Setup for Canon 20D

[Riger]

Hello all,

I am planning to get an Ikelite Housing to use with my 20D.

Can anyone please provide guidance regarding
(1) a 2 strobe setup
(2) choice of lens for general and close up shooting (thinking 50mm 1.8 prime or 10-20mm Sigma or the 18-55mm)
(3) any other useful info I should consider for shooting underwater.

Thank you in advance

Regards
Richard

 

[alcina]

Probably the Ike 125s for strobes.

For lenses, the Sigma 17-70 for an all rounder. Or if you love WA the Canon 10-22 (or Sigma 10-20 which is also excellent and saves a few bucks). If you want true macro, the Canon 60mm macro.

There's a lens list in the Sticky that talks about various suggestions and is an excellent starting place. You can get there via the Pink Link in my signature.

 

[vkalia]

I shoot with a 20D as well. My thoughts:

(1) a 2 strobe setup
(2) choice of lens for general and close up shooting (thinking 50mm 1.8 prime or 10-20mm Sigma or the 18-55mm)
(3) any other useful info I should consider for shooting underwater.

1/ Inon Z240s. Best strobes in the market for price/value.

2/ The typical 18-55 standard zoom is a good "all purpose" lens, but as far as I am concerned, it falls in a netherland - your main underwater shot types are fish portraits, wide angle and closeup, and rarely will a single lens suffice for all 3.

I have a 17-70 that I bought intending to use as my "scouting" lens, but it rarely goes on the camera. I find I get better results when I focus on one type of photography and spend time on it, rather than swimming around trying to shoot whatever I can spot "General" shooting is probably the best way to get mediocre results, IMO. Better to get specialized lenses.

IMO, a good 2-lens starter kit would be (1) the EF-S 60mm macro or the Sigma 50mm macro (both of which go to 1:1, I think - that is a lot better than the 50/1.8 for close-up work) and (2) either the 10-20 Sigma or the Tokina 10-17FE.

The 50mm macro works well for macro + fish portraits. I use the 100mm macro as i like the greater working distance it gives me - for macros only, it is probably a better lens. However, the 50mm is more versatile.

For WA, I own both the 10-20 and the 10-17FE, and the fisheye goes on the camera every time I need WA. But the 10-20 is a better lens if you want to use the same setup for land photography as well.

3/ Martin Edge's book on underwater photography, and Jim Church's essential guide to composition. Excellent books. And dive a lot. And start stocking up on 20D bodies

Vandit

 

[Riger]

Vandit,

Thanks for the excellent advice.

I will probably end up (as you suggested) focusing (pun intended) on one type of photography (at least in phases) and have my trusty buddy (my Wife) drag the point and shoot Sony for the opportunity stuff.

I have just placed my order at amazon for those two books. Thanks for the recommendation.

I bought a 30D to replace my 20D for Airside shooting and will look out for some more 20's.

I assume the lighting you have mentioned is compatible with the Ikelite housing ... ?

Thanks again for all the info.

Regards
Richard

 

[ScubaBasics]

If you are using an Ikelite housing, I would stay with the superior DS-125 strobes from Ikelite. Ikelite has a great reputation on service and is fair if the product fails. Inon strobes I have heard horror stories about service. I believe in staying with 1 manufacturer so if you have a problem, it does not turn into a finger pointing match. It is like having a US Divers regulator and adding a Mares octopus. It would be better to have an US Divers octopus so if there was a problem you only have 1 mfgr to deal with.

The lens selections mentioned above would be a great start. 10-17mm and 60mm macro.

 

[alcina]

I haven't heard the horror stories about Inon strobes I've been using them for years and probably wouldn't look to change over if I were buying a new strobe now.

I suggested Ike's as you are getting the Ike housing and sometimes people are more comfortable sticking with as much of one brand as possible. One thing I know to be true, you can't go wrong with either set up

I agree with vkalia that the 60mm macro is the way to go for macro and a bit of versatility. I love this lens.

I don't agree with the idea that putting something like the 17-70 will garner more mediocre shots on a given dive. It just has a different purpose and you have to dive within that purpose, just like with any lens. I adore my 17-70 and it's the lens I put on when I am a) diving a new site that I'm not sure of and b) diving a site I know well and know that I will have both scenic and small creatures that I would like to shoot. Seems to work for me

One important thing to remember is to get the lenses that help you shoot what you like to shoot. I'm not a huge wide angle fan, so my 10-22 doesn't sit on my camera for underwater work very often at all. I use it a lot on land, though. I adore macro and getting close to stuff so the 60, 100 and 17-70 get the most underwater time for me. I even use my 17-70 for things like whale sharks and manta rays as often the 10-22 is too wide for my purposes.

 

[vkalia]

I assume the lighting you have mentioned is compatible with the Ikelite housing ... ?

Yep, I believe so.

I have to add - I think Inon's service is not comparable to that of Ikelite. I dont have a dealer in my neck of the woods, and so ordered from Japan. The strobe came with

 

[vkalia]

I don't agree with the idea that putting something like the 17-70 will garner more mediocre shots on a given dive. It just has a different purpose and you have to dive within that purpose, just like with any lens. I adore my 17-70 and it's the lens I put on when I am a) diving a new site that I'm not sure of and b) diving a site I know well and know that I will have both scenic and small creatures that I would like to shoot. Seems to work for me

I didnt mean to imply it was the lens that was causing the problem. It is more a matter of mindset - atleast for me.

I too would take the 17-70 for shooting things like sharks, etc. which come close but not too close. But in that case, I am already getting in the water with a shooting plan in mind.

OTOH, the problem starts when there is a wide range of choices. We too have sites where you can get everything from scenics to small critters. I have taken the 17-70 there and I find that *I* tend to get distracted by choice. As a result, I dont give enough attention to a particular subject and even if I want to, I find that the 17-70 doesnt go wide enough or magnify enough (I shoot mostly WA and macro). For me, swimming around, shooting a bit of this and a bit of that doesnt work.

I find that this works well for a lot of my wildlife/nature photography workshop participants as well. Initially, they all run around shooting a lot. By the end, they focus on fewer subjects but take more meaningful photos. However, it is by no means a universal truth. Everyone has their own style, I suppose.

Vandit

 

[alcina]

Yup, to get better results, diving with a purpose is a good thing

 

[junior2725]

I just recently got the Ikelite housing and two ds-125 strobes for my 20d. I personally would recommend the Ikelite strobes because they can utilize the ttl circuitry. I know this is not a requirement but I like having it available. I purchased the canon 10-22mm lens and 100mm macro lens. Definitely with my lens choices I have to plan to shoot either macro or wide angle and there isn't any in between. I love my wide angle lens. The macro lens can be a little difficult but as I use it more and more, the more I like it. The 60mm macro lens would probably have been a better starting point. The strobes work great and I have heard great things about Ikelite's service. I actually already flooded the sync cord connection on each strobe the first time I took the camera down. It was in the pool and luckily it still worked. Good luck in your purchase. Whatever you get, you will have lots of fun with it.

Michelle