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Underwater Bubble Blowin' Users Group

Upcoming sinking

Upcoming sinking

AquaVideoRed206 said:
Back to something interesting.:):thumbsup:

My third video dive with the first AquaVideo (1981) housing was an ice dive, but freshwater could only get to 32F - what's the water temp there?
Click to expand...

Mike speaking of diving, did you get on the media boat for the sinking??

Did it work out? PM or email me.

Frazier
 
Michael,
sent an email with some questions a few days ago. Maybe you missed it.
Best,
Paolo
 
AquaVideoRed206 said:
Back to something interesting.:):thumbsup:

My third video dive with the first AquaVideo (1981) housing was an ice dive, but freshwater could only get to 32F - what's the water temp there?
Click to expand...


It's not much colder that 32f. I think we are in about 29f....diving just below the salt water iced up where i believe freezing is around 28.5 f - i may stand corrected on that figure, but not by much.

We have had no real issues using red in this demanding environment. I think if we take anything away from this shoot, it's to have a WIDE variety of filters if shooting in the ice/snow.....variety of polarizing filters as well as the usual ND kit and some UV's.

Also using EX1 with fantastic results. What a great run and gun camera.
 
U/W Focus, in real life

U/W Focus, in real life

Hi,

Firstly a huge thanks to John & Mark for posting the RED housings evaluation report. Fascinating reading, especially since I’ve just had my own RED housing made. I wonder how mine would have rated!

Anyway I have been testing my housing and getting a feel for it and am curious about other RED U/W operators “real life” focus stories.

If there is one constant you hear about the RED it’s that focus is just so critical (more so than 35mm cine) and that a focus puller is absolutely necessary for topside shooting. So I am wondering how others are finding it for focus U/W? I would particularly love to hear about dome port focus issues/experiences.

So far I have used only the RED 18-50mm lens and found that getting focus through our Aquatica 8” dome seems pretty straight forward (1 metre in front of dome seems to be in focus at approximately 16” on the lens at 18mm. Which is what you expect from an 8” dome, yes?).

I am about to do a U/W shoot using the Arri 8R 8mm lens. Can any of the Palau crew or anyone else who has used this lens U/W through a dome shed any light on focusing tips or other issues with it? I know it is going to yield spectacular images especially on objects close to the camera. Our shoot is at night so I suspect a pretty low level of light and F stop. We will have a topside video split but only at 720p.

Any info much appreciated and I will certainly share what I learn from using the Arri 8mm lens.



George
www.coralseatv.com
Sydney, Australia
 
The report - my experience with the AquaVideo

The report - my experience with the AquaVideo

Having owned an AquaVideo Red One housing for a year and holding a reservation on a Gates Deep Red, I feel I can add some light to the discussion. There is a reason why I have made a reservation for the Gates Deep Red, but there is also a reason why I am reluctant to drop the AquaVideo.

I see no need to rekindle the flame over the report, which in my opinion seemed fair and no more biased than any user I assume would be after trying both the AquaVideo and the Gates. I understand Mike's reaction, but I also do support the conclusions in the report (be it noted that I have not yet laid my gloved hands on the Gates).

The AquaVideo basic tubular design is simple and clever, and makes for a well-balanced unit that handles well in the water. With the rear acrylic plate at the rear and acrylic dome port or the flat glass port from Aquatica, the housing is almost perfectly balanced as is. With the recessed glass on the Aquatica flat port the unit becomes sturdy as a tank, and can take quite a beating in shallow waters or against a boat side. This limits the lens choices somewhat, but I have successfully used a Sigma 17 - 35 zoom with no vignetting, as well as the 20mm UltraPrime.

The report's concern over the lack of replacement ports/parts is in my opinion a moot point, since I have had no trouble finding used ports from still camera housings, and now have a total of four inexpensive Aquatica ports with various extensions and shades. Since the screw-in variant is discontinued Mike must (has?) at one point switch to the bayonet or ports from other suppliers, but since the front port plate design is separate from the housing I assume this is a matter of inexpensive retrofitting or on-site replacement (Mike?)

Adding the new glass port however makes it rather front heavy, and the glass is very exposed to damage. The added weight and less balance makes this setup more suited to shooting with easy entry/exit into the water or pool use. The glass dome accommodates the 18-50 zoom and larger primes and the lens markings are clearly visible through the glass, so for slow-paced shooting with higher optical requirments this is a good choice. For any open water use the acrylic dome handles better, albeit of a lesser optical quality.

Having the tubular design with the monitor placed at the very back is of course debatable. I have not yet seen much reason to complain, primarily because it is a very simple and inexpensive solution. Yes, it is awkward to do low angle shots, and sometimes your arms become too short. And at age 41, I suppose my arms will become even shorter in a couple of years :) A larger monitor will help wherever it is placed.
But in all this design has not yet caused me great concern, being on a budget to start off with. Adding an external monitor shouldn't be too difficult for those that can afford it, a bulkhead connector for SDI cable is easy to install for anyone with some workshop experience, and standard monitors in third-party housings are aplenty. It shouldn't be too difficult for Mike to offer this either.

But, there is more concern for the design of the lens controls. It does frustrate me that there is a less than adequate solution for mechanical manipulation of iris and focus (zoom being less critical), with as far as I know no off-the-shelf solution for a film lens gear system is available. Mike has instead opted for the Birger path, a choice I am hesitant to support. As wonderful as this electronic lens control system might sound, it is still very much in the future for underwater use, and reliant on the fact that one must ditch PL-mount with the implications that brings. Birger is only now shipping, with waiting list on the Empiro. How the electronics will perform in damp conditions is another concern, the odd drop of saltwater will hit the gear and condensation is sometimes unavoidable. My RED One has held out so far, partly due to carefully covering the body with gaffa prior to installing it in the housing. More or less open electronic controllers, buttons and circuit boards is not what I'd like to see in an underwater housing - you really cannot go wrong with mechanical controllers wherever you are in the world, repairing electronics is after all another matter.

For me, ditching PL for the Birger is not an option, especially for commercial and drama work. I can, and have on occasion, persuade DPs to accept Nikons over Ultra and Master Primes using the leak argument, i.e. that they were risking damaging those expensive lenses if there was a leak. Optically it makes not much difference, most viewers (or DPs) can't tell the difference between a good still or cine lens under water anyway.

But, and this is a big but, I want to be able to offer my clients the use of PL lenses with fast and accurate focus and iris control. Today, the rudimentary lens control offered by AquaVideo is barely, and just barely, useable. In a controlled studio/pool situation you can get by (even with a topside DP screaming into your intercom) , but in open water this is simply not good enough. I have missed several great animal shots due to this. And no, just using a fixed focus wide angle lens is not an option! I want to be able to use zooms, prime 24, 32, 40 or even longer lenses for drama, macro or whatever I might need a longer, easily focusable lens for. And I also use my camera above water, and no one will rent it with a Birger mount installed.

Mike, does Aquavideo now have proper lens gears on offer? The Birger could be a great option for those willing to go that route, but please don't exclude the majority that don't. PL is "back in vogue", with a plethora of cheaper, better cine-style lenses coming on the market in the near future, with less and less reason for choosing Birger/Canon as your only mount. I have been in touch with another user on this forum who had cine gears made for him, and also asked Element Technica to have some made, but neither could help at this time. For the time being I am stuck with the standard AquaVideo lens control which does work, but requires me to have oceans of time and patience...

The AquaVideo is a decent and inexpensive housing with a simple design that can he hugely improved by offering a good set of lens gears to fit for instance the 18 - 50 zoom like the Gates does. And, with the option of adding an external monitor the difference becomes even less, but so does the price point! If the AquaVideo is to keep its current corner of the market, there must be some improvement to these two important issues, without adding greatly to the cost. And I say that Birger should be the second choice for lens control, with PL in the front seat. Mike?


Amund

------

Now with clean moltons!
(yes, the flame retardant causes rashes)
 
Well, we just received our Gates Deep Red housing, the first production model to be delivered. We are prepping it as we speak for in pool and in ocean testing this weekend. Pics and details to follow!!
 
We had an awesome day out at Catalina with the the first production Deep Red from Gates!! They made some very nice changes since we last tested the prototype. Housing was a beauty, handled amazing underwater and is very well balanced!! More info to come!
 
Gears for Aquavideo RED housing

Gears for Aquavideo RED housing

Amund

I can supply the ET style gears that we put on Ken Corben's housing. I will post some pictures later. I got involved in putting a 3d camera (two Canon HFS100s on the Vandenberg ship (2nd largest artificial reef sinking ever) that will be sunk tomorrow. Will get some more info up later this week/weekend.
 
Cheap Housings for Canon HG20

Cheap Housings for Canon HG20

Guys, on a different note...

I need to buy or make about 10-15 housings for the little Canon HG20. I know Equinox makes one but it's worthless for what I need. I need a very simple housing, with controls for just ON and OFF basically, but I need a nice dome port at the front, a 6" acrylic would do fine, so that I can fit a wide angle adapter over the camera stock fixed lens. As importantly, I need something that can reach 200 meters (660 ft) since they will be used at depths up to 165 meters (540 ft) to film a freediving world record. I want to equip the diver's sled with several cameras as well as fit some of the deep safety divers with a few other housings also. I need the housing to be as small as possible, without worrying about accommodating the LCD screen, which I would leave closed anyway. So, a nice, strong little cylinder with a dome at one end, that's all...

I figure Mike from Aquavision could be of help, but truth be said, I have sent him several PM's in the past requesting rental rates for his RED for some very juicy gigs and he's never replied, so I figure I have a better chance asking here. So, if anybody knows of anyone that sells or could build something like this for me, please let me know. Custom job or not, I need these housings to be cheap, they will be used basically as crash cams of sorts. Does it have to be the Canon HG20? Not really, but if you know another camera that sells for $500 and records the maximum quality of the AVCHD format at 24mbps onto a true progressive chip, then let me know and I'll switch to that camera.

Any help would be appreciated,
 
Rudi Herbert said:
I figure Mike from Aquavision could be of help, but truth be said, I have sent him several PM's in the past requesting rental rates for his RED for some very juicy gigs and he's never replied, so I figure I have a better chance asking here.

Any help would be appreciated,
Click to expand...

Rudi,

I just looked through all 7 pages of pms that were ever sent to me dating back to March of 2007 and there is only one pm from you - Jan. 12, 2009 which I did apparently overlook - but since my company is AquaVideo, not AquaVision, maybe you confused me with someone else.

Anyway, yes we could do that - I have made housings for the HG20 with a Century Precision wide angle- in fact we did one for 3D with two HG20s and just converted it to HFS100s. The HG20 does seem to be the best bang for the buck.

I am not on REDUSER all the time so maybe you could call me at 954 937 6600 or email at aquavideo1@yahoo.com. For something like this a phone call is better to allow some back and forth about needs/possibilities/budgets since it would take a long time to do an email with all of the possibilities.
 
Michael Hastings said:
Rudi,

I just looked through all 7 pages of pms that were ever sent to me dating back to March of 2007 and there is only one pm from you - Jan. 12, 2009 which I did apparently overlook - but since my company is AquaVideo, not AquaVision, maybe you confused me with someone else.
Click to expand...

Mike, no confusion, it was you I was talking about (sorry for the Aquavision misnomer) and I had sent you one more PM besides posting the body of one of those messages here on this thread when I didn't get a reply from you. Anyway, thanks for getting back to me now, and yes, I will call you.
 
Rudi Herbert said:
Mike, no confusion, it was you I was talking about (sorry for the Aquavision misnomer) and I had sent you one more PM besides posting the body of one of those messages here on this thread when I didn't get a reply from you. Anyway, thanks for getting back to me now, and yes, I will call you.
Click to expand...

No problem, I'm just wondering where the other pms went.

BTW My page always says I have a new notification even when I don't because someone sent me a friend request which I have tried to accept multiple times and it never goes through but it ends up showing on "Your notifications" thingy at the upper right so sometimes I don't notice an actual new pm.
 
Rudi Herbert said:
Guys, on a different note...

I need to buy or make about 10-15 housings for the little Canon HG20. I know Equinox makes one but it's worthless for what I need. I need a very simple housing, with controls for just ON and OFF basically, but I need a nice dome port at the front, a 6" acrylic would do fine, so that I can fit a wide angle adapter over the camera stock fixed lens. As importantly, I need something that can reach 200 meters (660 ft) since they will be used at depths up to 165 meters (540 ft) to film a freediving world record. I want to equip the diver's sled with several cameras as well as fit some of the deep safety divers with a few other housings also. I need the housing to be as small as possible, without worrying about accommodating the LCD screen, which I would leave closed anyway. So, a nice, strong little cylinder with a dome at one end, that's all...
Click to expand...

I would assume that you will also need the record function as a control.

We have several options available to us for custom housings, but would largely depend on your timeframe. Do you have a definite need date?

pm me if you'd like to discuss or feel free to email me at jholley@marinevisions.com
 
Noticed this on another thread.

Noticed this on another thread.

Noticed this on another thread, and thought I would copy it over here as I was curious about that extension, and was wondering what lens it was for - is that a normal setup? It seems like it is as long (longer?) than our housing and it's already substantially wider.

Also curious about other users having drive problems? Any of my AquaVideo guys seeing that?


Noah said:
Here's a pic of it in action, taken from another RED.
gates1.jpg
Click to expand...

What lens are you using? That looks like a pretty long extension on there.

Noah said:
After day one underwater, we've had a few problems. We're shooing in a pool that is heated and the camera sometimes stays in the pool for up to 30 minutes. Whenever we get a break we take the camera out and try and cool it down. Having the camera in the Gates housing this long had caused a few problems, dropped frames, full corrupt takes and drives not being recognized. We've switched to the HOT fan setting and are now shooting on 16gb cards and that has seemed to fix the problem. I imagine shooting with this housing in the ocean, where the water is cooler wouldn't encounter these problems.
Click to expand...

We haven't seen many problems with drives - I haven't had any and with over 20 housings out there nobody has reported any to me or on the bubble blowers thread that I know of. Not to be too shameless but our unit it is quite a bit tighter around the REDONE body - i.e. less airspace so it seems like the fans blow directly on the aluminum wall rather than diffusing throughout the housing and may mean it stays a little cooler. We also have a cooling rod option - the rods run from the aluminum frontplate along the bottom right by the fan exit and either simply heatsink/transfer through the frontplate or if necessary they can be bored out so that water could enter the rods for further cooling.
 
To all,

I visited the set on Friday to investigate the issues. At this point data is still being gathered.

One important note: the conditions of this shoot are stressful to *all* RED cameras, including those topside. Water is 91F / 33C, deck is humid and >95F / 35C. Cooling measures are in use for all cameras.

Those familiar with Gates know we will doggedly address our product issues and take all reasonable actions to resolve them to our customer satisfaction.

More to follow….

John
 
David:

Just called, will try again in half an hour.

8" Glass dome frontplate setup is on hand. Glass flat port on the screw in Aquatica "macro" ports is also on hand, but they are the long ones 2.82 long onside from front of frontplate (longer with extension rings). 4.3"/110.5mm internal diameter of the smaller part of the tube/glass i.e. that would be the largest diameter lens that could fit in there.

I can make flat acrylic ports that use the threaded holes and o-ring groove on the frontplate and also that style with a glass element as well depending on the size glass element you need and the depth required. Normal glass I have is a little over 4" diameter and 3/8" thick so fairly good pressure resistance. Also have 5" and 6" but only 1/4" thick so need to stay fairly shallow.

Long Macro port $429.
Extension rings $119,
8” Optical Glass dome (AR coated) frontplate $2399.
Basic acrylic flat port $199 Uses O-ring groove and threaded holes on frontplate. Glass insert version price depends on specifics. These can be either just flat or some level of extension if you need extension but not as much as the "macro" port.

I am leaving tomorrow noon for Minneapolis to visit family (and my friend that makes the circuit board for Birger mount controller so will do final tweaking of settings), returning Sunday.

Mike
 
Had a chance to meet with my circuit board designer in Minneapolis over the weekend and finalized the birger controller software, focus and iris are working smoothly now. Need a few more days for the final physical part and will be ready for sale.

Also, I was asked the difference between the glass dome plate and the regular port so here are a couple of pictures.

The first is the standard plate. If you look closely you can see the threads for the Aquatica ports, and there is an extension on the bottom right of the picture where you can see the threads on the ports or extensions. There are 6" and 8" acrylic domes that fit lenses up to about 130mm diameter (like the Arri 8r and the old 12mm t2.1), as well as extended macro ports (flat) with either acrylic or glass for lenses up to 110mm diameter.

The o-ring groove and concentric threaded holes allow you to easily make and seal custom ports if needed. We use that to make a simple flat port that uses the threaded holes and o-ring groove so you can use lenses up to about 145mm. And the same style can have an extension for longer lenses that won't fit the macro ports or aren't the proper length. Since we have provided that seal groove and threaded mount holes it would also be easy for someone else to make a custom port.

The horizontal row of threaded holes top and bottom are just to make it easy for you to attach things like ballast weights or bouyancy tubes; air jets (to blow drops off) for surf or waterline shooting; larger shades/flags; or whatever else you might want to attach.

The glass dome is its own plate, so you swap it with the regular plate. This was to allow the use of even larger lenses like the 10mm arri zeiss t2.1 and ultraprime as well as the more normal size lenses. You can see how it is actually larger than the front of the housing and there are cutaways on the back at the top so it uses the same clamps as the normal frontplate. The glass dome has anti-reflective coatings to provide greater light transmission and to reduce flare.
 
New splash bag for the RED ONE

New splash bag for the RED ONE

Checkout this new splash bag for the RED ONE.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_VBPOpl4wQ

They claim it goes 9 feet underwater! I find that hard to believe. It has a scuba inflator hose intake so you could equalise the pressure. Except the unit would then be EXTREMELY buoyant and place HUGE stress on the welded seams. I think that at even 2 feet underwater it would be very hard to use. However it would be great for shooting in the rain or maybe for 1/2 in out shots.

I have never used a splash bag deeper than surface level with any success. What do others reckon?


George
 
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