Housing for my Nikon D850, is Ikelite a good choice?

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Platonas

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Location
Cyprus
Hello people,
I own the Nikon D850 and intent to buy the Ikelite housing for it.
Are there any negatives/disadvantages compared to other usually more expensive housings?
It is the first time that I consider to carry a DSLR underwater. So far I used to use compacts with cheap housings.

Looking forward for answers/advices.

Regards
P.
 
I've used Ikelite housings. They are fine, although the buttons tend to stick if you're really deep. I prefer aluminum housing with grooves for the O-rings so they don't flatten as much as the Ikelite housings do. I have a Subal housing for my D850. Some of my buddies use Sea & Sea.
 
I have been using Ikelite housings for many cameras including my Nikon D300 and now my Nikon D500. They are well made and robust. If I ever needed service, the people at Ikelite were very helpful.

There are other housings which are much more pricey but also very well made.
 
A couple of years ago, a housing dealer asked me what kind of housing I was considering purchasing for my Nikon D850. When I responded that I was thinking about buying an Ikelite, he growled, "Why would anyone put a D850 in an Ikelite housing?"

I responded, "To keep my camera dry." For what it's worth, I use Nauticam, Sea & Sea, and Subal housings in addition to an Ikelite. All do a great job if I do not manage to screw things up.

I have used an Ikelite housing for my Nikon D7100/D7200 cameras for around ten years. The housing was sent in for service work and an electronics upgrade back in 2017. Unfortunately, a user error a few weeks ago resulted in a flood that destroyed my D7200 camera, favorite lens, and housing electronics package. Again, the flood was the result of an error on my part and not because any issues with the housing design. Given the circumstances surrounding my flood event, the same thing could have happened with any of the housings I use.

The flooded housing was returned to Ikelite a couple of weeks ago for service/repair work. Just today, Ikelite notified me that my serviced/repaired housing was being shipped back to me. When I have sent Ikelite equipment in for service work, the service department has always taken very good care of me.

Now, when I get my housing back, I will be adding a vacuum valve system to it. I like the Vivid Leak Sentinel that I use on a Nauticam housing and I'll be shopping for one to fit the Ikelite. Hopefully, the addition of the vacuum valve will help me avoid future mistakes when distractions are present. A vacuum valve system is cheap insurance.

When you consider housing choices, it is worth factoring in what kind of strobes you intend to use and how you plan to trigger your strobes. An Ikelite paired with a D850 usually requires the use of a sync cable rather than fiber optic cords. Of course, manufacturers have electronics packages that will convert the sync signal from your D850 into a signal for fiber optics. The downside of these electronics packages is additional cost. My sync cables have always done a really good job.

Another consideration is dome port selection. Can you get the size and quality dome ports that you want to use? This said, the last time I looked, there were options for large, mineral glass dome ports available for Ikelite.

I still have not housed my D850. One of these days, I need to.

The short story is that Ikelite makes quality gear and provides exceptional service support!

-AZTinman
 
I've used Ikelite housings for all my DSLRs: D70 -> D300 -> D7000 and now D500.

While I have generally been happy with the housings I have to say that the one for my D500 is the worst yet and the one I've had the most problems with plus it ended up being more expensive that the previous housings but with probably lower quality.

With the D70, D300, and D7000 housings, they were "complete", other than lens ports, strobes and sync cables. The D500 comes with a single arm baseplate, no TTL electronics, short shutter lever. To get it to the same level as the older housings I had to buy a TTL convertor plus a replacement hot shoe cable and an extension for the shutter lever so I could use it with a double handle base plate. Fortunately, I was able to use one of the double handle base plates from my older housings.

Two TTL convertors have failed on me already, as well as the hot shue connectors. The electronics built into the older housings have not had any issues at all. I have also had to replace the strobe bulkhead because of corrosion.

I had to replace the base screw sockets on the D500 housing as they just wore out. This never happened with the older housings.

I have been using the older style lens ports which were compatible across all 4 housings. My D500 was the last housing to use that style so if I ever replace my camera and need a new housing, I'll also need to get all new lens ports as well.

Now, as others have said, Ikelite do provide excellent service, but when you live on the other side of the world and dive every weekend, the quality of the service loses its value as it is usually a 3-6 week round trip for service.
 
ATJ makes a good point about location and how long it takes for a round trip service trip. I needed a replacement lever for my Subal housing last spring. Subal had the part I needed, but the trip from Austria took over two months. Postage (Royal Austrian Post) cost me more than the new lever. Cyprus is a long ways from Indiana.

You might be better off buying a Subal. It would cost you lots more, but it's made in Europe. Subal housings have great reputations.

-AZTinman
 
Thank you every one for your answers. You help me a lot to make a decision.
I thing I will stick to Ikelite. The basic advantage is the fact there is a local "representative"' here and I can order everything by them. They have good service and I am very happy with the rest of my diving equipment.
I was intending to buy 3 different lens setups but from what I conclude reading many posts in the forum is that I can start with 2 setups and see what the future brings.
I intended to use my 14-24mm F2.8 ans the main lens, then the 90mm f2.8 macro for macros and as a third option the 24-70mm f2.8 lens (which I do not own yet) as a general coverage lens.
The third option is not an absolute necessity so I will drop it. Maybe I will consider it in the future.

Many thanks to all of you.

Regards
P.
 
Best wishes. Let us know how you make out.
 
I ordered it and expect it in mid November. Some parts of my order are not readily available so there will be a delay.
 
I've had two Ikelite housings for two different Nikon cameras going back to 2005. Only had one of those flood, and that was likely due to me also using it as a sound blimp (silencer) on a movie set, and I was pushing the housing buttons a lot every day while at work. (Out of the water)
Ikelite corporate was always friendly and helpful to me.
After getting two newer Nikon cameras and wanting to take them deeper, I got Aquatica housings, which also worked fine, although there was and has been some issues with the photo/video switch toggle buttons. And sending it back to Canada for repair is a bit of a hassle at times. But they've also been pretty helpful through the years.
When I get a newer Nikon mirrorless camera, I'll likely buy a Nauticam housing, as I've heard (and seen) good things with them, and they're in Florida.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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