Gates Underwater Housing for ALEXA 35 – Bring the DR King to New Depths

Accessory News

by Francesco AndreolaJanuary 30^th, 2023

California- based underwater housing manufacturer Gates has introduced a new model built around ARRI’s flagship Super 35 mm camera, the ALEXA 35. It allows to immerse the camera to depths of 76m/250ft., while retaining full control of major camera settings.

Announced in May last year, the ARRI ALEXA 35 set a new benchmark for our Lab Test, scoring a never-seen-before 15.1 stops of dynamic range (with a SNR of 2). Its newly-developed ALEV 4 4.6K Super 35 image sensor inhabits a camera body that is built like a tank and seems ready for any kind of adventure.

However, if you literally want to plunge the cameras into new waters, then you still need a dedicated underwater housing. And here’s Gates’ expertise and specialization comes in. So let’s take a closer look at their solution aimed towards adventurous filmmakers looking to bring the ALEXA 35 to new heights depths!

Gates Underwater Housing for ALEXA 35: features

According to Gates, their underwater housing for the ALEXA 35 can be submerged down to depths of 76m/250ft and can accomodate the camera paired with virtually any LPL, PL or EF mount lens, whether it be spherical or anamorphic. Moreover, the housing is backwards-compatible with the ALEXA Mini and Mini LF via dedicated conversion kits.

The dim light of the abysses is gathered through an AR coated glass dome (available in 8/10/12” size options) or a flat port (8 or 10”) at the front of the housing. Gates claims that neither of these solutions causes any vignette.

12 user-assignable buttons on the housing can activate an equivalent number of functions on the camera. These, along with a mechanical FIZ gear drive system and two adjustable grips, allow divers to fully operate the ALEXA 35 independently. However, the camera can also be controlled from the surface via a tethered connection and the ARRI Camera Companion App.

An included external monitor housing allows divers to prevent their screen from getting soaked and here’s a list of compatible monitors from Gates. When re-emerging for a breath of fresh air, operators can also quickly open the back of the housing to install a fresh B-mount battery or swap their media.

The housing is made out of machined aluminum with stainless steel hardware parts and tips the scale at 11.5kg/25.5lbs when weighed in the air. Of course, it will feel much lighter underwater where perfect buoyancy can be reached via an adjustable system of trim weights.

Price and availability

The Gates Underwater Housing for ALEXA 35 comes in a Pelican travel case and a housing integrity verification is included in the price, which, at the moment of writing, is unknown.

For more information, please visit Gates’ website here.

Have you ever shot something underwater? What kind of housing did you use to protect your camera? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!