Aquatica AGH4: 4K Cinema in Micro 4/3 Housing Line

New Aquatica Housing is Designed to Take Full Advantage of 4K Video Capabilities

By UWPG News, July 22, 2014

Aquatica has announced their housing for the Panasonic GH4 Micro 4/3 camera. The Panasonic GH4 accepts a wide-range of lenses, making it a great option for underwater photographers. Add in the compact size and 4k video at Ultra HD resolution, and those looking to produce great video won't hesitate to have the camera in their kit.

Aquatica's AGH4 housing was designed with video functionality and ergonomics in mind, creating the best video experience possible in a compact, precision-designed housing.

MSRP:  $1,995

Delivery:  TBD

Learn more about the Aquatica AGH4 Housing and preorder yours at Bluewater Photo.

About The Aquatica AGH4

Aquatica fully understands the requirements involved for shooting high quality video, with the acquisition of Amphibico, the legendary video housing manufacturer, came a wealth of expertise in the field of video capture, it is this knowledge, coupled with over 30 years of manufacturing housings ourselves, that is now distilled into this AGH4 housing. By natural necessity, a housing needs a sound, practical and ergonomic design for video, fiddling around to access controls can easily ruin your important sequence. You need intuitive and precise access these controls, so you can keep your eyes on the monitor and, importantly, the housing needs to be a well balance and stable setup, the Aquatica AGH4 delivers on all aspects.

On previous camera models, some form of video mode was offered, while it was genuinely considered an interesting feature to be had, it definitely lacked the awesome performance that the Panasonic DMC-GH4 now brings forth. This level of excellence in video needed to be taken into account in our housing design.

This view of the right hand side clearly demonstrate that, while being a compact housing, the controls do remain accessible, even when wearing thick cold water gloves. The shutter release, video record lever, aperture and shutter knobs, programmable AE/AF LOCK lever are all reachable with your right hand resting on the grip. 

ISO Control

ISO is a key control for video exposure, and our engineering team has put its access lever exactly at the right location, essentially putting it under your right thumb, this lever being at right place means you have quick access to this control, without removing your hand from the grip.

On the left side, right above and forward of this non obstructive latch, one will find the zoom/focus control knob, it’s position allows it to be rotated with the tips of your fingers, it is setup with a silky smooth gearing ratio that will ensure a smooth transition when zooming or manually focusing a lens.

Comprehensive Port System

The AGH4 housing uses the already established 4/3 Micro series of ports and accessories; Aquatica is renowned for the quality of its optics and this is no exception to the rule, every lens supported by Aquatica is evaluated on an optical bench, and from the data gathered, we can determine the best port to use and, if required, the extension ring length that will match the optical center of the dome to that of the lens. This all important step is necessary if one wants to extract the maximum optical performance possible from a lens and port combination.

The system is further expanded with the addition of the upcoming 4/3 Micro series to DSLR port adapter. In essence, a step up adapter that will allow our regular DSLR ports to be mounted on the Aquatica 4/3 Micro series housings. Thus offering the Aquatica AGH4 the largest and finest selection of underwater ports in the industry. This port adapter also help integrate the 4/3 Micro series housing to existing DSLR system by sharing the existing ports.

Viewfinder Options

Camera Protection

Fully aware that real life is not a controlled environment, we recently introduced the SURVEYOR moisture and vacuum sensor alarm, which comes as standard equipment on the AGH4 housing. The moisture detection feature remain on constant duty to inform you, by way of audible an visual signals, of any possible water entry, no matter how minute this one would be.

The SURVEYOR circuit integrates a vacuum sensor, if one wish to take full advantage of this vacuum pressure option, then the simple addition of the accessory vacuum pump and pressure valve (19228) to the housing is all that is needed. This option is also available as a preinstalled kit, which would tested at the factory by our own technicians prior to shipping or it can be purchased later and installed easily by the user. 

The Amphibico Latch

This straightforward push, rotate and locking latch has been used on over 10,000 Amphibico and Aquatica housing for decades now, it is simply the best in the industry. 

The Aquatica Hand Grips

Handling the housing is done via a pair of the most comfortable hand grips in the industry, they are sturdy yet very lightweight, and offer mounting points that will handle the lighting system of your choice without the need for obstructive reinforcement brackets or supports. These grips are removable in less than a minutes with the supplied hexagonal wrench, making the storage footprint space minimal.

Housing Construction

Like all current Aquatica housing currently made, the shell is milled from a solid block of 6061 T6 aeronautical grade aluminum, black anodized to a military specification and then, for further protection, a resistant polyester electrostatic powder coating is applied and baked on. This process ensures that your investment will last you a life time.

Push buttons pins and control shafts are machined out of the finest grade of stainless steel, every component used in an Aquatica housing undergoes a series of stringent quality controls insuring that they respect our strict tolerance. 

SPECIFICATIONS

Depth Rating:

90m/300ft (upgradeable to 130m/425ft)

Dimensions:   

Height: 6’’

Depth: 3.75’’

Width:  7.140’’ (without grip attached)

With grips: 11.2’’ (with grips attached)

Weight (with grips attached): To be determined         

Standard features

-  Quick removal camera tray

-  Ergonomically optimized   for diving conditions

-  Oversized knurled controls knobs

-  Sturdy comfortable grips

-  Extended shutter release

-  Port lock mechanism

-  Lens release mechanism

-  Standard high quality Galileo optical eyepiece

-  Dual sacrificial anodes (front and rear mounted)

Construction of shell 

-  6061 T6 Marine Grade aluminum

-  Anodized to MIL-A-8625 (type 2, Class 2 specification)

-  Powder coated with certified A.A.M.A. 2603-98 Polyester coating

-  Baked at 177c/350F (specification ASTM D2794

Control shafts and push pins

-  Type 304 marine grade Stainless steel

-  All shaft double sealed with double O-rings

-  All push pins sealed with Quad Rings  

Mounting points for strobes arms, lighting fixtures and/or tripod

-  5 x ¼”-20 threaded holes on the top

-  3 x ¼”-20 threaded holes on the bottom 

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Further Reading

• Aquatica SW8 Dome for Micro 4/3

• Best Micro 4/3 Lenses for Underwater Photography

• Introduction to Mirrorless Cameras

Where to Buy

Please support the Underwater Photography Guide by purchasing your underwater photography gear through our sister site, Bluewater Photo & Video. Click, or call them at (310) 633-5052 for expert advice!