Dear Puffer Fish and Elanarchist,
First, I would like to thank you both for sharing those great images on this thread and on Flicker.
Puffer Fish, I'm glad that you have managed to achieve such wonderful results with your BigEye Lens and that you have managed to successfully cope with the issues you have previously brought up regarding this lens.
In general, I would say you got it right, when stating that the
lens fog and the
lens flare are two different issues and there are different ways to easily overcome both.
As stated on one of my previous posts here, a
lens flare is often encountered when using dome ports of any kind underwater, due to the reflection of the sun or the strobe on the lens. I encounter such glares myself with my DSLR dome ports as well. Learning how to use a dome port or lens underwater does involve practicing a few special techniques, but the good news is that it's all very simple. I hope you will find the following tips helpful:
1. It is always useful to make sure that the wings of the BigEye Lens are positioned in an angle that blocks both the strobe output and the sun. If required, the angle of the wings can be adjusted by simply rotating them, making sure that they are blocking the sun and direct output of the strobe. Images in which the sun is captured can be usually taken during mornings or afternoons, when the sun is not as strong as during the day. In general, the sun will have a much softer and successful effect during those hours of the day and will also cause less of a flare.
2. Make sure that the strobe is not positioned towards the lens. When shooting a nearby subject, for instance, it is better to position the strobe a little bit in front of the camera housing rather than behind it (so the light doesn't reflect on the BigEye Lens), or if you choose to position the strobe behind the camera housing, make sure it's not pointed towards the lens, but a little bit tilted outside.
As for the BigEye Lens
fogging up, please note that it makes a HUGE difference if the BigEye is stored in a dry and cool place prior the dive. I previously thought that this was just a "to be on the safe side" kind of tip, but my experience with BigEye Lenses, as well as compact digital housings, proved otherwise. For as long as you can prior to entering the water, keep the BigEye Lens (even with the housing it is installed on) in a dry, cool and shaded area. A padded bag with some silica gel packs inside can serve as a perfect solution in this case. If this bag can be stored inside an air conditioned room prior to the dive, even better!
However, even if you don't have a completely dry and cool place to store the lens in prior to entering the water and your BigEye Lens starts fogging up at the beginning of the dive due to temperature differences, please note that if you keep diving with it for about 10 minutes, the fog will disappear and then, Elanarchist, Photoshoping will not be required in order to remove those foggy areas...
Regarding the leaking issue brought up by Puffer Fish, please note that
all BigEye Lenses are assembled in a special lab, in which temperature, humidity and other relevant parameters are very carefully controlled. In addition, these lenses are designed to be perfectly watertight sealed up to a depth of 60m/200 feet and no water drops should accumulate inside. We have never encountered such a situation before, in which water leaked into the lens, but if a BigEye Lens has been damaged and is therefore no longer perfectly watertight sealed, it should be serviced. In this case, please contact us at
info@fantasea.com and we will advise regarding a service center the lens should be sent to for inspection and replacement.
Since the BigEye Lens has been released, we have received many positive feedbacks regarding its performance and it has become a very popular product. We are fully committed to devotionally maintain our high standards regarding the performance of this product in order to ensure your full satisfaction and excellent experience with it.
In the meantime, we wish you wonderful and enjoyable 2010 dives!
Best Wishes,
Sharon Rainis
Fantasea Line Content Manager