Flashlights for lighting?

[Mitten Diver]

I saw posted on Yuzo's site a clamp for a AA flashlight clamped to a housing. Would this work for lighting a shot or is it just for aiming? I have seen video recorders with two of these mounted side by side, if you were to mount this on top of an arm would it provide any advantages for lighting a picture? Or would it just light up more debris in front of the lense? I should probably be giving you some additional information. Olympus 5050, thanks to you guys, pt-015 and possibly a 16mm S&S lense. I will be shooting mostly in the fresh water, quarries , lakes and Great Lakes. I cannot afford a strobe at this time as I believe that Junior and I will need to acquire some drysuits to keep up with the Jones's.

Any advice?

Mitten Diver

 

[Gilligan]

It is strictly a focus and/or aiming light. It has to be moved or turned off prior to taking the picture or it will be in the photo.
If I understand your post correctly what you have seen on video recorders are twin video lights, not focus or aiming lights. There are some articles out there that talk about using video lights for still digital instead of a strobe. I prefer the strobe.
There are also articles that discuss using a red lens on a dive light at night for focusing as it does not scare off the animals.

 

[Mitten Diver]

It is strictly a focus and/or aiming light. It has to be moved or turned off prior to taking the picture or it will be in the photo.
If I understand your post correctly what you have seen on video recorders are twin video lights, not focus or aiming lights.

I would figure that the light mounted above the lense would be in the way, but what about if you mounted the lights on a set of arms about 11"-16" away from the lense and then used the lights to light the frame? I would be using this set-up when diving shipwrecks or would I be better off with just the standard lense on the 5050 and just utilize the internal flash?

Mitten Diver

 

[ScubaRon]

It's not the dive light fixture that will be "in the picture" but the (uneven) circle of light that it creates: this will show up as a so-called "hot-spot" in your picture.

Another problem that you will have is the light intensity. typical primary dive lights have 10-25W output. A typical strobe has a light output equivalent to hundreds of Watts for a very very brief period. I have read several articles about people using 25 W UW video lights for photography and their conclusion was that it only worked for distances up to about 2 feet.

Given these issues I think you're better off using the internal strobe.

 

[Dee]

It is strictly a focus and/or aiming light. It has to be moved or turned off prior to taking the picture or it will be in the photo.....

One way to eliminate the round hot spot that is cause by a small light is to line the reflecter cup with crinkled aluminum foil. It cuts the brightness of the light but it's enough for the calera to focus.

I agree with the others, you wouldn't want to use this for a dive light.