DVX100B White Balance/Black Levels/Equinox underwater housing

M

mayrock

New member
Just started using a 100B. Couple quick observations/questions.

First off the white balance doesn't seem to work as well as on earlier models. I'll choose the A or B, zoom in on my white and push the button. Strange thing is there is a split second where the screen shows what should be the proper white balance but once it's finished and the white balance is set it appears slightly bluer than I'd like (and bluer than that split second that looks great). Anyone notice this? Any help to get a proper WB.

In the default scene file for 24P the blacks seem milked out. Has anyone noticed this? Any suggestions? Seemed like the earlier two models had great defaults, this one has me wondering.

Lastly, some questions regarding the Equinox ProPak8 underwater housing (I have only been using 100/100As in this). Once submerged there is some trouble using the manual focus and zoom simultaneously--which in effect makes it difficult to check focus underwater. The manual focus is fussy generally but the zoom becomes erratic--sometimes unresponsive. This scares me--I don't want to zoom in in fear of being stuck on a long lens but I'm also not convinced that my image is sharp. Any help here? An additional problem is that the focus belt more often than not slips off mid dive.
 
i actually had (and still have) that same problem, although ive only used my DVX100B once so far- i see the correct white balance but then once its done it tends to wash out the whites a little bit leaving a picture that is not as rich in color as i would like.
 
I'm just taking a wild ass guess here, but I suspect it's showing you true white, and then it applies your scene file settings for the end result. I too see the "crisp white" briefly, and then everything warms up - as I've prompted in the menu. Anyone else have an opinion on this? Or better yet, the facts?
 
Compressed Reds

Compressed Reds

Also remember that DV compression, as I understand it, does not handle the compression of reds very well. One way many dv users have gotten around this is by setting their white balance about 10 or 15 degrees bluer that it should be, and then fixing it in post, which I have often heard to be a good way of resolving the compression issues with the reds. However, I do not know if the DVX-100B is has internally compensated for this or what...

I know this isn't much of an answer for whether or not the DVX-100B is acting odd for you or for everyone. I suppose one of the only ways to know for sure is to plug the camera into some calibration equipment and see if what you are seeing on the camera's viewfinder and/or lcd is accurate.

Also, just for clarification, are you using the 100B exclusively underwater and having these issues while it is underwater? To the best of my knowledge, color temperature and focus are a different ballgame under the sea...

Have you tried a different housing?
 
As I mentioned I am only using 100s or 100As in the housing and I´m not concerned with color temp there, just the focus/zoom issue.

Got my white balance fixed. Just curious why the default setting was so blue.
 
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What I experienced was that sometimes the zoom became unresponsive (stuck during zoom) because the screw on the zoom ring was blocked by one of the equinox control. So usually when I use DVX underwater, I will remove the little screw on the zoom ring. (You can keep it/screw it on the tiny hole just below the hotshoe)

For focus, try switching to auto and bring it underwater to see how it respond. For mine, it seems that it focus on the port (macro 30+) rather than locking its focus based on distance to subject.

Let me know your findings...
 
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