Is this reasonable?

[Jamdiver]

Hey all,

Alright i'll be travelling to South Florida in the next few weeks and i'm thinking of stopping in at Ryan's store........

And that of course is where my dilemma begins

.
Having gone through his webpage, Ikelite's and a few others..
I more or less have an idea of what I want and what my budget can afford.

Thinking of the Ikelite DS-51, deluxe ball arm package with EV controller and an Ikelite tray for my Canon WP-DC90 housing.

Ok this is where I am a little confused though,

This package includes the Ikelite EV Controller, featuring 10 manual power settings with both preflash and non-preflash cameras. When using the EV Controller, the attached strobe can be triggered via sync cable, or can be slave triggered.

What exactly does this mean, i'm clueless when it comes to this stuff.
I'm assuming that the sync cable would only worth with Ikelite housings and that slave triggering implies that the EV controller reads the camera's preflash and then fires afterwards??

Will having the cameras flash fire like this cause backscatter, sort of negating the whole point of a strobe?

Also just how much flexibility in positioning of the strobe is there with the Ikelite ball arm package as compared to the ULCS.
Would that be a better option in terms of ease and use and price as compared to the Ike arms and trays??

Have also taken a look at the Inon's but they look more or less the same to me, can't really see what would be the advantages of going that route?

And yes I have done research on this on numerous boards and I did the 'search', so any and all input would be greatly appreciated.

As for the type of water I dive in, it's generally warm with good vis.

 

[Monkey Knife-fight]

You can block the internal flash using the opaque card that Ike makes to attach to their housings. Or do what i do and tape up the inside of the housing with dark colored tape. Just be sure to leave a gap so the sensor can see the flash.

 

[Jamdiver]

You can block the internal flash using the opaque card that Ike makes to attach to their housings. Or do what i do and tape up the inside of the housing with dark colored tape. Just be sure to leave a gap so the sensor can see the flash.

I've thought of that Monkey, also there is the option of just reducing the flash output to it's lowest level that should effectively get rid of that problem.

I saw your thread over on DDNet and was wondering....
Generally, aside from the problems that you're having with your DS50 (flooding).
How does it work for you and what's your opinion of it in comparison to other strobes (if you've used any)??

 

[Diver Dennis]

Jam, I would call or email Ikelite. They can help.

 

[Jamdiver]

Jam, I would call or email Ikelite. They can help.

That's more or less the input that I got on the other board (DDnet) Dennis, going to email Ryan @ reefphoto as a matter of fact.

BTW, Dennis what arms do you have on your housing and how easy is it positioning the strobe with that??

 

[havnmonkey]

I have the DS-50, great flash.

The EV controller you describe sounds like my Manual controller... It has a sensor in the front to "see" when the cam's internal flash fires. That signal goes through a synch cord into the strobe which then fires as well, very nifty. The sensor is very perceptive and you shouldn't have a problem picking up the internal flash.

The power settings are for adjusting the DS-51's power yourself. High power is almost always way to much, 1/10 to 1/4 power is usually sufficient.

It also has another port for a sync cord that connects to your TTL bulkhead on the housing (Jam you are an A620 user I believe, this won't apply to your housing or camera).

You will have to block the internal flash w/ tape or plastic card (use your imaginaton); maybe black tape on your Canon diffuser will suffice.

i have Ikelite ball arms... they are much better than the base model arm the strobe comes with, however they can get kind of stiff underwater. My friend dove with ULCS and it looked very easy to adjust underwater (the rubber rings look like they helped). I would get two arm segments for more maneuverability.

 

[Jamdiver]

Thanks for the advice havnmonkey .

 

[Diver Dennis]

That's more or less the input that I got on the other board (DDnet) Dennis, going to email Ryan @ reefphoto as a matter of fact.

BTW, Dennis what arms do you have on your housing and how easy is it positioning the strobe with that??

Aquatica arms but the Ike arms work well too. I opted for 2 - 8" sections per side.

 

[Mike Veitch]

jam, yea, just use electrical tape in the housing..


Ike ball joint arms are fine, don't get the other ones.. they are very limited.

I believe the ike ball arms are now the same size as the ULCS/TLC/everyone else... now, they used to be a lot bigger.... but, saying that... i dont' know the diff on prices between that stuff.
call RYAN! hahah

and yes, the DS51 looks like a nice strobe.

One thing you will want to do, get a dual handle set up or set it up with the handle on the right side. its a pain to shoot macro if you have handle on left side and trigger on right and trying to hover at the same time.. nice to have handle and trigger on same/right side so you can steady yourself with left hand

 

[clgsamson]

Jam, why not theD125?