Some of my first photos with A6300

Master of the Universe wrote:

Hi Hector,

"Besides, I like dark backgrounds and the A6300 max Sync speed is 1/160, so again a compromise: dark backgrounds or less soft shots."

You need snoots! I use a straight black palstic soft tube (pvc I guess) with steel spiral inside. Diameter is the same as strobe's. Attachment with velcro. A snoot narrows the strobe's angle and voila you get a black or very dark background. Snoots are very usefull in macros. Especially mine kind of wide snoots giving 30-50 deg angle. I highly suggest you buy a book from Alex Mustard about lighting underwater.

Snoots are something I've been thinking about since my very beginnings but I have decided  to go step by step and I think I should not introduce new techniques until I feel I manage well what I have.

"At f5.6 I will have to pull power down in strobes. In macro I used them very close to port pointing practically against the other."

With snoots problem solved. With a much narrower angle of light you can use the strobes very close or quite far from your subject. Anyway your way of putting the strobes is quite practical in many cases.

I think f5.6 is too open for macro, DoF would be too narrow. It is already very narrow  at f-numbers higher than f11 when using kit lens at 50mm and the +6 diopter and working distance of a few inches.

"The shots uploaded were taken in the 6 or 7 first dives with the A6300. The tray I had used with my late G7X was not wide enough to accommodate comfortably the Seafrogs Salted Line, so in the very first dives I took one arm out and dived with only one Strobe until I got a new tray. I am using one YS-01 and one old and solid Nikonos 105. Another Ys-01 is to be ordered soon to have a real matched pair)"

Your setup sounds more than satisfactory for any kind of macro shooting. There is no need for ttl anyway, since everything is made on manual. I would just keep on going with the Nokinos. At least they look impressive and with one you look like a pro.

I have never tried TTL and I don't  feel very enthusiastic to use it.  My new YS-01 have been ordered. I expect to have it at the beginning of July.  I want to have a pair of matched strobes.  I had made a test above water of both strobes to compare its histograms and see where the 10 power positions of the YS better matched the 3 positions (full, 1/4, 1/16) of the Nikonos. The results were interesting  but it is hard to have that in mind underwater.

I will not discard the Nikonos. I will eventually use it as a complementary 3rd strobe. I dived Saturday with a friend that besides his two  Z-240  he carried one Nikonos 105.

I would be glad if one day I could consider myself a Pro, not to look like one

Thnks very much Kari for your comments and suggestions.

Cheers, Kari