Fantasea FD-40X User Manual

Fantasea FD-40X Housing

User's Manual

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Table of Contents

FANTASEA FD-40X HOUSING ................................................................................................................. 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................................................................. 2

INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................................... 3

INCLUDED WITH HOUSING .................................................................................................................... 4

CAMERA MODEL ....................................................................................................................................... 5

A VARIETY OF USES .................................................................................................................................. 5

SPECIFICATIONS ....................................................................................................................................... 5

CONTROLS ORIENTATION ..................................................................................................................... 6

CONTROL DETAILS ................................................................................................................................... 9

TRAY AND HANDLE SYSTEM ASSEMBLY ........................................................................................ 12

PREPARATION OF THE HOUSING BEFORE THE DIVE ................................................................ 14

USING EXTERNAL STROBES: ............................................................................................................... 17

CARE & MAINTENANCE ........................................................................................................................ 18

BASIC SHOOTING TECHNIQUES ......................................................................................................... 19

CAMERA LENSES AND PORTS ............................................................................................................. 21

FANTASEA FD-40X WARRANTY .......................................................................................................... 22

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Introduction

Fantasea has introduced a new housing for the Nikon D40, D40x and D60 cameras, and the FD-40X is

the result. New and improved features include: embedded optical view finder, enhanced trigger/shutter
control system, new port mounting system, zoom lens capability, with new aluminum B and J handle
design.

Welcome to the exciting world of underwater digital SLR photography. Your purchase of the FD-40X
housing for the Nikon D40, D40x and D60 digital cameras will set you apart from other photographers.
With this system, you will enjoy the best chance of capturing the widest variety of superior underwater
images. The FD-40X offers you the opportunity to use the exact Nikon lenses for the best circumstances,
including a choice of macro, wide angle, fisheye, and zoom lenses. You will find the housing to be easy
and instinctive to use and handle and will have countless dives in which to experiment with the D40's,
D40x's and D60's advanced imaging capabilities. Fantasea is pleased to offer our help with any of your
photographic needs.

The purpose of this manual is to provide you with the basic introduction to your FD-40X, which should get
you comfortable with the housing and allow you to get started taking great underwater images right away.
We strongly urge you to thoroughly read the Nikon D40/D40x/D60 instruction manual as well, to
familiarize yourself with the most common controls and settings that you will use for your underwater
photography. The FD-40X housing will permit access to most of the important controls on the camera. To
take full advantage of these features, it is best to have a good command of what each option can do for you,
so you will know when you should use each specific control.

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Included With Housing

 The FD-40X housing consists of a front and back shell that latch together to form the

housing body

 A screw in standard flat port is included. This port will accommodate the 18-55mm lens

(with a manual zoom control). Other optional ports are available for different lenses (5 inch
super wide angle Dome Port, Macro Port, Semi Dome Port and Extension Rings to enable a
wider variety of lenses)

 Two Aluminum B and J housing handles come with your housing, (due to packaging

restrictions they may need to be assembled by the customer). These handles include 1"
(25mm) round ball mounts which integrate nicely with most B and J Arm systems, making
for easy integration with most underwater lighting and flash systems. The handles are easily
assembled by tightening one screw head per handle. They are also adjustable to fit divers
using gloves

 Base Plate for mounting other tray and arm systems
 Zoom Control Guide Band that is attached to the camera lens
 Optical Viewfinder eyepiece built into the back cover of the housing to assist the

photographer in viewing and focusing

 A five-pin TTL flash sync port to connect with the D40/D40x/D60's hot shoe
 Removable camera mounting tray that slides into position with the D40/D40x/D60 attached,

positioning the camera in the exact location for perfect control alignment

 Spare O-Rings for the housing lens port
 Adjustment tools
 Wrist lanyard
 Warranty and other documents
 Instruction manual
 Silicone
 Cleaning cloth
 Lens port cover

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Camera Model

The FD-40X is dedicated exclusively to the Nikon D40, D40x and D60 cameras. The size and shape of the
camera, plus the location of controls for alignment with housing controls requires this precision design.
Together, the D40/D40x/D60 camera and FD-40X housing offer the best combination of advanced digital
photography at an affordable price. No other cameras should be used in the FD-40X housing.

A Variety of Uses

The Fantasea FD-40X housing is more than just an underwater camera system. It protects the camera
against damage from such environmental conditions as rain, snow, dust, sand, and dirt. It is perfect
protection for active outdoor sports, where these elements would normally not allow an advanced camera
like the D40/D40x/D60 to be used without danger of damage. The lightweight, compact housing and
handles make it easy to hold and use while sailing, fishing, kayaking, backpacking, or just for fun at the
beach or around the pool. It will also provide a valuable tool for many commercial, industrial, and medical
applications, because it is impervious to most liquids, and sprays.

Specifications

 The FD-40X is an injection molded polycarbonate housing
 The main seal between front and back halves is a Gasket Seal
 The ports are sealed when mounted by 2 O-rings, one Radial and one Compression type
 Controls use stainless steel shafts, E-clips and springs
 Controls are sealed by double O-rings
 Control knobs and buttons are made of molded polycarbonate
 Latches are stainless steel
 Handles are made of plastic covered aluminum
 Flash sync port is a standard five-pin Nikonos type sync cord connector
 The Fantasea FD-40X has a maximum working depth rating of 200' (60m)
 Overall Size is 220 x 300 x 230 mm [LxWxH]
 Housing weight approximately 2.8 kg

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1 2 3 4 5

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Controls Orientation

Top and Front of Housing:

Front View

 Flash Sync Port 1
 Shutter Release Control 2
 Latching Buckles 3
 Power Switch 4
 Exposure Compensation/Aperture Control 5
 Shooting Information Control 6

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Left View of Housing

 Zoom Port Control 7