Just Graduated to a D200!

[WannaLaguna]

Hi All,

I'm very excited to finally graduate from my point and shoot canon to my new D200 baby! I've looked around at housings and lighting systems and I'm not quite sure which way to go?

D200 owners; what housing system did you go with and why?

I'm leaning towards the Ikelite housing and 2 D125 stobes.

Housing: http://www.ikelite.com/web_two/2d200nikon.html
Strobes: http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/ss_dig125.html

any pointers, tips etc would be greatly appreciated!

Dive Safe!

Jeff

 

[joewr]

Hi,

First and foremost, my grandfather was a Costa Mesan via Winnipeg...but that was back in the 40's and 50's...

I have a D100 and house it in a Subal D10. I chose that because I liked the "feel" of the Subal. However, I suggest you find some dealers in your area and hold the housings. You may find that one "feels" better than the others.

Of course, cost will soon find its place in the "feel" category. I believe current costs of various housings are in this neighborhood..i.e., these are not exact costs:

Ikelite--$1500
S&S--$2400
Subal--$3600

That list might be the real decision list.

All these housings will have many, many satisfied users and all are excellent quality.

Re Strobes: here, too, there are some excellent ones on the market. I have used S&S strobes forever. My current choice: S&S YS-90DX. They are excellent.

One thing to ponder is looking into the new S&S TTL Converter. It will allow you to use both strobes in the auto mode.

I hope this helps...

joewr

 

[alcina]

Talk to Ryan and Richard at www.reefphoto.com - they know their rigs and are happy to give you the low down on each type. I found that incredibly helpful as we were able to find a system that felt right to me - instead of what felt right to someone else.

As an aside - get to know your camera extremely well. Just having the camera doesn't improve your photography - I've seen several people with the D200 (and other systems) that just keep taking not so good photos because they don't know the system very well and they spend a long time fiddling with the settings so end up missing shots they should have been prepared for. The great thing about this is that you can do it before you get a housing!

Have fun - can't wait to see some images

 

[kidsdream]

I have a Subal housing for my D200, nearly perfect in every sense.

While all of the housings allow for the same quality of pictures (it truly is the guy behind the camera), as joewr said the feel of the Subal is the best the bunch listed.

 

[Warren_L]

Hi All,

I'm very excited to finally graduate from my point and shoot canon to my new D200 baby! I've looked around at housings and lighting systems and I'm not quite sure which way to go?

D200 owners; what housing system did you go with and why?

I'm leaning towards the Ikelite housing and 2 D125 stobes.

Housing: http://www.ikelite.com/web_two/2d200nikon.html
Strobes: http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/ss_dig125.html

any pointers, tips etc would be greatly appreciated!

Dive Safe!

Jeff

Hi Jeff, congrats on your purchase. I'm glad to see you went with the D200 after our little chat. The D80 would have been a great way to go too, but you're going to be pleased with the D200. I certainly am. I'm looking for a second D200 body as a backup as well.

I went with the Aquatica housing. Not that I had any issues with my Ikelite housing i have for my D70, but the Aquatica was one of the only ones I could find that was rated to over 200 ft - this may or may not be an issue to you, but for me, it's going to be an issue. The Aquatica is a solid housing and the controls are very intuitive and easy to operate - at least I found so. One added benefit is that they are located in Montreal, so I didn't have to contend with shipping, brokerage, and customs like I did with the Ikelite gear.

Both Ike and Aquatica have had great customer service as well. If there was ever an issue with my D70 housing, Ikelite was on it. Similarly with Aquatica, Blake, Jean and Norma have been great. Can't go wrong with either as far as I'm concerned.

Haven't seen you around humber lately (I get out the once in a while with Jarviz, Chris Red, and the others periodically), but if you're still in town, let me know and you can check out my Ike and Aquatica housings for yourself.

PS. You're going to love Costa Mesa. My brother lived there for a while, though he now lives in Huntington Beach. I try to get down there whenever I can.

 

[joewr]

Hi, again,

Sometimes it takes me awhile, but I realized that you live close to this outfit: Liburdi's Scuba Center in Costa Mesa. It has been a few years since I have been in Joe's place, but I think he sells S&S and Aquatica gear(The Aquatica housing is ca. $2200, I believe). You might consider stopping by Joe's place...He sold me my Nik 15mm a zillion years ago....

Also, Marine Cameras near San Diego has a full line: http://marinecamera.com/

It is only about an hour or so away...

One more thing, of course, is that the numbers I gave you do not include ports or domes, arms, etc. You did not think U/W photography was a cheap hobby did you?

joewr

 

[Darnold9999]

I have a D200 - ikelite with about 100 dives on it and no serious issues. Can't use the 10-24 in manual mode as you only get to either focus or zoom but not both. With this lens not an issue, I choose zoom and autofocus.

Also the command wheel right hand side back of the camera does not work so well - always takes two hands and I am never sure if it is working. Hard to see the command screen on the top of the camera. New to the camera and if I forget to set the camera before I get in the water it is a pain to get it set the way I want it. Three things get in the way. 1 I am a beginner, 2 can't see the control screen very well, and the command wheel doesn't always work as well as I want.

This is my only complaint. Customer service is excellent - managed to lose the strobe charger, phoned ikelite and a very helpful person managed to get me working with the chargers lying around the house until the new one arrived. Very helpful walking me through the issues I might have re overcharging and too fast charging with a dumb charger.

Didn't try any other case - figured that the price differential was too great for me for a camera that I will probably replace sooner rather than later.

 

[jarhed]

I dive a D200 in a Sea & sea housing. Overall, I think that Subal and Seacam make the best housings but were a little more than I was willing to spend. I wanted all aluminum because it's a lighter and smaller housing, but could not manage the funds for the very high end. Sea and Sea have a nice line of ports and make an all aluminum and very small housing for the D200 which I have ~ 50 dives with now and am very happy with. It offers all the pertinate controls and good ergonomics. I use 2 Sea and Sea YS 90s with the iTTL converter and this is a great combo.

Because the Sea & Sea housing is so compact, it is a bit negatively bouyant underwater, it dosn't bother me though and I like the small size for travel. I can fit everything except the 9" dome in a carry on backpack.

so far, no leaks and amazing photos, you will love this camera.

Take care,
John

 

[hunter991]

I just recently signed with sea and sea. If I can help anyone out let me know.

Brent

 

[jetpilot379]

Hi All,

I'm very excited to finally graduate from my point and shoot canon to my new D200 baby! I've looked around at housings and lighting systems and I'm not quite sure which way to go?

D200 owners; what housing system did you go with and why?

I'm leaning towards the Ikelite housing and 2 D125 stobes.

Housing: http://www.ikelite.com/web_two/2d200nikon.html
Strobes: http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/ss_dig125.html

any pointers, tips etc would be greatly appreciated!

Dive Safe!

Jeff

Jeff:

Good advice from joewr. Handle as many housings as possible. I did this exact thing which REALLY made a difference, and recently bought a Sea & Sea housing for my D-200. The company that provided several housing for me to look at just happens to be right near where you live: H20 Photopros in Dana Point. Suggest you contact Mike Luzansky at H2O Photo Pros, (818) 535-3251, www.h2ophotopros.com You can tell him you were referred by Wyant.

Good luck,

Wyant L.
Malibu, CA