Taken the Plunge for RED

Muttondraw said:
17mm at S35 won't be that wide. It is equivalent to about 25mm on a conventional stills camera. You might be better off with the Nikon 14mm if you want a wide rectilinear lens.
Martin
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Martin (Mark),
To get nearer the 120 diagonal FOV one could use the Gates Super Wide Port in front of the 17-35. I agree that the 17 alone would be no where near 120 diag-FOV (77 diag-FOV approx, as you say, 24mm or 25mm in 35 SLR speak) :)

At the moment I'm not sure about putting a Nikkor 14mm behind the Gates SWP ... (dont own one) as it has quite a big front element. Not looked into the Sigma, Tokina, Tamron, etc range, as they might (?) have something usefull (Nikkor mount, with aperture control).

Trying to get rectilinear 120 diagonal FOV without the Gates Super Wide Ports is going to be a challenge (+ expensive) & doubt you'll get the same quality output).

NOW ... find me somebody who can stick an aperture control on a Nikkor DX lens and it could become interesting ... 10.5/2.8 (ok), 12-24/4 (maybe ok) or remount it with a PL mount :beer: (I'm talking nicely to 'my engineer' at the moment).

David.
 
Hi David,
I think you are slightly off point on the Gates stuff. I have no lens fitted to the camera. The Fathoms lens is an exterior fitting W/A adapter which fixes to the housing to expand the camera FOV to 120 degrees (well 117 as there is slight edge distortion and I normally crop out the fringes anyway).

I also have some ground glass domeports which I can use with lenses other than those supplied by Fathoms, i.e standardly available .5x and wider external adapter lenses. Most people go that route as the Fathoms is expensive. If there could be a way to use this lens with RED believe me I'd be there in a heartbeat.

Mark.
 
CamDiver said:
Hi David,
I think you are slightly off point on the Gates stuff. I have no lens fitted to the camera. The Fathoms lens is an exterior fitting W/A adapter which fixes to the housing to expand the camera FOV to 120 degrees (well 117 as there is slight edge distortion and I normally crop out the fringes anyway).

I also have some ground glass domeports which I can use with lenses other than those supplied by Fathoms, i.e standardly available .5x and wider external adapter lenses. Most people go that route as the Fathoms is expensive. If there could be a way to use this lens with RED believe me I'd be there in a heartbeat.
Mark.
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Exactly ! the Gates is the Rolls-Royce of external adapters (integral part of the housing in this case). And yes, i understand that some folk may screw on a x0.5 to the front of the Z1 and use plain vanilla domes ...
So why not :
i) have a zoom lens on the RED which gives you a wide angle FOV that matches the Z1 (as a matter of interest, how wide is the Z1 at the widest zoom setting ?)
ii) place this combination (RED with 17-35/2.8) and use it with the Gates (SWP44 Fathom Signature Super Wide Port) ?
Dont see why it would be any different ? (other than the fact that the 17-35/2.8 may not close focus enough like the Z1, but worth testing with a few diopter lenses ?
David.
PS : I'm using the 17-35/2.8 as an example
 
Hi David,
The Z1 bare has an FOV of 67 degrees. Lens specs:
Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T*
f1.6-2.8
3lx @ f1.6
Focal length - 4.5 - 54mm

The distance between the Z and the Fathoms lens is minimal, I mean minimal - circa 6mm so it will be a challenge to find a lens for use with RED which could be used as an intermediary step between the cam and this glass. Basically this glass has been designed for use with the Z through the entire telephoto range.

Again, if this could be used with RED I'd be jumping for joy. I will certainly be asking questions and may send your theoretical outline to the people at Gates / Fathoms to see if it could be a possibility. I'll keep you posted on their response.

Cheers,
Mark.
 
CamDiver said:
I'll keep you posted on their response.
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YES PLEASE !

The other thing to consider if that IF the lens (eg: 17-35/2.8) needs better near focus (to be able to use the SWP44) instead of using a +diopter lenses, one could shim out the lens from the RED body (better option in my view).

Totally understand that the SWP44 has been designed for the Z1 but it's worth exploring fully, especially since you have one ! :) should not be difficoult to rig a test ... (and use a DSLR). Folk in Bristol have a SWP44, so I might try and see if I can do a test or two :beer:

Cheers, David
 
David,
If you know Doug Allen I know he was shooting Humpbacks in Tonga with this same setup. I don't know if the equipment belongs to the NHU but its worth to ask.

I have mentioned to Gates all points regarding the importance of having the cam set as far forward in the housing for RED as the most important as pect is the usage of lenses etc. By having the cam as far forward as possible will obviously then allow for the construction of housing barrels to suit whichever the user decides on. Its definately a possibility to look at getting the SWP44 to work with RED. What a great option that would be for the wide end. Please keep me updated on any trials you may do and I'll do likewise.

FYI - Here's a couple fo grabs from the SWP44. Cyan filter in place, both White Balanced on white slate. No additional lighting. Cuttlefish was at 10m, tight Leaf fish was at 12m and shot at full telephoto from distance of 18 inches approx.
 
Here's those stills:

1162426323.jpg


Mark
 
CamDiver said:
David,
What a great option that would be for the wide end. Please keep me updated on any trials you may do and I'll do likewise.
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Indeed. I'll let you know any results I can come up with. Will be popping down to Bristol soon to test out my theory :beer:
Cheers,
David.

PS : we should start a 'RED underwater' thread rather than continue under this one :thumbup:
 
Hi David,
Good luck with the tests in Bristol. The starting of a RED Underwater chapter would be a good thing as I know there are at least 5 or six people who are looking at that scenario. Guess its down to the powers that be to make an additional sub forum........c'mon Jarred, how about that?

Cheers,
Mark.
 
CamDiver said:
Guess its down to the powers that be to make an additional sub forum........c'mon Jarred, how about that?
Click to expand...
Hopefully it will happen as soon as RED is available / released ... I suspect other core sub-forums like REDCINE, REDCODE, RED_OPTICS, etc ... will also appear :Drogar-Love(DBG):
 
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