Help selecting equipment needed

[Dragonsrock]

Hi All,

I am new here, I have spent days reading info on underwater camera setups and to be honest I am even more confused than when I started. I had envisaged purchasing the SeaLife DC-1200 elite kit with the strobe and wide angle lens option and after all my reading I have gravitated away from this.

Firstly, I am a realitively new diver, I have been diving since January, I have like 20 dives and I am heading back to Fiji in late December where I expect to do another 12 or so dives. I have an advanced PADI certificate, but consider myself a beginner. I have never taken pics underwater, but I did some dives recently ont he Great Barrier Reef and had some pics sent to me fromt he divemaster, it got me hooked. I will dive maybe 6 times a year mainly in warm water and I want to take pics of fish and coral, Nudi's, mainly interested in the colours to show my wife, she can not dive.

My few days fo research had got me looking at the Olympus E-PL1 and the Olympus Housing to match, I was looking at the Olympur strobe the UFL-2 that just connects straight tot he hotshoe with no arm.

What I wanted to know was, if my budget does not allow me to get the UFL-2, is there any point purchasing the UFL-1 or is the flash it comes with useful enough until I can afford something better. The Olympus is stretching my budget, just for the camera and the housing.

Alternately, is there something better in this price range? say $1300 complete. Also, when you buy the E-PL1 and the PT-EPO1 housing, do you need to purchase any other items to be functional, ie things to stop reflection etc.

Please keep in mind that I am a novice diver and a complete Numpty when it comes to what is required with cameras, so go easy on me )))))

Anyway, any assistance will be appreciated. I guess in a nutshell, I want to take pics that will be simple and great quality, especially colours, I saw some of the pics taken with the E-PL1 and they are amazing, I guess that will take time. I dont want to be a pro but I do want soemthing I can grow into.

Thanks for your help.

Dave

 

[Jorgy]

Buy the best camera and housing you can......rent the strobe for now......

In the end you will need a full rig to get the shots you what, so if you cannot afford it all at once then buy it item by item......

For me a wide angle lens is the key to underwater photos.......

So I would buy.....

Camera
Housing
First Strobe
WA lens
Second Strobe
Macro lens

By then a new camera and housing will be out......you know the lather, rinse, repeat process.......

M

 

[Gilligan]

1. It's not so much the camera as the person behind it so don't be misled by a particular brand camera. Spending a lot of money on underwater camera gear does not guarantee great photos.

2. It's about practice and more practice. There is a lot to learn. If you are a vacation diver for a few weeks out of a year then you don't get to do that much underwater practice.

3. The more photo gear you have the more time you need underwater to operate it. That can detract from your safety and the safety of your dive buddy. A level of buoyancy and personal comfort comes first. Operating camera gear in currents is not easy and can be distracting. Camera settings, strobe settings, taking wet mount lenses off and on only comes second nature with time and practice.

4. You need a camera that has manual settings (Av, Tv and M) and RAW capability to get the most out of underwater photos.

5. If you start out with a camera and no external strobe be sure the housing allows you to use the internal strobe. By that I mean the housing design does not block the camera's strobe.

6. Most important is the ability to use a camera in its housing quickly and efficiently underwater. Buying a camera and housing then learning to use it on a dive trip is a recipe for poor quality photos. You need to practice with the camera in its housing so as to be efficient with it BEFORE going on a dive trip.

IMO at your level of dive experience I would start out with a camera like the Canon S95 in either the Canon or Ikelite housing and learn to use it without any strobes or add-on lenses. Shooting in RAW mode will yield the best results, especially on non-strobe shots. Post processing is part of underwater photography.
The Ike housing is about $100. more than the Canon housing but more easily allows for add-on wet mount lenses.

Good luck with your choices.