D7100 housing and lighting ideas.

[Benzonar]

Ding Dong

 

[Safety Stop]

Doesn`t matter which housing you'll take, you still need to add ports, strobes, focus light, etc. so at the other end, the Iklite is still half the price of a Nauticam.

... The housing price is about half that of the Nauticam. But once you add ports, strobes, focus lights and so on, the price difference is not that much.

 

[jmasin]

I just got my D7100 and NA housing this week!

It's a piece of art... I can't wait to start shooting with it. NA-D7100, 2x S&S YS-01 and right now just 105mm macro and port.

 

[Magrone]

The D7100 has a 1.3X Crop Mode. So, one 'could' argue to skip using the 1.4TC + Tokina 10-17mm and just use the Tokina alone in Crop Mode (and save the additional cost of the TC and port extension).

The downside is Crop Mode reduces the megapixel size from 24MP down to 15MP (which is still reasonable).

I don't really understand the fascination with putting the 1.4 Kenko TC on the Tokina, unless it is for very specific Macro/wide shots via the Zen Mini dome; ie large nudi + a sunball. For this application this setup performs reasonably well, but I think if this is kind of shot you are after you are better off shooting (the much less expensive) inon Bugeye lens on a compact. The Kenko TC makes the Tokina's AF TERRIBLY slow and honestly small subjects, such as gobies, still look small in the frame even with port right on them. I fail to see the advantage of shooting a slow version of the Tokina for anything else. If you're after more reach, the Nikkor 10-24 does a great job behind a dome.

Also, why would you ever want to crop the Tokina lens!? This lens is for getting close and shooting WIDE. The abiilty to zoom to 17mm helps with framing if you can't get closer to the subject, But if you are constantly unsatisfied with the subject being too small in the frame (sharks?), maybe a different lens, ie rectilinear zoom would be a better idea.

 

[AussieByron]

Dont know about you but my Tokina 10-17mm with the Kenko pro 300 1.4x TC focuses quick. Putting the TC on the tokina turns it into a very versatile combination especially when you dont want go out and buy a rectilinear zoom like the Nikkor 10-24 or tokina 11-16. Shooting with a min dome with the Tokina TC combination you wouldnt be shooting Gobies or anything skitsh like that your shooting stuff which doesnt move much like Scorpion fish with a nice background and at the same time you can shoot that same combination behind the bars of cage shooting GWS.

So I think the $150 Kenko 1.4x TC is an excellent additon to the kit bag with the Tokina 10-17mm. Its also great on the 60mm Macro if you want a little extra reach.

Regards Mark

 

[BoltSnap]

Since the 7100 is a DX camera, this means that there is already a 1.5 crop factor, what does the "1.3X Crop Mode" mean? Is it another 1.3 on top of the 1.5 crop inherent in the DX cameras or does it mean something else?

 

[Magrone]

Dont know about you but my Tokina 10-17mm with the Kenko pro 300 1.4x TC focuses quick. Putting the TC on the tokina turns it into a very versatile combination especially when you dont want go out and buy a rectilinear zoom like the Nikkor 10-24 or tokina 11-16. Shooting with a min dome with the Tokina TC combination you wouldnt be shooting Gobies or anything skitsh like that your shooting stuff which doesnt move much like Scorpion fish with a nice background and at the same time you can shoot that same combination behind the bars of cage shooting GWS.

So I think the $150 Kenko 1.4x TC is an excellent additon to the kit bag with the Tokina 10-17mm. Its also great on the 60mm Macro if you want a little extra reach.

Regards Mark

This is a shot of two Gobies on a whip coral that I took with the Tokina 10-17+ Kenko Pro 300+ Zen Mini combo. Snooted via fiber optics, dome about an inch or two away from the gobies. And yes, the AF is very slow. This shot took about 20 minutes to compose and it is still cropped about 20%. As you can see, you can't expect to get GREAT depth of field to where the surface of the water, or a diver in the background would be sharp (All the photos you see with tiny macro subjects with a sharp foreground+background are achieved by double exposures). This was shot at F20 and that was the best I could do with the sunball at this time of day. The AF is so slow in fact, I had trouble getting anything moving, such as anemone fish, in sharp focus. I still don't understand the versatility. If sharks are getting close, such as in a feeding situation, the tokina alone would suffice. If they are further away, say a couple of feet, I would want a lens with AF fast enough to get the shot I'm after (ie change lens to 10-24). Realistically, I can't foresee a situation where I would need a lens that allowed me to shoot a scorpion fish and a great white shark on the same dive, or even succesive dives. My kenko combo performs so slow I wouldn't chance it with shooting sharks period. Maybe I was unlucky and got a faulty version.

Also, you will need a 20mm extension ring $300 (nauticam)+ new zoom ring $175 (nauticam) to go with your $150-200 Kenko PRO 300. if you are shooting with a zen mini dome (and you will have to if you want wide angle macro) that's another $900. So that's $1500+ to make this combo work. The versatility is still subjective IMHO. I understand there are a lot of people that like this combo. But for the money, I'd rather invest in another lens and shoot behind the same big dome with appropriate extension rings.

 

[AussieByron]

Tony you forget that alot of people have opted for the mini dome as they prefer to travel with that than a larger 8-9inch dome. The only thing which a mini dome doesnt perform well is in under and over shots. With the mini dome you can shoot the Tokina by itself for ultra wide and then add as you said a Kenko TC, extension Ring, and zoom gear and you have a completely different setup to shoot CFWA and get your dome into spots where a 8inch or bigger wouldnt go. If my case I already have the Aquatica extension Ring as its the same for when you use the Tokina 10-17mm alone with a larger dome so at the end of the day all its going to cost me is an zoom ring for $130 and the kenko TC for $150. The Aquatica mini dome is $699. You say for the money you rather invest in a different lens like the Nikkor 10-24mm which is about $800 but it still has to be shot behind a big dome and nowhere near as good at CFWA than the Tokina 10-17mm Kenko combo. Maybe you need to check your Kenko TC as mine AF almost as quick as the Tokina without a TC.

Here is Alex Mastards review on Mini domes which might interest people looking for a more versatile options especially when they have bought a brand new housing: Alexander Mustard

Regards Mark

 

[Magrone]

Mark, I realize that people buy the Zen dome for travel and for CFWA opportunities. I personally like the dome, BUT, like ALex mentions, the image corner sharpness on apertures larger than F11 is less than desirable. For this reason, I only use the dome when shooting sunballs at small apertures, F14+, when I am more concerened with shooting smaller stuff in tight spaces, which by the way will require some creativity with lighting technique, especially when shooting larger strobes (ie Inon z240s).

I am merely suggesting that a new photographer try to figure what kind of shooting they prefer before spending the money, rather than simply follow the latest trends. But I guess trial and error really is the best way anyway. That's how I did it

BTW, the nikkor 10-24 actually does very well in CFWA situations. It focuses as close as the dome, which makes it atleast as useful as the Tokina 10-17 when shooting behind, yes, the dreaded big dome. Though, I actually prefer shooting big domes myself for the improved corner sharpness and the wider perspective they give to the photo. The 10-24 is also a BREEZE to light cleanly in CFWA situations. This is always a challenge with the Tokina when bringing the strobes in.

Also, the Zen mini actually is capable of shooting over/unders quite well (I have examples), despite what the reviews say, it just requires calm water.

 

[AussieByron]

Tony I have found that the corner sharpness not a real issue when I use my Aquatica mini dome even from apertures f8. But saying that, I personally prefer shooting a larger dome as I mainly shoot big stuff at home as the larger dome balances out my rig better and I prefer it when shooting off hand. Unfortunately I dont get dead calm water where I am so my little 100mm mini dome struggles to pull off under/overs. The other benefit of Tokina 10-17mm with 1.4x TC is that the virtual image when its behind a 100mm/4 inch mini dome compared with say the Nikon 10-24mm behind a 8inch.

I would think that the Nikkor 10-24mm would be alot easier to shoot regarding strobe placement as it has alot less of a narrower angle of view when compared with the Tokina 10-17mm (Nikkor 10-24 about 100-52 degrees vs Tokina 10-17mm 180-100 degrees)

Your correct in saying that the new photographer has to try and figure out what kind of shooting they prefer or what they can do the most and concentrate in getting the best setup for that situation and thats after they have worked out how much they can spend on the project. Some think that its just buying the camera and the housing and thats it...........

But at the end of the day people posting question on here are trying to cut out the trial by error and gather information from those that have like ourselves spent alot of time and also alot of money on what works and what doesnt for their way of shooting. They just have to take out which information is applicable to them and to ask more questions to refine what they want to know.

Regards Mark