Ikelite Sony A1 & Sony A7S III Underwater Housing
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Ikelite has a reputation to produce high quality underwater camera housings, and the Ikelite Sony A1 Housing lives up to the name. The housing is small, compact and lightweight which makes it great to bring when going on dive trips. It is also built from ABS-PC material which provides strength and requires minimal maintenance. The housing also has great ergonomics. Button and lever location has been well thought off to make your shooting experience wonderful even when wearing thick gloves.
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Features:
- Port System -Â The housing uses Ikelite's Dry Lock Port System which is designed that the o-ring is located outside of the port mount. With this, it improves visibility when installing and reduces the chances of water dropping on the camera. Ports for the system is very lightweight yet can with stand a beating. Lots of lens options are also compatible with this port system.
- Vacuum Testing - The housing includes vacuum valve, along with the optional Ikelite Pump with Gauge allows you to draw out air and check if your housing is completely sealed before diving. This provides you the peace of mind and assurance that your camera is safe inside the housing while underwater.
- M16 Port -Â A M16 accessory threaded port is available to third party accessories.Â
- TTL Exposure - The Ikelite Sony A7S III Housing supports both shooting with manual exposure or TTL using the Ikelite DL2 DS Link Sony TTL Converter with ST1 Hotshoe Kit.
- Ergonomics -Â Excellent button, lever and dial placement. Controls are readily available at your fingertips.
- Setup -Â Setting up your system is a breeze.Â
Strobe Compatibility:
- Ikelite DS Strobe - Any Ikelite DS Strobes can be used in manual exposure. Current DS strobe models can be used in TTL mode with Ikelite DL2 DS Link Sony TTL Converter with ST1 Hotshoe Kit.
- Sea & Sea, Inon, Retra, Other Brands -Â Other brand strobes can be triggered using electronic sync cord. Older non-digital strobes featuring an ICS-5 electrical sync cord bulkhead can be used with this system in manual exposure modes
* Not compatible with Fiber Optic Connection
Sony A1 & A7S III Recommended Lenses:
- Sony 28mm + fisheye conversion lens - Ultra-wide angle for wrecks, reefscapes, close-focus wide angle. You can also use the Nauticam WWL lens with the 28mm prime lens and a flat port.
- Sony 12-24mm lens - Ultra-wide zoom for whales, mantas, whale sharks, reefscapes
- Sony 16-35mm F4 lens - Wide-angle for sharks, pelagics, video
- Sony 24-70mm lens - For fish, marine life portraits, video
- Sony 28-70mm lens - For fish, marine life portraits, some macro
- Sony 90mm macro lens - For macro, supermacro, fish
Read our guide to the best Sony full frame lenses for underwater
Sony A7S III Camera Review:
Learn more about the camera features and why we love it for underwater photography in our full Sony A7S III Camera Review.
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Sony A1 Camera Review:
Learn more about the camera features and why we love it for underwater photography in our full Sony A1 Camera Review.
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Sony A7S III Camera Specs:
- 12 MP BSI CMOS Full Frame Sensor
- Bioz XR Image Processor
- ISO 80-102,400
- "Low Base" and "High Base" (effectively dual gain) ISO capability for better low light shooting
- 4K video up to 120 fps
- No recording time limits. Could be limited by heat (4K @ 60p for at least an hour)
- 10-bit 4:2:2 internal recording
- S-LOG, HLG, Cine logarithmic picture profiles available
- 4K @ 60p, 16-bit RAW recording with an external recorder
- 5 axis in-body image-stabilization (IBIS)
- Dual card slots (either SD or CFexpress Type A)
- 9.44 M dot Electronic Viewfinder (EVF) - the best resolution on the market!
- Movie File Formats: XAVC S (Long GOP, H.264 MP4); XAVC HS (Long GOP, H.265 HEVC); XAVC S-1 (All-Intra, H.264 MP4)
- AF tracking with human and animal eye AF capability
- 759 point hybrid AF system with 425 contrast detection points
- 3" 1.44 million dots LCD
- Weight: 21.7 oz (617g) with batteries
- Size: 5.1 X 3.8 X 2.7 in (129 X 97 X 70mm)
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Sony A1 Camera Specs:
- New Full Frame 50MP Exmor RS Stacked CMOS Sensor
- 15 stops of dynamic range with improved colors, tones, and gradation
- New BIONZ XR ProcessorÂ
- Continuous shooting up to 30fps w/ electronic shutter and 10fps w/mechanical shutter at full resolution - AE and AF operable throughout
- Updated Carbon-Fiber Mechanical Shutter for a more quiet and vibration-free performance
- Records video up to 8K/30p (oversampled from 8.6K), 4K/120p (oversampled)
- Improved electronic shutter - greatly reduced rolling shutter and flicker under artificial light
- THE ELECTRONIC SHUTTER WORKS WITH EXTERNAL FLASHES (and strobes)
- FLASH SYNC SPEEDS: up to 1/400sec (mechanical shutter; 1/500 in APS-C mode), 1/200 (electronic)
- Lightning quick AF with its 759 phase-detection points with 425 contrast-detection areas - covering 92% of the sensor
- AF system recalculates 120 times per second - 30% more accurate than A9II
- Better animal eye AF that can track birds - we will be testing to see if it can track fish
- 5 axis IBIS with 5.5 stops of recovery
- New Active steadyshot stabilization (introduced with the Sony A7S III)
- 10-bit 4:2:2 internal recording with 16-bit RAW external recording
- Full range of Log recording options - Cine, HLG, and S-Log
- Viewfinder: Electronic (OLED) - 9.44 million dots
- Dual CFexpress Type A / UHS-II SD Card
- No built-in flash
- Native ISO: 100 - 32,000
- Extended ISO: 50 - 102,400
- Shutter speed: 1/8000 - 30 seconds
- ISO 100 to 32000 (Extended: 50 to 102400)
- Fastest built-in wifi - can transmit video files over 5G
- Sony E Mount
- Dimensions: 5.07 x 3.81 x 2.74 in (128.9 x 96.9 x 69.7Â mm)
- Weight: 1.6 lb (737g)
Sony A7S III in an Ikelite A7S III Housing Post-Dive
Sony A1 Review Video:
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Sony A7S III Review Video:
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Sony A7S III Sample Underwater Photos:
This high ISO photo was taken with limited lighting. The A7S III did an amazing job! Sony A7S III in an Ikelite A7S III housing, Canon 8-15mm wide lens, dual Sola 15,000 video lights. 1/125, f/13, ISO 1250
Three large fish eating anemones photographed with the Sony A7S III, Ikelite A7S III housing, dual Ikelite DS 161 strobes, Ikelite to Sony TTL converter, and Canon 8-15mm fisheye lens. f/18, 1/125, ISO 500
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Sony's IBIS allowed us to get crips photos of this clown dorid in high surge. Photographed with the Sony A7S III, Ikelite A7S III housing, Sigma 105mm macro lens. 1/160, f/22, ISO 320
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Fast autofocus with the Sony A7S III is the only way to capture a photo of a decorated warbonnet. Photographed with a Sony A7S III, Ikelite A7S III underwater housing, Sigma 105mm macro. f/18, 1/160, ISO 200
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Even the most common subjects, like this purple sea urchin, can produce art. This photo was taken with a Sigma 105mm f/2.8 DN DG Art Macro lens, Sony A7S III, Ikelite A7S III housing, Saga magic tube, and reefnet fiber optic snoot. f/20, 1/160, ISO 200Â
