Jump to content


  • Content Count

  • Joined

  • Last visited

Community Reputation

0 Neutral

About peterclark

  • Rank
  • Birthday 09/16/1985

Profile Information

  • Gender
  • Location
    Chicago, IL

Additional Info

  • Show Country Flag:
    United States

Recent Profile Visitors

1240 profile views
  1. Sorry. I've been rather distracted recently (and still working, just from home). That and since my trip was canceled the rush was gone. Anyway, after disconnecting it and leaving it a day, when I reconnected I saw the drop had still happened, so not in the pump/gauge. When I did the water soak, I didn't leave it submerged long enough (maybe 15 minutes) so no water visible, so I'll need to try again for maybe a couple of hours. I took off and cleaned the port and main o rings, but no luck. I'll probably end up removing the connector for the strobe sync cable and replace with the plug that came with the housing since I installed that and it has an o ring (no lube on that one per the instructions). I'm betting it is either from that connector or the vacuum valve o ring itself. Also it should be noted that my house has 2 golden retrievers, so hair is EVERYWHERE! Every time I check an o ring, have to be careful not to get new hair on them.
  2. Excellent thank you. I've disconnected it now and will check again tomorrow.
  3. Hey guys. I'm only just getting the time to circle back to this. It currently is losing vacuum at around 0.25-0.5 inches of mercury in around 12-15 hours. After a few days it gets around 1 inch or mercury lower than its starting point of 10. I am leaving the pump connected the whole time since that has the gauge on it. I don't know if there is a chance of the leak there or where the tubing connects to the plugs. I doubt this is temperature related since it is just sitting on a table in my temperature controlled living room not near a window. I've never used a vacuum pump before, but I would assume it should be perfectly stable no matter how long, right? I have time today to do more thorough checks. I have the paper towels in it now but haven't submerged it yet. That is the plan later today. That you both!
  4. I recently got a new Ikelite housing for my mirrorless camera. I installed the vacuum pump port and did a test and noticed a tiny leak (visible only after a full day of sitting), but this was expected since I hadn't cleaned or lubricated any o-rings yet. So I just went through and removed lint and such and added silicone to the main o-ring on the back of the housing, the one for the port, and the one for the port extension. It looks like it is still leaking. I also should note that I had installed both the vacuum pump port and the port for the strobe cable, so that gives me 5 possible leak sources of my own doing. I trust the other buttons and such done by the company itself. So my question is, is there an easy way to identify which o-ring is the cause of the leak? Or do I just have to keep trying each one individually until I register no leak? Thank you!
  5. I shoot with a Canon M6 Mark II (formerly shot with Canon 7D), which is an APS-C (crop sensor) camera. So the 60mm Macro comes out to be 96mm equivalent.
  6. Thank you! Luckily on my next trip I'll be using my new Canon M6 Mark II, so a lot of extra megapixels compared to the 10 year old 7D I've been using. For 99.9% of what I shoot, it does sound unneeded. I know on my next trip there is a chance fo pygmy seahorses which I have never seen, but the cropping idea is probably still best. Thank you!
  7. I currently shoot with a Canon 60mm macro lens. I keep reading and hearing about people recommending various diopter wet lenses for use in underwater macro photography, but I keep reading conflicting things about them. Some say they allow you to get physically closer to the subject and still be able to focus, others say it does that AND ALSO increases the size of the of the subject as if you were zoomed in more. I also hear some say it reduces the working range a ton making it hard to work with. Most of what I read seems to apply to lenses that are not already macro lenses though, so I have a feeling most of the benefit won't be there for my lens. So my my main question is, is there any benefit to using a diopter with the Canon 60mm macro? Since the lens is already a macro lens, would there be any real change? Would it increase the size of the subject, kind of like a teleconverter would increase the zoom? Thank you!
  8. So I am currently in Hawaii for scuba diving. I took your advice and had my housing serviced by Ikelite before the trip (note to self, next time package it better since a crack did happen on way to them, but they fixed that too). While for several years my camera would lock up at 30 feet, just yesterday I found myself taking photos of garden eels at 100 feet. So it worked! Thank you guys so much!
  9. Wow thank you everyone! I'll admit the housing has never been serviced (these days I'm lucky to use it one week per year sadly) so I will look into that right away. I'm glad I asked early enough to give me time for that. And as a backup I can the tips. Thank you all again!
  10. I have a Canon 7D in an Ikelite housing. I've had it for probably 6 years. For the first several years the only diving I did was in the Florida Keys and thus very shallow. I didn't take it any deeper until my honeymoon about 4 years ago. On that dive I had a 60mm macro on the camera with a flat port (giving lots of specifics just in case). When I started the dive all was well, but the moment I started getting deep the camera suddenly completely froze. Turning it off and then back on didn't help a thing. I could see the autofocus point but it wouldn't activate or move or take a photo. The top lcd screen on the 7D showed some standard info, but I don't remember specifics. As I returned to shallower water at the end of the dive, the camera started working normal again. Same thing happened on the next dive. I didn't dive in deep (relative term here) water again until last year. I was diving in deeper water again and ran into the exact same problem. This time I know it happened somewhere around 30 feet. If I dropped below it, the camera locked up, if I went above it the camera was fine. This time I was using a 10-17mm fisheye with a dome port, so I don't think the lens or port are related. I did have an Ikelite strobe attached that time (night dive), but I don't remember if I did 4 years ago when the problem also happened. And since this dive had me changing depth around that mark multiple times, I could see the camera going in and out of the frozen mode a few times during the dive. Next dive same thing. I tried researching the problem online but without any luck. This is my first time actually asking for help since I plan to be diving in the same spots this coming May. So has anyone ever experienced anything like this? I have no idea if it is the housing somehow letting too much pressure in (no clue how since it doesn't leak any) or if the camera itself is faulty. Until I can solve it I'm stuck with only my GoPro for anything deeper than 30 feet which is insane. And now that I live in Chicago and not the Florida Keys, it is very hard to justify an upgrade. :-( Thank you everyone for any insight you can provide!
  11. I love that idea! My main reason for it is to just store it at home when not in use. I live right near a ton of diving but unfortunately only get to go out a few times a year and need a good method of protecting the port from myself. Tupperware should be perfect. Thanks!
  12. I have an Ikelite 8" dome port with the extender for a Tamron fisheye lens. I also have a pelican case that I keep my housing, strobe, and port for my macro in. I now am looking for a pelican case just for my dome port. Does anyone know of a specific pelican case that would fit the dome port well? There are just so many options and I didn't know if anyone knew of any offhand. Thanks!
  13. yes it is removed from the housing. When I try putting the strap wrench on there, when I try to tighten it or twist it, it slides right off. The main body of the dome blocks the wrench from getting lower on it so I think that helps the rubber slip off. I will check at work tomorrow to see if there is any scrap wood I can use for the U shaped tool. I personally don't have the tools to cut the wood, but I know they would in another department in which I have many friends. Thanks for the idea.
  14. I recently ordered an Ikelite 8" dome and a port body for a fisheye lens. I wanted to see it on my housing right away so quickly assembled it without adding the silicon lube or checking to make sure there weren't any hairs on the o-rings (so I can't be sure if I can trust the seal). When I tried to remove the port body from the dome, it was stuck. I have tried with my hands and also with a strap wrench I got at Home Depot, but there just isn't enough area for the strap wrench to grip to. The only reason I want to remove it is so I can make sure the seal is good before actually using it. I could test it in in a plastic bin full of water, but I don't know if I could trust that for higher pressures. So any advice on removing the port body from the dome?
  15. Good to know. I would feel a LOT more comfortable with the locking device in place!
  • Create New...