I have seen some GREAT photos taken with the g11 using the canon housing and the built in flash. It is more on the photographer than the camera. Look up some of Gilligan's work. Personally I have the g12 in a recsea housing with a single YS-10 strobe. For the first 6 years I used a pocket camera, a mini reefmaster. Not a great camera if you work for national geographic but I could keep it in my pocket till I saw something I wanted to immortalize and out it came. After the shot back into the pocket it went leaving me free to focus on diving. There is a lot to be said for simplicity and convenience. I still enjoy those photos even though most have a green cast to them (It wasn't till much later I learned about white balance. The most difficult thing for a vacation diver is the tendency to forget what you learned on the last dive trip. I have that problem and I go on 3-4 trips per year with 20 - 25 dives per trip. Perhaps it won't be a problem for you but take it into consideration.