Looking for a Canon point and shoot

[kmmkiwi]

I'm looking for a Canon point and shoot camera. I was thinking about the Canon SD1100 IS. Does anyone have any experience with underwater photos with this camera? Are the buttons easy to press and operate with 3mm gloves? Or maybe can someone recommend me another point and shoot canon camera that they have had good experience with. Looking to spend not more than $300 on the camera (not including the housing), a used one from eBay is ok too.

I'm not looking to take professional photos or anything. Just looking to take some pictures so I can show my friends and family what I see down there. I'd want at least a 6 megapixel camera. I'm planning to use it on land as well. I'm sort of set on going with a Canon because I've had nothing but positive experiences with my previous Canon purchases.

Thanks!

 

[Kim]

This looks like an exceptional deal.......

 

[kmmkiwi]

Also, I'm looking into 2 possible setups:

1. a new SD1100 IS w/ new housing for $500 (8 megapixels)
2. a used SD900 w/ used housing for $400 (10 megapixels)

which is the better buy?

 

[alcina]

Although I adore the SD range of Canon cameras, I still think the A series are a better choice for underwater because they give you the option of going to manual controls...and there will be times underwater that being able to control your camera instead of having it guess will mean the difference between getting a shot and getting rubbish.

 

[FiremanGreg]

Personally, when feasible, I like to buy new, because I know I've got a little bit of warranty backing me up. I buy used only when the cost prevents me from buying new.

I just recently bought a point and shoot specifically for diving. I already had a nice Nikon for daily use, and a Canon TX1 for snapshots and short hi def video clips, but didn't want to try to equip the Nikon for diving (housing is very expensive and more bulky than I'm interested in).

I narrowed it down to the A720IS (8 megapixel) or A650IS (12 megapixel). In the end, I opted for the 650, but only because I flipped a coin. People tag the megapixel count with a lot of importance, but it's not really the most important factor in the quality of the shot you get.

Specifically, I narrowed it down the A series rather than the SD series, because I wanted the option to manually control my picture settings. Initially I'll probably just use it point and shoot, but I know that I'll want the flexibility of manual control later down the road.

The A720 goes for under $200. The A650 was just a hair under $300. Each one has a Canon brand housing available that runs about $160 or $170. So I spent less than $500 for a new A650 and it's housing, and retained the ability to manually control my settings if I want to.

Both of these will be slightly larger than the SD models you are looking at, but they are still compact cameras. There are numerous threads on here that have example photos taken with the A720, if you care to see what others are doing, just search for 'A720' in the forums. I went into a few chain stores to pick up similar models in my own hands, so I'd know how they fit and felt.

Overall, I'm a 'Nikon' man, but I love my Canon TX1 for a portable point and shoot with video, and I'm sure I'll love my Canon A650 under water (first trip with it June 7 to Grand Cayman).

 

[Kim]

Each one has a Canon brand housing available that runs about $160 or $170.

Yes...... and with the A720IS deal I linked to you're finished for around $300!

That's REALLY hard to beat because it's a good setup too. Because it has the Digic 3 processor you can use the RAW hack as well........

 

[FiremanGreg]

Yes...... and with the A720IS deal I linked to you're finished for around $300!

That's REALLY hard to beat because it's a good setup too. Because it has the Digic 3 processor you can use the RAW hack as well........

The link you posted took me to an A570 thread. Also a good camera.

720 has a little better optical zoom (6x) than the 570 (4x), and same zoom as the 650. All have optical image stabilization, which is very useful. Other difference between the models is the pixel count, which isn't as important in my opinion.

A570 is $125 to $150, and the A720 is $150 to $180.

Back to the original post, biggest reason to go with A series over the SD series would be manual control of your settings, as mentioned by others.

 

[kmmkiwi]

I kinda glanced over the A series because I wasn't interested in manual controls. But it sounds like advice from others here is that I may want to have it for the future. I will consider the A series as well. Are the A series cameras easy enough to operate underwater with 3mm gloves? Never used a camera underwater before and I'm just curious about that in general.

 

[Kim]

The link you posted took me to an A570 thread. Also a good camera.

Sorry........ I was rushing and confused numbers!

In any event the 570IS is sweet for the money - it's still a Digic 3 processor which is actually better than my DSLR 400D (Digic 2), and has full manual control. It's 7.2 mega pixels I believe - that's plenty.

With the CHDK hack you get RAW and some other stuff too.

 

[sasscuba]

I really like my A720IS canon. Very easy to use. These are from my first attempt. http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ca...time-pictures-using-canon-a720is-bonaire.html