't be a risk to the reef.

I am curious as you are a local (most on these boards seem to be from Texas or CA), do you know of any area scuba clubs? None seem to advertise activity in the Post, that I've caught.

Glo
 
oatmeal7:
Hi all-

I'm a long time diver (23 years and counting...) in Silver Spring, MD who just joined the scubaboard...

I've recently returned from Playa del Carmen/Cozumel (great cenotes / cavern dives!) and will be going to Maui in August...

Future interests include doing some NC Outer Bank wreck dives, as well as getting Nitrox certified, and doing more UW photography (I'm a commercial photographer topside).

I'm interested in hearing from other divers in my area, as well as anyone with shared interests.

Thanks-
Jeff

Silver Spring is also my home.

The Atlantis Rangers, a 45 year-old dive club, meets monthly in Greenbelt, just a bit around the Beltway. The next meeting is Friday, May 14. The club has 4 dives in the Carolinas scheduled for this year. The first, over the Memorial Day weekend, is full, but I don't think the others are. You can learn a bit more by going to www.AtlantisRangers.org. If you'll send me your email address (I'm listed on that site as the treasurer), I'll send you a copy of the newsletter when it comes out late this week.
 
yes, but a 10D housing and new digital-capable strobes = mucho $$...

I'm sure I'll do it soon (after selling the Nikonos system that's worth less and less as time goes by...).

I spent big $ this past year when I switched from Nikon (after 20 years!) to Canon. Many pros have done, and are doing so, as Canon seems to consistently have the edge over Nikon on the digital front (their lenses are generally sharper as well). I think anyone who picks up a Canon 10D and a Nikon D100 at the same time is going to go with the 10D. Switching systems was rather a spulge though, because 90% of my pro work is medium and large format, and beacuse my studio went ahead and bought the EOS1ds (which actually isn't as nice to use as the 10D, but, hey...11Mpixels...).

Before I made that decision, I thought seriously about the Fuji, as most Nikon-based pro's use that body instead of Nikons.

UW photo is strictly a hobby for me, otherwise, it's too much like work.

As far as dive clubs, I don't know of any, but I'm going to get in touch with the club in the above reply...

Best-
Jeff


gfac:
Jeff,

I agonized for months going nikonos (esp your reasons, smaller and more compact, with so many examples of stunning photos from Nikonos) versus strategy of switching to digital and using same camera topside and u/w. And then I went through the canon vs nikon debate, looking at the 10D against the D100.

I ended up with the nikon compatible -Fuji S2 pro (which unlike other dslrs is TTL and can use nikonos compatible strobes like YS-120.) I take it down in a subal housing, although several other stock housings for this camera are also available which all have their champions. I picked the subal because it seemed more compact and a bit lighter than most others (important for a petite person.) I've only gotten to try it on two trips but am tickled with it so far and once u/w find it less bulky than I'd feared.

Following reasons were behind my decision to go digital: poor film processing (a problem you may less have as a pro) has driven me to digital at least topside. Having made that decision, I didn't want to invest in and have to transport two completely separate systems when traveling to distant dive destinations, when I could have one for both jobs. Dive baggage is so doggone heavy already. Although I am by nature an iconoclast, I have to admit I'm enjoying the intant feedback of digital and don't yet regret the investment required for the switchover. (I have a lovely contax aria sitting in the closet lately unused. Maybe if there had been a stock housing for that, I might have gone a different path, although that wouldn't have fixed the processing problem for me.)

As you probably already know there are a number of stock housings on the market for your 10D, if you decide to make the leap. I have a next door neighbor who is semi-pro who is nuts about her 10D...

I've not been diving nearly so long as you, my enthusiasm really increased after I got my buoyancy good enough to dare take a camera down where I wouldn't be a risk to the reef.

I am curious as you are a local (most on these boards seem to be from Texas or CA), do you know of any area scuba clubs? None seem to advertise activity in the Post, that I've caught.

Glo
 
Glad you found us! This is a great place to spend your SI, but watch out, it's addictive!
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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