Looking to buy a camera

[Jacblue]

Hey all,
Was looking to buy an underwater digital camera. Did not want to get a particularly expensive one as I'm just starting out with photography. Preferably should be waterproof to at least 30m. I was thinking about an Intova IC600. Anyone had any experience with that camera? Or have other suggestions?
Thanks

 

[Jon]

Here's an interesting article to start with: Underwater Camera Articles: Review: Best Underwater Point & Shoot Cameras for 2009

This is a good site for info: Wetpixel :: Underwater Photography Forums -> Consumer Digicams/Housings

Here's a place to check out the latest housings: digideep.com :: list of all underwater housings suitable for digital photography and videography...

Certain models seem to have more accessories made for them (Canon, Olympus, Nikon) and may be easier to upgrade later on down the line.

Jon

 

[Jacblue]

Thank you. There looks like there's some good stuff in there to keep me busy reading for a while

 

[mortenkv]

After tried 1 year with Cannon G9 - (very satisfied) - my girlfriend just bought G10. Now im Jealous.

My recommendation. G10 + housing will cost you 750 euro approx.

Its the best you can get (thats what I think at least)

Check my uw-pics with G9 here:

Morten Villadsen freedive and Spearo Photos

Morten

 

[Jonny250]

I just had a look at your photos there Morten, you have some good pictures! I especially like the pool training pictures, like the guy sitting cross-legged on the bottom

I have a suspicion that next year the top-end compacts will start using HD video (G9/G10 can do 1024 already) so that's when i'll upgrade from my G9 - which i think is fantastic too

 

[Magpie]

They already do Jonny. My Panasonic FX37 does HD and HD Wide videos.

Not actually used it for diving yet so can't recommend it fully yet but I've no reason to think I'll be disappointed.

 

[Jonny250]

Ah well there you go! just have to wait for the technology to filter down to the canon range now...
That Panasonic fx37 has a .85 sec shutter lag (apparently) - will be interesting to see how you get on Tom.

 

[Magpie]

Is 0.85secs good or bad? I'm no David Bailey!

 

[WillUnderwater]

Jacblue,
I would take a look at a Canon A series or Nikon P&S series with either ikelite, fantasea (nikon), or canon underwater case. These are affordable options and allow a lot of room to grow!

 

[Tony Babowicz]

i have the olympus stylus 1030sw with the 40meter underwater housing. My pictures turn out awesome and its really easy to use. cost about US600.

 

[Mr. X]

Is 0.85secs good or bad? I'm no David Bailey!

Nor me, but nearly a second sounds like a life-time to be waiting for the shutter to close. That said, the highly rated Canon Powershot digital compact that I occasionally borrow sometimes takes several seconds (it feels like) -- just imagine everything in your picture moving to different places, often out of shot, several times, while you wait for the clunk of the shutter. I still find it hard to believe folk were so willing to drop 35mm and move to digital with such appalling performance limitations. The technology is constantly improving of course.

 

[foxfish]

My Panasonic FZ30 has no noticeable shutter delay & is 4 years old!

 

[Jon]

My Panasonic TZ5 shoots HD video and has a 28-280mm Leica lens on it. The downside of the lens is that no one seems to make a wet-mount wide angle lens that will work with it.

Olympus seems to have threaded ports on all of their OEM housings so that you can add a wet lens on pretty easy to most anything they sell. Canon and Nikon have quite a few different adapters to allow wet-lens mounting. No one seems to make an adapter that will work, for certain, with a Panasonic housing.

Every digital camera I've ever owned, or used, has considerable shutterlag compared to my film cameras. The way to avoid this is by moving to a DSLR- which is WAY out of my price range.

I see that Olympus has a new version of the SW1030 called the TOUGH 8000. It also has a housing and at least one company makes an add on wet-mount wide angle lens to go with it.

Ikelite seems to make quite a few third party housings for Nikon, Olympus, Fuji, and Canon. This allows divers to buy their housing and be able to add a wide angle lens to it through threaded adapter rings. They make no such housings for Casio or Panasonic.

If it sounds like I'm beating a dead horse on the wide angle wet mount lens it's becuase i am. I had one for my old Olympus 5050 and it allowed me to take some great shots. I don't have one for either of my new cameras and miss shots as a result. I can guarantee that whichever camera I end up with next it will have the possibility to add a wet lens to it.

Jon

 

[Wishbone]

Not that I am really knowledgeable to give advice, but I have tried several compact solutions underwater, including Canons, Nikon and Panasonic.
If you want to a good compact, I'd definitely go for Canon G10 for several reasons: has 28mm. lens, shoots RAW without needing to "patch" the sw, has a hotshoe, does REALLY GREAT macro focusing at only 1cm. The other option is the Nikon P6000, and it's a small step back form the G10 in terms of specifications.
However, you won't be able to use most of those advantages if you get the original Canon housing.
Ikelite and another companies like Patima and Seatool offer a very functional housings for the G10, but they the last two are well demanding on your pocket. The Ikelite housing #6146.10

has the advantage of the integrated TTL circuitry and a bulkhead. This allows you to use wired Ike external flash in full TTL mode, whenever you want to. You can always use the integrated G10 flash, but that's not a good idea in visibility less than perfect due to backscatter issues. Besides the port of any housing for that camera blocks the light of the internal flash! This means you get a hard shadow in the lower right portion of every frame.
Ike also provides a domeport for this housing allowing you to use the full advantage of the 28mm. lens.
The french company Dyron ( Dyron ) recently released a couple of replacement ports (short and long) designed especially for the Ike G10 housing. They allow you to use the Dyron domes and macro lenses.
This means that your camera will have the greatest support in terms of independent accessory providers.
If you use the original Canon housing - you're more or less stuck with what you get. You'll be able to use only optically triggered flashes and the selection of accessory lenses is extremely limited, unless you engage yourself in a quite complex DIY project for altering the housing.

As for the Oly compacts... Hm... I never used those underwater for quite many reasons.

 

[Mr. X]

Saw an ad for a new Olympus compact that is supposed to be waterproof/resistant to, I think, something like 3/5/10m - no need for a big extra case, which suits me. Pity it isn't more water resistant but I reckon that might be pretty good for the odd underwater shot -- assuming it is supposed to work underwater & not just survive a dunk(?).

 

[Tony Babowicz]

X
My olympus 1030sw is waterproof to 10m without a housing. It works. I have a housing for it that allows me to take it to 40m.

 

[Jon]

Olympus has changed the name of their waterproof series. Their new one is called the TOUGH 8000. It also has a housing that will allow it to go to 40 meters and allows the use of external wide angle lenses to be attached to it.

The new Ikelite dome that fits over their G10 housing is reported to allow a wider field of view that the G9 with a wet-mount wide angle lens. The wet- mount lenses work better with 35mm camera lenses than with the 28mm lenses because of vignetting with the wider camera lens.

DSLR's would be nice, but they are much bulkier and harder to swim with- not to mention they can cost as much as a small car with the right dome ports and lenses add into the mix.

The G10 seems to be the leader for a compact digital camera these days, with the Panasonic LX3 giving it a pretty good run for it's money. Housings can run into the thousand+ dollar range if going for something like a Patima or Fisheye. Add on a $500 dome port and the prices can get close to a cheap DSLR set-up.

I'd still like to see some more photos from the new 5MP GO-Pro Hero with the wide mount lens. For less than $200, with mounting attachments, it seems like it could be a winner in a market that changes every 6 months- or less. After spending close to $2000 on my first digital camera system (Olympus C-5050 with dome lens) I am now reluctant to spend much over $500 for camera and housing- they just change too much/too fast.

YMMV

Jon

 

[Wishbone]

Hey guys,

If you go for a dSLR you should forget about carrying extra equipment like speargun, etc. I had the same concerns like Jon before climbing to a dSLR set. However I realised that if I am going to take photos, then I am in the water to take photos and I should accomodate my freediving to this purpose.
I didn't really have to make much adjustments. I got one of the bulkiest dSLR setups - the Ike one. Adding flashes to it made it a monster. However, I feel some drag problems only when swimming long distances on the surface and when diving deep - in my case very rarely deeper than 15-18m. Since the drag is significant and it will inevitably compromize my safety in theory, I do a simple spearfishing trick. Leave the catch on the bottom and then reel it up to the surface by a speargun reel - works perfectly. Seatool housing would be a reall breath of fresh air - but the price is killing baby whales.

As Jon said the price is a huge stopper. Therefore, if you are unable to change the setup often you go for the top on the market and know that you'd use the setup for some years.
With my example - I got the EOS 40D in the begining of 2008. Now there's EOS 50D, but I don't even think about getting it since the improvements from the previous model are insignificant. So I'd skip a model or two and change only if there's a real innovation that I must have. So far my 40D setup allowed me to make some relatively good shots to get me published. And the camera abilities are still way beyond my skills. If I outgrow the camera - I might go for something else. But not now.

It is quite the same with the compacts. I used to have the G7, but I skipped the G9. Now the G10 has the features to make me change the camera - but that's some three years after I got the G7.

So it's up to you whether you want to compromize the end result by going for something cheap, and then change your setup often, or get the best currently on the market and use it for a longer time.

There just are 2 different approaches...


P.S. About the Olympus...
I saw U/W examples from their previous amphibious models and I am afraid I didn't like the results at all. Still have to see the T8000, but my expectations are not big. Besides, I am not a fan of packing more MP's into the same sensor.

Cheers!

 

[sancarlos]

Nor me, but nearly a second sounds like a life-time to be waiting for the shutter to close. That said, the highly rated Canon Powershot digital compact that I occasionally borrow sometimes takes several seconds (it feels like) -- just imagine everything in your picture moving to different places, often out of shot, several times, while you wait for the clunk of the shutter. I still find it hard to believe folk were so willing to drop 35mm and move to digital with such appalling performance limitations. The technology is constantly improving of course.

It's actually quite opposite - shutter lag is the time between the moment you press the button and shutter opens. 0.85 sec is horrible. Canon G10 have half of that and 1/8 if camera is already pre-focused. Canon 5D have full shutter lag of .15 sec and .02 when prefocused. That almost a second lag is twice the time it takes the spear to reach the fish at 15 feet. I'll be trying Olympus 8000 Tough (the one, which is submersible to 33 feet without housing) soon and will produce some reports on how it function...