Equipment
Getting the best images underwater usually relies on using specific equipment. Listed on this page are details of camera equipment that has been used for most of the images that appear on this site.
Current underwater camera system:
A Nikon D90 SLR camera is used in a customised Sea & Sea DX-D80 underwater housing.
Nikon fit lenses used:
Nikkor 60mm f2.8 D micro
Tokina 35mm f2.8 DX macro
Nikkor 10.5mm f2.8 DX fisheye
Tokina 10-17mm f3.5-4.5 DX fisheye zoom
Kenko 1.5X teleconverter
.
Wherever possible a minimalist approach to kit is taken. However, a housed SLR camera system is used despite its bulk and complexity as certain images would be difficult to take without it.
Sea & Sea do not make an underwater housing for the Nikon D90, so a previously used Nikon D80 housing has been modified in order to use a D90.
Customisation has involved drilling new holes in the rear of the housing and adding four new control buttons. An Inon 45 degree viewfinder has also been fitted to replace the standard viewfinder.
.
Sea & Sea YS110 strobes, on separate sync cables, are used for lighting. The modelling lights in these strobes together with a Q40 torch mounted on the top of the housing are occasionally used as focus assist lights.
A compact dome port or a fisheye dome port are used for wide angle lenses and a standard flat port is used for macro lenses. As shooting is mostly in murky UK waters lens choice is restricted to either very wide angle close focussing lenses or the shortest of macro lenses.
Previous lenses used:
Nikkor 18-55 f3.5-5.6 DX
Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 EX DC macro
Nikkor 105 f2.8 D micro + Nikon 4T dioptre
Previous digital cameras:
Digital photography started in 2004 with Canon Powershot A80 and A95 cameras inside Canon cases together with Inon wet fit lenses: UFL165AD fisheye, UWL105AD, UCL165AD macro.
.
A housed Nikon DSLR was first used in 2006 - firstly the Nikon D50, shortly followed by the D80, and now the D90.
Prior to digital, underwater photography had been exclusively with Nikonos III film cameras. A number of these Nikonos cameras were used from 1983 through to the end of 2003.
.
Photo above left, Trevor in Menorca, 2003 - one of the last dives made using a Nikonos camera.
Photo above right, Trevor in Loch Duich 2006 - using a housed Nikon DSLR with twin strobes.
Current underwater camera system:
A Nikon D90 SLR camera is used in a customised Sea & Sea DX-D80 underwater housing.
Nikon fit lenses used:
Nikkor 60mm f2.8 D micro
Tokina 35mm f2.8 DX macro
Nikkor 10.5mm f2.8 DX fisheye
Tokina 10-17mm f3.5-4.5 DX fisheye zoom
Kenko 1.5X teleconverter
.
Wherever possible a minimalist approach to kit is taken. However, a housed SLR camera system is used despite its bulk and complexity as certain images would be difficult to take without it.
Sea & Sea do not make an underwater housing for the Nikon D90, so a previously used Nikon D80 housing has been modified in order to use a D90.
Customisation has involved drilling new holes in the rear of the housing and adding four new control buttons. An Inon 45 degree viewfinder has also been fitted to replace the standard viewfinder.
.
Sea & Sea YS110 strobes, on separate sync cables, are used for lighting. The modelling lights in these strobes together with a Q40 torch mounted on the top of the housing are occasionally used as focus assist lights.
A compact dome port or a fisheye dome port are used for wide angle lenses and a standard flat port is used for macro lenses. As shooting is mostly in murky UK waters lens choice is restricted to either very wide angle close focussing lenses or the shortest of macro lenses.
Previous lenses used:
Nikkor 18-55 f3.5-5.6 DX
Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 EX DC macro
Nikkor 105 f2.8 D micro + Nikon 4T dioptre
Previous digital cameras:
Digital photography started in 2004 with Canon Powershot A80 and A95 cameras inside Canon cases together with Inon wet fit lenses: UFL165AD fisheye, UWL105AD, UCL165AD macro.
.
A housed Nikon DSLR was first used in 2006 - firstly the Nikon D50, shortly followed by the D80, and now the D90.
Prior to digital, underwater photography had been exclusively with Nikonos III film cameras. A number of these Nikonos cameras were used from 1983 through to the end of 2003.
.
Photo above left, Trevor in Menorca, 2003 - one of the last dives made using a Nikonos camera.
Photo above right, Trevor in Loch Duich 2006 - using a housed Nikon DSLR with twin strobes.