A1U underwater footage at DVinfo.net

Mike Wham · May 7th, 2006, 02:25 PM

I am thinking about purchasing a Sony A1U and a Gates housing. Does anyone have any underwater footage that they shot with an A1U I can look at?

Evan Dowling · May 7th, 2006, 03:12 PM

Check out this site. Good clips of underwater footage. I think it might be a Z1, but it will give you an idea.

www.hdvunderwater.com

Mike Wham · May 7th, 2006, 03:29 PM

That's amazing footage. Do you know whether they shot it in 1080i and deinterlaced it or just shot in 720p?

Edit:
Aha! I found a link to the uploads and found some footage shot with the A1U. Thanks!

Jeff Kilgroe · May 7th, 2006, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Wham

I am thinking about purchasing a Sony A1U and a Gates housing. Does anyone have any underwater footage that they shot with an A1U I can look at?

The A1U works awesome for undwerwater... You'll want to take a few practice runs before your actual shoot though to get the hang of it. Also, take a look at the Ikelite housings... Rated to 250ft and a lot cheaper than the Gates housings.

Mike Wham · May 7th, 2006, 10:50 PM

I had an Ikelite with my GL2, but it flooded through the dome port somehow. By the time I was able to get to the surface (I had to do a 4 minute safety stop), it had died. :(

Evan Dowling · May 8th, 2006, 08:57 AM

The HDV footage on that site is shot in 1080i

Jeff Kilgroe · May 8th, 2006, 09:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Wham

I had an Ikelite with my GL2, but it flooded through the dome port somehow. By the time I was able to get to the surface (I had to do a 4 minute safety stop), it had died. :(

Oh. That sucks. :(

I've got an Ikelite for my A1 and another for a my older G2 still camera. Both have performed great so far. I had an Equinox housing for my DVX100, but that thing is a beast... I wanted HD underwater when I sold my second DVX and bought the new HVX, but it needed an even bigger housing and I wasn't about to start putting that new camera in the water. That's actually one of the big reasons I bought the A1 -- a cheaper (and more expendable) underwater camera. Also is a better size for underwater and a lot of land based stuff. It's also what I primarily use for home movies and that sort of thing.

Dean Sensui · May 9th, 2006, 12:50 AM

I have an Undersea housing (http://www.usvh.com/) for a PDX10 that worked well for me.

I've only had a chance to dive with it once so far and used it in New Zealand on a high-speed jetboat ride that was very wet. The whole package was easy enough to handle despite the violent maneuvers of the boat.

It features electronic controls instead of mechanical controls. And it also has an LCD viewfinder which is OK. Once you learn to recognize a "hot spot" it becomes easier to control exposure.

Overall quality is not bad. Construction is very simple due to the electronic controls -- fewer chances of a leak. And because it uses LANC controls it's most likely adaptable to other cameras, as long as it can be made to physically fit within the housing.

It has a flat port. No dome ports available. But I didn't see any optical problems on that first dive. I'll have to do a whole lot more with it to tell for sure, but that means getting past all this editing work.

The biggest problem: if you want one, order early. There's a backlog and it's a very small shop that produces these things.

Alan Gibbins · May 11th, 2006, 11:12 AM

I am diving with an A1U, Ikelite housing and set of 100W Pro Video Lites. The prime reasons for choosing Ikelite included their benchmark customer service, all mechanical control approach and price. The housing itself is simple yet rugged and only slightly negatively bouyant with the A1U installed. With lights and battery, the setup is definitely negative but the larger profile has been beneficial for stabilizing some shots in moving water, etc. The controls are well laid out and easy to operate - even with heavy gloves (diving wet in 38 degree F water last week) The lcd mirror with reversing circuitry works well (although, I don't use the touch screen controls) and the one-push white balance works very well off a diving slate strapped to one of the grips.

I was a bit disappointed to learn that Ikelite wasn't going to pursue manufacturing a port and dome to accomodate the Sony 737Y WA lens internally, however, Epoque has a WA lens that can be installed/removed directly onto the standard port of the housing while underwater.

All in all, it may not be the sexiest housing on the market but it is fully functional and the results from the A1U/Ikelite combination have been stunning.

May 7th, 2006, 02:25 PM	#1
Mike Wham Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Houston metro,TX Posts: 33	A1U underwater footage I am thinking about purchasing a Sony A1U and a Gates housing. Does anyone have any underwater footage that they shot with an A1U I can look at?

May 7th, 2006, 03:12 PM	#2
Evan Dowling Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Fort Myers , Florida Posts: 64	Check out this site. Good clips of underwater footage. I think it might be a Z1, but it will give you an idea. www.hdvunderwater.com __________________ Evan Dowling HDV 1080i Sony HDR-HC1

May 7th, 2006, 03:29 PM	#3
Mike Wham Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Houston metro,TX Posts: 33	That's amazing footage. Do you know whether they shot it in 1080i and deinterlaced it or just shot in 720p? Edit: Aha! I found a link to the uploads and found some footage shot with the A1U. Thanks! Last edited by Mike Wham; May 7th, 2006 at 03:32 PM. Reason: Additional info added

May 8th, 2006, 08:57 AM	#6
Evan Dowling Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Fort Myers , Florida Posts: 64	The HDV footage on that site is shot in 1080i __________________ Evan Dowling HDV 1080i Sony HDR-HC1

May 9th, 2006, 12:50 AM	#8
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	I have an Undersea housing (http://www.usvh.com/) for a PDX10 that worked well for me. I've only had a chance to dive with it once so far and used it in New Zealand on a high-speed jetboat ride that was very wet. The whole package was easy enough to handle despite the violent maneuvers of the boat. It features electronic controls instead of mechanical controls. And it also has an LCD viewfinder which is OK. Once you learn to recognize a "hot spot" it becomes easier to control exposure. Overall quality is not bad. Construction is very simple due to the electronic controls -- fewer chances of a leak. And because it uses LANC controls it's most likely adaptable to other cameras, as long as it can be made to physically fit within the housing. It has a flat port. No dome ports available. But I didn't see any optical problems on that first dive. I'll have to do a whole lot more with it to tell for sure, but that means getting past all this editing work. The biggest problem: if you want one, order early. There's a backlog and it's a very small shop that produces these things. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

May 7th, 2006, 10:50 PM	#5
Mike Wham Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Houston metro,TX Posts: 33	I had an Ikelite with my GL2, but it flooded through the dome port somehow. By the time I was able to get to the surface (I had to do a 4 minute safety stop), it had died. :(

May 11th, 2006, 11:12 AM	#9
Alan Gibbins New Boot Join Date: May 2006 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 12	A1U with Ikelite Housing I am diving with an A1U, Ikelite housing and set of 100W Pro Video Lites. The prime reasons for choosing Ikelite included their benchmark customer service, all mechanical control approach and price. The housing itself is simple yet rugged and only slightly negatively bouyant with the A1U installed. With lights and battery, the setup is definitely negative but the larger profile has been beneficial for stabilizing some shots in moving water, etc. The controls are well laid out and easy to operate - even with heavy gloves (diving wet in 38 degree F water last week) The lcd mirror with reversing circuitry works well (although, I don't use the touch screen controls) and the one-push white balance works very well off a diving slate strapped to one of the grips. I was a bit disappointed to learn that Ikelite wasn't going to pursue manufacturing a port and dome to accomodate the Sony 737Y WA lens internally, however, Epoque has a WA lens that can be installed/removed directly onto the standard port of the housing while underwater. All in all, it may not be the sexiest housing on the market but it is fully functional and the results from the A1U/Ikelite combination have been stunning.