Sea & Sea YS-02 vs. Ikelite AF-35 for Ikelite compact housing

[rickthompson]

I've asked this a couple of times but wanted to revisit the topic now that I've done some more research. I recently got a Canon S100 and an Ikelite housing for it. I want to invest in a strobe now. The AF-35 seems to be what Ikelite is really pushing for its compact housings; however, I want a strobe that will out live this camera/housing and will be able to be used on a more advanced (SLR) system if/when I ever upgrade. I feel like the AF-35 is more of a toy and it would not be compatible with an SLR housing, right?

Does anyone have any experience using the YS-02 (or YS-01) with a compact Ikelite housing? I know the YS-01 has the TTL and the modeling light, but it is a little out of my price range.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[mozaik]

Hi Rick,

I would recommend the YS-02. The Canon S100 does not support TTL in Manual mode which is probably the mode you will end up shooting at the most. Shooting in Av or Tv underwater is not as useful being very limiting when trying to set the amount of ambient light / strobes light that comes in.

The YS-02 is a good strobes that will serve you well with any camera you upgrade to, but with manual exposure only. I find TTL to be very useful underwater and if you plan on switching cameras than YS-01 may be a better bet for the future. Also , having the modelling light as a backup light or focus light can come in handy but shouldn't be your main consideration.

The best way to connect a Sea and Sea fiber optic cable to the Ikelite S100 housing is the Inon mount but its a bit expensive. The Sea and Sea mask set or even the fantasea velcro will do a decent job but will not look as elegant.

I would not recommend the AF35 as that would probably not be useful for any other setup you have other than Ikelite, plus is far less powerful than the YS-01/02.

You can get this package that has everything you need for 459$, it also includes a modelling light which will cover for it being the YS-02:
Underwater Strobe | Sea and Sea YS-02 & Fantasea Blueray Tray Flex Package

Feel free to PM or email me for more info.

Good Luck

 

[rickthompson]

The other thing I'm wondering about is the tray/handle/arm situation. I would once again prefer to invest in a higher quality ball-socket type arm as I understand it will give me much more flexibility with strobe positioning as well as give me the option of attaching a separate modeling light via a 3 way clamp or similar accessory. I know this will bring the price up, but I hope I will be able to use at least the arm in later systems.

TTL keeps coming up everywhere but I don't really understand why I would need it. Although I'm new to underwater photography, I'm a serious amateur photographer who occasionally does some freelance studio work. I feel like I will probably end up setting my f-stop around 4 or 5.6 (it will take some experimenting at first) and then I'll set the S100's control wheel to change the shutter speed so that I'll be able to use that to change the background exposure and then I'll be able to adjust the foreground exposure via the manual strobe power control on the back of this strobe.

 

[BluewaterPhoto]

Rick - Like Tal said, I'd get the YS-02 with the S&S strobe mask kit, and use the YS-02 in manual mode. Get yourself a good ULCS (Ultralight) tray, handle, arm & 2 clamps - you'll be glad you did. - Scott

 

[Interceptor121]

I second Scott suggestion on ultralight never spare money on arms
For the strobe I suggest the YS-01 as the TTL can made work in manual using a hack
I have just come back from a test trip my partner and I have fired 500+ shots in dSTTL in manual and never had one over or under exposure with the YS01
Having to deal with manual strobe settings will add to your task loading the extra money is worth in my view compared to the YS02, however if you are happy to bracket with the strobe manually you can consider a second hand YS-DX27 as well