Disclaimer:
On a recent shoot to document the daily migration patterns of Mastigas Jellyfish in Palau’s World famous Jellyfish Lake, underwater camera operators John Friday and Mark Thorpe had the opportunity to appraise the field effectiveness of three independent underwater housing offerings for the RED One Digital Cinema Camera. Neither author of this paper were asked to provide the information in the following pages by any of the housing manufacturers. Neither author stands to gain in any way from the provision of the following information to those with a vested interest in underwater cinematography and the materials required to effect underwater imagery.

John Ellerbrock at Gates Underwater Products loaned us a prototype of his new housing known as ‘Deep Red’ for our shoot. With strict instructions to put it through its paces, I love it when people say that, we did just that. In keeping with the Gates tradition, the housing is made from aluminum and uses 100% manual controls. The one electronic feature on this housing is a manual control lever that presses against a smart little servo motor that operates the zoom of non-prime glass. This gearing and motor can be disconnected when not required. The housing itself is very much stouter and shorter than that of the AquaVideo.

The ‘Dumpy’ appearance of the system is due to the design of the saddled assembly for the hard drive and battery over the camera, it gives the aesthetic of an engine when sitting inside the housing.

The real key of functionality with this housing is the revolutionary adjustability of the gearing for Focus, Iris and Zoom. Each gear has its own shaft that protrudes from a bulkhead located just parallel to the PL mount and the user can adjust each gear to a desired location forward of the PL mount in order to accommodate a multitude of different lenses. It’s truly a genius idea and there are only three small setscrews that the user needs to tighten in order to adjust the gears either forward, backward or up and down in order to mate with the gear rings of the desired lens. After using this feature we were duly impressed. However by accident we found out that Gates went even further with their Focus and Iris knobs located at fingertips length from the left side handle. These knobs can be manipulated by removing your hand and turning them the traditional way between your thumb and index finger or you can merely stick out your index finger and slide it into one of the many ergonomically designed holes of each of the knobs and make quick and highly accurate adjustments to Focus or Iris without removing your entire hand from the housing handle and thereby not loosing contact from the housing.

The one aspect of this housing that stands it above other current options is the masterful work that went into the gearing mechanisms for the focus and iris control. Depending on which lens one decides to use though will dictate whether one has to commission a lens extension bracket to be constructed. The system itself was designed around the RED 18-50mm zoom lens so the user would have to discuss directly with the company should they wish to house other glass. We found that the extension for the 18-50mm zoom also allowed for use of the Zeiss 14mm T2.1 standard prime, which we used almost exclusively in ‘Deep Red’ for this shoot. Overall, working with this system was a breeze. A nice clear monitor sitting at the front of the housing with easy controls at hand which are well thought out. We did have an issue with overheating. We would generally get a temperature warning with the cameras after about an hour of use. Could this be due to the faster conductivity of heat in a vacuumed environment or just the fact that we were working in very shallow depths in strong sunlight with a black housing? The fact is that Gates is currently addressing this issue with a redesign to allow for better heat dissipation by use of cooling fans.

As with the Gates housings of late, the system is very modular. None of the current housing manufacturers on the market have tackled the EVF issue, that is to say that none have housed the Electronic Viewfinder and all tend to look at utilizing the RED 5” hi resolution LCD screens. This also bears true with the Gates system which houses the clients existing LCD monitor in their well thought out casing. Gates has taken it upon themselves to confront this tricky issue and built a housing for the RED 5” hi-resolution LCD screen that connects via a bulkhead connector on the right side of the housing that allows access to all of the LCD controls including full frame magnification which when used in conjunction with the ‘Expanded Focus’ feature can help tremendously with hitting focus on this camera. All of these controls are functional via magnetic switches at the top of the LCD housing. The unit we used was one of two prototypes and the LCD along with its bulkhead connector were first run prototypes and still under evaluation. We did experience a few minor technical difficulties whereby on occasion the LCD would show us a pixilated yet viewable screen. When this first occurred we were terrified that our images were blown, but upon playback and further evaluation we found that the images were in fact fine and no pixilation occurred on the actual r3d files. Gates recognizes this problem and is in fact working on a fix as of this writing as the issue seems to stem from the cables or LEMO connectors from a third party vendor.

Mounting and dismounting the camera from the housing is a straightforward affair. The housing itself is broken into three main sections, four if one counts the lens extension brackets. Starting from the front one has the Dome or Flat port assembly, then comes a lens extension bracket followed by the main body of the housing. This splits into two segments joined by four security snap clips. The rear of these two segments slides along a couple of rails so as to align perfectly each time of housing closure.

Full Menu Control
Another key feature of the ‘Deep Red’ is the fact that it allows you full control and manipulation of the menu underwater. By use of a small toggle-like switch, you can access any menu item from changing your ASA setting to over or under-cranking all while you are underwater. At first we thought this was not a very necessary function, but after hands on use, it became evident that this was in fact another home run by Gates. To go from shooting at your current frame rate and then switch to the overcranking function is just one of the many possibilities that this little toggle switch allows.

One major point of issue would be with the small grub screws used to keep the internal control elements in place. We had one potentially bad situation develop with the grub screw that holds the menu selection button at the rear of the housing in place and allowed for the screw to jump around in the housing until it finally became jammed between the ND filter and the dome port.

This we believed is due to the amount of transportation, and therefore vibration, the housing experienced during its voyage to Palau. This should not be an issue and in our opinion a locking mechanism for these controls should be found. Whether the threads are sunk into the shafts of the controls and then sealed with Loctite or something similar would certainly alleviate these issues. The fact that we were looking at a potentially scratched dome port exacerbates that requirement, this was secondary in our concern as the lens you can see being used below is a Carl Zeiss standard 14mm prime and not a cheap lens to repair scratch damage on. This time we were lucky.

A very worrying time when we noticed the menu selection control grub screw had come loose and sat trapped between the dome and lens shade. Fortunately the lens was so snug inside the port that it didn’t raise issues and the lens didn’t get dinged. This is obviously something that really needs to be addressed. Always check after travels that your nuts are tightly secured and sitting well. Nothing worse than diving with loose screws in a housing.

Closing the Housing
Another safety aspect of the housing, above the use of the safety snap clips is the recommended option to pull a vacuum in the housing once the system has been built. This is done very simply by connecting a vacuum pump, available from Gates, to a Schrader valve screwed into the housing and then working to your desired vacuum setting. We would generally set our system to 5in Hg, inches Mercury or equivalent to 2.5psi. Once you have pulled your vacuum, you simply close a one-way valve and monitor the vacuum for a few minutes to see if it drops. If it is stable, you’re ready to dive the unit. If you notice a drop in the vacuum, then it’s time to open up the housing and re-seal the camera and look for possible areas where a seal may be broken. One point to remember though once disconnected is to refit the schrader nipple guard, as this could also be a potentially weak spot for water to enter into the housing.

Mark’s verdict
• A well crafted and nicely tuned system. A serious contender for the RED underwater housing market.
• Great workmanship and overall aesthetic.

Contentious points:
• Grub screws working loose with vibrations, need to check all after boat trips, airplane transport etc. Any way to lock them down?
• The heat issue needs to be addressed; at the time of going to press I was informed that this is actually in process at the Gates factory.
• Price*
*In today’s economy the bottom line is often the deal maker or breaker. Whilst the price tag for Deep Red does seem steep one has to also understand the level of client care that comes when dealing with Gates, which is never held in any measure of doubt.

John’s verdict:
• Definitely a Ferrari of underwater housings. One can see and feel the craftsmanship as well as R&D that has gone into this housing.
• Well-balanced and just down right nice fingertip controls that allow for ease of use
• Not for the Sunday user. This is a serious housing that carries a serious pricetag.

Contentious points:
• Overheating, and Gates seems to be addressing this issue now
• Pixilation on the LCD screen. Although not a game stopper it is something to be addressed and Gates informs us that they are currently testing new cables and LEMO connectors.

What would make it better?
• An upgrade path to Epic or Scarlet. We all know they are coming and with a substantial investment in ‘Deep Red’ it would be nice to see a financially pleasant path to future upgrades towards Epic and/or Scarlet that allow for a refit or tradein towards the coming cameras.
• Flat port option will be available as of June
• Some type of housing extension in order to allow three point contact by resting the back of the housing body against your shoulder. An option that Gates are considering.