Need some help sorting through a system upgrade

[Orcabait]

I've been using an Olympus EPL-5 system for a number of years now and it's time for an upgrade. My current setup is an Olympus housing with 2 Sea & Sea YS-D1 strobes and focus light. I tend to shoot macro the most an use a +10 diopter quite regularly.

I'm looking for better auto focus. I spend a lot of time underwater hunting for focus and miss a lot of shots because of this.

I use the Olympus 60mm macro a lot. I do also use the Panasonic 8mm fisheye...I'm probably 70% macro, 30% wide. I don't shoot video with this system today and it's not something I'm really considering today.

I shoot Nikon DX on land but I'm not married to that. I'm contemplating a move to FF (Z7) since I shoot mostly landscape above water.

I'm torn between an new Olympus rig with an EM1 Mark ii or iii or going to a Nikon system...if I go Nikon I'll probably go FF since I'm contemplating that for land anyway.

The Olympus system is small, my current setup fits almost entirely in just a backpack...but there's a lot of anti-m4/3 sentiment in favor of FF now...esp. with the FF mirrorless offerings.

Has anyone else had experience sorting through this decision process? I could use a bit of help.

Thanks,
Michael

 

[BadGoat]

For me, it's all about the Benjamins. I shoot a Canon EOS R on land, but couldn't justify the $5k plus for a housing, domes, etc.

Take a very serious look first at how much you are willing to spend.

I shoot an EOS M6 underwater with a Sea Frogs housing and dome port and it works very well, considering I only have about $800 invested into the setup, excluding the strobe. The physical size is also very handy, as I have no problem taking it along for group photos when I'm working as a DM.

Mike

 

[JohnN]

I've been using an Olympus EPL-5 system for a number of years now and it's time for an upgrade. My current setup is an Olympus housing with 2 Sea & Sea YS-D1 strobes and focus light. I tend to shoot macro the most an use a +10 diopter quite regularly.

I'm looking for better auto focus. I spend a lot of time underwater hunting for focus and miss a lot of shots because of this.

I use the Olympus 60mm macro a lot. I do also use the Panasonic 8mm fisheye...I'm probably 70% macro, 30% wide. I don't shoot video with this system today and it's not something I'm really considering today.

I shoot Nikon DX on land but I'm not married to that. I'm contemplating a move to FF (Z7) since I shoot mostly landscape above water.

I'm torn between an new Olympus rig with an EM1 Mark ii or iii or going to a Nikon system...if I go Nikon I'll probably go FF since I'm contemplating that for land anyway.

The Olympus system is small, my current setup fits almost entirely in just a backpack...but there's a lot of anti-m4/3 sentiment in favor of FF now...esp. with the FF mirrorless offerings.

Has anyone else had experience sorting through this decision process? I could use a bit of help.

Thanks,
Michael

Like they say with track/race cars:. "Speed costs, how fast do you want to spend"

 

[WS007]

In case you are satisfied with IQ of the EPL5 and just want better and faster AF, I recommend EM1II or EM1III in Nauticam housing. PDAF is substantially better on the new Oly cameras than CDAF (also IQ is better, but the improvement is not a quantum leap).
Nauticam because it is not only very handsome, but in case of an upgrade (like EPL5 to EM1III) you just need to exchange the camera body and the pure housing. The rest remains (60mm and 8mm FE are outstanding lenses for this system). The "cheap" plastic housings are only cheaper when you consider the investment at the time of purchasing. When you consider upgrading, they are in fact more expensive as you have to buy a lot of stuff new...

When on budget, I recommend a new EM1II (available at approx. 900 -1000 Euro) plus a used Nauticam housing (should be available for about 1000 - 1300 Euro). So you could come away with approx. 2000 Euros for the camera upgrade (but probably you will need domes and zoomgears also).

In case you want to buy new, I would go for the EM1III, just because it is the more recent model (AF is said to work even slightly better than EM1II)...

Wolfgang

 

[Orcabait]

Thanks Wolfgang,

My thoughts are similar re: the housing. I was initially thinking of going with another Olympus housing but the ports from the PEN series don't work for the EM 1 ii housing and I figured if I pick a housing brand I can use the ports and accessories for not only this round but hopefully whatever comes next.

 

[Hoag]

I had a very similar (but a couple generations older) system to the one that you are thinking of replacing. I had an Olympus EPL-1 with the 60mm macro and the Panasonic 8mm fisheye. I housed it in an Olympus hosing and had both the standard flat lens port & the Zen 4" dome port. I also had a pair of Inon D2000 strobes.

I upgraded from that to an APS-C sensor camera with the goal of getting a system small enough to put in my carry-on. I wound up with a Sony A6000 (this was a few years ago) in a Nauticam housing. There are several options for both wide angle (I have the 10-18mm f/4) and for macro including the Sony 90mm F/2.8 macro.

Since you already have two very good lenses, however, you might want to take a look at some of the M4/3 cameras from Panasonic. They have some exceptional cameras for underwater such as the GH-5.

 

[bvanant]

Another vote for the EM-1 Mark II. Autofocus is way more better than the PEN cameras and you have the lenses.
Another vote for Nauticam, should be not too hard to find a used version
Bill

 

[Chris Ross]

Full frame is a big move upwards in weight, bulk and expense and the dome ports can be huge - though if you use a fisheye rather than rectilinear the ports are more less the same size you use now. I use an EM-1 MkII and the AF is very good, not quite DSLR but close and the image quality is a significant step up from the earlier 16MP sensors from Olympus.

 

[Hoag]

@Orcabait given what has happened to Olympus Camera Division recently, I would recommend that you look for other options than a new Olympus. If you want to stay in the M4/3 format, then I would look at cameras from Panasonic. If you are open to other formats such as APS-C or Full Frame then your options are limited only by housing availability.

As things stand, I would avoid spending any money on an Olympus camera like the proverbial plague - at least until the dust settles.

Given that you already have two good M4/3 lenses, I still think that the Panasonic GH-5 would be a good upgrade. Both the camera and several housings (including the Aquatica housing) are on sale at Backscatter. This might give you a pretty big upgrade at a relatively nominal cost especially with an Aquatica housing within $50 of the cost of an Ikelite housing.

If you want to go up to an APS-C sized sensor, then you have options such as the 32Mp Canon 90D in a DSLR to the Sony A6xxx series in mirrorless (as well as many other fine choices). Speaking from personal experience, one of the big advantages of the Sony A6xxx series of cameras is that I can pack my camera (A6000) with 2 lenses (kit lens and 10-18 f/4), my housing (a Nauticam NA-A6000) two ports (one 7" dome port, and one flat port) and a pair of Inon S2000 strobes all in my carry-on. (I normally have to put my tray & arms in checked luggage.) Full disclosure, I plan to replace my kit lens with the Sony/Zeiss 16-70mm f/4 lens which uses the same dome port as my 10-18mm lens so I will be eliminating the flat port and making the system even more compact soon.

As others have mentioned, a FF set-up underwater is very significant in terms of size (not only to pack it, but also what you have to push through the water column), weight (the camera might not weigh much more, but by the time you factor in the weight of the housing it becomes substantial) and cost (expect $2.8k for the Z7 and another $2.5ish for the housing + the ports).

 

[WS007]

I see no reason to go for Pana GH5/G9, unless video is the main preference. For stills, I would not refrain from acquiring an Oly in Nauticam housing camera now (EM1II or EM1III), to my opinion at present the top for stills in MFT format. Sensor is same generation as Pana GH5/G9, but AF (especially for UW Macro) is much better, because of PDAF (Pana may implement the Oly patents in future camera generations, after the sellout of Oly).
Even when the worst case scenario happens and EM1II is the last sensor generation in Oly camera bodies, you can easily upgrade to a better Pana body in the future, in case it comes out and continue to use all your lenses, extensions and ports. No difference when you upgrade from Oly to Pana, same as from Pana to Pana...

Another consideration is the investment into the MFT system as a whole, it may happen that the entire system is discontinued in the next years. If this is the concern it may be better to upgrade to Nikon (I would not bother to have two different types of APS-C/ FF gear for over and under the water). DSLR, however, is at its climax and coming to an end, while the Nikon mirrorless are the first generation at present and I read in reviews that AF is clearly behind the competition (Sony, Canon, Oly mirrorless). When upgrading to Nikon (makes a lot of sense when you already have a lot of Nikon gear for the surface), it may be better to wait for another one or two years from now until Nikon mirrorless with better AF come out, in case you can effort to wait...

If you are o.k. with DSLR, the D500 is considered the best UW camera by many. When housed in high quality system housing (e.g. Nauticam), upgrade is as easy as with MFT described above and you can switch to better Nikon mirrorless as soon as they appear on the market...

Wolfgang