Underwater cameras
 

HI has anyone ever bought a digital underwater camera? The one that I keep reading about is the Reefmaster 500. It costs a whopping $500. My husband loves to take a zillion pics on vacation and I thought this would be the perfect birthday present for him since we are going to Hawaii this spring. It has 5 megapixels and can be used on land also. I am just wondering if it is worth it. We have a land only digital camera already. I can't see going back to 35mm. We can use disposable, but they are never that great.
Anyone use this or another type of digital?

Can you buy an underwater housing for the digital camera you already own? I have a Canon S70 and bought an underwater housing for it at bhphotovideo.com. They make housings for several digital cameras and they are less expensive than $500 (mine was $150 or so) and it worked great.

We are looking at buying the Pentax Optio WP. It's around $250 - $350. www.pentaximaging.com or look on bizrate.com for price comparisions.

We also looked at the Reefmaster, but think the Pentax would be better for the money. We haven't purchased yet, but will make a final decision by summer. We are going to Aruba in Sept. We have been buying the Fuji disposables, and I really don't like the quality of pictures or the price for developing.

I have read that the Pentax is only water resistant, not truly waterproof. Some of the regular digital cameras are on sale for really good prices. Right now we have a sony with 4.1 megapixels. I hate to spend 500 and only get 5 megapixels with the Reefmaster. Although the Reefmaster is truly waterproof.
You will enjoy Aruba!!

Actually the Pentax Optio WP is waterproof. That's what the "WP" stand for. If you've seen their advertisments or their website, the camera is in a bag of water with a goldfish. Truly and compelety waterproof.

I can't comment on the Pentax waterproof camera, but we have a regular Pentax Optio S and love it! We have had it for a couple years and it has been great. The size is perfect for traveling and we have never had a problem with it.

I copied this off the Bizrate website:

"Learn More about the Pentax Optio WP
The Pentax Optio Wp is a compact, durable, go anywhere type of digital camera. You can take great shots on the road or at sea with incredible versatility. The Pentax Optio WP features: 5-megapixel resolution, .05 second shutter speed, 2.0” LCD display, 3x optical zoom, JIS Class 8 waterproof exterior so you can capture images underwater to a depth of 1.5 meters, 9-point auto focus, lightweight design, lithium-ion battery, and 10MB internal memory. The Pentax Optio Wp is perfect for capturing both your indoor and outdoor adventures creatively and effortlessly."

Prices ranged fro $239 to $359. Unless we find something else between now and June. We will probably buy this camera.

Hey Sundowner! Which housing did you buy? I have a Minolta 160c and was wondering which housing unit to buy. Did yours really keep the water out well? I am looking for a better underwater camera than the disposable as well.

I still use a Sea & Sea film camera when I scuba, but plan to upgrade to digital soon. I'll check out www.scubadiving.com for reviews and suggestions before making a decision.

Be sure the camera or housing is rated to the depth your husband plans to dive to.

littlehouse - the Canon S70 has an underwater housing made for it. You can see it here http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...ughType=search. The housing is very well made and completely waterproof. I don't know if there is a housing made for your camera but you can do a google search and see if you can find one.

Thanks sundowner! I'll google now that I know what I'm looking for.

KVR,
Have you bought the Pentax yet? I'm leaning that way as well. What do yo think about the battery only lasting 30mins when underwater?

I just bought the Pentax Optio WP camera for our trip in May to the Turks and Caicos. We went to our local camera dealer and got it for $270.00. The sales person was nice to spend some time with me and show me how to work it. So far, I love this camera. It's got such great features and takes good pictures above water. I haven't used it underwater or for snorkeling yet. We are waiting until our trip.

The camera came with 2 very thick bookelts on how to use it. It has many features we will probably never use. I'm still trying to figure out how to use it. It has way more features than our old Sony Mavica. I can let you know more when we get back from our trip.

Hey sundowner...you've had good luck with the housing unit for your Canon? I am considering one for my SD60, but my husband is reticent. I'm tired of using those stupid disposables and want to be able to use my digital. We were just snorkeling in the Red Sea, and I had already used all my pictures when what comes slithering by but a 6 foot Moray Eel! And no more film...

I'd appreciate Any observations you have about your housing unit that I can show my sceptical husband!

Most of the photographers I know recommend getting a housing for a quality digital cam rather than getting a dedicated underwater camera. For $500, 1.5 metres isn't that deep.

B&H photo (sundowner provided the link) has Ewa-marine housings. They run between $150-$300 depending on the camera model (most point & shoot digitals run around $150). The are rated at 10 metres. Some of the camera makers, like Canon, also offer their own underwater housing for many of their cameras - they usually run a bit more than the Ewa-marine, but they are hard cases.

The Pentax Optio W20 is the underwater model. It also only goes to 1.5 metres. The 30 minute limit doesn't seem to mean the battery life as Pentax states "Its waterproof design meets the JIS Class 8 waterproof standard, enabling it to withstand up to 30 minutes of continuous operation at an underwater depth of up to five feet." That seems more to mean that it could leak if underwater for over 30 minutes.

Another thought is that if you spend $150 on a casing, then you can always get a second camera with the extra $350 - then you'll both have a camera and if something happens to one, you've got a spare.

Whatever you buy, test it extensively before your trip and take your regular digital camera also.

Thanks toedtoes for the input. I've read about the housing unit ofr my Canon and would really like to be able to just buy the housing rather than buying another camera just for underwater. I've tried to look up user reviews on the web but haven't had much luck.

Thanks again!

My pleasure Heymo. I've looked and looked also and reviews aren't that common. A friend of mine got the housing and says it's great - they were debating getting a dedicated camera when I suggested the housing.

If you buy the Canon casing, you're pretty secure - they can't afford to give you a shoddy housing and risk your not buying another Canon camera.

And follow the directions very carefully - especially concerning air conditioning and humidity, they can ruin a camera just as easily as the actual water.

Yea, I've been studying this a lot for about 6 months in prep for a trip next summer.

Just to chime in here- DH just bought a casing for his Cannon- DiCAPac brand. We'll be taking that with us to Maui next week.

Also, I've seen photos taken in French Polynesia with the Fuji brand disposable underwater camera that were OUT OF THIS WORLD. I mean it!! I frequently chat at tahitiexplorer.com, you can view the pics there if you search. Just amazing, so the Fuji underwater is a great budget option.

Lynne

Lynnejoe - let us know how the DiCAPac housing works. :)

I used the fuji disposable in Niagara Falls - it wasn't underwater, but in very wet circumstances. I was very unhappy with the results, but I think it was because of the tech who developed the photos more than the camera itself.