Trays & Arms - They're all the same?

[SeaYoda]

I just ordered mine on-line $195ish including shipping. I found the fiber optic cable (for the similar epoch strobe) for $55ish including shipping. I got some Loc-line parts that I'm going to try and add to the included tray/handle. All should be ready to dive in a couple weeks. Here's a thread that has some input from someone that has been using the strobe already:

http://www.scubaboard.com/showpost.php?p=1277676&postcount=40

Bob01,
If you don't want to spend $500 to $600 on an Inon or like strobe you may want to consider the SunPak G-Flash for under $200. or even a pair of them.

You can probably rig them to a loc-line arm.

IMHO strobes are much better for a still camera than the UK light.

 

[Bob01]

Awesome macro shots! Its nice to know the S1 can do shots like that with attachement lenses.

Thanks for taking pictures of your rig. Was the top bar incorporated to your setup mostly for the handle? How many joints/knuckles do you have in your locline arms?

Please let me know once you have your new buoyancy devices for the Light Cannons. Im having the feeling I'll be pickin' up a pool noodle when I get the tray & arms.

Here are some pics of my setup.

Please excuse the purple pool noodle duct taped to my light cannons - light cannons as you know are extremely negative, so you relaly really need to get some positive buoyancy on them somehow. This is my interim solution until my dad and I can build something more elegant.

There's a shot of the overall rig, a closeup of the dovetail thing my dad machined to attach to the lightcannon, and a shot from above of the typical orientation I use the light cannons in while filming.

I also enclosed a couple of grabs of macro stuff. I have the Inon mounting bracket (visible in picture) and 2 of teh 165 macro lenses, and absolutely love them.

I don't have any grabs of the wide angle stuff showing how well the white balance works, but you just have to trust me, it works spectacularly well. You won't need to fiddle in editing if you white balance alot underwater.

Oh, another tip: when using your light cannon, put the white balance on daylight. That's the one I found worked best. Auto isn't very good I don't think on this camera.

I like the long arms, personally - allows the camera to stand up on a table/workbench, and stand like a tripod on the light cannons. The locline will definitely flop around in air - but it's fine in water unless you're in a REALLY stiff current. I use it in major surge and the only time the light cannons don't stay put is on the way down the anchor line, due to their very buoyant nature (until we get to depth and the pool noodle compresses enough to make them neutrally buoyant). With my eventual new and improved buoyancy devices for them, they will hopefully be neutral at all depths.

One thing to ask the guy you're ordering for -- safety tethers inside the locline. People have on occasion, if you read the posts, had their locline come apart on them from time to time. (Mine never does, in fact it takes two people's strength to get it apart if you want it apart), but we put a stainless steel wire inside to anchor thngs just in case. Also, little holes in the locline to let the water escape faster.

You can see the two holes on the top of my rig too - I had an awesome handle there, for handing the rig up to the boat, but my regular kept catching on it, so bye-bye handle!

 

[Taxgeek]

Thanks. And just think, that was in video mode! I can't wait to see how it works in still mode with strobes. We incorporated the top bar just to add stiffness. The locline arms are each 12 joints (2 6's and a joinerupper). Here's a couple of white balance picture too. They aren't super sharp, but they show pretty good color.

Awesome macro shots! Its nice to know the S1 can do shots like that with attachement lenses.

Thanks for taking pictures of your rig. Was the top bar incorporated to your setup mostly for the handle? How many joints/knuckles do you have in your locline arms?

Please let me know once you have your new buoyancy devices for the Light Cannons. Im having the feeling I'll be pickin' up a pool noodle when I get the tray & arms.

 

[Gilligan]

Hi Gilligan! I remember looking at your setup when planning mine. You use the bayonet mount lenses, right? I have the screw mount ones, and am planning to get some old 67mm filters, knock out the glass, and attach the empty rims to my rig, so I will have a place to screw the wetmount lenses to. For now, I've been shoving them into my hood - not very comfortable!

No, I use the 67mm thread on lenses.