Nauticam releases underwater housing for the new Olympus flagship mirrorless camera, OM-D E-M1 Mark II.
Olympus has released their new flagship mirrorless camera, the OM-D E-M1 Mark II which made lots of improvement from its predecessor. It is packed with new interesting features such as 20 megapixel live MOS sensor, advanced 5-axis image stabilization, 121 point dual fast autofocus with 4K video. It has surely passed our expectations.
Nauticam has always been there to cater to our underwater housing needs. Nauticam has made the new housing for the Olympus E-M1 Mark II small and compact but not compensating the functionalities, ergonomics and durability. Buttons, control dials and levers have the same operational feel as their DSLR housings. Their housing is also built from solid aluminum block which ensures its longevity.
Compared to the previous E-M1, and all other Olympus Micro Four Thirds cameras, the E-M1 II is an improvement in every way. The new 20MP Live MOS sensor provides a useful bump in resolution. Dual quad core processors combine to allow 60 fps burst shooting (18 fps with autofocus). An incredibly advanced autofocus system (121 focus points covering 75-80% of the frame) grabs subjects instantly without hunting, and doesn't let go when tracking.
It takes more than just headline grabbing specs on paper to make a great underwater camera system, and the E-M1 Mark II does many of the less obvious things right. The "2x2" dial and button structure doubles the functionality of the control dials and assignable push buttons. Typically these dials control shutter speed and aperture when shooting in manual mode, but with a flick of the 2x2 lever they are reassigned to other parameters (like ISO and Exposure Compensation, as an example). The control dials provide the easiest way to access frequently used camera settings directly, and Olympus has doubled their usefulness!
Circuitry included as standard equipment provides constant monitoring of water tight integrity when combined with an optional Nauticam M14 Vacuum Valve (PN 25624). Green means safe to dive!
The range of Nauticam accessories is unmatched, with multiple accessories available to customize the system to individual needs. A variety of lens ports support all popular lenses. Accessory lenses, like the revolutionary Compact Macro Converter (PN 81301) and Wet Wide Lens (PN 83201), attached with an easy to use bayonet system.
A cam lever system securely locks the camera in place, providing strength and precise positioning even when a heavy lens is mounted.
The camera, with lens and zoom gear mounted, simply sides into place.
A blue push button in the port mount allows the vacuum system to be reset, and recalibrate when changing lenses!
Micro Four Thirds Lens Bonanza!
It's all about the glass, and lenses are the key to terrific photography. This has always been a strength of Olympus systems, and the lineup is now stronger than ever thanks to the Nauticam Wet Wide Lens (WWL-1).
WWL-1 is mounted via a quick change bayonet system (67mm PN 83213 or 77mm PN 83215) that allows fast and easy one handed mounting and removal. An optional lens caddy provides a place to park the WWL-1 lens when not in use. For closeup and macro work, the Nauticam Compact Macro Converter (CMC-1, PN 81301) allows images smaller than 1" wide to be captured. Ultra wide, mid-range and macro imaging capability, all on the same dive!
*12-50 is usable with WWL-1 from approximately 15.5mm - 50mm with WWL-1.
A clear view for fine focus and composition is critical for successful underwater photography, and nothing beats a magnifying viewfinder. These viewfinders use distance, not closeup vision, and provide a large, clear view of the high resolution Olympus electronic viewfinder. Available in angled 45º (PN 32205) and Straight (PN 32204) formats, both viewfinders have external dioptric adjustments for dialing in perfect correction matched to the photographer's eyesight.
Reliable automatic flash exposure is available with the NA-EM1II and a variety of optically fired flashes. The Inon Z-240, D-2000, S-2000, and Sea & Sea YS-D1/YS-D2 strobes provide automated lighting, precisely reproducing the camera's FL-LM3 flash at a proportionally greater intensity. This system yields accurate automatic TTL flash performance – even in manual exposure mode - with no electrical sync cables to flood! The NA-EM1II comes fiber optic ready and accepts standard Sea & Sea style bushing connections. Nauticam Fiber Optic cables, available for both Inon and Sea & Sea strobes, provide exceptional light transmission for accurate TTL performance.
The E-M1 Mark II camera with FL-LM3 flash is limited to 2-3 fps continuous shooting, even when a low manual power is selected in the camera flash menu. In situations where continuous optical shooting is required, Nauticam's Mini Flash Trigger (26306) can trigger external strobes over fiber optic at up to 10 frames per second! The trigger is powered by onboard coin style lithium batteries, with thousands of flashes available from a set.
Strobes can be attached to the housing via included strobe mounting balls secured to the integrated handle system. A 10mm threaded accessory mounting location on the housing is the ideal position for a video light or monitor, a cold shoe mount is perfectly placed for a small focusing light.