What wideangle should I use?

rogeringebo · 21st April 2006, 12:52

Just bought a secondhand Sony PC1 with a Gates housing and want to buy a wideangle lens for it....can I get one to put on the very camera inside the housing (there is room for it) or do I need a big one to put on the very housing? Any ideas on whats best/cheapest? What angle do you recomend? Will film divers and wrecks so no macro at this point..
Any help/ideas would be great..

Best regards
Rodge

jhaaja · 21st April 2006, 13:08

I have one sony with sony housing in Finland. It has two wide angle lenses. If I remember correct they are 0,5x and 0,7x. Most of the times I have used the 0,5x. They are mounted straight to the camera inside the housing.

I could guess that you get more light to the camera using a bigger lense outside the housing.

Warning!

JH

CHRISB · 21st April 2006, 13:16

I have never used the PC1 in a gates housing , but have used the PC100/110/120 and have used the external housing wide angle port that you may order from a Gates dealer, I believe it is the GP25A.... Check details on the gates website www.gateshousings.com The quality of the lense (when used with the 110 especially) had professional results for a consumer priced lense- I was able to get about 80 % zoom through capability and as such the lense worked quite well for most macro applications. The overall sharpness and clarity was impressive. Perhaps there is a second hand lense on the market available on one of the forums- beware that the front dome port is accrylic and as such will scratch if the user is not careful.
I hope you enjoy your new toy!

rogeringebo · 21st April 2006, 13:42

Yes,I really looking forward to start learning to film...been a dream of mine for years and now that I have the Rebreather I want I could spend a little money on a camera..
How much is the lens from Gates...just an estimate..
3 filters came with the camera...one orange one pink and one red.....wich one does what,,,at the moment I dive green dark waters....wich one should I use?

´Rodge

CHRISB · 21st April 2006, 15:06

Just a bit about colour correcting filters in my limited experience with them and video.
For the most part I have always used colour correcting filters to achieve the most colourful finished footage upon immediate recording of the subject by either using the cameras auto white balancing features or by white balancing the camera manually with the colour filter in place and camera pointed at a specific subject to dictate what 'type' of response you would like from the camera when it picks 'white balance'. Ie. Pointing at a white slate to produce a more 'true' rendition of the atmosphere that your filming or on occasion do a variance to the traditional and pointing at different colour soft corals (pinky,red) for instance and initiating the white balance feature (manual) in order to bring about a blue hue to the green water- a technique I used many years ago to change a green mil channel in Yap Micronesia to a much more pleasant blue.These techniques came in quite handy when shooting on a daily basis, when filming and editing 'in camera' so as to have a 'finished product' ready to go a short time after the dives completion. Sorry, this has turned into a bit of a mis mash of white balance and filters but thought it would be interesting for you nonetheless.

Now more on the topic of the filters : essentially the basic working principle of filters is they allow the same wavelength of light as their own colour to pass so in doing so they are reducing the amount of light getting through to your camera sensor and in effect are blocking other wavelengths of light as well.
So to make a long story short, in todays age of digital editing it is now quite easy to 'pump up the reds' in post production and by pass much of the filter process- which, depending on your availability of ambient light and the 'lux' rating of your camera; is a very helpful thing.
Now having said that, not everybody likes to spend a lot of time in the editing room if they don't have to (in fact I know of no one who enjoys spending EXTRA time there) So to have some pretty darn good results go with the reddish orange filter in the blue waters and the pink/magenta in the green water... I suppose that was all you were looking for, sorry about the ramble.
Happy shooting.

21st April 2006, 13:08	#2 (permalink)
jhaaja Custom Title Allowed! Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Finland Posts: 884	Re: What wideangle should I use? I have one sony with sony housing in Finland. It has two wide angle lenses. If I remember correct they are 0,5x and 0,7x. Most of the times I have used the 0,5x. They are mounted straight to the camera inside the housing. I could guess that you get more light to the camera using a bigger lense outside the housing. Warning! JH
(Offline)

21st April 2006, 13:16	#3 (permalink)
CHRISB CHRISB Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Evolution Megalodon Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: GRAND CAYMAN Posts: 30	Re: What wideangle should I use? I have never used the PC1 in a gates housing , but have used the PC100/110/120 and have used the external housing wide angle port that you may order from a Gates dealer, I believe it is the GP25A.... Check details on the gates website www.gateshousings.com The quality of the lense (when used with the 110 especially) had professional results for a consumer priced lense- I was able to get about 80 % zoom through capability and as such the lense worked quite well for most macro applications. The overall sharpness and clarity was impressive. Perhaps there is a second hand lense on the market available on one of the forums- beware that the front dome port is accrylic and as such will scratch if the user is not careful. I hope you enjoy your new toy! __________________ http://www.chrisbrandson.com
(Offline)

21st April 2006, 13:42	#4 (permalink)
rogeringebo Custom Title Allowed! Current Rebreather/s: Pelagian Other Rebreather/s: Megalodon Classic Kiss Pelagian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Stockholm Sweden Posts: 700	Re: What wideangle should I use? Yes,I really looking forward to start learning to film...been a dream of mine for years and now that I have the Rebreather I want I could spend a little money on a camera.. How much is the lens from Gates...just an estimate.. 3 filters came with the camera...one orange one pink and one red.....wich one does what,,,at the moment I dive green dark waters....wich one should I use? ´Rodge
(Online)

21st April 2006, 15:06	#5 (permalink)
CHRISB CHRISB Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Evolution Megalodon Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: GRAND CAYMAN Posts: 30	Re: What wideangle should I use? Just a bit about colour correcting filters in my limited experience with them and video. For the most part I have always used colour correcting filters to achieve the most colourful finished footage upon immediate recording of the subject by either using the cameras auto white balancing features or by white balancing the camera manually with the colour filter in place and camera pointed at a specific subject to dictate what 'type' of response you would like from the camera when it picks 'white balance'. Ie. Pointing at a white slate to produce a more 'true' rendition of the atmosphere that your filming or on occasion do a variance to the traditional and pointing at different colour soft corals (pinky,red) for instance and initiating the white balance feature (manual) in order to bring about a blue hue to the green water- a technique I used many years ago to change a green mil channel in Yap Micronesia to a much more pleasant blue.These techniques came in quite handy when shooting on a daily basis, when filming and editing 'in camera' so as to have a 'finished product' ready to go a short time after the dives completion. Sorry, this has turned into a bit of a mis mash of white balance and filters but thought it would be interesting for you nonetheless. Now more on the topic of the filters : essentially the basic working principle of filters is they allow the same wavelength of light as their own colour to pass so in doing so they are reducing the amount of light getting through to your camera sensor and in effect are blocking other wavelengths of light as well. So to make a long story short, in todays age of digital editing it is now quite easy to 'pump up the reds' in post production and by pass much of the filter process- which, depending on your availability of ambient light and the 'lux' rating of your camera; is a very helpful thing. Now having said that, not everybody likes to spend a lot of time in the editing room if they don't have to (in fact I know of no one who enjoys spending EXTRA time there) So to have some pretty darn good results go with the reddish orange filter in the blue waters and the pink/magenta in the green water... I suppose that was all you were looking for, sorry about the ramble. Happy shooting. __________________ http://www.chrisbrandson.com
(Offline)

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