Help with camera decision, please

[MZPT]

Hello - I'm looking to get into underwater photography and am kind of torn between the Sony A6000 and an olympus camera. I currently have a point and shoot (Nikon L30) to learn with and although it takes good pictures, I want something that when I hit the shutter button it snaps the picture rather than missing it. Can anyone give me some feedback on either one of these brands? Both cameras are mirrorless, the Sony is less expensive with higher megapixels, but limited with lenses, I like the Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II. Also when you use an underwater housing, how would you adjust for the lens change (small to larger)? Also what type of strobes/lighting should I look into (I have the sealife 600 lumen, very defuse light, eats batteries).

Thoughts would be appreciated

Thank you

 

[mattia_v]

A few things:

- Look at what you want to shoot and which lenses you want. Sony's APS-c lineup is significantly worse than Olympus' lineup.The A6000 is also a little outdated by now, and the cheapest part of your overall kit. A decent Sony or Oly set and you're looking at 3000 to 3500+, with a kit lens only, no wet lenses, and a single strobe.

- The E-M5 mk II is really quite an excellent camera. Contrast AF, no phase detect, so you might consider the E-M1 mark 1 (slightly larger, very nice)

- Oly has the 7-14/2.8 or the unique 8mm/1.8 fisheye for wide. And a 60mm macro that's quite excellent. If you choose that route, you will need different ports and need to decide what you're going to shoot before entering the water. This is why I'm still shooting a Sony RX100 compact (with wet lenses), because I don't want to choose, and like the ability to switch on the fly. Also, it's cheaper. A lot cheaper. I own both an Olympus E-M1 and a Sony A7r (full-frame), but still choose the compact for the amount of diving I do and amount of money I'm currently willing to spend.

- Lighting: if photography, you'll want strobes. At least one (I have one, for now), two is better. I like Inon's S-2000 because its powerful enough and small enough to pack. Batteries outlast my camera batteries.

 

[rob1967]

You say your main concern is shutter lag. Are you pre-focusing? The L30 has a shutter lag of 0.2 seconds according to one review I read online, but at full zoom, focus to shutter is 0.6 seconds. So yes, if you just mash the shutter release, it might take a while. But that is focus lag + shutter lag. You can eliminate the focus lag by pre-focussing (i.e., half press on the shutter, or even better, use back-button focus). But even 0.2 seconds is slow when you are wanting to capture an action shot.

If your main concern is eliminating shutter (and focus) lag, you may want to look at a high end compact camera, i.e., the Canon G7X Mark II, or the Sony RX100 Mark IV or V. I personally like Canon but they both focus very fast with virtually no shutter lag. They are both 20 megapixels with a 1" sensor that is getting very close to the image quality you will get out of a 4/3 or even APS-C sensor. They can focus closer (down to 5 cm) than a typical kit lens on a mirrorless camera so you can shoot wide angle and macro on the same dive. Plus you will have money left over to invest in strobes. I would suggest you learn how to shoot in manual mode on a high-end compact camera with strobes before investing in an interchangeable lens system. You will see a much greater improvement in your photos going that route first.

 

[JackConnick]

MZPT;

You might want to read our guide to Buying an Underwater Housing & Camera, as well as some of the other Handbooks on our site. I should answer many of your questions.

Personally I would look at the Oly E-M1 over the EM5 MKII. It has better controls and is more rugged. The a6000 is a good camera, it works well for wide angle, but macro is limited. So it all depends on what you want to do.

I would recommend the S&S YS-D2 strobes or Inon z240's. We have a lot of different packages on our site, if you don't see what you like we can customize one for you.

As far as workign the lens, your housing has an external knob that connects with the lens through a gear that is added.