beginner 1 x DS1 or 2 x YS-01

[mth1993]

I am a fairly new diver putting together my first setup. I have an Olympus E-PL1 with the standard housing and a 14-42 lens.

I have a chance to for almost the same money get 2x YS-01 ($50 more) or a YS-D1. As a beginner I am leaning towards the DS1 but would like feedback.

I have 4 days in late may / early June that I will be diving in a Ohio quarry to learn the setup (I have been using the camera in the housing on land a lot lately for practice). So I plan on making my purchases the next couple of days. I have been a fairly active land based photographer for almost 30 years.

Then I head off to Galapagos for 7 days with my daughters high school group (2 teachers, 13 kids, and me).

Any assistance is truly appreciated.

Mike

 

[mozaik]

Hi Mike,

I am assuming you are talking about the Olympus E-PL1 ? The micro 4/3rds model.

I would most definitely recommend getting the 2 YS-01's , I am actually glad you asked on the forums as I think getting the DS-51 would have not been a wise decision.

1) The DS-51 is a very good strobe but it does not have a fiber optical connection , even when getting the Ikelite slave optical sensor , you will not get TTL auto exposure with your camera which is a feature you'd very much like to have especially as a beginner.

2) 2 Strobes are always better than one due to their angle of light , combining 2 light sources from different direction would both give you a wider angle and more flexibility depending on what your shooting. For example , you can light a close-by fish from both sides.

3) The Ikelite strobes are very good but they require Ikelite adapters and sync cords whereas Sea and Sea are universal and you can mount them with almost any setup , even on the coldshoe connector of your housing.

4) Note that the DS-51 offers a guide number ( on land at ISO 100 ) of 17 meters whereas the YS-01 offers 20 .

5) The DS-51's angle is 80x80 deg with diffuser whereas the YS-01 is 100x100 without diffuser ( up to 110x110 with )

Please PM me or email us if you need any help building this package, we carry almost any adapter and mount that you will need as well as the strobes , fiber optic cables and arm/tray packages.

Hope this makes sense and I've helped you with your decision.

 

[mth1993]

OK I made a typo in my posting I am considering 2x YS-01 vs 1x YS-D1.

Yes it is for the E-Pl1

 

[chile7236]

2 > 1...my $0.02

 

[mth1993]

Thank you everyone for your feedback, including the pm discussion with a couple of you and Martin at Optical Ocean Sales long phone conversation.

I am proceeding with two YS-01 strobes instead of the one YS-D1.

Mike

 

[terson]

I hope Martin at Optical ocean sales taught you how to use the two YS-01 strobes in manual because those strobes have known TTL issues. . .
and before asking, check through the forums and you will find plenty of postings and questions. . .
and to my knowledge, which is always listed as limited, S&S haven't done anything about a 'fix' yet?

 

[chile7236]

manual mode is not that hard...

 

[Wisnu]

I have EPL-1 with 2 YS-01; no issue with sTTL but always use manual mode. As other said, not that hard.

 

[mjh]

Hi All,

First Mike it has been great working with you and very jealous of your upcoming Galapagos trip. In general we try to give anyone we work with our undivided attention and answer ANY and ALL questions they may have.

Mike and I spoke extensively about strobes. The predicament with the introduction of the YS D1 for some is; 2xYS01/YS02s versus one D1???? Good arguments can be made for both routes. In the end a major deciding factor is; are you going to upgrade in the future? What are your long term goals? Two strobes are almost always better than one! But in regards to those looking at the D1 how long will it be before you can afford a second? For Mike the right decision was two YS01.

As to “TTL Issues” with the YS-01…There are NO "known issues" with using the Sea&Sea YS-01 in TTL with the Olympus E-PL1,2 or 3. Nor the E-PM1. The only issue is with the XZ-1, which does have a timing issue due, as we understand it, to a variable pre-flash. Similar problem with the Nikon D7000 (We have spoken at length with S&S and Olympus about this) This does seem to have been solved with the YS-D1, btw.

Putting the camera/s (E-PL/E-PM…) in auto flash and the strobe in TTL with the power turned all the way up, works just fine. You do have to watch the shutter settings, the camera won't sync faster than 160th/sec. This is something that can be somewhat adjusted under the advanced menu settings.

As to more general issues, as Mike can attest, we always suggest people, eventually, learn to shoot in some form of manual as it just gives you more creative control. For newer shooters there are many great guides out there and we humbly direct them to a couple of ours just to help with a starting point.

http://opticaloceansales.com/files/Strobe Positioning-sm.pdf
http://opticaloceansales.com/files/Shooting Tips-sm.pdf


Hope that helps….

 

[terson]

Hi Martin,
Great reply/report, when do we get to see some sort of in field testing from you guys and the YS-D1?
Bruce