Underwater photography and video tutorials & gear reviews from Bluewater Photo - the world's premiere underwater photography and video equipment retailer, based in Los Angeles, CA.
Our photo tutorials cover underwater macro photography, wide angle photography, snoot photography, editing in Adobe Lightroom & Photoshop, and much more! Our gear reviews go over favorite underwater housings, underwater video lights, strobes, underwater lenses, cinema systems, and pretty much any other piece of gear you might need for underwater photo & video.
Subscribe to start learning underwater photography and video for free!
Why shop with Bluewater? We have dived with, reviewed, and tested more underwater camera systems than any other underwater photo & video retailer. In other words, we really know our stuff. We also love to teach (and learn from) our customers. Teaching is a passion for all of our staff. So be sure to join us on one of our underwater photo and video workshops!
@@linek1234 it doesnt matter, how you stand until guide 20 and 33 strobes? and suddenly made we have 44 guide and it price is 1200 fuck that, I still good with A.8 and guide 33, and even daytime under sun light, not even use over 20 for battery discharge. Have no idea how different your macro and my macro all macro pictures are have only snoot solution not stupid $1200 44 guide strobe.
I appreciate the video. I am currently deliberating between the R100 and the R10. The new autofocus system, back button focus, and dual exposure levers raise questions about whether the additional cost is justified. Would you recommend the R10 over the R100? I am not a professional photographer, but rather an enthusiast. Additionally, regarding wide-angle lenses, would the Tokina 10-17 be a superior choice compared to the new Canon RF 10-18? Thank you!
I just order all the accessories from you folks for these strobes . I have been watching a lot of your video and I was convinced by the images. Great Video I can't wait to use them this Saturday..
I heard you mention California waters a lot. I have found an interest for Macro photography here in the Monterey Bay Area.. What is the best setting for this strobe in these type of conditions.. If you were shooting Macro should I get 1 snoot for each strobe.
This is a great video. I was wondering what is your go too setting when shooting Macro with these strobes in Pacific Northwest waters Monterey bay Channel Island Catalina Island type of water.
One thing to be aware of with the Mares Puck is the battery compartment. I have had three and the O ring that is used is a little bit too narrow which means it can leak. I fixed this by finding slightly larger diameter O ring which has solved the issue, and yes I grease and service the original. The second issue is the battery cap could be a bit deeper so that you can get a positive grip when undoing it. If it looses its edge then you have a problem. So if Mares addresses this issue then as a computer I have found it to be really good with the ease of use and the read outs are large and clear.
Thanks for the awesome review 👏👏 It's actually the first one I've come across on RU-vid about this lens for underwater photography. I have a couple of questions about the lens. Do you think it's suitable for capturing sharks, manta rays, whales, or other pelagic species? Also, how well does it perform when shooting videos? I currently have a 16-35mm GM Sony lens, but I sometimes feel the need for a wider lens. Sony doesn't have a prime lens wider than 12mm for FF cameras with AF, so I would really appreciate your input. Thanks a bunch! 😊
Glad you liked it! To answer your questions: 1. I think it would be a great wide lens for pelagic species! It would be a bit softer in the corners than a fisheye or the 16-35mm but in pelagic water you wouldn't notice. 2. Our video footage came out great! We didn't notice any major focus breathing. It's actually pretty amazing. So we would totally recommend it for video. Ikelite published some additional footage that we took here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-OjuZ0goXHBo.html I do honestly feel like this lens could meet your needs. We have it for sale here: www.bluewaterphotostore.com/laowa-10mm-f-2-8-zero-d-ff-lens/ Feel free to reach out to us at sales@bluewaterphotostore.com if you need help getting set up.
It depends! If you have the Sea & Sea housing, the TTL will be pretty accurate. But if you don't want a TTL flash trigger, manual mode is easy with the strobes. You just move the power dial. If you are shooting quick subjects, TTL is a great option
would you recommend this over the ZV-E1? currently a compact shooter and looking to upgrade. moving towards videos, and occasionally macro photos. Im thinking the ZV-E1 would suit me better, but really appreciate your thoughts.
That's a good question! I would recommend the ZV-E1... the full frame sensor is incredible at higher ISOs with much less noise. Please feel free to sales@bluewaterphotostore.com - we would be happy to help you out with lens options.
Although the larger sensor of the R8 is better for low light situations, the A6700 should still perform well enough in most low-light situations. Besides that it has quite a few features for video that the R8 doesn't. In-body Image stabilization, better battery life, higher mbps. Not to mention, it's smaller size will be great for a beginner. The housing in the video is really quite compact!
I am so on the fence. I have had a Sony rx100iv for a long time, I am a bit of a Sony fan boy, I’ll admit. However, the Canon R7 keeps waving from over the fence….. I mostly shoot still but want to get into more video production. So for 4k60….. A6700 or Canon? (I am concerned about the canon line skip). PS why does Ikelite have to block the EVF and not add a viewing port as the canon housing has… I do like this feature… Thnaks for your thoughts….
I have many issues with this housing. I will list only some: big issue is no support for movable focus point - no joystick support. Focusing using macro lens effectively and precisely is near impossible in some situations. There is just no good enough AF for a seahorse for example. Another big one is the front aperture dial isn’t working because of the housing design. There is a way to circumvent the issue but it makes using the camera in manual quite more difficult. The housing is notoriously buoyant. The weight system offered is has poor design. Then TTL cable system is not consistent. Working in manual strobe control is a must. The front acrylic dome sharpness is very poor. Only about 40% in the center is sharp. Getting good shot with this housing is possible but I’m not sure it’s worth it. Most serious photographers will switch to other more reliable housing sooner or later. 😢😮
Thank you for the feedback. There are certainly a range of housings with different features and different prices that reflect those features! It sound like you are ready to invest in something that offers more premium features!
Thank you for the review! When you referred to the maximum of 20 min record time in warm water, did you mean 20 min of continuous recording? What if I record 1 min here, another min there?
I seldom have issues with overheating, even in warm water. 20 minutes of continuous recording would do it but 20 minutes of shorter clips spaced out over a dive is fine.
GREAT question! I should have mentioned that in the video. The A6700 is less than half the price of the A7C R. So in many ways, it is just as good when it comes to value for money. They are both about the same size, so if you have an extra $1700 to spend, the A7C R would be worth considering over the A6700. The A7C R performs better in low light when it comes to autofocus and the 61 megapixel full frame sensor is another level of image quality. I hope that helps! Always happy to continue the conversation - feel free to email us at sales@bluewaterphotostore.com
@@BluewaterPhotoStore I am still using the D9 but I have played with the D5 and the Eon that seem great. Maybe Suunto isn't at the innovation stage they once were and everyone has caught up but they have always been very solid for me. I do agree the Shearwater stuff is fantastic.
I just spoke with ikelite in regard to this and they said it will work with the m16 port on the side of your housing. You may need a right angle adapter inside though because it's a tight fit.
Nice vid. Thanks. I just recently got a tg-7 with the pt-059. I am trying to make a decision whether to go for the inon s-220 or the YS-01 Solis, where I can buy the latter for a significantly lower price than the inon....(both new but the ys-01 about 40% cheaper). Would you then still recommend the inon....me being an absolute beginner?
Both are great strobes! Both strobes have similar capabilities. We have found the TTL to be a bit more accurate with the TG-7 on the Inon S220 - so with that camera and strobe combination the Inon S220 would be our choice - but you really can't go wrong with either! Please feel free to reach out to sales@bluewaterphotostore.com and we'll give you a great deal :)
I shoot 4k/60 and sometimes /120 I shoot short clips 20seconds to 2min max. Grand total recorded time is typically 20mins-30mins on a given dive. Would I experience overheating shooting this way? Or overheating tend to happen when shooting continuously
Generally speaking, overheating issues with this camera have been coming from shooters who are recording long takes like interviews or wedding ceremonies (reports of overheating at 20 minutes). Short clips over the duration of a dive should be fine!
Do you think the 14-35mm would be a good choice for capturing underwater videos and photos of whales? I might be around 6 to 10 meters away, but I'm not entirely certain. Thank you for your help! ☺️
Absolutely. A wide Rectilinear lens like a 14-35 or 16-35 is the ideal choice in our opinion. Anything wider and even a very large animal will look tiny in the frame. It's very unlikely a large marine mammal will come close enough for a fisheye to do any good!
