Dc1000! SeaLife's New Camera!

[Nemrod]

That is a real shame.

On the DC800, why not just zoom in to the equivalent of 35MM native, vignetting should go away, the wet mount lenses were mostly meant to operate with a 35MM equivalent native lens, should be happy and work fine--what am I missing here?

1. 28MM EFOV through a flat port = 52 degrees diagonal
2. 35MM EFOV through a flat port = 42 degrees diagonal
3. Typical .56X (18-20MM EFOV underwater) wet mount lens with native lens set at 35MM equivalent = 80 to 90 degrees diagonal
4. Inon 165AD fisheye with dome (.40X) with 35MM native lens or lens zoomed to 35MM equivalent = 165 degrees diagonal, zoomed to 50MM equivalent it is still around 130 degrees diagonal or more than 3 times as wide as the DC800 alone.

The only wet mount WA lens I know of that is intended for a 28MM equivalent lens without zooming is the Inon 28AD series which of course will not mount to a Sea Life because every camera importer/manufacturer prefers to re-invent the wheel, over and over rather than use superior off the shelf components.

N

 

[Darol]

What a hoot. I've been snatching up DC 500's on ebay for less than $200.
It does everything you could want from an underwater camera.
Besides, how many pictures of sea turtles and morays does a person need?

 

[Nemrod]

What a hoot. I've been snatching up DC 500's on ebay for less than $200.
It does everything you could want from an underwater camera.
Besides, how many pictures of sea turtles and morays does a person need?

Nope, it may do everything "YOU" want from an underwater camera but hardly everything everybody could want from an underwater camera. Two hundred seems like an awful lot for that camera.

N

 

[Darol]

"Less Than $200" actually..... $150 for the last one, and it does everything I want.
It's a bit easier to flood than a $600 or $700 rig. And all the best to you, I respect
your opinion...

 

[Nemrod]

I have a friend with one of those, similar model, it is a nice camera and does all he wants also and he paid a lot more than 200. It takes good snaps and never seems to require anything but push the button, no fuss and bother. You may be right, what more could one really need---uh--well--maybe we should not ask that of the pros but for everyone else, it is a nice little machine.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sealife-DC500-U...4|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50


The link above has nothing to do with me, it is just a current example of a used camera for sale.
N

 

[MikeSK]

This is good news for me cause i was looking at picking up a DC800 in a couple months..now i'll just get this one

 

[SkipperJohn]

I've been doing some resarch on this on what is available on Sealife's website, and there appears to be an error or two in the site so I am taking my best guess here on a couple things.

Let's compare directly some of the differences, according to the spec pages (the DC1000 is listed first). My comments are added after each line, and keep in mind two things... I am a complete NOOB at underwater photography but have been a land shooter for 30 years. Check out my website listed below to see if I am all stuffed or what.

Differences:

10 megapixel instead of 8 (who cares... two megapixels don't make any practical difference in the real world, and stuffing more resolution on a tiny chip generally means higher noise).

5x zoom but longer focal length 6.3mm-31 vs 4x zoom 4.6-18.4mm (I assume this is correct, the website has an error on the DC1000 page calling it 4X in one spot and 5X in another... but the math shows 5X... personally, I see this as a good thing, because you can now use a wide angle adapter to increase your field of view)

Focus modes normal, Macro, landscape (infinity) vs auto, macro, landscape (infinity) and face detection in the 800 (did they remove face detection on the DC1000 or did they just not list it? Either way, I couldn't care less... face detection on an underwater camera, expecially one that is locked on infinity focus, is meaningless)

More narrow field of view on land (56 degrees vs 64.3 degrees) but almost identical in water 42 degrees vs 43 degrees. (I am guessing that's because of the case? I have no idea, would love to hear Joe tell us why on that one).

Flash... Auto, Force ON, OFF, Red-Eye reduction, Slow Sync, Pre Flash vs. Auto, Fill, Off, Red-Eye reduction (this is all good, especially slow sync).

Picture modes listed: Sea mode, Snorkle mode, Ext Flash Auto and Ext Flash manual vs. ext flash auto, external flash manual and sea mode. (The snorkle mode is apparently a different preset white balance... choice is good, this is a good improvement).

Land modes divver as well: Auto, Sports, Panorama, Anti-shake (land), Splash-water, Flow-water, Night Scene, Landscape, Aperture priority (Av), Shutter Speed Priority (Tv), Fireworks. vs. Auto[Program AE], Sports, Anti-shake, Sunset, Sunrise, Splash-water, Flow-water, Night Scene, Portrait, Landscape, Panorama, Snow, Beach, Pets, Av, Tv, User Setting, Candlelight, Text, Fireworks, Backlight. (I don't care a bit about the land modes, would gladly trade the extra snorkle mode for most land mode presets).

Shooting modes: SPY mode, Single shot, Continuous (3pics), AEB (bracketing), Continuous Flash, Burst, Pre-Shot, Couple Shot, Album Shot LCD 2.7" color LTPS TFT LCD vs. Single, Continuous(3pics), SPY mode(unlimited), AEB (bracketing) (This is all good as well, nice upgrade here).

Pictbridge not mentioned on DC1000 and yes on DC800 (who cares? I can't imagine why anybody would use that anyway with an underwater camera)

Software doesn't mention anything on DC1000 vs. Media One Gallery and Cool 360 SE International (again, who cares... first off, I am a Mac guy and none of that stuff works on my mac, and secondly the software was complete junk anyway.... free Picasa is MUCH better than Media One Gallery and Cool 360... well, guys, 1992 is calling and they want their software back).

To me, the biggest change is the lens... a longer lens is both good and bad, since it backs you up a bit (less light hitting the subject from the flash) and it gives a much narrower field of focus (at least out of water... I am still curious how that one degree difference on the FOV between these to lenses work in water). The WA lens is a nice addition though.

Love to hear your comments Sealife Joe.

I agree. If I didn't have the 800, I'd be all over the 1000 (assuming the $ wasn't an issue). But having the 800 I am happy and the 1000 isn't so alluring.

 

[deeper thoughts]

I agree. If I didn't have the 800, I'd be all over the 1000 (assuming the $ wasn't an issue). But having the 800 I am happy and the 1000 isn't so alluring.

I would also of upgraded if it was just the camera and not the housing. That really put me off though

 

[golferguy91]

overall though are the sealife cameras worth the $700 (for the DC800) or $900 (for Dc1000)...
both have the strobe add ons....

 

[uplandhunter]

I bought mine on ebay for $329 and that included the shipping on a new DC800.