jimw
Contributor
Any users of these housings? I am looking for opinions re: use of these in UW photography. Any notable problems?
Thanks in advance!
Thanks in advance!
Fantasea housings for Canon G15 and 16?
- Thread starter jimw
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Ran Mozaik
Contributor
After using them myself for quite some time (and selling them), I can tell you that these are among the best value housings in the market to date.
The G16 was one of the best selling housings last year and we have received only excellent feedback from all of our customers.
The double O-ring and moisture alarm are a big plus versus other polycarbonate housings and the ergonomics are super comfortable.
The only issue people are mentioning is the rectangular port which does not support many wide angle lens options. However Fantasea have excellent wide angle lenses available and the clip-on ability for lenses is actually an advantage in my opinion.
The G16 was one of the best selling housings last year and we have received only excellent feedback from all of our customers.
The double O-ring and moisture alarm are a big plus versus other polycarbonate housings and the ergonomics are super comfortable.
The only issue people are mentioning is the rectangular port which does not support many wide angle lens options. However Fantasea have excellent wide angle lenses available and the clip-on ability for lenses is actually an advantage in my opinion.
Yeah I use the FG-15 housing for the canon g15. They're well made and we'll featured and the 67mm adapter works quite well for the use of 3rd party macro or WA lenses if you get it. They're certainly the best featured and built polycarbonate housing for those cameras and for the price.
One issue I have encountered with my housing is that when inserted, the guide posts in my housing seemed to hold the camera in such a way that when zoomed in to use my macro diopter or the inon zm80 wideangle lens, the lens isn't perfectly centered. This means I need to do a little extra zooming to eliminate vignetting than should be absolutely necessary.
I've done a little tinkering to improve it by removing the rubber pads on the guide posts on one side. Not sure if anyone else's fantasea housing have been like this, though.
One issue I have encountered with my housing is that when inserted, the guide posts in my housing seemed to hold the camera in such a way that when zoomed in to use my macro diopter or the inon zm80 wideangle lens, the lens isn't perfectly centered. This means I need to do a little extra zooming to eliminate vignetting than should be absolutely necessary.
I've done a little tinkering to improve it by removing the rubber pads on the guide posts on one side. Not sure if anyone else's fantasea housing have been like this, though.
K
KeithG
Guest
a little off topic...but maybe relevant as an alternative elcheapo option?
Background drivel....
After years of using a Sea & Sea DX-1G (Rich GX100) I hesitantly upgraded to a canon G16 in order to get better macro shots. This was solely based upon G16 140mm equiv versus GX100 70mm equiv. Adding a SubSee +10 wet macro lens to my Ricoh accomplished nothing. It moved the minimum focal point further away which resulted in the same size images.
So I was a little skeptical of the G16 performance. Especially after I purchased it and found that the minimal focus distance at full zoom was around 30cm. Not the 3cm I was used to with my GX100 @ 70mm zoom.
So I went very elcheapo on the housing and bought a Meikon (which I then proceeded to drill a big hole in to mount a Nikonos bulkhead connector so I could connect my wired strobes...another story, but a big reason for my going with the cheapest housing available).
Good news: The G16 and Subsee +10 combo performed very well. Focus distance at maximum zoom was around 4? inches, and it produced a larger subject than my old GX100.
Better news: The elcheapo Meikon housing performed very well. The only noticeable performance difference was the shutter button feel was poor compared to my old sea & sea housing. It was sloppy enough that I often failed to only achieve a half press. A significant number of false shots. No big deal. It also featured a built in 67mm thread port for my macro Subsee lens. Which turned out to be a real pain. I was used to using a ReefNet flip-up adapter on my old housing. Having to screw and unscrew the macro lens sucked. (even my fish spotter divebuddy noticed me wasting time on it). Next project is to construct a flip hinge for the Subsee macro lens.
Other news: The Meikon housing did not provide controls for the front or back dial. But I never needed them, much. I mostly shot in manual mode (1/1000 & F8) and adjusted my strobe output level. Having direct control over aperture would be nice, but not required. Both aperture and shutter could be controlled via an spastic 2 handed dual button press.
Related news: the G16 appears to be a poor candidate for wide angle shots (camera lens design, not a housing issue!). It's lens works backwards compared to my GX100. My GX100 lens is fully extended at wide angle. Hence no issue with the housing vignetting as the lens is closest to the housing port at its wide angle setting. The G16 lens is fully extended at maximum zoom, but retracts for wide angle. Hence the camera causes wide angle vignetting as the lens is retracted from the housing port at wide angle.
Bottom line: Meikon works fine if you do not feel you need front & back dial access.
Background drivel....
After years of using a Sea & Sea DX-1G (Rich GX100) I hesitantly upgraded to a canon G16 in order to get better macro shots. This was solely based upon G16 140mm equiv versus GX100 70mm equiv. Adding a SubSee +10 wet macro lens to my Ricoh accomplished nothing. It moved the minimum focal point further away which resulted in the same size images.
So I was a little skeptical of the G16 performance. Especially after I purchased it and found that the minimal focus distance at full zoom was around 30cm. Not the 3cm I was used to with my GX100 @ 70mm zoom.
So I went very elcheapo on the housing and bought a Meikon (which I then proceeded to drill a big hole in to mount a Nikonos bulkhead connector so I could connect my wired strobes...another story, but a big reason for my going with the cheapest housing available).
Good news: The G16 and Subsee +10 combo performed very well. Focus distance at maximum zoom was around 4? inches, and it produced a larger subject than my old GX100.
Better news: The elcheapo Meikon housing performed very well. The only noticeable performance difference was the shutter button feel was poor compared to my old sea & sea housing. It was sloppy enough that I often failed to only achieve a half press. A significant number of false shots. No big deal. It also featured a built in 67mm thread port for my macro Subsee lens. Which turned out to be a real pain. I was used to using a ReefNet flip-up adapter on my old housing. Having to screw and unscrew the macro lens sucked. (even my fish spotter divebuddy noticed me wasting time on it). Next project is to construct a flip hinge for the Subsee macro lens.
Other news: The Meikon housing did not provide controls for the front or back dial. But I never needed them, much. I mostly shot in manual mode (1/1000 & F8) and adjusted my strobe output level. Having direct control over aperture would be nice, but not required. Both aperture and shutter could be controlled via an spastic 2 handed dual button press.
Related news: the G16 appears to be a poor candidate for wide angle shots (camera lens design, not a housing issue!). It's lens works backwards compared to my GX100. My GX100 lens is fully extended at wide angle. Hence no issue with the housing vignetting as the lens is closest to the housing port at its wide angle setting. The G16 lens is fully extended at maximum zoom, but retracts for wide angle. Hence the camera causes wide angle vignetting as the lens is retracted from the housing port at wide angle.
Bottom line: Meikon works fine if you do not feel you need front & back dial access.
The G - Series are not the most effective wide angle cameras for underwater use. Inon does however make the s100 zm80 Wide Angle lens to compensate for the issues inherent in compacts with longer focal lengths at the telephoto end.
You have to zoom in to 80mm and the vignetting is overcome with the lens still providing 100° field of view, or 150° if you add on the dome lens unit.
The only thing is that in order to avoid soft corners you need to stop down aperture to at least f6.3 - preferably f7.1 or f8 - so you won't easily capture images with just ambient light.
However you will have a generous amount of depth of field. If you are using a strobe you can shoot your subject very close while still capturing a great deal of the environment. So basically you can achieve good macro and close - focus wide - angle shots with a canon G camera.
As far as using a flip adapter for a macro diopter, I believe 10 bar - or FIT maybe? - make a flip adapter for the fantasea FG16, if screwing and unscrewing lenses is a pain.
Probably good to point out that the kind of shooting the g series' excells at will be vastly improved/easier with the use of strobes.
You have to zoom in to 80mm and the vignetting is overcome with the lens still providing 100° field of view, or 150° if you add on the dome lens unit.
The only thing is that in order to avoid soft corners you need to stop down aperture to at least f6.3 - preferably f7.1 or f8 - so you won't easily capture images with just ambient light.
However you will have a generous amount of depth of field. If you are using a strobe you can shoot your subject very close while still capturing a great deal of the environment. So basically you can achieve good macro and close - focus wide - angle shots with a canon G camera.
As far as using a flip adapter for a macro diopter, I believe 10 bar - or FIT maybe? - make a flip adapter for the fantasea FG16, if screwing and unscrewing lenses is a pain.
Probably good to point out that the kind of shooting the g series' excells at will be vastly improved/easier with the use of strobes.
Divezilla
Contributor
i have a nikon p1700 and fanasea housing for two years.
It's been great! Good Quality,great versatility.
Much better than the ikelites
It's been great! Good Quality,great versatility.
Much better than the ikelites
If you have more budget, I would suggest Ikelite or Recsea:
Ikelite Housing for Canon G16 (Fiber Optic)
Recsea WHC-G16 Housing for Canon G16
Ikelite Housing for Canon G16 (Fiber Optic)
Recsea WHC-G16 Housing for Canon G16
OP
jimw
Contributor
Prefer to spend bucks on a polycarbonate housing and yes, I know RecSea now has one at a higher price. I am looking for "more for less", and possibly the Fantasea might fill the bill. In this digital age, metal housings last much longer than what is housed, so why spend the bucks on'em?
I am now using a Canon housing that is showing wear after hundreds of dives and 5 years with never a drop inside. The S95 still works great as well, but is being upgraded to probably a G7x I'm now thinking.
Jim - the Canon G7X is great, I've used it a lot recently - and both the Fantasea G7X (when it comes out) and the Recsea CW G7x are great "value" options imho.
Scott Gietler
Scott Gietler
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