Question climbing ladder with big housing

[A Bajo]

So I am about to purchase a housing and strobes for a mirrorless camera. I know most boats have someone who will hand down your camera and take it on the way up. But if the water is rough and your hanging on to the ladder trying to get your fins off etc what do you do with the camera rig?

 

[broncobowsher]

Pass it off first, before removing fins, etc.
As in pass it off, retreat, and then do a regular boarding.
Generally they will set it in the on board camera rinse bucket. That's it. Have dome protector or other protection installed before handing it off.

 

[Seaweed Doc]

So I am about to purchase a housing and strobes for a mirrorless camera. I know most boats have someone who will hand down your camera and take it on the way up. But if the water is rough and your hanging on to the ladder trying to get your fins off etc what do you do with the camera rig?

Moderators might want to move this, since you're in the classified ads section, not the photography section.

In terms of the rig, I can tell you what I do.

First, under those conditions there's somebody on the boat. Either I'm a tourist and it's a guided dive or I'm working and I'll make sure I've got a boat tender on board.

Second, I just hand the camera up to somebody on deck.

Now if it's calm day and I'm not worried about it, I just clip the rig off on my BCD or else (with smaller boats, like inflatables) just put the rig up and over the side myself.

Not done this myself, but now you've got me thinking. You could rig a line over the side to tie it off on while you board, then haul it in.

 

[A Bajo]

Moderators might want to move this, since you're in the classified ads section, not the photography section.

In terms of the rig, I can tell you what I do.

First, under those conditions there's somebody on the boat. Either I'm a tourist and it's a guided dive or I'm working and I'll make sure I've got a boat tender on board.

Second, I just hand the camera up to somebody on deck.

Now if it's calm day and I'm not worried about it, I just clip the rig off on my BCD or else (with smaller boats, like inflatables) just put the rig up and over the side myself.

Not done this myself, but now you've got me thinking. You could rig a line over the side to tie it off on while you board, then haul it in.

oops I guess this was the wrong place to post but I don't think I can move it.
So on a calm day I'm not worried, but on a choppy day even with a lens protector I can see the rig getting slammed into the ladder or boat. Also, rough conditions may make it hard to hand up. I was thinking of some kind of rope system but never seen anyone do it so. If the guy on the boat had a pole with a hook he could just scoop it up. Otherwise I'm thinking clip it to one side of my body and try to keep that side facing away from the boat as much as possible.

 

[broncobowsher]

Swinging off the end of a rope would be way down on my list of how to hand it off. Add that to the end of a hooked pole, won't end well on a calm day much less rough seas.
This might be one of those time you have to consider calling the dive, or at least calling off taking the big camera that you care about.
If you can't pass the camera to the deck hand, don't take it in those conditions.

 

[NYCrecdiver]

Not done this myself, but now you've got me thinking. You could rig a line over the side to tie it off on while you board, then haul it in.

Just gotta hurry before another diver has his luckiest day ever and finds a camera floating in the water just like that.

 

[hilljo88]

In “ moderate” seas I’ll try to grab on to some part of ladder with left hand, kick up with fins and hand the housing lanyard to a waiting mate. Hopefully I remembered to unclip the housing tether from my chest d ring. Always exciting when I forget. If the seas are more than say 3 feet this is a tricky procedure. In rougher weather I have handed the camera off to a DM, removed fins, stood in lower rung of bouncing ladder, reacquired the camera and crawled to the bench. Better strategy in rough seas is to leave camera on board and fight another day.

 

[ROUS]

I have a dedicated BCD carabiner for my camera's lanyard. When beginning a dive, that camera rig hangs on my chest so my hands are free. I won't touch the camera until my mask and equalization is squared away. Ending a dive, I complete my safety stop with the rig dangling from its clip/lanyard. When I'm on the surface and things are under control, I'll unclip the rig and hand it up. Then, I'll mess with fins and other hand-up items. I want both hands free during all important dive steps.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

I remember coming up from a dive where it was over a meter swell and you had to time climbing the ladder. I had a small camera/single strobe that I clipped off a D-ring.

That wouldn't work in that situation. I honestly don't know what I'd have to do. Slip it off to a life preserver thrown by someone on the boat and then pull it in? It would be rather nerve wracking to have all that money bobbing up and down in the waves. Or maybe a long pole with a rope & clip so that someone could "fish" it out of the water.

 

[MrChen]

I'm really choosy about when I take my camera out. If I'm not familiar with the boat and crew, I won't bring it. If conditions are questionable, I won't bring it. I don't take many risks when it comes to my camera.

If I found myself in an unexpected situation where a storm moved in and roughed up the seas, I'd do what I always do, hand my camera up first. I carry my camera in a soft cooler, and I make sure the crew knows to put my camera there after I hand it up. I don't want my camera in the boat's camera bin where other cameras are tossed in.