Sony RX100 - Master compilation thread

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alcina

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This seems to be an increasingly popular choice for underwater and our SB Sticky for Everything Photo desperately needs updating.

So if you are using this system please reply here with your thoughts on the pros & cons, what housing etc you are using and any other bits & bobs you might think would be helpful to the next person. Photo examples embedded here so people don't have to click away are always hepful. I'll get it added to the Sticky thread ASAP.

Thanks!

EDIT: this thread is now part of the Everything Photo Sticky. Please keep positing information, images, videos and thoughts about this system here in this thread - you guys are awesome!
 
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I have been one of the first users of the RX100 mostly for video and I have tested extensively this little marvel a collection of in depth articles is on my blog
Interceptor121 Underwater Video | Tip & Tricks for Digital Compact Cameras Users search for the tag RX100

Those articles are really a bit too rich for a sticky so the first thing to consider is if the RX100 is the right camera for you. It may be useful to go there to look into some details once past the stage of owning an RX100 as some of the topics are really detailed.

The RX100 is the camera of choice for the serious compact user that is looking for a camera that fits in the pocket and gives incredible image quality and is in good command of photography basics such exposure, depth of field and lighting.

If you are in the market for an RX100 ensure you have sufficient budget for wet lenses and strobes to avoid disappointments, as the RX100 performs poorly compared to smaller sensor compact with just housing and camera and is more difficult to use.

Recommended for:
  • Shooters downgrading from DSLR or mirrorless and wanting a camera that fits in the pocket
  • Wide angle with ambient light
  • Close focus wide angle with a fisheye or semi fisheye lens
  • Video
  • Advanced users that can use manual focus

Not so good for
  • Macro - this can be fixed with diopters (at least +10 required) but requires manual focus see above
  • Novices
  • People on a budget - the camera is accessory hungry

I have written a small piece to compare the RX100M2 to the original RX100 however it needs a complete test in water as the comparison is only based on land tests
Sony RX100M2? First Impressions | Interceptor121 Underwater Video
 
I shoot an RX100 with Nauticam housing and Wide Angle lens.

I am very happy with the cameras performance but I also agree with the above poster that it is not a good camera set up for a novice.
The reason is that with the 1.8 aperture and large sensor it has a very shallow depth of field at 1.8. This becomes a problem when a novice shoots in Auto mode because in lower light situations the camera will always move towards the 1.8 aperture. Underwater this can be too shallow to get the proper subject in focus since the shooter is moving and many times the subject is moving.

If the user is familiar with manual controls then the camera is very good. By shooting manual you can adjust the aperture and shutter speed to get the best balance of Depth of field and shutter speed to freeze motion then use the ISO setting to compensate for the loss of ambient light.

The only thing I wish the camera had was auto iso in manual mode. Then I could dial in the aperture and shutter speed I want and let the camera adjust iso to keep the shots properly exposed. Of course I would like to have limits on the iso like it has in other modes so that the camera wouldn't go up to 1600 or more. For me 800 is my absolute max for decent photos of wrecks.

The video is excellent and the image stabilization in the video does a good job and saves a lot of time trying to smooth out video later in the computer. Lately I have been preferring to shoot more video with the camera. Depending on the video settings you can also snap a 17mp still shot without interrupting the video so that is a nice bonus.
 
I too shoot the Rx100 in Nauticam housing with two z-240 strobes. I use either Inon wet macro lenses or Inon UWL-H100 + Dome II.

Like the others have mentioned, this camera should be shot in manual mode underwater. I have never used any other mode with it, and I don't use any other mode on the surface with this camera or any other for that matter.

Get the Nauticam LCD magnifier accessory. It makes seeing the screen & framing your shots much easier, especially if you are shooting macro and using manual focus.

My pro/con list would match those above.

Link to my first set of photos taken with it: Bonaire 2013
 
I need to get some strobes and I've been looking at that lens.

Here are some of my ambient light shots in lake huron. These were shot between iso 400 and 800 at about 65ft.
I am using an older Ikelite w-20 lens. It's pretty soft in the corners and in some of the shots it is soft in the middle because it was fogging.

William H Barnum Wreck - a set on Flickr

Here is a video from the same dive:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxykZgQsLAc
I shot the video on full auto. The only thing I did was adjust the white balance at depth.
 
I'm a noob on the RX100 as well, and this folder contains my first attempts with the camera off Turks and Caicos using .jpg format instead of RAW. I'm using an Ike housing and a single YS-D1 strobe but it's probably a good illustration of what a new user can expect. I've also been able to take some decent shots in green water using RAW format (allowing much better processing with Light Room) but I haven't posted those yet.
 
I am a long time DSLR shooter that at one point asked myself "what am I really doing with my photos???". I will not bore you with that process but in the end I sold all my DSLR gear and bought the RX100...I do not regret that for a moment. The RX100 is a fantastic camera, is it perfect? No, it does not shoot Macro on par with a DSLR or 4/3 with a good 60mm or 100mm macro lens. But it fits IN YOUR POCKET! With diopters the RX100 can shoot fair macro.

The best part is the ablity to use wet lenses. I have added almot all the extras you can and it is still HALF the price, size and weight of it's DSLR "equivalent". For 80% of the folks out there this system will meet or exceed your needs.

The following gallery where all taken with the RX100
Aquablue Dreams

The system used*
System Packages :: Compact Systems :: Optical Ocean Nauticam RX100 & YS-D1 Ultimate Package -


Equipment Used
Sony RX100
Nauticam RX100 Housing
Nauticam 67mm Flip Diopter Holder
2x Sea & Sea YS-D1 Strobes
10Bar SSHL-SSHL 90 Degree Optical Sync Cords
10Bar 67mm Lens Holder
2x Light & Motion Sola 4000
Inon UWL-H100 28M67 Wide Conversion Lens (Type 2) Give 100 Degrees of view
Inon Dome Lens Unit II For UWL-H100 (Dry Dome used with H100 Lens) Gives 144 Degrees of view
Subsea +10 Diopter
I-DAS Strobe Arms & Clamps
Dual Modular Tray*

The Sony RX100
I found the build quality of the camera solid and the button layout practical. I did find when shooting on land my thumb hitting the video Rec button on occasion. It is on par in size with the Canon S110 and smaller than most others in the class. The menu system is user friendly and straightforward to navigate. Get a spare battery with the camera so you can always have one charging while you are shooting.

As many have mentioned it is a little weak with macro and yes you have to go into Photo to white balance for video. But I did not find either of these to be deal breakers. I will put up the results from this camera against most cropped DSLRs and 4/3 systems. The RX100II is out and the improvements made are enough I would buy it. If you are on a budget deals will be had on the RX100.

Nauticam RX100 Housing
The housing meets Nauticam high quality build standards. Just drop the camera in and start shooting. The locking system is about as simple and secure as possible. A key feature is the housing gives you access to all the cameras controls. This is crucial for those who shoot in Manual, as I do. The rear and front dials move smoothly making adjusting Shutter Speed and Aperture easy. I assigned the Fn button on the back of the housing to ISO, but you can customize as you like. This is a camera and housing you can “grow” into if you are shooting in Auto and TTL.

As a long time DSLR shooter I enjoyed being able use wide-angle and macro wet lenses underwater. I had hoped to use the Nauticam Flip Diopter holder with both the Subsea +10 diopter and Inon H100 W/A lenses but that was not ideal. When you attach the Inon H100 WA lens to the Nauticam Flip Diopter holder and are zoomed to the widest angle you get some minor vignette. You can use it but you will have to zoom in a stop.

When concentrating on wide angle the Inon H100 was threaded directly onto the Nauticam port, with the Subsea in the lens holder on the I-Das arm. When changing lenses there would be a point when I was holding both lenses and that is a bit awkward. In the future, I will add a second 67mm Lens Holder to a strobe arm. Thus you can shoot without a wet lens while having both available. If concentrating on Macro the Nauticam Flip Diopter holder works great.

I used four Stix large floats on the strobe arms. It would take 6 to make the system very close to neutral. Regardless, compared to a DSLR system even without the Stix floats the set-up was easy to hold and dive with just one hand.

Inon H100 lens and dome
For Fiji’s colorful walls I was very happy to have the Inon H100 wet lens and its companion dome. This is a two-part system. The H100 is a standard wet-lens that gives you 100 degrees of coverage. The dome attaches to the H100 and is a “dry” dome, extending coverage to 144 degrees. The dome has 2 o-rings and sealing system employing a collar/back-plate and 6 bolts. So the dome cannot be removed from the H100 lens underwater. The dome did occasionally fog going from the outside camera table-to sun while on the 5min skiff ride-then into the cooler water. I would try to keep the housing and dome out of the sun as much as possible or throw a wet towel over it.

We have found a good option is the Fish Eye Fix UWL 28 that gives you a 144 degrees of view.

General System Performance Underwater

Pros


  • Native lens is good for “don’t know what you will see” diving.

  • Quick autofocus in mid-wide angle shooting, even in low light.

  • Full manual control.

  • Good JPEG Fine output but has option for RAW or RAW+JPEG.

  • Excellent system for W/A photography when used with the Inon H1OO lens and dome.

  • Very good results when shooting Auto and S&S YS-D1 strobes in TTL.

  • Compact size of system when compared to a DSLR or even 4/3 systems. Carry-on with strobes, batteries, wet-lenses, everything I needed to shoot was >15lbs.

  • FLEXIBILITY! Ability to shoot Leaf Fish and Landscapes on one dive.

  • With no mirror you can shoot at +300 shutter speeds for pleasing sun-ball/sunray shots.
Cons

  • If this camera has a “weakness” it is it only has “fair” macro capability. When used with the Subsea +10 diopter you can shoot dime sized subjects but you will be just inches away. On the upside with 20 megapixels you can crop to compensate.

  • Have to wait for on board flash to recycle. If you are accustomed to electrical syncs you will find you have to time your shots more.

  • Focus when shooting macro can be inconsistent.

  • No viewfinder.

  • Nauticam housing did fog a couple of times, would suggest silica packet/s.

  • H100 Lens and Dome combo also can fog if going from tropical sun to cool water. Just try to keep in shade or under wet towel.
Conclusions
This is a great system! One that will be in my bag from here on out. For fish portrait-wide angle work, with the right wet-lenses, I think results can be achieved that will make some think twice about buying systems 3-5 times the cost, weight and size. Again you can do macro with diopters but the results will not be on par with a DSLR or 4/3 systems and a good 60mm lens. So I am not saying this camera is on par with a DSLR or 4/3 systems...but when the DSLR folks are shooting nudibranchs and the whale shark swims by they are out of luck and the Sony RX100 can get a fantastic shot!
 
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Excellent information, thanks!! I'll get it loaded into the Sticky soon.

Could I ask for a few photos to be embedded here, please? Links to galleries are great, but sometimes people want an instant visual. Appreciate it :)
 
Have to wait for on board flash to recycle. If you are accustomed to electrical syncs you will find you have to time your shots more.

hi, i don't know with the ys-d1 but with my inons d2000 i don't have to wait... the recycle is very fast...
the inons in manual without the magnet inside take the advantage of ACC(advanced cancel circuitry)... and the the difference of recycle time is huge! :D:D
i think that you can do the test easly:wink:
now i have the lcd magnifier and it's much better than the standard magnifier of my old canon 600d... it's a pleasure composing the image with this piece of equipment :eyebrow::)
bye
fabio
 
Strobe(s) choice for the RX100
Due to the fact that you can't operate the internal flash in manual (a limitation of the RX100) but only in TTL if you are in a situation where the on board flash gives a full dump you need to wait for the camera to be ready this can take up to 7 seconds
Though all inon and sea and sea strobe models work with the RX100 it is recommended to have two strong strobes for wide angle work so that the camera doesn't produce long full dumps ending up with short battery and long wait between pictures
The other key reason for that is that the RX100 due to shallow depth of field and relatively soft corners at least on the MKI needs apertures around f/8 and less for close focus wide angle if you want a razor sharp image compared to f/5.6 of other compacts this means you need a guide number 7.2 higher for the same photo
For this reason the ideal strobes for the RX100 are the sea and sea YS-D1 and the inon Z-240
Inferior models like YS-01 or S/D2000 are only good for close up work with limited field of view. If used at wide angle will require shooting at wider aperture and the pictures won't be as sharp
So for superior wide angle with the RX100 you are looking at >$1400 worth of strobes
As I wrote before this is not a budget set up for pictures!!!
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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