Ikelite SP-350 Digital Camera User Manual


 
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Ikelite controls are designed to provide years of reliable service
with minimal maintenance
 Push button controls require no maintenance other than rinsing
in fresh water after saltwater use If a push button control
b
ecomes difficult to push or if it sticks when depressed soak the
housing in luke warm fresh water After a few minutes operate
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he push button If this does not correct the problem return the
housing to Ikelite for maintenance
 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
housing
lubricate shaft
pull out to
expose shaft
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 Some of the controls have a short shaft and cannot be pulled
out exposing the shaft for lubrication In the unlikely event one
o
f 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);
r
emove the knob If there is salt or dirt buildup on the exposed
control shaft clean the shaft Open the housing and gently slide
t
he control shaft out of the control gland Clean and lightly
lubricate the shaft including the end of the shaft Slide the
s
haft back into the control gland and gently slide it back and
forth a few times without fully removing 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
o
n the control so the knob does not turn on the shaft
Loosen set screw
(allen wrench required)
Flat
Tighten set screw down
against this area when
replacing the knob.
housing
gland
control
shaft
Lubricate end of shaft
before reinserting into
gland
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 Due to the power required to operate the camera flash and
LCD screen it is a good idea to start each dive with a fresh set of
batteries
 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

Next check to see if there are any bubbles on the face of the
lens port If there are take your finger and remove them If
there are bubbles on the lens port they can produce soft focus
spots in your photographs
 If you use the housing Zoom control make sure to move it back
to the center position If the housing Zoom control is pushing
the camera zoom lever to either side the camera will not
function (See page )
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 If you are shooting with the camera’s builtin flash at
approximately  feet ( m) or less zoom the lens to
maximum telephoto The lens port on the housing blocks a
portion of the light from the camera’s builtin flash when
shooting close up If you do not zoom to maximum telephoto a
shadow may appear in the lower left corner of closeup
photographs
(You can test this above water)
To shoot wide angle photographs closer than  feet (m) you
need to use a preflash compatible external strobe such as the
DS or DS With an external strobe you can position it so
nothing blocks the light path between the strobe and the
subject
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 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  feet (m)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 quite often blend
into the background and be difficult 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