Underwater Photography with Sea and Sea camera

In article <5obu7t$ @drn.zippo.com>,
        AndyG wrote:



        A Nikonos IS a viable choice even for the cost concious. My husband and I
go regularly to our local camera swap meet. Used Nikonos Vs abound, many in
new or almost new condition for less than half the original sticker price. The
same is true for strobes, lenses, extension tubes, etc. My husband and I both
have cameras, strobes and all the goodies (Ok, no 15mm lens YET, but we did find
a 17mm for $100) and we've shelled out less than $2000.
        Sandra Jaqua

Mary,

I've been shooting the MM-II for about 5 years, and have had great results.
I've even been
published a couple of times, too. I think it's a great system, especially
for the price. I've never had the kind of problems you've described here.
It sounds like the problem lies with your particular camera, not of the
Motormarine as a whole.

Greg Bunch
gbunder @nospam.gs.net (Minus the nospam, of course)
http://homepages.gs.net/~gbund erc <---------- A couple of my best
Motormarine pics!

mary ann morrill <mamor @gte.net> wrote in article
<5o7ibb$pv @news12.gte.net>...

I bought the Nikonus V first off.  It's a good, reliable camera, but
expensive
as all get-out.  Personally, if I had to do it over, I'd go with a video
camera for two reasons:

1. People who can hardly point a camera get good results.  I, on the
other
   hand, even with a lot of reading and years of land photography
   experience, often get stuff I don't like.

2. These days, you can capture video images on a computer and get pretty
   decent results, sometimes.

Lee

In article <5o7ibb$pv @news12.gte.net>, mary says...

Mary, I've used my MotorMarine II on about forty dives at depths of up to 130
feet without any problems.  The problem with the film counter and marks on the
film suggests to me that there may be problems with the way you're loading the
film.  (If you haven't already, I would strongly advise buying the Complete
Guide to Sea & Sea, since the instructions that ship with the camera are written
in terrible English and are pretty useless.)

Regarding the MotorMarine II vs. the Nikonos V, I think that the comparison is
not really valid: they are really targeted at two different segments of the
underwater photography market.  Based on what I've heard and read, the Nikonos V
has a significant advantage in terms of the quality of the optics.  Serious or
professional photographers all seem to use the Nikonos V.  However, the
MotorMarine II has several advantages over the Nikonos V: price, ease and cost
of maintenance, and flexibility.  With the Nikonos V, you have to have the
internal O-rings serviced annually at a cost of a couple hundred $; with the
MotorMarine II the maintenance is simple and you do it yourself.  With the
MotorMarine II, you can switch from 35 mm. to macro or wide angle lens
underwater; with the Nikonos V you can't.  With the MotorMarine II you can add a
wide angle lens for around $250 (mail order), while the Nikonos lenses are much
more expensive.

I believe the MotorMarine II is the better choice for divers who don't want a
lot of hassle and don't want to invest $1,500 for a basic camera and strobe set
up. It can take excellent pictures, although not as good as the Nikonos. If
you're a serious photographer and you don't mind the additional maintenance and
expense, you should go with the Nikonos.

AndyG

Weclome to the group.   It sounds like you have some equipment
malfunctions,
but I don't know how/if you're contributing to any/many of them through
"operator error" or if it really is a hardware problem.

It does take some more skill to use - are you willing to do that?  

A Nikonos V isn't really all that much more technologically advanced
than
an old Pentax K-1000 SLR (or an even older "Argus" :-).  If you don't
mind
handling a "nearly fully manual" camera, then it may be worth it to you
for the gains in maximum potential optical quality, more equipment
selection
options and the ultimate control of the camera are its benefits.

Its a lot like comparing a stick to an automatic transmission in some
ways:
the one is a lot easier to drive, but if you know what you're doing, you
can get much more performance out of the other.

Agreed - the MM's are much closer to the "PhD" camera users.

True, but remember that anyone can take a LOUSY picture :-).

And they have a housed camera, too.  There's some
advantages/disadvantages
between a Nikonos and a housed camera that's a trade-off to consider,
too.

If you're considering price, going with UW video is probably cheaper
than
either option in the LONG run.  If you insist on staying with still
photography, an inexpensive housed SLR system can be very cost effective
in the long run as well, particularly if you already own the SLR.

This is factually incorrect.

1. Annual Service costs *around* $100, not "a couple hundred $".  It
cost
me around $85 the last time I had mine done.  There's several
non-factory
businesses who will do this for you in a professional and responsive
manner;
I don't know if similar support exists for the MM, except for the
factory
(aka monopoly).

2. It also doesn't strictly HAVE to be done annually - its really a
function
of how often the camera gets dived *AND* just how well you clean it
after
each dive.  I have mine checked out every 2-3 years, whereas some pro's
need
to do theirs every 6 months - ie, YMMV.  There have been testimonials
here on the net of Nikonos cameras that are 10 years old and have never
been serviced...probably not really a good idea, but...

3. The "User" level of maintanance on the Nikonos is pretty easy
too...but
the catch for BOTH systems is the question about the "HARD" O-rings.
For
the Nikonos V, these are the "Non-User Servicable" O-rings done in the
Annual Service (see above) on various control shafts, glands, latches,
etc.
As such, either the MM-II has NON-User-Servicable O-rings much like the
Nikonos that really do require periodic professional servicing, or the
MM-II's servicing is not all that "simple" to do yourself, or they have
some modern technologies that high-end housing systems use, which seems
extremely unlikely given their LOW-end price tag.

4.  FWIW, a

In article <33A92CD6.6 @pica.army.mil>, H says...
<snip>
<snip>

Hi, HH.  Thanks for educating me regarding Nikonos servicing.  I think you're
mistaken regarding the MM-II, though.  The O-rings really ARE all
user-serviceable, and it really is simple to do it yourself.  Check one out and
you'll see.  I think this really is a great advantage of this system over the
Nikonos for beginners.

HH replied:

HH, I have to disagree with you here.  There's no reason why U/W photography
should be an exclusive hobby limited to people with $1,000+ budgets and lots of
patience.  The Sea & Sea MX-10 with YS-40 strobe is a good product for people
with a $500 budget, and the MotorMarine II with YS-50 strobe is a good product
for the $800 budget.  I've used them both, and was able to take pictures I'm
proud of on the first try.  People should be aware that there is a range of
alternatives for different budgets and levels of commitment.

Regards,
AndyG