Photographs of charismatic underwater creatures usually get posted here but I thought I’d add in an equipment tip.  For you underwater photographers out there you know that it is tricky at times to carry a heavy setup.  I’ve seen a lot of ingenious “carrying straps” sold and homemade but this particular one was made for me by Ryan from ReefPhoto & Video and I want to thank him!

At first I thought it might be a little too “stretchy” as it is a little hard to carry with one hand and keep the housing well clear of the ground.  But then I started using it slung over my shoulder --- Ahhhh, that is where this strap really shines.  Unlike some rigid rope carry straps or those with plastic that can slip off the shoulder - this carry strap holds perfectly on one’s shoulder while trekking to the dive entry or exit point.  I think I’ve used this strap to carry my camera in housing to and from sites and lifted up to the boat on about 200 dives now and it hardly shows wear.

Now for handing it up to the boat crew it might not be the best handle as it does stretch just a little.  Still I’ve had no problem with boat crews handling it by the carry strap as it doesn’t stretch very much.  And it is just the correct length to snap one end on a jump ring attached to the housing and then the other end clipped to a D-ring on my BC during the dive.  That way I can respond to any situation and be assured my camera is still attached.

The photograph below is how I hook it onto my underwater setup.  It can also be attached to the handles for even greater security but I’ve found the Ultralight Arms to be most secure, although I do tighten everything before handing it up or walking out with it.

Oh, BTW, such experienced underwater photographers such as Alex Mustard and Eric Cheng specifically commented on this carrying strap and how much they liked it when they came to see manatee with me.  I told them to ask Ryan at ReefPhoto to make them one! :-)

This is how I usually attach it.  Oh yes, those are Patima BC floats to help with the negative buoyancy of the Nikon d200 camera underwater.  I just love those floats because they are adjustable as my need changes for buoyancy depending on lens/port/depth, etc.  And no, I don’t find they compress to much at depth to be useful and they aren’t annoyingly over-buoyant at shallow depths either.  Also shown here looking at my rig from the back is the Sea and Sea TTL unit - I only use that for macro as I prefer manual strobes for wide angle - but I do really like it for macro.  Also the fix focus light goes on all my macro dives.

Yes, a heavy system but not as heavy as some.  And of course I love it when I can just shoot with the camera in the housing, wide angle lens, dome port and no strobes - like I do when I take photos of Winter the dolphin.

But complete underwater DSLR systems are always going to be somewhat heavy, especially for macro shooting, so it takes a lot of planning and thought as to what you want to incorporate and the tradeoffs involved.  This is a manageable system for me and my small hands and not too much for me to carry or lift easily.  Hope this info helps someone. - Carol

Nikon d200/Subal Housing Rear View/GS Viewfinder (awesome!)/Sea & Sea 110s & TTL/ULCS Arms & Grippy Handles/Fix Focus Light/Patima Floats/Ryan’s Carry Strap To Manage It All - Whew!

My Rig From The Front - 60mm Macro Port

Illuminated By An Alligator Work-light - :-)