Completing my NA-EM5 set-up

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Guitarfish64

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Messages
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Location
Melbourne, Australia
# of dives
200 - 499
[FONT=&amp] I am the proud new owner of an E-M5 which I have (finally!) traded-up from my trusty C-5050Z. I haven't yet bought a housing / ports etc yet, but have been following the related threads with interest (and even think I might have learned some stuff along the way!). This whole interchangable lens & port business is new to me, and the amount of information to absorb is a little overwhelming. I'd appreciate some confirmation or corrections to my current plan from those that understand this stuff better...

This will be an expensive upgrade by my standards, so I'd like to re-use what I've got if possible (but don't want to throw good money after bad to bodge stuff that's really past it's use-by date). So this is what I already have:

New stuff:[/FONT]

  • [FONT=&amp]E-M5[/FONT]
  • [FONT=&amp]14-42 kit lens [/FONT]
[FONT=&amp] Old stuff:[/FONT]

  • [FONT=&amp]Inon ucl-165m67 wet macro lens[/FONT]
  • [FONT=&amp]Inon D180 strobe + fibre optic cable[/FONT]
  • [FONT=&amp]Ultralight tray (1 mounting screw) / handle / arm /joints [/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]
The current plan:
Buy (parts selected from Nauticam Australia)[/FONT]

  • [FONT=&amp]Nauticam housing[/FONT]
  • [FONT=&amp]Flat port 56 (with 67mm thread)[/FONT]
  • [FONT=&amp]Zoom gear[/FONT]
  • [FONT=&amp]Tray mounting screws [/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Reuse:[/FONT]

  • [FONT=&amp]Inon wet macro lens[/FONT]
  • [FONT=&amp]Inon D180 strobe[/FONT]
  • [FONT=&amp]Ultralight assembly (somehow bodging it to take a second mounting screw) [/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]
Questions arising:[/FONT]

  1. [FONT=&amp]Will I be able to use the 14-42 lens across its full range with that flat port?[/FONT]
  2. [FONT=&amp]Will I be able to use my existing Inon fiber-optic cable with the Nauticam housing?[/FONT]
  3. [FONT=&amp]There is a 'flip diopter' available for the flat port 56 (for another $220AUD). Do I need that to use the wet macro lens or can I mount directly onto the flat port? (as I used to on my compact).[/FONT]
  4. [FONT=&amp]Would I be able to add a wide-angle wet lens at some point in the future? (I realise it wouldn't be as good as changing the camera lens and using a dome port, but it's a lot cheaper, and the flexibility also appeals...)[/FONT]
  5. [FONT=&amp]Would I be better off giving up on the wet lens idea and going with the 4" wide angle port for 14-42 lens? Would I be able to use it at the '42' end?[/FONT]
  6. [FONT=&amp]Is there a 'made for the job' Ultralight tray for the Nauticam housing that I could use with the existing handle / arm? (I've looked on the website, but to be honest, it could with some upgrading itself...).[/FONT]
  7. [FONT=&amp]Anything else I should be taking into consideration? [/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Sorry for the long post, but any advice would be gratefully received... [/FONT]
Chris
 
Awesome Chris, I bought an OM-D as well and am waiting to pick up a housing in the near future. Based on my understanding of the system (but can't confirm because i don't have it in my hands):

2) Yes you should be able to use the fibre optic cable - that's what the strobe mask holes are for
3) Flat port 56 has 67mm threads, therefore you CAN screw adaptors on/off as with your old housing - therefore you do not "need" that to use wet lenses. From reading Phil Rudin's post, it sounds like the flip diopter is useful in cases where you simply want to flip away the diopter and flip back on for convenience. It will save you time underwater, so its a matter of convenience vs cost
4) I think you are describing the Inon UWL-100 wide angle wet lens, which i believe has a 67mm thread - i think it is designed for 28mm equivalents, but am unsure how the port will interact with the lens (eg is there vignetting) - not sure how easy it will be to dive/change lenses with a UWL-100, as it appears to be large/heavy but i will leave that for pundits on the board to provide you with experiences!

I should be able to help more when i have housing in hand :)
 
Last edited:
Well, in the absence of any info to the contrary, I've taken the plunge on the the Nauticam housing, and flat port 56 - should arrive next week. I decided to forego the flip dopter for the time being and see how the wet lens works before I sink that much cash for more convenience.

I'm off to Heron Island on the GBR in early Sept so I guess I'll have a better idea of what's possible with this set-up at the end of that week!
 
For INON 165 lens or nay 67mm on EM-5, use the flip diopter as Frank said. I have one and I can whore it with all 67mm port from nauticam. Aluminum and not plastic. Good locking mechanism east-west flip or vice versa and good resistance on the hinge so it wont swing around easy when in opened position.

Screw in and out is a time wasting process and you must buy 67mm holder on arm too, keeping lens in BCD will do harm if long term.
Flip diopter is <US$200.....I think , me forgot price sorry.

Enjoy ur camera yah.........
 
First let me say that I have been using the E-M5 and Nauticam NA-EM5 housing for about two months now and I am quite impressed with both the camera and the housing. I am sure that you will be quite happy with your choice, Guitarfish.

For others I would strongly recommend the 12-50mm zoom "kit" lens over the 14-42 zoom. In the macro mode the 12-50 gets you as much magnification as the 14-42 with the Inon M165 close up lens. It is much wider and is a great above water travel lens range. The down side is that the port will require a more complex gear and port at a higher cost. That port and gear are on the way from Nauticam. Also the image quality from the 12-50 well exceeds the 14-42.

Several posts have been made suggesting the use of a close up lens and a wide angle add on lens with the PEN and E-M5 cameras using the kits lenses. To me this defeats the purpose of buying an interchangeable lens camera. While I realize that it may reduce cost I would not expect image quality any better than going with a high end compact like the Olympus XZ-1 or Panasonic XL5 with the $950.00 Nauticam housings for those cameras.

Phil Rudin
 
Progress rep:

The NA-EM5, the flat port 56 and the Flexitray have arrived! I had a bit of a 'dry run' at the weekend. Findings so far...
Successfully assembled housing / port / camera. For those of us not used to this stuff, the directions could definitely be a bit more comprehensive! If you look at the (very small) picture in the housing manual it does show pulling out the LCD screen out before mounting, but there are no actual words... Likewise, if you have never used a detachable lens / zoom gear then a bit of description wouldn't go amiss, but I got there eventually!
I'm very impressed with the ergonomics of the housing in general with one minor niggle - testing it out of the water I've accidentally turned it off several times with the ball of my right thumb while making other adjustments. I'm hoping that will be less likely once it's in water and doesn't need as much support.
I'm very happy with the tray - much more ergonomic than the existing UCLS handle / tray I was tempted to bodge.
Strobe: with the magnet out', the old D180 strobe seems to be working Ok on 'Auto' (which counter-intuitively means setting the power manually). I haven't tried to get my head round the whole TTL / pre-flash / magnet stuff yet, but suspect this 10 yr old strobe won't be calibrated for the 10 week old camera anyway.
The Inon UCL165 'wet' lens tests weren't so encouraging. I know it's a 'close-focus' lens, but in air I could only focus on subjects less than 13 cm away, which is much more limited than when using it on my old C5050. Will this change at all in water? If not, I can't see myself being able to leave it place for extended periods as I'd hoped. That might bring the 'flip diopter' back into consideration, but $220 seems like a lot for a glorified hinge! Maybe I would be better putting that money towards switching to the 12-50 that Phil R advocates? I wish I'd understood all this before I chose the kit! I'll be interested to see some results at the wide end of that lens in the new flat port.
I finally get the thing in the water in 2 wks when I'm off to Heron ( 'island' not 'bridge'...) so will probably stick with what I've got til then and see how I get on...

Thanks to those whose advice in this and other threads have got me this far!
Chris
 

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