OLYMPUS FE-360

We brought OLYMPUS FE-360 + the underwater housing PT-044 mounted with INON’s latest strobe S-2000 + attachment lenses out to the sea to take some test shots. This simple wireless setting to connect an external strobe makes your photos look much more advanced without hassle. Here are the tips

Let’s start advanced photography with S-2000 strobe!

1. Select “UNDERWATER WIDE 1” or “UNDERWATER MACRO” mode.


2. Fix ISO sensitivity at 64 or 100


3. Standard position of S-2000 EV control switch is at“B” or “ C” Above setting is recommended when the S-2000 is used

*Above setting is recommended when the S-2000 is used

When INON’s S-2000 strobe is mounted on the FE-360 for S-TTL shooting, select “UNDERWATER WIDE 1” or “UNDERWATER MACRO” from the shooting mode (SCENE mode). The default ISO sensitivity is set at AUTO, but adjust ISO sensitivity value at 64 or 100 before start shooting. EV control switch to fine-tune the S-2000’s beam output should basically be set at B to get correct exposure. If you prefer rather darker result, set at C.


S-2000 strobe wireless setting
INON’s newly released S-2000 which is significantly compact but still maintaining high performance is equipped with a new innovative function. Dramatically improved optical sensor’s signal amplification enables highly accurate S-TTL auto exposure wirelessly, even without using optical cables.


All you need to get are only 4 items; the camera itself, the underwater housing, S-2000 strobe and upcoming “grip base D4 set”. With these items, you can immediately start strobe shooting. If you add an AD mount base and attachment lenses, you can even upgrade your photography to super macro and super wide angle.


This compact and user friendly camera setting is ideal for those who have been considering to add an external strobe but are a bit hesitant due to its bulky size

Wireless setting
S-2000 strobe wireless connection utilizes a camera’s built-in flash light, not electric wave. To function S-TTL auto exposure without fail, built-in flash light must be delivered to the S-2000 strobe sensor effectively. Here are how to attach a mirror unit (comes with a strobe) and how to use it.

(1)Stick “camera mirror 1”onto the underwater housing. Align its position directly in front of the camera’s built-in flash and “camera mirror 1” arrow is facing the S-2000 sensor.





(2)Attach “strobe mirror unit” to the S-2000 strobe

1. (3)Move “strobe mirror unit” and correctly align so that the white part and “camera mirror 1”’s arrow are facing each other.
   

If you adjust the strobe angle according to the distance to the subject, the direction of “strobe mirror unit” would change as well. Align “strobe mirror unit” to face “camera mirror 1” correctly every time you change a shooting scene.

UNDERWATER WIDE1 & UNDERWATER MACRO mode
FE-360 has three underwater shooting modes (SCENE mode). Among those, “UNDERWATER WIDE 1” or “UNDERWATER MACRO” is a good match with the S-2000 strobe. Select “UNDERWATER WIDE 1” for wide angle photography when you want to create images consciously emphasizing on background blue water, and select “UNDERWATER MACRO” to capture a creature’s color vibrantly

UNDERWATER WIDE 1
This mode is recommended for wide angle photography such as underwater landscape and a shoal of fish, particularly when you expect rich blue water results. The ground rule for wide angle shooting is to get close to your subject as much as possible. Shooting away from your subject underwater brings obscure and bluish results due to influence of water between your camera and a subject. In addition, external strobe light can only reach up to a couple of meters away. Even huge manta rays and whale sharks look less impressive if they are photographed far away from them. Try to get as close as you can so that your images can express powerful impact.
“UNDERWATER WIDE 1” is suitable not only for shooting big subjects but also for wide angle macro photography to get close to shoot smaller subjects as well. This mode lets you shoot from as close as approx. 10 cm to the subject for the maximum wide angle zoom. You can create an exciting image of your main character including its habitat.



UNDERWATER MACRO
“UNDERWATER MACRO” mode allows you to get closer to your subject to magnify small creatures or the part of subject such as corals. You can shoot from as close as 50cm to the subject from the lens for the maximum telephoto zoom. If you wish to get further close to your subject, you need a close –up lens.
UNDERWATER MACRO mode selects faster shutter speed to prevent image from blurring. If you want light-colored background water for macro photography, you may choose “UNDERWATER WIDE 1” and shoot with the telephoto zoom. However, the risk of blurring will be higher, so don’t forget to shoot with both “UNDERWATER MACRO” and “UNDERWATER WIDE 1” to avoid disappointment. .

Fix ISO sensitivity value at 64 or 100
When the FE-360 is combined with the S-2000 strobe for S-TTL auto exposure shooting, set ISO sensitivity value low at 64 or 100 to make the strobe light to reach to your subject so that the color result of your subject will be pleasingly crisp.

When you select “UNDERWATER WIDE 1” or “UNDERWATER MACRO”, the FE-360 automatically decides the setting as follows.

“UNDERWATER WIDE 1”
Built-in flash : FILL IN
Macro mode : ON
White balance : CLEAR SKY
Zoom : TELE

“UNDERWATER MACRO”
Built-in flash : FILL IN
Macro mode : ON
White balance : CLEAR SKY
Zoom : WIDE

“Built-in flash : FILL IN + White balance : CLEAR SKY” is ideal setting for underwater photography. However, if S-TTL auto exposure strobe is used with “ISO sensitivity : AUTO” on, ISO sensitivity might be too high at more than 200 depending on scenes, which may result in bluish photos stressing natural sunlight or overexposed images. Before start shooting, adjust ISO sensitivity value at 64 or 100 for better results.
Remember! When the mode is changed from “UNDERWATER WIDE 1” to “UNDERWATER MACRO” or vice versa, ISO sensitivity value is automatically reset for AUTO. Every time the mode is changed, don’t forget to adjust ISO sensitivity value.

S-2000 EV control switch is B or C
The S-2000 strobe allows you to fine-tune the beam output to “bit brighter” or “bit darker” by simply turning EV control switch based on your desired exposure or shooting conditions.
When the FE-360 + the S-2000 with S-TTL auto exposure setting is used, set the main switch to S-TTL and set the EV control switch at either B or C as the basic position. Check the result of the image and if you think the result is a bit brighter, turn the EV control switch to the right (-) to make the strobe beam output softer. Alternatively, turn it to the left (+) to make it brighter. The adjustable range is totally 9 levels which are indicated with yellow dots.

EV control B


EV control C

Turned the EV control switch to the right (-) 1 level. The strobe beam output became rather soft.

Features of OLYMPUS FE-360

Beginner-oriented FE (friendly & easy) series. No complicating dial operation but simply pressing buttons to operate. Its underwater housing PT-044 has red buttons with bold white font which clearly indicates its operation so that you can easily operate the buttons instantly without hassles underwater.
Well-received OLYMPUS’UNDERWATER MODE offers three options of “UNDERWATER WIDE 1” “UNDERWATER WIDE 2” and “UNDERWATER MACRO” as usual.
Lens is equivalent to 36-108mm on a 35mm camera, 3x optical zoom with f3.1-5.9. Compatible with all INON AD mount series external attachment lenses ranging from macro to fish-eye

Sample images

UNDERWATER WIDE Mode 1
ISO 64
Wide Conversion lens UWL-105AD
Location Atami Japan

UNDERWATER WIDE Mode 1
ISO 64
One S-2000 strobe wireless connect.
EV control switch "B"
Location Atami Japan

UNDERWATER MACRO Mode
ISO 64
One S-2000 strobe wireless connect.
EV control switch "B"
Close-up lens UCL-165AD x1
Location Atami Japan

Upgradable for further advanced setting
The FE-360 + the underwater housing setting is compatible with INON’s all AD mount series external attachment lenses ranging from macro to fish-eye by adding “AD mount base for PT-044”. For wide angle photography, the wide conversion lens “UWL-105AD” which is optic-designed to optimize image quality and the fish-eye converter “UFL-165AD” are available. For macro photography, the close-up lens “UCL-165AD” which can be mounted more than one piece is available. Though the FE-360 is a novice level camera, a variety of scenes can be captured by adding INON’s accessories.

left : without Wide conversion lens, Zoom wide end
center : with Wide conversion lens UWL-105AD, Zoom wide end
right : with FIsh-eye conversion lens UFL-165AD, Zoom wide end

left : with Close-up lens UCL-165AD x1, Zoom tele end
right : with Close-up lens UCL-165AD x2, Zoom tele end
Zoom wide end


This time we only presented the S-2000 wireless connection shooting. You can even upgrade your setting by adding arms and optical cables. When you already get used to the simple strobe setting, just give it a try!