As I'm assembling my first "pro" (pro-capable?) video kit, I'm at the point where I need a real tripod. The kit I had previously was a gopro in housing on a two-handled tray with a Joby Gorillapod underneath.

Now that I have a much heavier aluminum housing (Aquatica AGH5) and, even though I will get it to be neutral underwater (slightly negative when doing macro), I've been looking at options for not only the base plate, but also the legs.

The base plate seems pretty straightforward - Either the Zen Underwater Tripod Plate (https://www.backscatter.com/Zen-Underwater-Tripod-Plate) or the Ultralight Tripod tray + ball adapters (I'd probably go with the angled ones: https://www.backscatter.com/Ultralight-Tripod-Tray) are a good place to start. If anyone has experience with other universal plates (my Aquatica housing has a pretty standard, 3 x 1/4" holes at the bottom), I'm open to those, as well. One thing that seems nice about the Ultralight plate vs. the Zen plate is that it has multiple slots running horizontally, so you can play with the center of gravity a bit more. The Ultralight is also a little bit cheaper - not sure about how the build quality compares, but I've found Ultralight to make quality equipment so far.

However, for legs, there's a bit more choice involved. Here is what I'm seeing:

• Standard clamps and arms can do the trick, but I don't have a ton of those laying around so I'd have to buy some to make it work. Ultralight does sell the tripod base and some arms as a kit, but it seems like I could get clamps and arms cheaper on my own if I check on e-Bay or something than this: https://www.backscatter.com/Ultralight-TPK-LMU-06-Tripod-Package
• Ultralight and others also have solid arms that do telescope, using a T-bolt: https://www.backscatter.com/Ultralight-Tripod-Leg-w-Ball-Foot-aka-Extension-Ar
  • This also has a variant with a "spike foot and muck basket." Not sure whether that's worth getting or just going with balls: https://www.backscatter.com/Ultralight-Tripod-Leg-w-Spike-Foot-and-Muck-Basket
• Then there are carbon fiber legs, which aren't really that much more expensive than the Ultralight telescoping legs. They use a twisting mechanism to lock, which seems easier to me, underwater: https://www.backscatter.com/Inon-Carbon-Fiber-Telescopic-Arm-S
  • Of course, they come in different sizes (S/M/L), all of which are much longer than I was using with the Joby. Of course, longer legs would be helpful in certain situations, but I don't really know that I'd need anything that long.

For the purposes of just evaluating everything, price doesn't matter too much to me - it will when I make the final decision, and of course, I plan to keep growing my kit over time. Just looking for opinions and your experiences with your setup.

Hi,I currently have a Sony a6600 and would like it into an underwater set up. So I was looking into sea frogs are they any good ?as they are the cheapest out there. Secondly I am currently using the Sony 28-70mm F4 would it be a good lens underwater? I’m looking to buy also a wide lens maybe even fisheye . What do you think?

As the title said... i am relatively new to diving and want take pictures with something other than a gopro, i already have a canon 80d, so i wanted to ask the experts what do you recommend...

Should i get the seafroggs housing for my canon 80d or buy a tg7 with its housing. What do you think? I dont want to break the bank, but i do want a step up from my gopro.

1 - Olympus Tg-6 2- Canon gx7 mark iii 3- Sony rx100 IV 4- insta360 ace pro with macro lense

A Giant Pacific Octopus (Enteroctopus dolpheini) mother is tending to eggs in her den. The eggs hang in bunches from the roof of the den while she keeps the water moving for months until they hatch and she expires.

Nikon Z8 w/24-50mm, WWL-C, f10@1/160s iso160, Pair of Inon 330 strobes

What is the best underwater camera under $500?

I shot this jellyfish in Raja Ampat, Mioskon dive site today and it turned out to be one of my best shots ever made.

Any idea on jellyfish ID?

ISO200, F16, 1/60 on 24mm, two YS-D3 strobes

I recently bought my first mirrorless camera (GH5s) and UW housing setup (AGH5) used and I am a little confused about the vacuum pump.

The pump I received with the housing and the bulkhead adapter are very different than what is shown in the manual and available online. To add to the confusion, what is shown in the manual vs. what I find online when I look up the part number are different. As far as I can tell, there are three different designs that can all work with my housing.

1. My current setup works by taking off the 1/2" port cap and putting on one that where a vacuum tube sits over the top and connects to a pump. To release the seal, I move the little red moisture sensor thing to the side, and the pressure releases (images below).
2. The manual shows a setup with a one-way valve, just like Backscatter's Airlock system (https://www.backscatter.com/Backscatter-AirLock-Vacuum-Manual-System-Bulkhead). This item (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1158099-REG/aquatica_19228_a7d_surveyor_a7d_vacuum_valve.html) has the same model number (19228) and looks exactly like what is shown in the manual, but the description here says the valve is only for Canon EOS 7D housing.
3. The current Aquatica product page shows this for the model number listed in my manual (19228): https://aquatica.ca/product/19928/ - I see they refer to this as "Surveyor type II", so it looks like they had a redesign at some point. I don't know why they would have went away from the one-way valve, though, as it seems like it would have some advantages over removing the cap and attaching a pump directly.

Now, as far as I can tell, the pump I have works great - I've tested it out and that sucker is nice and sealed after 8-10 pumps and the LED indicator turns solid green to indicate full pressure.

It seems like the big advantage to having the one-way valve is that it's just easier to connect and use (I also really like that Backscatter's pump has a gauge), but I'm not sure it's worth spending money on an upgrade if what I have will work just fine. Am I overthinking this and should I just use what I've got? Or is there a good reason to switch to a different vacuum pump system?

1/2\" vacuum port with cap unscrewed, showing red moisture sensor.

Pump, tube, and 1/2\" cap attachment for vacuum sealing the housing.

In my quest for a good compromise for a shallow water 4k 60p camera that can take decent stills and doesn't break the bank a used GH5 with a Seafrogs housing with Glass dome is the choice I've gone down with. Considered a cheaper small mirrorless with 20+ mp for stills and just couple that with a GoPro for a video but couldn't find a suitable housing for it to make sense over the bulky GH5-option.

At the moment I'm just looking for ONE lens in addition to the 14-42 kit lens (for above water use). Been looking at the Olympus and Panasonic 8mm Fisheye, the 7-14 Panasonic or Olympus as well as the 8-18 options. Not sure which would play nicer with the dome and in and underwater setting. Visibility ranging from OK to great, location being rocky coast or open water and subjects being medium to large.

Would appreciate your input and thoughts if you have any to share!

Check out this blog I wrote about the Manta Ray Dive in Kona Hawaii. I highly recommend it if you find yourself in this part of the world! I wrote about photography settings, what to expect

Manta Ray Night dive

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I planning to get the sony a7cii in the next two weeks and wonder that which lens and housing brand should I go for. Also, looking for other options within the same budget of the a7cii that might provide a better result in underwater photography than the a7cii. I also considering getting the a7iv, but with the new processor of the a7cii I think it would be better. Also, I don’t need the two cards slot on it and feels like when I got enough money for housing the a7v would probably come out.

I've been shooting with a TG6 for a couple of years now but lately I've been frustrated not having a manual mode and felt I needed more than 12 mpxs. Don't get me wrong, I think the TG6 is great but, well, I stumbled across a used Sony a6500 with housing. It was such a good deal with the housing I bought it even though I was looking for a camera to use on land. I decided two cameras were just too complecated and I REALLY like the Sony. So...I'm going from a set up that weighs 1.2kg to one that is 3.2 (on land) I have it set up so that it should be more or less neutrally buoyant but it's going to take some REAL getting used to!!! Feeling a bit nervous about the first dives. Anybody been there? 😊

Hey everyone!

I'm gearing up for a trip to Australia and Fiji where I'll be guiding a couple trips. We've got snorkeling and diving on the agenda, and I want to capture high-quality photos of these adventures. Currently, I've got a GoPro 11 and a Sony A7III with a Tamron 28-200mm at my disposal. There's a tempting offer on the table for housing my Sony, but I'm wondering if it's a bit much. Is this overkill, or does the GoPro suffice for capturing those underwater moments?

Would love to hear from anyone who's juggled between these two options, especially in diverse underwater conditions. What worked best for you?