Ikelite L1 User's Manual
Contents
1. elite Digital Housing instruction manual for Nikon Coolpix L1 Housing 6182 21 Ikelite Digital Housing instruction manual 6182 21 for Nikon CoolPix L1 Congratulations on your purchase of an Ikelite Digital Camera Housing Ikelite has over 40 years of experience in the underwater photographic and lighting market Our products are designed and built in the USA by Ikelite for both the professional and amateur photographer The clear housing permits instant visual inspection of the camera and all sealing surfaces as well as complete monitoring of controls and camera LCD screens Ikelite Digital Housings are slightly negative in salt water for stability This housing has been water pressure tested at the factory Housing is pressure tested to 200 60m Shutter Release TMI Lia Snap Lid Snap Front View Mode Delete L Selector OK Back View 3 Please Read We suggest that you read this instruction booklet thoroughly before use If you are new to underwater photography be sure to read the General and Photo Tips We also suggest that you read the camera manual thoroughly to have a full understanding of where each camera control is located and what function each control provides Please Read If Using an EV Controller The EV Controller used with Ikelite DS Substrobes have two user settings One setting is for strobe selection the other is for pre flash2. each salt water use Dry with a soft cloth Dry lens port to eliminate water spotting After several uses in salt water soak the housing exterior in a mild soap solution rinse and dry before storage When storing the housing remove the back o ring lightly lubricate and place in a plastic bag Place the plastic bag with o ring inside the housing for safe keeping CAUTION Never use spray lubricants as the propellant ingredient can cause the plastic housing to crack Optional Accessories Substrobe DS125 Package 3944 77 Substrobe I The Substrobe DS125 package includes the Substrobe DS125 the EV Controller ball socket arm and charger The EV Controller provides 10 manual power settings in 1 2 stop increments An external strobe offers several advantages over using the camera s built in flash External strobes move the flash away from the camera lens which helps reduce backscatter They also expand lighting options to achieve the best lighting for different subjects A second external digital strobe package can be added to fill the shadows and produce more realistic photographs Ball Socket Arm The Substrobe DS125 covers the equivalent of a18mm lens 100 degrees It is the ideal choice when using accessory wide angle lenses greater than 28mm EV Controller NOTE Optional Tray and Release Handle required to mount Substrobes 13 Control Maintenance Ikelite controls are designed to provide
3. remove them If there are bubbles on the lens port they can produce soft focus spots in your photographs NOTE 5 If you are shooting with the camera s built in flash and the cameras lens is set to the widest angle you may need to zoom the lens slightly or a shadow may appear in the lower left corner of close up photographs The lens port may block some of the light Installing the flash diffuser will help to eliminate the shadow You can test this above water To shoot photographs closer than 2 feet 0 6m you need to use an external strobe such as the DS51 or DS125 With an external strobe you can position it so nothing blocks the light path between the strobe and the subject 17 Control Maintenance Cont 3 Some of the controls have a short shaft and cannot be pulled out exposing the shaft for lubrication In the unlikely event one of these controls sticks or becomes difficult to operate you can remove the control from the housing and lubricate it or return the housing to Ikelite for maintenance To remove the control loosen the set screw in the knob allen wrench required remove the knob If there is salt or dirt build up on the exposed control shaft clean the shaft Open the housing and gently slide the control shaft out of the control gland Clean and lightly lubricate the shaft including the end of the shaft Slide the shaft back into the control gland and gently slide it back and forth a few times without fully removin
4. used the ideal Optional Tray and lighting choice is the Substrobe Release Handle DS125 which covers 100 degrees or reguired to mount two Substrobe DS51 s can be used Substrobes 12 Maintenance The Ikelite Digital Housing should be given the same care and attention as your other photographic equipment In addition to normal maintenance we recommend that the housing be returned to Ikelite periodically to be checked and pressure tested 1 Do Not leave the camera and housing in direct sunlight for prolonged periods Heat may damage the camera Do Not ship the camera in the housing Before using the housing always check the tightness of the set screw in each control knob Check each control gland penetrating the housing to make sure they are tight There is a slight chance that either could vibrate loose during travel Keep the back o ring clean and lightly lubricated To lubricate remove the o ring from the back Put a small amount of Ikelite lubricant on your fingers Draw the o ring through your fingers to apply a light coating of lubricant Only apply enough lubricant to make the o ring feel slick Do Not stretch the o ring This light coating of lubricant will help to keep the o ring from drying out and will help to show a dark sealing line when the housing back is properly sealed Keep the area where the o ring fits and the sealing surface of the housing clean Rinse the housing exterior thoroughly in fresh water after
5. d Any vignetting that occurs can be eliminated by zooming the camera lens slightly To properly light subjects when using a wide angle lens an Wide Angle external strobe should be used Due to the wide angle of coverage of the Inon Sea amp Sea and Epoque lenses the DS125 Substrobe is recommended or two DS51 Substrobes Housing shown with 10 accessory wide angle lens Diffuser Deflector material Diffuser and Deflector cont A diffuser and deflector are included with the housing The diffuser is white transparent plastic The deflector is also white but is not transparent and has a decal on the front To install the diffuser or Port Clamp deflector spread the port clamp at the spring end and slide over the lens port The white plastic should be placed in front of the camera flash The port clamp should be pushed back against the front of the housing Diffuser The diffuser should be installed when using the camera s built in flash When shooting with the camera s built in flash at approximately 2 feet 0 6 m or less the lens port on the housing may block a portion of the light from the camera s built in flash creating a shadow in the lower left of the photo If this occurs zoom the lens slightly to eliminate the shadow You can test this above water Deflector The deflector should be installed when using an external strobe such as the DSs1 or DS125 Substrobe and EV Controller The deflector wil
6. g the shaft from the gland Replace the knob NOTE the flat area on the shaft the set screw in the knob should tighten down against the flat area on the control so the knob does not turn on the shaft control shaft Flat Tighten set screw down against this area when replacing the knob p giard Loosen set screw allen wrench required Lubricate end of shaft before reinserting into gland 16 Photo Tips 1 The number one rule in underwater photography is eliminate as much water between camera and subject as possible Get as close as you can to the subject then use the zoom If you are using flash subjects beyond 6 feet 1 8m will not have much color The camera s built in flash is very close to the camera lens The flash can light up any suspended particles in the water and they can be recorded in your picture This effect is called backscatter To eliminate as much backscatter as possible photograph close Photograph in clear water do not stir up the sand or silty bottom If backscatter becomes a problem in the environment you are photographing an external flash will help eliminate much of the backscatter Digital cameras have a slight lag time between when you press the shutter release button and the camera actually takes the picture Hold the camera steady a second or two after pressing the shutter release button Do not shoot down on subjects as they will guite often blend into the background and be d
7. ifficult to see in the photograph Shoot subjects straight on or shoot up at a slight angle using the blue water as a contrasting background Underwater flash is used to restore the warmer colors filtered out by the water as well as to illuminate the subject When photographing underwater set the camera to use flash on every shot If the camera s flash is set to AUTO and the sun is behind your subject the camera may see enough light that it does not fire the flash With the sun behind the subject the subject is shaded dark and needs flash for a good exposure 18 Photo Tips Cont 6 When using daylight or flash if your camera consistently over or underexposes the image you may want to adjust your camera s exposure compensation settings Many cameras allow you to adjust both available light and flash exposure with an EV control in the camera s menu 7 Many photographers transfer their images to the computer where they can fine tune the appearance of the image Many of the image manipulation programs make you think you can magically correct any image taken and make a good picture One thing to remember when using image manipulation programs if the image is overexposed much of the color is missing If the color is missing you cannot adjust it If images are slightly underexposed the color is there it is just dark and you can adjust it to some degree So if you error in exposure it is better to have the image slightly underexposed than
8. l properly Use only enough lubricant to lightly cover control shafts and o rings Wipe off any excess lubricant with a clean cloth Lubricant is not a sealant it is used to reduce friction Excessive lubricant can collect sand and dirt which may interfere with proper sealing CAUTION Never use spray lubricants as the propellant ingredient can cause the plastic housing to crack Using Flash Using the Camera s Built in Flash If you do not have an external flash the camera s built in flash can be used See Diffuser instructions Diffuser amp Deflector Installation Diffuser Housing shown with 8 Diffuser installed Lens Port The Lens Port is factory sealed do not remove Treat the glass in the lens port as a camera lens After use rinse and gently dry the lens port to avoid water spotting To clean use a mild soap solution or lens cleaner Do not use alcohol or window cleaner on the Lens Port The Lens Port is threaded so that accessory lenses can be screwed onto the port The threads are very fine take care not to cross thread the lens Wide angle lenses are available from Inon Sea amp Sea and Epoque These lenses can be screwed onto the lens port above or below water These lenses are designed to have water between the front of the port and the accessory lens Make sure no air bubbles are trapped between the port and the accessory lens There may be slight vignetting when these wide angle lenses are installe
9. l redirect the camera s flash to the EV Controller which controls the external strobes output Spread to Install Optional Accessories Back O ring 0109 O rings last for several years if properly maintained See maintenance Always carry a spare UR Pro Filter 6441 41 The UR Pro underwater color correcting filter is designed to restore some of the warm colors filtered out by the water For available light use only not recommended for use with flash Tray with Release Handle 9523 31 Tray and Release Handle is reguired to mount external Substrobes 11 Optional Accessories Substrobe Substrobe DSs1 Package 3944 57 D9551 The Substrobe DSs1 package includes the Substrobe DSs1 the EV Controller and ball socket arms The EV Controller provides 10 manual power settings in 1 2 stop increments An external strobe offers several advantages over using the camera s built in flash External strobes move the flash away from the camera lens which helps reduce backscatter They also expand lighting options to achieve the best lighting for different subjects A second external digital strobe package can be added to fill the shadows and produce more realistic photographs Ball Socket The Substrobe DS51 covers the equivalent of a 28mm lens It is the ideal choice when using only the camera lens or the camera lens with a macro accessory lens EV Controller If an accessory wide angle lens wider NOTE than 28mm is
10. n the housing back and that it is clean and in its proper location Guide the back onto the housing The o ring should touch the housing all the way around There should be an even gap all the way housing around between the housing and the housing back Lift the lid snaps so they are extended and place the lid snap housing back into the hook on the housing back To close the housing push even gap down on the lid snaps until all 4 sides OC they snap into place Lid snaps on opposite sides of the housing should be closed at the same time Be sure they are down housing far enough to engage the lock Place housing face down in your housing back lap or on flat surface a Check to see that there is an o ring o ring Double check Once the housing is closed check the o ring seal Check the gap between the housing back and the housing it should be even all the way around Look through the clear plastic back at the o ring You should see a darkened area where the o ring is compressed against the housing back If you do not see an even black compression seal all the way around the back open the lid snaps reseat the housing back and close the lid snaps Visually check the seal again 5 Lubricants 1 Ikelite provides silicone lubricant with the housing We recommend you use only Ikelite lubricant on Ikelite products as some other brands may cause the o ring to swell and not sea
11. or non pre flash This camera uses pre flash thus the EV Controller should be set to the pre flash position when used with this camera Opening the Housing 1 Lid Snaps have a Lock To open push Lid Snap Lock forward and lift as shown Keep pressure on the Lid Snap so it does not fly open quickly Some lid snaps have a lot of spring tension once they go over center have a firm grip on the lid snap Lid Snaps may be opened one at a time Push Forward Installing the Camera Remove the back from the housing The mounting tray for the camera is secured to the housing back Position the camera on the tray and secure it with the mounting bolt TE which threads into the camera s tripod socket Use a coin or flat bladed O Ring screwdriver to cr tig hten the Tray Mounting Bolt mounting bolt so CAMERA MOUNT the camera is flat against the tray CAUTION Some camera tripod socket threads are plastic The mounting tray bolt is metal Do not cross thread or over tighten as you may damage the camera a socket threads Checking Controls Once the housing has been closed push the controls back into place Make sure they line up with the camera s controls Turn Camera On Turn the camera on and operate each of the housing controls to get a feel for using the camera in the housing Take a few pictures above water with the camera in the housing Closing the Housing 1 o ring o
12. over exposed 19 Ikelite Limited Warranty All Ikelite products are warranted against any manufacturing defects for a period of one 1 year from the date of purchase Defective products should be returned prepaid to Ikelite Ikelite will at its discretion repair or replace such products and will return to customer prepaid All other claims of any nature including but not limited to bulb failure are not covered Except as mentioned above no other warranty expressed or implied applies to this Ikelite product Returning Products for Service Ikelite is most interested in preforming any service to assure that all products perform as intended For repair or service return the product to the address below with your name address phone number and a brief description of the problem Evidence of purchase date must be provided to obtain warranty service Ikelite Underwater Systems 50 W 33rd Street Indianapolis IN 46208 USA 317 923 4523 email ikelite ikelite com www ikelite com Digital 6182 21 01 1205
13. years of reliable service with minimal maintenance 1 Push button controls require no maintenance other than rinsing in fresh water after saltwater use If a push button control becomes difficult to push or if it sticks when depressed soak the housing in luke warm fresh water After a few minutes operate the push button If this does not correct the problem return the housing to Ikelite for maintenance lubricate shaft housing gt pull out to expose shaft 2 Some of the controls have long shafts These controls can be pulled out exposing the shaft see drawing To lubricate the control gently pull on the knob until the stainless steel shaft is exposed Lightly lubricate the shaft then move the shaft in and out several times This will lubricate the x ring in the Ikelite control gland This should be done before using the housing after a prolonged storage period or once a week when the housing is in use 15 General Tips 1 Due to the power reguired to operate the camera flash and LCD screen it is a good idea to start each dive with a fresh set of batteries 2 Some cameras reset their flash to AUTO when the camera is turned on If you prefer another setting be sure to select it As soon as you enter the water take a moment and check the housing to see that it is properly sealed 4 Next check to see if there are any bubbles on the face of the lens port If there are take your finger and
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