Weird G-10 problem?

[MXGratefulDiver]

I had a weird problem with my G10 this week-end as well ... I melted the retracting lens cover by leaving it laying in the sun for a few moments. I'm using a Fisheye housing with a macro lens attachment and the magnifying lens focused the sunlight inside the housing, making it hot enough to actually melt the plastic.

It's going back to Canon for repairs, but seein's how I have a big trip coming up next week, I decided to go ahead and purchase another one. With the $2K investment I have in this Fisheye housing and lenses, I figure it doesn't hurt to have a "spare" camera for it anyway.

Be careful where you leave your camera ... it never occurred to me that such a thing was even possible. Fortunately I didn't leave it there longer than maybe 5 minutes, or the damage could've been much worse.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[promocop]

thanks for the warni g. Mine is at home and can't wait to play with it this weekend. A fathers day present to myself. Any good tips I should know fir shooting U/W??

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

thanks for the warni g. Mine is at home and can't wait to play with it this weekend. A fathers day present to myself. Any good tips I should know fir shooting U/W??

Pictures are generally more interesting if you're shooting across, or up ... try not to shoot down unless the subject looks more interesting from that angle.

Closer is better ... even closer is even better.

The secret to taking great underwater pictures has more to do with good buoyancy control than it does the equipment you're using. Envision the picture you want to take, slowly approach the subject while framing the shot, then you need to be able to hold still long enough for the camera to take the picture.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Puffer Fish]

Pictures are generally more interesting if you're shooting across, or up ... try not to shoot down unless the subject looks more interesting from that angle.

Closer is better ... even closer is even better.

The secret to taking great underwater pictures has more to do with good buoyancy control than it does the equipment you're using. Envision the picture you want to take, slowly approach the subject while framing the shot, then you need to be able to hold still long enough for the camera to take the picture.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Could not agree more... just breathing fast will scare fish...

This picture from a couple weeks ago was take with my sac rate around .35..

 

[Puffer Fish]

And learn timing with fish... or you end up with a lot of fish butt pictures:

 

[vondo]

At two different times I got a black screen with a bunch of numbers flashing across inside some white bracket lines and they seemed to be counting down.

Was it the clock? (Turn it on, hold down the Func/set button for a few seconds.)

 

[Warmwater Wank]

Vondo--Duh, yeah. Hmmm, more evidence for the Sticky Button Theory (SBT) since I wasn't holding the Func.set button down when UW but suspect I had pressed it as I mashed down various buttons when things got occasionally weird. The fact that the clock didn't shut off after 5 seconds, which it does if I press and hold the Func set button down (outside the housing) just long enough to have the clock displayed, is probable cause to me. Thanks--I think this really confirms SBT! // ww

 

[sooke]

I soak the housing and strobe in a plastic bucket prior to the dive (while heading to the dive site) and post dive for about 3 hours with agitation. Using rainwater in a clean plastic "drywall bucket" with lid works the best. This is a bit on the anal side, but after 40 years using this regimen never had sticking buttons. It's amazing how long the life of your gear will be extended. The regs get the same treatment.

 

[Tigershark44]

Why not manual white balance your photo? I've found that the preset white balances can exaggerate or alter the true colors when taking shots underwater.

Totally agree about using ISO100 "or close to it". 80-200 is pretty darn good. 400 if you absolutely have to, but anything higher and you really start noticing high amounts of noise.

Also, I haven't really used the EV controller much. Any tips or tricks? I can see it will directly brighten or darken the image, but why not just adjust the aperture or shutter to do this?

Shooting in JPEG with the Underwater White Balance, I find that ~95% of the time, the white balance is close to perfect. When shooting without an external strobe (in Priority mode), I found that I have to use -1/3 to -1 1/3 EV stops to compenstate for overexposure when shooting light colored subjects or in sandy areas (bright, clear, Hawaii waters). With external strobes, using Aperature priority and manual control of the strobes, I've only had to change the EV a couple of times with very white subjects.

 

[Tigershark44]

I soak the housing and strobe in a plastic bucket prior to the dive (while heading to the dive site) and post dive for about 3 hours with agitation. Using rainwater in a clean plastic "drywall bucket" with lid works the best. This is a bit on the anal side, but after 40 years using this regimen never had sticking buttons. It's amazing how long the life of your gear will be extended. The regs get the same treatment.

On the few times I've not soaked the Canon housings, the springs start to rust...so I soak now for 2 hours along with the strobes and arms.....