On this shoot, we worked with the Equinox Underwater Housing for the DVX-100A. I actually was a little pissed because I couldn't find one in New York for the Canon XL-2, but that's probably for the best, as it was probably easier to manuever the smaller DVX-100 Housing. We shot around Feburary 12, which was like the coldest day of the year in a deep pool in upstate New York. Setting up the unit is pretty straight forward, but make sure those rubber gromits are in before you attach the end plates.
I found that in the water, its almost impossible to really see and focus by looking into the unit. The unit has a video tap and you can that back to the surface, but i found keeping it wide and on infinity on the fake plastic focus ring, is the best bet for your masters. The unit also is quite bouyant, so if you want to shoot deep underwater, prepare to hold onto something, or have a weight belt. You can also get pretty decent shots by putting the unit underwater and holding it at the depth you need and capturing the action for masters. The device has pistol grips making it easy to guide in the water and you can swim with it and follow or lead the subject you are filming. Here is a still from the footage we captured that day:
I'd work with this unit again, the camera came out dry. We shot about 10 minutes of footage for the hours of setup. I really wanted to stay in and get more footage, but the water was turning to ice on us. Next time hopefully it's warmer.
March 16th, 2006, 08:22 AM
