Do you use TTL?

[Nemrod]

TTL works with strobes in any position and different power levels on each strobe.

And, I can use other divers with unshielded strobes for additional lighting, ha :

 

[BoltSnap]

Is anybody really still using wired/electrical connections

I do, do you have a problem with that???????????????????????

 

[BoltSnap]

Lots of people shoot two-dimensional photos, with even light and your strobes side by side, and maybe TTL will work just great. Getting a bit more dimension, with a mix of shadow and light, generally requires more intentional positioning of strobes and a mix of light intensity from each direction. UW Photography is all about use of light, and manual control of lighting is core to good photography.

View attachment 815583

Awesome photo!!

 

[davehicks]

TTL works with strobes in any position and different power levels on each strobe.

And, I can use other divers with unshielded strobes for additional lighting, ha :

Ok, that's great. I'll add one more dimension to my rationale (and bias) against TTL. I primarily dive in the Pacific Northwest, the home of green and particle filled water. One the the big challenges of photography in these conditions is dealing with backscatter. The tools to minimize backscatter and halos are strobe positioning and minimum strobe power. TTL robs you of one of these tools which makes it unsuitable for wide angle, and sometimes even macro.

While these effects are magnified in PNW waters, but they are always present even in clearer waters. I prefer to be able to have more control and the ability to learn what works best in the available conditions.

 

[Nemrod]

TTL is a tool, sometimes it is the best tool and for many including me is more often the better tool. TTL works and has few limitations that are not artificially engendered.

 

[Nemrod]

I do, do you have a problem with that???????????????????????

Do you still use flash bulbs too? And film? Maybe a double hose regulator too, I can loan you one . Like breathing from a vacuum cleaner but they look cool. I was doing fine until they took my Kodachrome away. Still a sore spot.

 

[AZTinman]

LOL!

Back when I was in junior high school, I learned to shoot manually. Back in those days, 35mm and 120 film cameras didn't have TTL. The newspaper I worked for started me with a twin lens Rolleiflex and a hand held light meter. I've never used TTL with any of my underwater camera systems. I'd rather control lighting myself than trust my cameras to do it.

Auto focus became available on film cameras before digital cameras were invented. I've got a couple of Nikon auto focus film cameras (Nikon 8008s and F100) It's a nice feature that allowed photographers to concentrate on exposure and composition.

And no, I don't use flash bulbs; I never did use flash bulbs. Electronic speedlights were available when I started with the newspaper back in the 1960's. If I remember correctly, Nikonos had manually controlled option underwater strobes (SB102 & SB103) available in the mid-1980's (about five years before I became a certified diver). I still have working SB105's that I use occasionally.

I still shoot film with my Nikonos cameras (II, III and V) and housed film camera systems. I find that shooting film from time to time makes me think about composition more with my digital camera systems.

Stopped shooting Kodachrome many years before it was discontinued because the greenish/pink tints on my Kodachrome slides required post-processing filter correction to get the color right. Fuji Velvia was a better choice. I actually used film (Fuji Velvia) for the land photographs in one chapter of my book, Dancing with Sea Lions. My publishing editor immediately recognized the images captured with film.

For what it's worth, I still prefer to hardwire my strobes using a sync cable rather than opting for fiber. My Ikelite, Nauticam, Sea & Sea and Subal housings are set-up for hard wired sync cables. Every time I dive with a partner who breaks a fiber optic cable, I'm glad my systems are hardwired.

Yes, I do frequently use a double hose regulator (Kraken). It's an easy breathing regulator and having exhalation bubbles exit behind my head tends to be less spooky for underwater subjects. And, it does look cool! This said, I also use single hose regulator systems when I don't want to pack my double hose. The biggest drawback with my double hose is that it's more bulky than my single hose systems.

If TTL is what works for you, use it! When I work with newbie underwater photographers who've invested in a DSLR system, I teach them to use manual settings for lighting.

-AZTinman

 

[WS007]

Do many people out there use TTL? I talked to a shop yesterday and was suprised that one of the employees told me nobody really uses TTL.

I spend much of my time tuna fishing in the summer and would like to photograph the tuna while they're still fighting on the line next to the boat. My plan is the hold the housing underwater when the tuna get close to the boat, point the camera and fire blindly. The problem is the tuna do big "death" circles when they get close to the boat and therefore adjusting the flashes for a fish at different ranges will be challanging. Thinking TTL is the way to go but open to suggestions. Sharks in the water so won't be hopping in and don't want to get tangled in the fishing line. I also might hop off my boat into a small inflatable to photograph if things don't get too crazy. Any advice apprecaited.

I see I have not read carefully the initial question from brightnight and overlooked the theme: he wants to make photos from hooked tunas on the surface (for documentation?). Not a general discussion on TTL vs. manual as I was assuming...

For such purpose and practically at the surface, a camera without any strobes will do the job. When using a (small) flash either (i) camera set to shutter priority & flash set manually to some not too intense default value or (ii) camera set to shutter priority & flash set to TTL mode will probably work. I would prefer (i), I guess the results will be more reproducable. In any case there is plenty of time to test and adjust before the tuna is hooked...

Wolfgang

 

[OTF]

I use electrical sync cables because triggering the strobes that way consumes FAR LESS camera battery than firing the camera's built-in flash to trigger strobes optically. Camera battery life is the limiting factor on the long coldwater dives (or snorkeling) I do so this is a really big deal.

Never shot TTL, even when I was using optical cords my strobes didn't support it. I've never missed it. Might be fun to try some time.

 

[BoltSnap]

Do you still use flash bulbs too? And film?

And what's wrong with that too????? I use them with my Polaroid!!! Don't tell me that they are out of date now.