Sony a6400 + SeaFrogs Salted line - what lens and port? Makes sense?

Dear forum members,

I am currently considering to change my camera to a Sony a6400, but am not sure if my idea works. So, I am looking for people who have done it (or can guide me to review which discusses a similar situation).

So, I use my camera for basically three different types of photography:

1. Travel, including city, street photography and mountain hiking: So, I need a small & light standard zoom of good optical quality.  I was thinking to get the Sony E 16-70mm f4 &  the Sony E 20mm f2.8 as a walkaround lens for the night (Street).  I am using a similar setup currently on my Olympus (12-50mm f3.5-6.3 & 17mm f1.8).  I have excluded the Sony 16-50mm PZ kit lens from my selection, due to its apparent low optical quality.

2. Wildlife photography, including mountain hiking and birding:  Again, I need a small and light solution with the longest reach and good optical quality.  So, I am thinking of the Sony E 70-350mm f4.5-6.3.  Currently I am using the Oly 75-300mm f4.5-6.7.  The Sony would be a little shorter (in 35mm terms), but with more MPs I hope to be able to compensate by cropping.

3. Underwater photography, including big and small stuff:  I was hoping to use the SeaFrogs Salted line (A6xxx series) with the Sony E 16-70mm f4 lens.  I would like to have a lens that allows me to do wide angle (to a degree) and macro photography in one. I figured, that many (if not most) dive sites I go to, are "hybrid" dive sites, where one encounters big stuff (e.g. turtles, sharks, barracudas, moray eels, Humped Parrot Fish, etc.) as well as small stuff (e.g. nudies, pygmy seahorses, orang utan crabs, etc.).  By adding a wet diopter, I normally can get some decent macro pictures and would also have the option to add a wet wide angle lens if I want to.

However, for that I would need a 67mm thread on the lens port.  Meikon only quotes the Sony e 16-70mm f4 lens for the 6" dome port with the comment "zoom gear not included", however, I cannot find the zoom gear in they accessory section.  Unfortunately, their online support is basically useless and you get some stupid generic answers.   So, has anyone used this lens or can direct me to another solution, especially since the 6" dome port would prevent me from using any wet macro/wide angle lens.

I am open to any suggestion, but please be so kind to consider what my reasoning is behind my current selection, and that I want to keep the amount of lenses and their size/weight as small as possible - and the impact on my back account as small as possible as well...   The last point is important, because it precludes the option of brands like Nauticam or Ikelite.

Thanks!

Lars

Just some samples...

Mandarin Fish, Bunaken, Indonesia

Pontos Seahorse, Lembeh Straits, Indonesia

Bumped Head Parrot Fish, Sipadan, Malaysia

Barracudas, Sipadan, Malaysia

Thresher Shark, Malapascua, Philippines

Hello daveco2,

Thanks for replying!

daveco2 wrote:

Looks like you're already getting great UW results from your Olympus system. And they make the smallest/lightest system for hiking. I used an EM-5 with several lenses for many years on a number of climbs and treks in S. America and Nepal. Are you sure you want to change systems?

Yes, the results are ok, but if you look at them on a bigger screen, they show their limitations, since they are mostly strong crops.

I do like my Olympus system to a certain extend, it took me quite some time to find this solution, however, it is quite outdated and I have outgrown it.  While I have contemplated to get the Oly E-M5 III, it still has quite an outdated sensor with limited DR, low light capabilities, mediocre AF and low resolution, for a higher price than the Sony a6400 or Fuji X-T30.  Furthermore, I need a new long and small wildlife lens, which there are none in the MFT system (Oly 300mm f4 is too big and heavy, Pana 100-400mm comes with no service - has to be exchanged when even slightly broken).  Therefore, while I don’t really love the Sony, it seems a good combination, if I can make it work underwater.

Seafrogs is very good about answering emails, in a day. You could pose specific questions to them that way. Their stuff is pretty good, although I've had to make minor adjustments to the a6500 and a7RII cases.

No really my experience, they got back, but I know as much as before...  Not willing to dig deeper than the website... that I can do myself... 😡

daveco2 wrote:

You could consider the 16-50 PZ for UW only, where image quality is already compromised by the glass port, water path and particulates. My copy gives pretty good IQ on dives and on land. It’s cheap, very small, and light. As you know, the zoom gear comes free with the Seafrogs case.

yes, I had thought about that before, but that is basically what I have been doing with the Olympus for some time.  The Pygmy Seahorse was shot with the Oly 14-42 EZ kit lens, very similar in size and ability to the 16-50 PZ of Sony, but I just find that I have outgrown this kind of picture quality and that I am not enjoying looking at the results anymore... Especially when you shoot macro, the degradation from the port glass and water is not so significant, since there is little water between you and the subject.  Hence my quest for a new solution... but as you can probably sense, I am not happy with anything I see as an option... Having said that, I am well aware of that there some very good solution out there to take magnificent pictures, they are just not for me, since I am looking for a small, light and cost efficient solution...

For video, which may not be your interest, the PZ would work well.

Yes, agreed, same as Oly's EZ lens.

Again, thanks for your input!

Lars

Hey OP, what did you finally decide on your UW rig? I’m looking at the A6400 for the same reasons you listed here. I need a light and compact travel camera for on land and UW photography. What lens, housing did you end up buying for your UW rig? How happy are you with macro and super macro photo of your rig? Thanks

DiveMacro wrote:

Hey OP, what did you finally decide on your UW rig? I’m looking at the A6400 for the same reasons you listed here. I need a light and compact travel camera for on land and UW photography. What lens, housing did you end up buying for your UW rig? How happy are you with macro and super macro photo of your rig? Thanks

Hi DiveMacro,

I am afraid, that my answer will disappoint you. I finally got a Fuji X-S10 with the 16-80mm f4, the 100-400mm and the 23mm f2 lenses.  This is neither a very light weight solution nor is there any UW housing currently available for this camera.  However, I just love the results from it and since I have been locked down for almost a year now, there was no way to go diving anyway. Still hoping that someone will eventually come up with a housing.  I contacted Meikon and their answer was as useless as ever... 🙄

Anyway, in the meantime I am enjoying  shooting wildlife locally, will get the 1.4x tele-extender delivered tomorrow and hope to get closer to the White Bellyed Sea eagles 🦅  😃

So, this is most likely not solving your problem...

Good luck anyway,

Lars