Equinox HD6 Underwater Housing for Canon HF100, HF10 and HF11

Comments about Equinox HD6 Underwater Housing for Canon HF100, HF10 and HF11:

This housing wouldn't be too bad (for the price) - if it didn't leak! Mine has had a small leak from one of the controls since I bought it. I contacted the manufacturer & they got back to me right away. Then they just sent me part of a replacement controller. I was to take out the control & take it apart, then put it back together, then put it back in the housing. It still leaks.

So, I decided to send it in to have my monitor mounted to the back plate & a control added for white balance adjustment. In the written instructions, I told them to make sure to pressure check it - since it leaks. Then I also contacted them while they had it - to remind them to pressure check it. I got it back & put it in the tub - IT STILL LEAKS!!! They obviously did not even bother to check it - even after they added new controls... wouldn't they at least want to check those new controls?

So, I now sunk more money into a useless housing & they haven't gotten back to me yet about the leak.

Other important info - with the Canon HF11 camera, there is no way to see what you are filming - with the standard housing ALONE. However, there is lots of extra room inside the housing, so I was able to rig up a little mirror inside - which works ok as a cheap solution. Then I did end up buying a little monitor. I found the exact same one Equinox is selling - for a third of the cost somewhere else, but it did involve a little more work in order to rig up the battery pack.

The last important thing, I paid for the extra controls for the white balance & it really doesn't look like they are going to work as they are. I will need to alter them. In order to adjust white balance, you need to press straight in on a toggle button. The controller that Equinox added hits the button at an angle - so it moves the toggle - instead of pushing the button. All of the controllers are very inaccurate... especially compared to my Ikelite housing for my still camera.

If they had just taken a little more time to make sure the controls worked better & didn't leak - I would recommend this housing. I like the feel of it while underwater, the handles are nice & I like the extra space inside - as well as the fact that the whole back is clear. It's also nice that they include a wide angle lens. But this housing is just not quite there yet... I can't trust that it won't leak & the controls are severally lacking. Also, the lens cover does not seem to really protect the lens. I've noticed some little surface scratches where the lens cover touches the lens.

Comments about Equinox HD6 Underwater Housing for Canon HF100, HF10 and HF11:

The housing seems solid, clamps are quite good.
I have used it with Canon HF100 for diving at 13 m (42.5 feet), with natural lighting and external red filter for colour correction.

Camera's LCD can be extended just enough to turn it on - you just have to rotate it slightly upwards and fold out at the same time, as much as the housing allows. However, the resulted viewing angle does not allow a comfortable usage, so I reckon the backplate monitor might be a good idea.

The worst part was the 0.45x wide angle lens included in the kit - low optical quality yielding blurred images, especially at the edges and corners. You might consider using another wide angle lens, even if of just 0.7x.

In theory, one could also manually adjust the white ballance using the remote control (inside a sealed or zip bag) and the camera's menus, while underwater - not tested for myself though. For best results, especially at higher depths, portable lighting shoud be used.

Comments about Equinox HD6 Underwater Housing for Canon HF100, HF10 and HF11:

I have not tried it a deeper depths but everything about this housing is built to last. The rubber feet could be a bit wider or sit a bit lower to allow the handles to prevent rollover on deck. The LCD on the HF-10 will not fold out to the point where will turn on. So you'll need to get the LCD monitor back (an extra [$]). I assume this would be the same for the HF-11 and HF-100.

Comments about Equinox HD6 Underwater Housing for Canon HF100, HF10 and HF11:

The housuing is nice. There are very few directions. The clamps on the housing seem impossible to undo. I had to call the manufacturer to find out that there is a small release lever on each clamp that must be held down before the clamp can be released.

Also, while the Canon H100 fits nicely inside the housing, you cannot open the LCD screen while the camera is in the housing. You need to purchase the additional monitor backplate accessory in order to view the camera's monitor while it is in the housing. Otherwise, you will be shooting blind. This backplate should be an included item and not an accessory, even if it drives the price up a bit.