first trip with XZ1

[Esk]

Just came back from my first trip with the XZ1 and inon s2000. I did about 15 dives and I must say that it was realy a big step up from my canon Ixus (without external flash). The most important things where the manual settings, RAW and the inon s2000 flash. Two things of the camea that could be better were the macro capability and the time between two shots (it showed the previous picture to long), but besides that I can reconmend this camara+flash combination to everybody who is looking for a good compact underwatercamara. I ad some of my best pictures of my trip at this post to give you an idea of what this combination is capable of. Hope you like them.
Eric

 

[herbdb]

Nice pics. FYI, you can shoot without waiting for the review of the previous image to go away. A 1/2 press of the shutter will reset the monitor to the current lens image.

 

[gtxl1200]

Those are awesome pictures....I cant wait!!!! I'm taking my first trip in March. I have the same set up except I went with the dual D2000 strobes. What were some of the Fstops and shutter speeds you used in those photos??

 

[buton]

nice pictures.

my first trip with my xz1 is in 27 days, i went with the YS 02 strobe...

 

[Esk]

Those are awesome pictures....I cant wait!!!! I'm taking my first trip in March. I have the same set up except I went with the dual D2000 strobes. What were some of the Fstops and shutter speeds you used in those photos??

Thanks. For the f-stop I usualy use F5,6 and for macro shots of small things I use F8 (to get enough depth of field). The shutter time usualy between 1/125 and 1/200 and sometimes faster (almost never slower). The shutter time depends at the available ambiant light and how you dark want to have the background. For example I attached a picture of a jellyfish at this message. I used 1/160 to get a blue background wich is not to bright.

Have a good time at yourv trip! I'm sure you will not be dissapointed

 

[staggsSevin]

Thanks. For the f-stop I usualy use F5,6 and for macro shots of small things I use F8 (to get enough depth of field). The shutter time usualy between 1/125 and 1/200 and sometimes faster (almost never slower). The shutter time depends at the available ambiant light and how you dark want to have the background. For example I attached a picture of a jellyfish at this message. I used 1/160 to get a blue background wich is not to bright.

Have a good time at yourv trip! I'm sure you will not be dissapointed
View attachment 116885

Thanks for the tips! I have the exact same setup as you and I head to Roatan in April for a week where it will be the first time using it. This will be my first time shooting in manual mode so I'm a bit nervous as I don't know much, and no matter how much I read it just doesn't sink in! Having your settings with the same camera should be a big help. If you have any more advice don't hesitate to post it!

 

[Esk]

Thanks for the tips! I have the exact same setup as you and I head to Roatan in April for a week where it will be the first time using it. This will be my first time shooting in manual mode so I'm a bit nervous as I don't know much, and no matter how much I read it just doesn't sink in! Having your settings with the same camera should be a big help. If you have any more advice don't hesitate to post it!

Some more advice:
- Always set the ISO at 100, higher ISO will result in more noise
- Dontworry to much of using the camera at manual. its less complecated than it sounds. For example you can set the Inon flash at sTTL, so the flash is automatic (put the camera flash in fill in mode). You can fine tune the flash power with the Inon or with the camera flash exposure compensation.
- Whatever you do, dont put the camera in automatic because that will result in greenish pictures. The tric is to actualy under expose by fast shutter time for a nice dark background and the flash will take care of a proper exposure of the subject (shutter time does not affect the flash).
- For the Whale shark pictures, there is no flash allowed. I found out that in that kind of situation S-mode worked the best, with shuttertime at 1/125.
- Also dont be afraid of some trail and error. You will see that you will learn quickly. Maybe you can even practice a bit at home before your leaving at your trip.

Have fun at your trip!

 

[azisme]

Great pictures, nice mix of creatures for a single trip. I have three questions:

(1) I am just putting together a new setup with the XZ1 and the Olympus PT-050 housing. I have two older Inon D-180 strobes with fiber cables. I am trying to figure out the connector I need at the housing. Do you have the Oly housing? Can anyone help with info on the connector? All I can find is the full cable with the fiber and connectors on both ends which is more than I need.

(2) Did you use a focus light? Comments?

(3) Any more tips on whale shark/ambient light shooting? I have a trip scheduled to Belize in May to dive with whale sharks.

 

[Esk]

Great pictures, nice mix of creatures for a single trip. I have three questions:

(1) I am just putting together a new setup with the XZ1 and the Olympus PT-050 housing. I have two older Inon D-180 strobes with fiber cables. I am trying to figure out the connector I need at the housing. Do you have the Oly housing? Can anyone help with info on the connector? All I can find is the full cable with the fiber and connectors on both ends which is more than I need.

(2) Did you use a focus light? Comments?

(3) Any more tips on whale shark/ambient light shooting? I have a trip scheduled to Belize in May to dive with whale sharks.

1. You need a rubber plug to connect the cables. They give it with cable. But to buy it, I can not imagine it will cost much more than 1 euro.

2. I have no focus light and I always could get focus. I guess in tropical waters its realy not necessary, only for night dives.

3. For whale sharks its best to use a wide angle lens. I used the inon uwl H100 m67 and it worked realy well. without wide angle lens it will be difficult to get close and still get the whole whale shark in the frame.

And one more tip. if using the strobes, its best to somehow cover the flash window of the housing in a way that the strobecable still sees the flash. Its for minimizing backscatter. Here at the forum I found some good advise for that: covering the flash window at the inside with a piece of exposed film. I used two layers and it realy worked well. The strobe could still see the camera flash but there was almost no light comming out the flash window. Best to try it first at home to see if it works.

Eric

 

[vossroad]

Thanks for sharing and your insight. My wife and I are going to CBrac for a week in March. XZ1, PT050, YS1, YS2. I opted for the PTWC WAL & Oly macro. This board has been a big help for newbies like me. It definitely expedites the learning curve. More pics please.