Looking at buying a dSLR camera, need some input (T2i, T3i, T4i, T5i, 60D or ??)

[Splash-X]

I currently own a G12 but I'm looking to make a jump to a dSLR. I haven't found a dive shop that has good or great photography support in the Tampa area so I don't really have somewhere to go and chat about my future purchase. I have a friend who does a lot of photography above the water and he has a T2i and he's very happy with it. Both he and I agree that the T3i feels real "cheap". I understand that the T4i and T5i have some better features like video auto focus and better ISO. I was also looking at the Canon 60D and liked that it was a weather sealed camera and has better battery life.

I have been using snapcompare.com to try and compare camera features (Example: Canon T5i vs 60D - Our Analysis)


One thing that I'm worried about is that the T4i and T5i have touch screens and from what I read some of the core functions are performed on the touch screen (not sure if that's accurate). If that's the case, is the 60D going to be easier to operate underwater?

The 70D is going to be priced out of my starting range and I don't know if it would be worth it if the only reason I was buying it over the 60D was for Auto Focusing video. For the price difference I could almost have a GoPro for dedicated video.

After I buy the camera it will likely be a few or several months before I can afford to make a move on a housing so I will be getting to know my camera on land before I dive with it but I would like input on the underwater usability BEFORE I make a decision and find out later I didn't know something about the underwater setup/use of the camera that I wish I had bought a different model.

This will be my first entry in to the SLR/dSLR. I know I could buy am older and cheaper Rebel to get started and upgrade later but if I plan on buying a housing it makes more sense to get "the" camera and work up to it since the housing is a fairly expensive accessory. I already have plans for a Inon z240 strobe to use with my G12 (optical cable / sTTL) and thought it would be a good fit for the new dSLR since it also supports TTL. If I'm wrong, let me know.

I would like to stay Canon, I'm a fan of CHDK and like using the scripts to do things like shoot lightning on my G12. If I'm missing an obvious option feel free to tell me.

 

[00wabbit]

60d is not weather sealed. I have one its nice but I would want something with better low ISO performance. Past iso800 I don't really like the noise. I shoot up north in darker waters though and new the higher ISos

my recommendation is if you really want the dslr then get the absolute best you can afford because with the investment in housing you are not going to upgrade it often.

If you don't t have strobes though I would sink all my money into strobes rather than dslr. The addition of strobes will improve your photos vastly more than the upgrade to dslr. If you get nice strobes you can keep them for years as you upgrade cameras.

---------- Post added August 10th, 2013 at 12:00 PM ----------

Having the autofocus video is nice underwater. I have a rx100 with autofocus and zoom on the video. It is very helpful. The fixed focus on the 60d could be challenging. Of course you can change it manually while filming but doing it underwater and in the little screen could be tough.

 

[Splash-X]

If you don't t have strobes though I would sink all my money into strobes rather than dslr. The addition of strobes will improve your photos vastly more than the upgrade to dslr. If you get nice strobes you can keep them for years as you upgrade cameras.

I already have a YS-27 strobe that has well served it's purpose over the years. I'm was looking at upgrading the strobe and decided to heavily weight strobes based on their ability to work with a dSLR and the z240 seems a good fit since I can use it for both sTTL and TTL. I'm looking to make an overall investment in a dSLR, not just for underwater. I just want the underwater usage of the dSLR to play an important role in selecting the right camera.

 

[00wabbit]

I know this isn't your budget but I've seen what a 5dmk3 can do at ISO 3200. That will be my next dslr.
I like to shoot large wide angle scenes where strobes aren't effective.

I shoot video with the 60d on land and manual focus is tough. It all looks good then when you review it home on your large monitor you realize it's just slightly off. It does have a cool feature where you can zoom in on the video and manually focus but if you aare moving underwater that could be tough to do on the fly.

 

[gizmo1972]

have you thought about Nikon D600 /7100???
very nice cameras or are you cannon loyal? (have there lenses already?)
i love my D700 in an Aquatica housing check out reef photo or bluewater photo or back scatter its worth doing a road trip to a larger shop give them a ring so they could have the rigs available for you to look at as its a big investment take your time lookaround!

 

[Splash-X]

have you thought about Nikon D600 /7100???
very nice cameras or are you cannon loyal? (have there lenses already?)
i love my D700 in an Aquatica housing check out reef photo or bluewater photo or back scatter its worth doing a road trip to a larger shop give them a ring so they could have the rigs available for you to look at as its a big investment take your time lookaround!

Reef Photo is down near Miami, that's only a 4 hour drive and it's a great excuse for a weekend of diving on the east coast of Florida in the near future. While I'm not set in stone on Canon I have been very happy with my Canon purchases in the past and some of my friends who have a dSLR also use Canon so they're a good resource for for me with "usage" type questions.

 

[BluewaterPhoto]

hey Splash - I would look at either the Canon T4i or the Canon 7D if I were you, not the other options, for several reasons too lengthly to get into here. With a dSLR, FYI your lens and strobe selection will be just as important as your camera selection. If you simply call or drive to a reputable underwater photo store like us or Reef I'm sure they will go over all of this in detail. - Scott

 

[guruboy]

Unless the camera housings can work for multiple cameras, I would try to future proof and buy a full frame camera now.

You can pickup some Canon refurbs on sale for a good price if you keep an eye out.

As for the rebels, I plan to upgrade to T3i for the flip out display. Obviously that is not useful underwater but if you shoot on land, I would pick t3i over t2i. The t3i is also two gens old so it's pretty cheap.

The t4i and above are supposed to have features more optimized for video, including new lens designs. If you are going to do video underwater, I would consider a T4i which is cheaper for being last gen.

 

[Splash-X]

hey Splash - I would look at either the Canon T4i or the Canon 7D if I were you, not the other options, for several reasons too lengthly to get into here. With a dSLR, FYI your lens and strobe selection will be just as important as your camera selection. If you simply call or drive to a reputable underwater photo store like us or Reef I'm sure they will go over all of this in detail. - Scott

Scott, I wish you were in Florida so I could visit the store!

We had some hands on experience with the 6D and T4i today, they had the T4i 18-55 kit plus EF 55-250 lens case and 8Gb memory card for $509. Now that I'm home and able to see what the T4i in various "packages" is priced at, I think $509 may be a steal. The 60D was priced at $999 with a 18-135MM lense, extra battery and case. The T3i was priced at $749 for the same setup as the T4i. The T5i was priced at $999 with the same lenses and a 16GB memory card.


As of today, aside from video features, is the T5i worth double the price of the T4i? The difference in price can buy a dedicated GoPro Hero 3 black and some accessories (or $500 towards underwater setup of the T4i).

 

[00wabbit]

Make sure you are looking at housing prices too. The 60d housings cost more than the camera.