Dinky
10-27-2007, 02:11 PM
Here's an article I found the other day from the year 2005 that talks about the Canon PowerShot A85 digital camera [that I own] and underwater accessories, if anyone is interested:
"Canon A85 and Sunpak G-Flash Review
by scuba_bob
Date: 2005-01-09
Canon A85, Canon underwater housing and Sunpak G-Flash Review
I just returned from Cozumel using a Canon A85 in the Canon under water housing and a Sunpak G-Flash. I was pleased; the layout is very convenient and Canon built in all the buttons and bells in both the camera and UW housing.
The UW housing allows for full on the fly functionality including color balance. The housing uses a standard O-ring seal and they supply grease. They did not include a replacement O-ring.
The removable rubber shade for the LCD screen is very nice, also attached via a thin cord so it won't float away.
SHOOTING MODES
I used the "P", Auto or AV settings most of the time. I like the AV to increase the depth of focus. The UW housing allows selection of all the shooting modes including video. Auto worked well but "P" is similar but your can set the flash to always fire in P, TV, AV and M modes). I did not use Manual.
MACRO and MANUAL
Placing into Macro is a one button setting. I used the camera in manual focus setting too, pressing the macro button once sets to macro, pressing twice sets manual focus.
BATTERY
Battery life was fine. I purchased rechargeable Ni-MH (4 AA cells) and used the flash almost 100% of the time. I never ran out (2 tanks, 2 hours of shooting + on-land play and viewing).
LAG TIME
I tested cameras in the store and couldn't tell the difference between the main brands I'd consider (Canon, Nikon, Olympus). Being a SLR photographer for over 25 years I really get irked at the lag time. I learned to deal with it. I set to manual mode and thought I noticed a difference. I hope that lag times become a standard rating (they'll need to test in several situations) as it is important. There are some web sites that have some lag time information but this camera and my other considerations (Nikon, Olympus 5050) had no data.
VIDEO MODE
I did not shoot video. Should have when we ran across three eagle rays but did not.
ON CAMERA FLASH
The flash has it's own button so no menues are needed to change the setting on the fly. The one-button settings are: Off, Always fire and Auto.
The on camera flash worked well for macro. I got a photo of a spotted drum using the on-board at about 1 meter.
The UW housing diffuser has two settings via a slip in "plastic card" diffuser that has a thin cord to attach it to the camera. I left it in 100% of the time.
MEMORY
Memory is standard Compactflash cards. I bought two ScanDisk Ultra II 256 meg cards for $32 each and they worked fine. That way I could use a blank card not risking prior photos in a flooded camera, then stop at an internet store to download to CD ROM. I'd recommend a 500 MB card minimum if you're not going to: bring a backup card or, set the camera to a lower resolution. If you're going to shoot video, read the manual.
SUMPAK G-FLASH
The G-Flash is a slave and never failed to fire. It has normal and pre-flash settings built in, no external adapters to buy. Canon's "red eye" reduction is a light not a pre-flash and the focus aid is an IR beam not a pre-flash. All my shots had the G-Flash set to normal.
The G-Flash comes with an arm! It's not large or too flexible (allows one movement which is the direction of the flash).
The one knob control of the flash is easy to use. It is a manual flash but it's so easy to adjust that I could look at the photo and adjust the settings and get another shot even in the currents. I'd like a TTL but that's another step in spending I'll consider in a few years. You can get or make a fiber optic connection to the slave trigger. The Canon diffuser, being in front of the flash, and the flash having a "light gathering" ring around it seemed to be an error free combination.
The G-Flash without a diffuser is too powerful for macro. It has a diffuser but I never brought it. However, the Canon on camera flash in the housing worked well in macro.
The G-Flash uses a standard O-ring and did supply a replacement O-ring and grease. I now have 5 years of grease. It uses 2 AA batteries. Lag time is long: about 6 seconds when fully discharged. I never noticed the delay.
ACCESSORIES
The Canon A85 has optional lenses and a filter adapter allowing standard SLR type filters to be used. I've not tried them and do not know if they fit in the UW housing. Because you can set the color balance on the fly (assuming you carry a white card or UW writing slate to use for calibration) the use of a red filter should not be necessary.
Overall, the system worked well and was intuitive even for this old 35MM SLR geek. Sharpness was as good as I saw of the other photo takers. I did have a problem cropping as I'd over zoom and being an SLR person the LCD screen was awkward for me to use. This is my first digital set-up so I am the weak link. I'd rather have an SLR but if this flooded I'd only cry with one eye ;->
For the money this set-up has to be a serious consideration for anyone wanting to spend under $1K (Approx. prices: Canon A85 about $215, Housing $155 - $180, Flash $175)".
So let me check out the Canon housing, the flash unit and see what they are about.:D
Dinky
"Canon A85 and Sunpak G-Flash Review
by scuba_bob
Date: 2005-01-09
Canon A85, Canon underwater housing and Sunpak G-Flash Review
I just returned from Cozumel using a Canon A85 in the Canon under water housing and a Sunpak G-Flash. I was pleased; the layout is very convenient and Canon built in all the buttons and bells in both the camera and UW housing.
The UW housing allows for full on the fly functionality including color balance. The housing uses a standard O-ring seal and they supply grease. They did not include a replacement O-ring.
The removable rubber shade for the LCD screen is very nice, also attached via a thin cord so it won't float away.
SHOOTING MODES
I used the "P", Auto or AV settings most of the time. I like the AV to increase the depth of focus. The UW housing allows selection of all the shooting modes including video. Auto worked well but "P" is similar but your can set the flash to always fire in P, TV, AV and M modes). I did not use Manual.
MACRO and MANUAL
Placing into Macro is a one button setting. I used the camera in manual focus setting too, pressing the macro button once sets to macro, pressing twice sets manual focus.
BATTERY
Battery life was fine. I purchased rechargeable Ni-MH (4 AA cells) and used the flash almost 100% of the time. I never ran out (2 tanks, 2 hours of shooting + on-land play and viewing).
LAG TIME
I tested cameras in the store and couldn't tell the difference between the main brands I'd consider (Canon, Nikon, Olympus). Being a SLR photographer for over 25 years I really get irked at the lag time. I learned to deal with it. I set to manual mode and thought I noticed a difference. I hope that lag times become a standard rating (they'll need to test in several situations) as it is important. There are some web sites that have some lag time information but this camera and my other considerations (Nikon, Olympus 5050) had no data.
VIDEO MODE
I did not shoot video. Should have when we ran across three eagle rays but did not.
ON CAMERA FLASH
The flash has it's own button so no menues are needed to change the setting on the fly. The one-button settings are: Off, Always fire and Auto.
The on camera flash worked well for macro. I got a photo of a spotted drum using the on-board at about 1 meter.
The UW housing diffuser has two settings via a slip in "plastic card" diffuser that has a thin cord to attach it to the camera. I left it in 100% of the time.
MEMORY
Memory is standard Compactflash cards. I bought two ScanDisk Ultra II 256 meg cards for $32 each and they worked fine. That way I could use a blank card not risking prior photos in a flooded camera, then stop at an internet store to download to CD ROM. I'd recommend a 500 MB card minimum if you're not going to: bring a backup card or, set the camera to a lower resolution. If you're going to shoot video, read the manual.
SUMPAK G-FLASH
The G-Flash is a slave and never failed to fire. It has normal and pre-flash settings built in, no external adapters to buy. Canon's "red eye" reduction is a light not a pre-flash and the focus aid is an IR beam not a pre-flash. All my shots had the G-Flash set to normal.
The G-Flash comes with an arm! It's not large or too flexible (allows one movement which is the direction of the flash).
The one knob control of the flash is easy to use. It is a manual flash but it's so easy to adjust that I could look at the photo and adjust the settings and get another shot even in the currents. I'd like a TTL but that's another step in spending I'll consider in a few years. You can get or make a fiber optic connection to the slave trigger. The Canon diffuser, being in front of the flash, and the flash having a "light gathering" ring around it seemed to be an error free combination.
The G-Flash without a diffuser is too powerful for macro. It has a diffuser but I never brought it. However, the Canon on camera flash in the housing worked well in macro.
The G-Flash uses a standard O-ring and did supply a replacement O-ring and grease. I now have 5 years of grease. It uses 2 AA batteries. Lag time is long: about 6 seconds when fully discharged. I never noticed the delay.
ACCESSORIES
The Canon A85 has optional lenses and a filter adapter allowing standard SLR type filters to be used. I've not tried them and do not know if they fit in the UW housing. Because you can set the color balance on the fly (assuming you carry a white card or UW writing slate to use for calibration) the use of a red filter should not be necessary.
Overall, the system worked well and was intuitive even for this old 35MM SLR geek. Sharpness was as good as I saw of the other photo takers. I did have a problem cropping as I'd over zoom and being an SLR person the LCD screen was awkward for me to use. This is my first digital set-up so I am the weak link. I'd rather have an SLR but if this flooded I'd only cry with one eye ;->
For the money this set-up has to be a serious consideration for anyone wanting to spend under $1K (Approx. prices: Canon A85 about $215, Housing $155 - $180, Flash $175)".
So let me check out the Canon housing, the flash unit and see what they are about.:D
Dinky