Sea & Sea
Type: Housing, strobe, and camera manufacturer Founded: 1969 (Japan) Acquired by: Fisheye Co. (September 10, 2021) Director (post-acquisition): Kenji Omura Key products: YS-series strobes, DX-series housings, Motor Marine cameras
Overview
Sea & Sea was founded in 1969 in Japan. The company is known for three product lines: the Motor Marine series of compact underwater cameras, high-quality anodized aluminum housings for DSLRs (all designed and manufactured 100% in Japan), and the YS-series of underwater strobes.
Sea & Sea strobes — particularly the YS-110, YS-D1, YS-D2, and YS-D3 Lightning — have been among the most widely used underwater strobes worldwide. The company also produced the DX-D100, one of the earliest housings for a digital SLR (the Nikon D100).
In September 2021, Sea & Sea was acquired by Fisheye Co., with Kenji Omura as director. The acquisition completed just before the company’s 50th anniversary. ([1])
Product timeline
- 1969: Founded in Japan
- 1990s–2000s: Motor Marine compact underwater cameras
- 2001-01: YS-90DX digital strobe with pre-flash setting shown at DEMA 2001 — addressed the TTL pre-flash issue that plagued early digital-strobe combinations ([2])
- 2002: Radical shift to digital; D30/D60 and D100 housings announced; DX-3000 and DX-5000 camera/housing combos; YS-90 Auto strobe ([3], [4], [5])
- 2003: DX-100 housing for Nikon D100; DX-S2 Pro; DX-3000; DX-1Ds; DX-D10; SLH-C220; Aquapix self-contained camera ([6])
- 2003-12: Sea & Sea USA distribution transferred to TUSA (Tabata USA), effective January 2004 ([7])
- 2004: DX-D70 housing reviewed; DX-5000G 5.1MP underwater camera announced; YS-55TTL/E strobe; major presence at DEMA 2004 with seminars ([8], [9], [10], [11])
- 2005: DX-8000G and DX-750G cameras; DX-350D and DX-D50 housings; YS-110 strobe; multiple HDV video housings ([12], [13], [14])
- 2005: 8000G digital camera+housing combo announced ([15])
- 2006-04: Announces DX-D200 and DX-5D housings for Nikon D200 and Canon 5D. ([16])
- 2006-11: YS-250PRO strobe announced at DEMA 2006. ([17])
- 2007-01: Recalls DX-5D (Canon 5D) housing for retrofit. ([18])
- 2007-07: DX-1G 10-megapixel underwater camera announced. ([19])
- 2007-08: Housings for Canon 40D and Nikon D300/D3 announced. ([20])
- 2009-02: MDX-D700 and MDX-5D MKII housings announced — enters full-frame DSLR market. ([21])
- 2010-02: MDX-D300s housing ships. ([22])
- 2010-02: MDX-7D housing announced for Canon EOS 7D. ([23])
- 2011-01: MDX-D7000 housing announced. ([24])
- 2012-01: YS-D1 strobe released — game-changing replacement for YS-110a. ([25])
- 2012-06: MDX-5DMkIII housing renderings released. ([26])
- 2012-07: Housing for Nikon D800 announced. ([27])
- 2013-06: MDX-D7100 housing announced. ([28])
- 2015-01: MDX-D810 housing announced. ([29])
- 2015-07: YS-D2 strobe announced. ([30])
- 2015-03: MDX-7D Mark II housing announced. ([31])
- 2016-06: MDX-D500 housing announced. ([32])
- 2017-10: YS-D2J announced — Japanese-produced version to address YS-D2 quality issues. ([33])
- 2017-01: Housing for EOS 5D Mark IV announced. ([34])
- 2022-03: Vacuum system announced for MDX housings — follows Nauticam in adopting vacuum leak detection. ([35])
- 2017-11: MDX housing for Nikon D850 ships. ([36])
- 2018-12: MDX housings for Canon EOS R announced — Sea & Sea enters Canon mirrorless market. ([37])
- 2018-11: MDX housing for Nikon Z6/Z7 announced. ([38])
- 2019-12: MDX housing for Sony a7RIV announced. ([39])
- 2020-04: YS-D3 Lightning begins shipping. ([40])
- 2021-03: MDX housing for Nikon Z6 II / Z7 II ships. ([41])
- 2021-07: Updated YS-D3 strobe announced. ([42])
- 2021-09-10: Acquired by Fisheye Co. Director: Kenji Omura. Acquisition completed just before Sea & Sea’s 50th anniversary. ([43])
- 2020-02: MDXL housing for Sony a7 Mark IV ships. ([44])
- 2020-12: MDX housing for EOS R5 announced. ([45])
Community reception: YS strobe reliability crisis
The YS strobe line experienced a sustained reliability crisis documented across Wetpixel forums from 2012 to 2023, driving significant community migration to Inon and Retra strobes: (forum community)
- YS-D1 (2012): Multiple users reported failures with replacement units also failing. One user documented 4 strobes, 2 dive trips, zero photos. Appeared to be a widespread recall-level issue.
- YS-D2 (2015): Original Chinese-manufactured version had reliability issues. Multiple users reported 3+ failures including burnout and magnetic switch problems. Community divided between brand loyalists and defectors.
- YS-D2J (2017): Japanese-manufactured revision intended to fix reliability, but introduced a new TTL problem — fires too early reacting to camera pre-flash. Multi-core fiber optic cables essential for TTL function. Parasitic power draw when powered off also documented.
- YS-D3 (2019+): Battery protection mode failures; LED blinks red with full batteries; multiple users experiencing failures after ~100 dives.
References
- [46] — editorial
- [47] — editorial
- [48] — editorial
- [49] — editorial
- [50] — editorial
- [51] — editorial
- [52] — editorial
- [53] — editorial
- [54] — editorial
- [55] — editorial
- [56] — editorial
Sources
- Wetpixel article, Oct 2, 2021: Fisheye Acquires Seasea ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jan 14, 2001: Dema 2001 Gallery ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jul 22, 2002: Dema 2002 Report ↩
- Wetpixel article, Sep 30, 2002: Sea Sea Shows D60 And D100 Products ↩
- Wetpixel article, Dec 2, 2002: Sea Sea D60 Housing Photographs ↩
- Wetpixel article, Oct 7, 2003: Dema 2003 Show Coverage1 ↩
- Wetpixel article, Dec 13, 2003: Sea Sea Usa Tusa ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jul 10, 2004: Sea And Sea Dx D70 A Review By Rich Todd ↩
- Wetpixel article, Sep 3, 2004: Sea Sea 5000g 51 Megapixel Uw Camera ↩
- Wetpixel article, Oct 8, 2004: Sea Sea Ys 55ttle Strobe ↩
- Wetpixel article, Oct 15, 2004: Dema Show 2004 Report ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jul 19, 2005: Sea And Sea Dx8000g Review ↩
- Wetpixel article, Oct 4, 2005: Sea And Sea Ys110 Strobe ↩
- Wetpixel article, Oct 20, 2005: Dema 2005 Sony Hdv Camera Report ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jun 18, 2005: Sea Sea Announces 8000g Dx 8000g Digital Underwater Camera ↩
- Wetpixel article, Apr 26, 2006: Sea Sea Announces Dx D200 And Dx 5d Housings ↩
- Wetpixel article, Nov 10, 2006: Sea Sea To Announce Ys 250pro Strobe ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jan 18, 2007: Sea Sea Recalls Dx 5d Canon 5d Housing For Retrofit ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jul 1, 2007: Sea Sea Announces 10 Megapixel Dx 1g Underwater Camera ↩
- Wetpixel article, Aug 29, 2007: Sea Seas Underwater Housings For Canon 40d And Nikon D300 D3 ↩
- Wetpixel article, Feb 19, 2009: New Sea Sea Housings Mdx D700 Mdx 5d Mkii ↩
- Wetpixel article, Feb 27, 2010: Sea Sea Mdx D300s Shipping ↩
- Wetpixel article, Feb 27, 2010: Sea Sea Mdx 7d Housing ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jan 21, 2011: Sea Sea Announces Mdx D7000 Housing ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jan 17, 2012: Sea Sea Announces Release Of Ys D1 Strobe ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jun 5, 2012: Sea Sea Releases Renderings Of Mdx 5dmkiii Housing ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jul 7, 2012: Sea Sea Announces Housing For The Nikon D800 ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jun 17, 2013: Sea Sea Announces The Mdx D7100 ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jan 29, 2015: Seasea Announces The Mdx D810 Housing ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jul 2, 2015: Seasea Announces The Ys D2 Strobe ↩
- Wetpixel article, Mar 2, 2015: Seasea Announces The Mdx 7d Mark Ii Housing ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jun 23, 2016: Seasea Announces The Mdx D500 Housing ↩
- Wetpixel article, Oct 3, 2017: Seasea Announces Japanese Produced Ys D2 Strobe ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jan 6, 2017: Seasea Announces New Housing For Eos 5d Mark Iv ↩
- Wetpixel article, Mar 8, 2022: Seasea Announces Vacuum System For Mdx Houings ↩
- Wetpixel article, Nov 13, 2017: Seasea Ships Housing For Nikon D850 ↩
- Wetpixel article, Dec 22, 2018: Seasea Announces Housings For Canon Eos R ↩
- Wetpixel article, Nov 16, 2018: Seasea Announces Mdx Housing For Nikon Z6 And Z7 ↩
- Wetpixel article, Dec 3, 2019: Seasea Announces Mdx Housing For Sony A7riv ↩
- Wetpixel article, Apr 16, 2020: Seasea Ships Ys D3 Lightning Strobe ↩
- Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2021: Seasea Ships Housing For Nikon Z6 Ii And Z7 Ii ↩
- Wetpixel article, Jul 19, 2021: Seasea Announces Updated Ys D3 Strobe ↩
- Wetpixel article, Oct 2, 2021: Fisheye Acquires Seasea ↩
- Wetpixel article, Feb 19, 2020: Seasea Ships Mdxl Housing For Sony A7 Mark Iv ↩
- Wetpixel article, Dec 15, 2020: Sea And Sea Announces Mdx Housing For Eos R5 ↩
- DEMA 2001 Gallery (article) ↩
- DEMA 2002 report (article) ↩
- Sea & Sea USA TUSA (article) ↩
- Sea & Sea DX-D70 review (article) ↩
- Sea & Sea YS-110 strobe (article) ↩
- Fisheye acquires Sea&Sea (article) ↩
- YS-D1 release (article) ↩
- YS-D2 strobe (article) ↩
- YS-D2J Japanese production (article) ↩
- YS-D3 Lightning ships (article) ↩
- MDX-D810 housing (article) ↩