Hi there. So I've been thinking about getting a DSLR, and thanks to my buddy Ryan at Reef Photo in Fort Lauderdale, I was lucky enough to be able to try out the D200 for 2 days of diving. I used the Nikon D200 in the Sea & Sea DX200 housing, with an Inon Z220 strobe. I had the 60mm Nikkor lens on the camera body.
I thought the camera was great. It was very easy to use. It was really my first experience with a DSLR, and I hadn't shot with an SLR camera in about 10 years, since I last used a Nikon F4. The overall functions of the camera were very simple to use. It focused very quickly, and the housing had a focus lock which made it really easy to keep fish in focus.
Since I was experimenting, I mostly shot in Manual mode, but used P mode, and TTL as well to see what it was all about. The TTL worked really well, and out of the 180 pictures per day that I took, there were a lot of good ones, IMO, but I'm certainly no expert.
Overall, the housing was really awesome, and comparing it side by side to the ikelite, I see why the S&S is twice as much as the Ike. Although, since I'm not a pro, I'd probably go for the ike housing over the S&S, since I can buy the housing, and 2 DS-125's for the price of the S&S (or Subal) housing alone (without ports).
Looking through the viewfinder was no problem either, and the view screen on the D200 is HUGE compared to the Canon 20D which was my other potential choice. There are many other reasons why I think I'm going to get the D200 over the 20D hands down. Putting name brands aside. The menu functions on the Canon seem harder to use, with the wheel, vs the Nikon's - as well as several other important features. Granted the Nikon is a few hundred bucks more, but it was a very impressive camera overall.
Here's some of the pictures I took... Any honest criticism would be fine with me. I don't claim to be an expert, but I think they're pretty darn good for a first attempt.
I thought the camera was great. It was very easy to use. It was really my first experience with a DSLR, and I hadn't shot with an SLR camera in about 10 years, since I last used a Nikon F4. The overall functions of the camera were very simple to use. It focused very quickly, and the housing had a focus lock which made it really easy to keep fish in focus.
Since I was experimenting, I mostly shot in Manual mode, but used P mode, and TTL as well to see what it was all about. The TTL worked really well, and out of the 180 pictures per day that I took, there were a lot of good ones, IMO, but I'm certainly no expert.
Overall, the housing was really awesome, and comparing it side by side to the ikelite, I see why the S&S is twice as much as the Ike. Although, since I'm not a pro, I'd probably go for the ike housing over the S&S, since I can buy the housing, and 2 DS-125's for the price of the S&S (or Subal) housing alone (without ports).
Looking through the viewfinder was no problem either, and the view screen on the D200 is HUGE compared to the Canon 20D which was my other potential choice. There are many other reasons why I think I'm going to get the D200 over the 20D hands down. Putting name brands aside. The menu functions on the Canon seem harder to use, with the wheel, vs the Nikon's - as well as several other important features. Granted the Nikon is a few hundred bucks more, but it was a very impressive camera overall.
Here's some of the pictures I took... Any honest criticism would be fine with me. I don't claim to be an expert, but I think they're pretty darn good for a first attempt.
