Donnad,
In 2008, I was given a Reefmaster Mini from some non-diving friends and thought it was a great beginner camera because it was simple to use, just point and shoot. The Mini was perfect for my needs as a newbie diver, no housing because the Mini is the housing, no bulky strobes and it was compact.
Switching to video mode was simple and shooting with it was easy. I used the video for two years mainly to film buddies practicing skills on the platform of our local quarry. The videos playbacks were used to show buddies at the surface of what they needed to work on underwater. I can't post those practice videos if I want to still have buddies after this post.
Last year, I noticed whenever I took the Mini past 80 ft, the display screen would go crazy like someone was pushing all the buttons at the same time. This never happened during the first two years when I took the Mini down past 100ft. Assume the pressure at depth wore out the buttons so I have not used it this year.
This week I upgraded to an Olympus XZ-1 with the Olympus housing. B&H is a very dangerous store for one's wallet. I will take my new XZ-1 on its first trip this weekend....Bonaire.
I don't have any pics stored on this computer to post but found some pics I posted on SB when I was an active user of the Mini. Click on the blue hyperlinks to take you to some pics and video links I posted. All were taken with my Mini by a very new camera owner so be kind when viewing the amateur pics/videos.
[post=3844941]Dutch Springs - Sept 20th[/post]
and [post=3844989]More Dutch Springs Pics - Sept 20th[/post]
Link will take you to the thread which has a link to the video I shot with the Mini. [post=3932748]Videos From Dutch Weekend[/post]
I don't believe you can go wrong with the Mini as a first underwater camera but remember it does have its limitation as a simple point and shoot camera. If you think you're going to grow as a photographer or want to grow as a photographer this may not be the right camera for you.
Good luck!
Edit: I just noticed this thread was started in 2007, so much for my situation awareness skills. :blush:
