RandomGuy1
Contributor
Does anyone have any opinions on this strobe? I am looking at setting up my first underwater rig and this looks to be a reasonable choice.
Sea and Sea YS-03
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It's a good deal, with the tray and arm included for $349. It shoots ttl only, and only with optical slave. Your camera has to support ttl in the mode you want to shoot in and you'll need to fire your internal flash at full power, rather than turning it down to minimum and adjusting the strobe to your desired level. The strobe has no adjustment, so you'll need to be very comfortable with the exposure settings on your camera and use your +/- to adjust the strobe. For cameras such as some models of Canon, which don't shoot ttl in manual exposure modes, it will require you to use the camera's auto settings and limit your artistic freedom.
Would anyone be able to give some more information on this? I have a Canon S95. How limiting would the lack of adjustment be? Would this still be a good purchase for the S95 or would I be better off paying more for a strobe that I can adjust?
I am used to using manual mode but have no experience of external strobes. This set up seems a reasonable price (I have been put off buying strobes previously because of the price) but I am still not sure how good a purchase this would be.
jjwebster
Contributor
If you shoot manual you are better off getting a YS-02, I use this strobe with the S100. Using only the exposure compensation adjustment I imagine would be quite limiting as you will only be able to shoot in Auto, Av & Tv are these are the only modes compatible with TTL (I believe).
Granted you have to make the strobe power adjustments yourself/manually but this isn't too difficult to get the hang off.
However, at this point people will say you should consider getting a YS-01 or YS-D1 for the future. For the moment I'm happy with the S100 and YS-02 combo but if potentially you will upgrade your camera in the future you might want a strobe that does TTL in manual.
Also check diver vision if you want a good deal on S&S strobes, they ship to the UK and you shouldn't need to pay import tax as the value isn't exactly declared.
Granted you have to make the strobe power adjustments yourself/manually but this isn't too difficult to get the hang off.
However, at this point people will say you should consider getting a YS-01 or YS-D1 for the future. For the moment I'm happy with the S100 and YS-02 combo but if potentially you will upgrade your camera in the future you might want a strobe that does TTL in manual.
Also check diver vision if you want a good deal on S&S strobes, they ship to the UK and you shouldn't need to pay import tax as the value isn't exactly declared.
I think you would be much happier to spend a bit more and get the YS-01 rather than YS-03.
YS-01 does TTL or manual. You can switch between manual and TTL even between shots.
And... with the S95, S100, etc.... they do not do TTL flash in manual mode... so to use those cameras in manual, you must have the manual option.
The biggest jump in the quality of your underwater photography will be the day you decide to learn manual (manual shutter, manual aperture, manual iso, and manual flash).
But it is nice to have the TTL some times.... especially when you want to let a friend use it to take shots of yourself; they won't have to know how to operate manual.
Look at the difference in price and figure out what that comes out to per dive when you divide the cost over ten years or so. You'll probably decide to get the YS-01 instead (or maybe even the YS-D1)
YS-01 does TTL or manual. You can switch between manual and TTL even between shots.
And... with the S95, S100, etc.... they do not do TTL flash in manual mode... so to use those cameras in manual, you must have the manual option.
The biggest jump in the quality of your underwater photography will be the day you decide to learn manual (manual shutter, manual aperture, manual iso, and manual flash).
But it is nice to have the TTL some times.... especially when you want to let a friend use it to take shots of yourself; they won't have to know how to operate manual.
Look at the difference in price and figure out what that comes out to per dive when you divide the cost over ten years or so. You'll probably decide to get the YS-01 instead (or maybe even the YS-D1)
We think the YS-03 a good inexpensive starter package. TTL seems to work with most cameras we have in the shop, even Olympus, which is finicky with the YS-01. But it has only a flex arm and no manual control. For many who only do a trip or so a year, this is fine, and it's a great price.
The YS-01 also has a target light and manual control. You'll have to buy a tray and B&J arms, which in the long run is more adaptable. A typical YS-01 package will run about $250-300 or more.
The YS-02 is discontinued and going away, btw.
Jack
The YS-01 also has a target light and manual control. You'll have to buy a tray and B&J arms, which in the long run is more adaptable. A typical YS-01 package will run about $250-300 or more.
The YS-02 is discontinued and going away, btw.
Jack
mozaik
Registered
The YS-03 is offers an excellent value for money. We are doing some test dives with it as we speak. I believe it will perform well in Canon manual mode as well. Will simply require you to control the flash level manually from the camera itself.
I was a little dubious about the YS-03 when I first saw it, but the more I think about, the more it makes sense, and I think it is actually a much better solution than the YS-02 for a first strobe. As you learn UW photography, it can be very helpful to have a strobe that you can turn on and then forget about.
As you get more comfortable, you will likely want some manual control as well, and you may want a second strobe. Now you can get a strobe with manual control later, and run a cord from that strobe to the YS-03 to give you manual control over two strobes with only one switch.
The only downside I see, is that you cannot easily have two strobes that fire at different levels without reverting to changing camera settings. You would also need to upgrade the tray and arms at a later date, which I don't see as a big deal since photographers get new arm segments when they want to try new things anyways.
As you get more comfortable, you will likely want some manual control as well, and you may want a second strobe. Now you can get a strobe with manual control later, and run a cord from that strobe to the YS-03 to give you manual control over two strobes with only one switch.
The only downside I see, is that you cannot easily have two strobes that fire at different levels without reverting to changing camera settings. You would also need to upgrade the tray and arms at a later date, which I don't see as a big deal since photographers get new arm segments when they want to try new things anyways.
jjwebster
Contributor
So if you shoot in manual with a S95, you will only have 3 levels of strobe adjustment? As you can only control this in 3 steps on the camera itself....
Ran Mozaik
Contributor
Just posted a review on the YS-03: Sea & Sea YS-03 Review and Test Shots
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