Settings for the Nikon Coolpix 5000 underwater
These settings will work for most compact digitals with manual exposure controls.
Nikon Coolpix 5000
Ikelite #6190 housing
Inon UCL-165 wet macro lens
Nikon WC-E68 wide conversion lens with Ikelite
#9306.68 dome port
Inon Z220 flash (with -0.5 diffuser always attached for protection)
Ikelite #4118.1 sync cord
In 35mm camera terms this setup covers the range from 19mm wide angle to 85mm with almost 2:1
macro.
External flash triggering options
Ikelite wired sync cord
The Ikelite sync cord #4118.1 (A$154) provides manual flash operation for Inon and
Sea & Sea strobes. Only the trigger pulse is transmitted, which
means
that TTL, viewing light and laser are not operated by the camera
through the sync cord.
The advantage of using a sync cord is that you don't need to use the internal Coolpix flash to trigger the external flash.
Turn it off via: Settings page 2 - Speedlight Opt. - Speedlight Control - Int Flash OFF
 
Triggering via slave sensor or fibre optic sync cord
If you don't have the Ikelite sync cord there are 2 options for
triggering the external flash. This will work with any flash that has a
slave option.
1. Use the Coolpix internal flash to trigger the
external Inon.
Position the Inon above the top of the housing.
Select "Forced Flash" (Lightning icon) on the Coolpix internal flash and "Slave" on the
external flash. The disadvantage is that the external flash cannot be moved far
away from the top of the housing and the Coolpix battery exhausts faster.
2. Use a fibre optic sync cord.
This is the same as 1. but means the Inon can be moved further away from the housing.
Standard settings for all photos
ISO : 100 (to avoid
overexposure)
Quality : FINE (best quality .jpg)
Size : FULL SIZE (2560 x 1920 pixels)
Focus : MACRO (flower icon, leave it on all the time)
Auto Focus : SINGLE AF (continuous AF
wastes battery power)
AF area mode : MANUAL (displays all 5
selectable AF area brackets)
White Balance : AUTO (however colour balance will be inconsistent with low contrast subjects. SPEEDLIGHT WB adjusted to +3 or FLUORESCENT adjusted to F2 may work better with low contrast situations) More Info...
Lens Adapter setting : NORMAL (don't use the Wide
Adapter setting, the flash will not work)
  
Settings for Macro to 1:1
using normal lens and port
 
Lens : zoomed to 21.4mm (longest focal
length)
Flash setting on Coolpix : FORCED FLASH (lightning bolt icon)
Mode : M (Manual, so
you can alter shutter and aperture)
Metering : Does not matter in Manual exposure mode
Speed : start at 1/125th (or use slower
shutter for lighter background or faster for darker background)
Aperture : f/7.6 (smallest aperture for
greatest depth of field. Coolpix cannot go to f/8 in full zoom
position)
Inon Flash Power : -5 (need to reduce flash power as much as possible to avoid over
exposure)
Flash Position : just above top of housing and back far enough to avoid overexposure
Settings for Super Macro to almost 2:1 with Inon UCL-165 lens
Adding the Inon UCL-165 macro lens allows higher magnification than 1:1.
However depth of field is very shallow, maybe 1cm, so precise focus and steady hands are essential.
Settings are the same as 1:1 macro.
Settings for Manual Focus Macro with framing prongs
 
To overcome the difficulties of slow autofocus and shallow depth of field you can use manual focus macro with framing prongs just like
the old Nikonos setup. Great for tiny subjects and night dives.
Manual Focus : 0.07m
(on full zoom this is the closest focus possible)
Clip on framing prongs
Settings for Close Focus Wide Angle
with Nikon WC-E68 lens and dome port
 
This gives close up subject with more background included
Lens : Wide converter and dome port, zoomed to 7.1mm (widest)
Flash setting on Coolpix : FORCED FLASH (lightning bolt icon)
Mode : M
Metering : Does not matter in M mode
Speed : 1/60th (or 1/30th for lighter background)
Aperture : f/8.0 (for greatest depth of
field on close subject. Or wider apertures for lighter overall exposure)
Inon Flash Power : -4 (may
need to use -3 or -2 if subject is further away)
Flash Position : directed at close
subject
Settings for Wide angle
 
Lens : Wide converter and dome port, zoomed to 7.1mm (widest)
Flash setting on Coolpix : FORCED FLASH (lightning bolt icon)
Mode : M
Metering : Does not matter in M mode
Speed : 1/60th
Aperture : about f/4
Inon Flash Power : about -2
Flash Position : The further away from the lens the better to reduce backscatter.
Settings for Manual Focus Wide Angle
Settings are the same
as for wide angle above
Manual Focus : 0.30m
Manual focus is also an option for wide
angle shots. If you use f/8.0 and set the manual focus to 30cm
everything will be in focus from about 15cm to 1m. This method greatly
reduces shutter lag and you don't need a viewing light, great for
moving targets and night dives.
Settings for Ambient light with no flash
  
Lens Wide converter and dome port, zoomed to 7.1mm (widest)
for best results.
This forces you to get close to the subject which improves clarity and
sharpness.
Inon Flash : OFF
(If using just the normal lens and flat
port it may be worth trying the supplied Ikelite red filter)
Mode : S (Shutter priority)
or A (Aperture priority)
Speed / Aperture : 1/30th (or faster to avoid camera
movement)
or whatever aperture allows 1/30th+
Metering : MATRIX (to give good overall
exposure)
White Balance : AUTO
You can also use PRESET
WB if you remember to take a white or neutral grey slate and use it to
measure the WB at the depth of the photos.
Further explanations:
The terms macro 1:1 and 2:1 refer to equivalent magnifications on 35mm film.
At 1:1 a 34mm subject would fill the frame and at 2:1 a 17mm subject
would fill the frame.
FINE = best quality Jpeg
file.
HI = TIFF file
RAW = Nikon's Raw unadjusted .nef file format.
Jpegs are adjusted according to your camera settings and compressed to
about 1.4 to 2.3 Mb by the camera.
Tiffs are adjusted but not
compressed and are about 14 Mb.
RAWs are not adjusted or compressed
and are about 8 Mb.
Nikon View allows post processing of white balance,
exposure, sharpness and other parameters of RAW images after they are
transfered to your computer. However TIFFs and RAW images take up to 30
sec to write to your Compact Flash card so should only be used
underwater with the CP5000 if you come across a sensational award
winning subject. RAW mode may give more exposure latitude and smoother
tonal gradation.
512Mb card fits about:
207 x full size FINE jpeg images,
234 x 3:2 jpeg
images,
34 x HI (.tiff) images,
63 x RAW (.nef) images.
Photo quality print size for each image size:
FINE quality Full size - A4
size.
UXGA - A5 print,
SXGA - postcard print,
XGA - large computer
screen,
VGA - small computer screen and email
To make the battery last as long as possible make sure it is fully
charged to begin with, you can turn the monitor off between shots and
use single (not continuous) auto focus. My batteries last for up to 90
min using these precautions. The Inon NiMH AA flash batteries last for
about 3 dives or 200 flashes using the focus assist light constantly.
Coolpix focal lengths in 35mm camera terms:
7.1mm (CP5000) = 28mm
21.4mm (CP5000) = 85mm
With Nikon WC-E68 wide converter lens and Ikelite dome port
4.8mm (at 7.1mm zoom) = 19mm
14.6mm (at 21.4mm zoom) = 58mm
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