Canon 40D vs Canon G9

[Mel Moncrieff]

Hi Everyone:

I have a Canon 40D and several lenses for above ground work, including the 10-22 wide angle, and 100 mm macro. I've been thinking about getting an Ikelite housing for it with the Ikelite 125 substrobes, but the whole package is so big and heavy (and expensive). I've also been considering getting the same setup, but with a G9 and Ikelite housing. The G9 would allow me to switch between movies, macro, and wide-angle on the same dive and be a lot easier to carry around. What would I be missing with this setup that the 40D would have?

Thanks so much,

Mel

 

[Jeff Toorish]

Mel,

I just wrote an article for ADM-Ezine about choosing gear. There might be some useful information in it regarding your question.

You can download the free E-zine here: ADM Online

Jeff

 

[alcina]

Mel -

Do you have both cameras now? The biggest things you won't have with the G9 route are instant shutter and excellent glass options.

The biggest things you will have with the G9 are compactness, the ability to change from macro to wide as you said. Oh yeah, and more money to go diving with

The G9 has very good image quality.

The 40D has awesome image quality.

For most shooting, you won't be able to tell the difference

If you are used to shooting dslr, using a compact can be a little frustrating at first but often the tradeoff is worth it.

 

[H2O Photo Pros]

I agree with Alcina. Although both cameras are excellent, a shooter who is used to the features of the DSLR, such as Instant shutter, will find it extremely noticeable, and often times quite frustrating, to deal with the shutter lag of the Point & Shoots. As always, its a matter of finding what features are most important to you and your shooting needs. However being that you own the 40d and are already invested into that, it makes more sense to go down that path.

 

[vkalia]

Well, you can read an article I have online which talks about this:
DIVEIndia - Housed DSLR or compact camera for underwater photography

I think the decision goes beyond simply a comparison of the technical merits of DSLRs vs compacts. If you consider yourself an underwater photographer - get a housed DSLR system and keep in mind that your entire dive now only has 1 goal: taking photos. If you consider yourself a scuba diver who likes taking photos - go with a compact. You'll be able to enjoy other aspects of the dive more.

Obviously, this is a somewhat simplified view of things, but it gets the point across, I hope.

Also, I have to disagree slightly with 1 comment by Alcina - viz, for macro shooting, you cannot tell the difference. The greater working distance of a 50mm or 100mm macro lens definitely makes a difference in perspective and rendering of the subject. Whether or not you notice the difference or care for it is a different matter - personally, I find the flatter perspective of a longer lens to be a lot better and I rarely take ANY macro photos with my compacts, even on land. YMMV.

Vandit

 

[Diver Dennis]

It might be a bit heavy on land but the weight of the DSLR disappears under water. Obviously more money but I would go for the 40D set up hands down.

 

[Mel Moncrieff]

Thanks for the info Mike.

 

[Mel Moncrieff]

Hi Jeff,
I followed the link but could not find your article. I would love to read it.

Mel

 

[Mel Moncrieff]

Thanks Vandit. Your article really helped me to put this all in perspective. I think I will go ahead and purchase the G9 and maybe later upgrade to the 40D housing.

 

[alcina]

Vandit - I should have been more clear on the macro comment, it wasn't literally there is no difference, it was that the vast majority of users aren't going to notice and/or care about the differences And someone who hasn't used both or various focal lengths won't really know that there are difference to be seen

Mel - I don't think you can go wrong with either system.