UW Technics 11050-HSS User manual

UW
Technics
#11050-HSS Optoelectronic TTL-Converter (for SONY A1-A9 cameras)
for MARELUX underwater photo housings
USER’S MANUAL
Specifications
▪Compatible photo cameras: Sony A1-A9 family cameras
▪Compatible underwater housings : Marelux
▪Compatible strobes: Inon Z-330, Z-240, S-2000,
Sea&Sea YS-250, YS-D1,
Sea&Sea YS-D2 (“made-in-China” version)
Ikelite DS-161, DS-160, DS-125
Subtronic Pro-270, Pro-160,
Retra Pro (including HSS functionality)
▪TTL outputs onboard: 2 optical, 1 electric
▪(+/-) “Flash Exposure compensation” adjustment underwater:yes
▪Continuous (serial) shooting mode support: yes
▪1-st / 2-nd curtain modes support: yes
▪Switching TTL /M underwater by camera controls: yes
▪Setting strobe power manually by camera controls in M mode: 1/64…..1/1
▪HSS support (with “Retra Pro” strobe only) 1/320 s….1/8000 s
▪Switching power “ON/OFF”: automatic by camera command
▪Battery type: CR2032 (2pcs.)
▪Current consumption (in standby mode)0.01 mkA
▪Compatible Fiber-optic cable type: 613 fiber (Nauticam #26216 / #26217, HowShot #613L, Sea&Sea #50128 / #50133)
▪Available Electric Bulkhead type (optional accessory): Nikonos-5, Ikelite, S-6
▪Dual Electric sync cords (“Sea&Sea”, “Ikelite”) support: yes
Safety Warning for Batteries usage
➢Use batteries only CR2032 type.
➢Batteries must be new and undamaged. Carefully check batteries before usage.
➢To avoid leakage or explosion, always check appropriate battery terminals position (“plus” / “minus”) before installing to the
TTL-Converter.
➢Never expose batteries to overheating, short-circuiting, disassembling, high pressure, mechanical deformation. Save
batteries from high humidity and water. All these circumstances may cause a chemical leakage, electric shock, explosion or
fire, which can be dangerous for health.
➢Remove batteries from TTL-Converter before longtime storage.
➢Utilize used batteries according appropriate rules.
➢Keep out batteries of children. Save batteries in inaccessible for children place

Installation in MARELUX underwater photo housing
▪Open underwater housing. Using hex wrench
unscrew 2 bolts from vertical plastic podium (camera
support) bottom side. Delete the podium from the housing.
▪Insert CR2032 batteries into TTL-Converter. Before
installation check that “plus” terminal of each battery is in Up
position.
▪(Optional). In case of using Electric Sync cord
synchronization, connect an electric bulkhead cable plug into
Ci-11 socket on the board.
▪Install TTL-Converter to its place. Carefully insert
both LEDs into optical holes of the housing. Screw 2 bolts,
fixing the plastic frame upper part.
▪Install vertical plastic podium back to its place.
Screw 2 bolts, fixing the podium.
Optional Accessories for MARELUX housing
▪UW Technics Nikonos style Bulkhead (M14 screw) with cable and Ci-11 connector.
▪UW Technics Ikelite style Bulkhead (M14 screw) with cable and Ci-11 connector.
▪UW Technics S-6 style Bulkhead (M14 screw) with cable and Ci11 connector.
▪Electric Bulkheads are optional products and must be purchased separately.
External cable connections for underwater strobes
▪TTL-Converter maintains synchronization for underwater strobes by Fiber Optical cable and by electric sync cord as
well, separately or even simultaneously.
▪Maximum 2 Fiber Optic cables can be used (via housing optical bulkheads). It is possible to connect 2 underwater
strobes.
▪Maximum 1 electric sync cord can be connected to the TTL board (via housing electric bulkhead).
▪Dual electric sync cords (“Sea&Sea”, “Ikelite”) are supported by TTL-Converter as well. Using a dual sync cord, it is
possible to connect 2 underwater strobes.
Initial Settings
▪Set TTL-Converter onboard rotary switch according your strobe type:
➢0- Hardwire Manual Mode
➢1 - Inon Z-240
➢2 - Sea&Sea YS-D1
➢3 - Sea&Sea YS-D2
➢4 - Sea&Sea YS-250, Subtronic Pro-270
➢5 - Ikelite DS-161, Ikelite DS-160, Ikelite DS-125
➢6 –Inon Z-330
➢7 –Retra Pro
➢8 –Subtronic Pro-160
➢9 –Inon S-2000
▪Set and check camera settings before underwater shooting:
-Set “Mechanical Shutter” type in camera menu. You also can use “e-Front Curtain Shutter”. But don’t set fully
Electronic Shutter by menu, it does not supported by this TTL system.
-Set Camera mode (“M”, “P”, “A”, “S” etc.), as is your preference. For underwater shooting it is recommended to use “M”
mode, so the underwater photographer can control Aperture and Shutter Speed manually.
-Set Aperture and Shutter Speed according to the actual underwater conditions and shooting task. Do not exceed 1/250
shutter speed (1/250 is maximum “sync speed”) when using mono-flash underwater strobes.
-Set appropriate Exposure Metering (“Multi”, “Spot”, “Center”) according to the shooting conditions. The right type of
Exposure Metering is the key setting for accurate TTL work. In the case of wrong setting, the shot may be over
exposed, or under exposed.
- Set camera’s “Flash Exposure Compensation” (and “Exposure Compensation”) to “0 ev”, as initial setting.
- Set appropriate ISO. Recommended to use ISO 200….400 for the best resolution and TTL accuracy underwater.
- Use recommended apertures F8-F11 for Wide-angle underwater photo, and F11-F22 for Macro photo.
- Use other settings recommended by your camera User’s Manual.
-

Shooting in TTL mode
▪Set main dial switch on the underwater strobe body to TTL mode. Please refer to strobe’s User Manual to choose
appropriate mode (Z330, Z240 set to “S-TTL”, YS-D1/D2 set to “DS-TTL”, YS-250/DS-161/DS160 set to “TTL”).
▪Set the dial (+/-Ev correction) on the underwater strobe body to “0 ev” position, as initial setting.
▪Using Z240 / Z330 strobe, pay attention:
1) Pre-flash control magnet must be in “Push” (down) position and locked by rotation.
2) Using optical synchronization, set right dial switch on the strobe body to “0ev” (position “12 o’clock”), but using
electrical wire synchronization set right dial switch to “ttl” mark as fixed position (“9 o’clock”).
3) In case of optical synchronization, TTL correction (+/-) is available by the strobe dial switch “+/-Ev” and also by the
camera controls via “Flash Exposure Compensation”. The final correction value is the sum of these two corrections.
Pay attention: In case of electric wire synchronization, the adjustment (+/-) by the strobe dial is unavailable on most of
underwater strobes, but still available by camera controls using “Flash Exposure Compensation”.
▪Connect TTL-Converter Hot Shoe plug to the camera Hot Shoe socket. Switch ON the camera. TTL-Converter activates
automatically (switch ON) when user pushes camera Shutter Release Button for shooting or focusing. Device goes to
standby mode (switch OFF) automatically a few seconds later (based on input from the camera), or after disconnection
from camera Hot Shoe socket.
▪Camera recognizes Sony compatible TTL device on the Hot Shoe socket and confirms the compatibility by the two “Flash”
symbols on the service screen.
▪In Flash Mode menu set “Fill-flash”, “Slow” sync, or “Rear curtain” sync, depending on the shooting tasks:
▪Based on the concrete camera model and strobes quantity (a single strobe, a pair, or more) photographer should set any
initial (+/-) Flash Exposure Compensation for balanced flash lighting. Please make a land test of TTL work before
submerging.
▪During the shooting underwater, photographer can use (+/-) Flash Exposure Compensation in wide range (-3ev ….+3ev),
based on shooting conditions, subjects and tasks, if images are too bright or too dark.
In normal operation, TTL +/- Flash exposure compensation adjustment is available for underwater photographer through 2
methods:
- Using “+/-Ev” dial switch on the underwater strobe body (adjustment works for fiber-optical type connection only).
- Using camera “Flash Exposure Compensation” function. Such adjustment type is recommended as more accurate, and
it works for both types of connection (optical / electric). Available “Flash Exposure Compensation” range for Sony
cameras: -3ev…0...+3ev. User can adjust it in steps 0.3ev or 0.5ev (set the step by camera menu), viewing the value
on the camera menu scale.
▪Set only Mechanical Shutter type in camera menu. This is important for normal TTL work. Don’t use fully electronic shutter
(option available in some cameras menu). Only e-front curtain can be activated, if necessary.
▪Shooting macro, for normal TTL accuracy the nearest distance from underwater strobe to a target must be more than
0.35m underwater (or more than 0.7m for the land tests), to keep the system inside of working TTL range. But the
camera can be positioned as close to the target as user requires so long as the strobe minimum distance is adjusted
▪TTL-Converter is tuned for normal TTL accuracy under water. Land tests may give different results.

▪In some shooting conditions or camera settings, TTL system may be not effective or out of working range. This case
photographer should use Manual mode.
Shooting in Manual mode
▪Underwater photographer can use 3 different methods for shooting in Manual mode:
- Camera menu Manual mode
- Underwater strobe Manual mode
- TTL-Converter hardwire Manual mode
oCamera menu controlled Manual Mode (set by camera menu assigned command –“WL”)
Switch TTL-converter to Manual mode by camera menu (“WL” setting in menu).
Set underwater strobe to “S-TTL” mode on the dial switch on the strobe body, - to control light intensity
manually via camera scale.
Sony camera menu does not have any original command for switching to M mode. That is why the “WL” command
(On/Off) is assigned for this aim via TTL-Converter firmware. “WL” command ON switches TTL-Converter to M mode
without Pre-flashes. This is preferable Manual mode for universal usage, easy switchable and controllable during the
diving.
Based on your camera firmware, if “WL” sign doesn’t show on the Flash Mode Menu, it can also be found on page 11 of
Camera Menu 1. When ON, it will override the flash mode setting menu and the TTL system will operate in Manual Mode only.
In this Manual Mode the flash intensity manual adjustment by camera menu also becomes available.Pay attention,
underwater strobe must be in STTL mode for this function. Then, user can comfortably adjust flash intensity by camera wheel,
looking at the camera scale. Full scale range (-3ev….+3ev) corresponds to flash intensities 1/64 …1/1.
Some manual underwater strobes (like MF-1) requires very strong optical signal for synchronization, this case necessary to
set maximum power by this scale (+3 ev):

oUnderwater Strobe Manual Mode (set by underwater strobe dial switch):
Set underwater strobe dial switch to M mode without pre-flashes. Adjust strobe light intensity by the dial
switch on the strobe body.
Shooting in this mode, it is strongly recommended to set TTL-Converter also to M mode (by camera menu “WL”
command), to exclude Pre-flashes in system (for energy saving).
oTTL-Converter Hardwire Manual Mode (set by onboard switch to “0” position):
Set TTL-Converter onboard rotary switch to “0” position.
Set underwater strobe to M mode without pre-flashes by dial switch on the strobe body. Adjust strobe light
intensity by the dial switch on the strobe body.
Setting TTL-Converter rotary switch to “0” position can be done only before closing the case, while the housing is open.
This is a hardwired Manual mode. In this mode the camera does not recognize any device on it’s HotShoe socket, TTL
protocol in system is totally disabled.
In this mode TTL-Converter emits single pulse of fixed (maximum) duration, without Pre-flashes.
This mode is recommended for any creative shooting, for example using long length fiber optical cables (up to 40m
length is supported), or for usage with TTL incompatible underwater strobes, or for any other difficult situations.
High Speed Synchronization (HSS) with Retra Pro strobe
▪New generation Retra Pro strobe supports High Speed Synchronization (HSS).
▪HSS shutter speeds are available for underwater flash usage in range 1/320 ….1/8000 for Sony A7-A9 cameras.
▪Pay attention, that Retra HSS is a Manual type HSS, but not TTL. In HSS strobe mode Retra flash intensity can be
adjusted by the strobe knob, only manually.
▪For shooting with Retra HSS, use the following settings:
➢Only once: Assign “HSS” function to U1 or U2 switch position on the strobe body, using “Retra-UWT” application via
I-Phone or I-Pad bluetooth connection.
➢Set Retra Pro strobe switch to U1 or U2 position (according the assigned position for HSS mode)
➢Set Manual flash mode for the system by camera menu (using “WL” command).
➢Use camera at any shutter high speeds (1/320 …1/8000). Test shooting with HSS flash. Adjust necessary flash
intensity by the strobe knob.
Shutter High Speeds availability for shooting with ambient light
▪Classic underwater strobes produce a mono-flash, they cannot work in HSS range speeds (excluding Retra Pro), camera
automatically limits sync speed 1/250 for them, usually until HotShoe plug is connected. But new TTL-Converter firmware
allows shutter high speeds usage for shooting underwater with ambient sunlight (without flash) even if HotShoe plug is
connected. User does not need to reopen the housing to disconnect the HotShoe plug.
▪Shutter high speeds for shooting are available in Manual mode of the system (use “WL” command) in range 1/320
….1/8000 (and faster, dependently of camera model). All models uw strobes (excluding Retra Pro) in this case don’t
produce a flash, automatically via TTL-converter control.
Continuous (Serial) Shooting using underwater strobes
▪TTL-Converter supports Continuous shooting in all modes, including TTL and M modes. But the main role in this case plays
underwater strobes specific (read below).
▪Compact size underwater strobes like Z240, Z330, S2000, YS-D1, YS-D2 etc. have rather weak charger inside, which can
not charge the strobe quick enough between series of TTL doubled flashes (pre-flash + main flash). Each next shot the
energy is not enough to keep accurate pre-flash duration. That is why, compact size underwater strobes are not
recommended for Continuous (Serial) Shooting in TTL mode. The 1st shot will have normal lighting, next shots will have
different lighting or none at all. The effect depends on specific strobe’s capabilities.
▪Large size underwater strobes, like YS-250, DS-161, DS-160 etc. have more powerful charger inside and large main
capacitor. Those strobes work some better in Continuous (Serial) Shooting TTL mode. The user can make more shots with
acceptable lighting. However the best lighting accuracy will be on only the first 1-3 shots in series, the others may have
different lighting. The effect depends on specific strobe’s capabilities.
▪For Continuous (Serial) Shooting with underwater strobes, it is strongly recommended to use Manual mode and set small
flash intensities manually.This way it is possible to get serial shots with acceptable lighting accuracy due to reduced
recycle times.
Battery energy saving
▪Set acceptable “Power Save Start Time” in camera menu, this is important for TTL-Converter battery saving. Strongly
recommended value –10 seconds.

Storage
▪After shooting switch Off the camera.
▪Disconnect TTL-Converter Hot Shoe plug from camera after the diving. This way you protect the TTL-Converter from any
accidents. Also, you save TTL-Converter battery, because current consumption is minimum in this case.
▪For a extended storage periods remove batteries from TTL-Converter.
Warranty
▪Product warranted against any manufacturing defects for 2 year from the date of purchase for consumer use.
▪Manufacturer accepts no liability for any damage to and defects in the housing caused by improper use and/or poor
maintenance.
▪Manufacturer does not hold responsibility for damage of any nature, to any equipment used with the product.
▪Manufacturer accepts no liability for any loss of captured images or the inability to capture images even if it is due to the
malfunctioning of the product.
▪This warranty only applies to products purchased from authorized dealers and does not extend beyond the original retail
purchaser.
▪Unauthorized modifications and/or repairs of the product will automatically invalidate this warranty.
▪To return products for service, please contact authorized dealer in your region.