Please recommend a camera that will grow with me

[BluewaterSail]

Hi there underwater photographers!
I just recieved confirmation that I am getting a nice bonus at work next month!!!:banana: It's finally time to buy a camera!

I am interested in still shots, not video. I would like to document for myself and those not fortunate enough to be there with me, all of the amazing stuff I see on my dives. Especially little things and close-ups. I dive regularly in Eilat, which is a coral reef with all sorts of critters.

On land I just use a point and shoot. I am not really a photographer. My land camera doesn't have an enclosure available, so as long as I need to buy new, I want to buy something that I will still like if I really get into this underwater photography stuff. On land I seldom feel the desire to "save the moment" that I feel on almost every dive.

Recommendations, please, on an easy to use camera which is capable of really high quality shots, on which there aren't alot of settings which would cause me consistant low quality shots for lack of getting them right.

Also, what lights and other accessories are important for nice close up photos of little stuff? And could those also be used for, say a 14 inch fish or an octopus which is 10 feet away?

Please explain why your recommendation would be the best choice, don't just list model numbers.

While I would like good value for the money, so the money goes further, I have waited so that I could spend what is necessary to get kit that I will really like for a long time.

Thanks for your help in spending my bonus!

Linda

 

[KeithG]

Hi Linda. I suggest that you approach this as a 2 step process. Because underwater photography is addictive and can quickly become a money pit if you make uneducated decisions.

First step is to get an inexpensive (I suggest used) setup and spend some time learning about underwater photography. One thing you will learn is that you will need specialized equipment if you want to take specialized photos. And that can cost lots of money. But, until you have gained some experience and have a good grasp of the basics, you will not know what type of equipment you need. So that real cool strobe you buy today may become a boat anchor as you progress in skill and want to use different techniques.

If you are still having fun, then dump that learner unit and spend lots of cash on a more sophisticated setup that you CAN grow with. Or you may decide that your starter setup is all you need.

You can find some used p&s camera with a strobe for around $600 (or less) on eBay. These make great starters to learn on.

On my last dive trip on a live aboard I saw setups ranging from a fully automatic canon compact p&s with no external strobe all the way up to a $20,000 DSLR monster rig. They were all capable of taking great pictures. The cheaper units just had more limitations.


I also suggest you scan through the posts in the photo forum to get an idea of the types of problems underwater photographers encounter.

 

[Searcaigh]

Hi Linda I would agree with giffenk except to add that even with "educated" decisions it will still become a black hole in your wallet .... the cost is never ending.

What camera system are you currently using?

Reason I ask is that you don't really want to be investing in a completely different system if you can help it.

Canon and Nikon probably have more housings made for their models than anyone else

Strobes ... main choices are from Sea&Sea and Inon ... I have always gone for strobes that use AA batteries as you can always find them anywhere, although i use rechargeable ones it is always a hassle if you have a dedicated battery recalling a friend of mine who lost her charger at an airport security place on her way to PG (Ikelite system).

 

[supergaijin]

I use a Canon S95 which is an excellent camera and as it is superceded by the S100, you should find it for dirt cheap. To make use of the full functions underwater it is advisable to get a dedicated housing other than the Canon or Ikelite which make getting at the front ring a PITA. I use a PATIMA housing.

In the Red Sea there is plenty of ambient light due to the (normally) excellent viz. For starters don't get a strobe IMO- there is plenty to learn about Aperture + Exposure not to mention composition. I only got a strobe last week after spending approx 100hrs underwater learning. Just when I thought I was getting 'good' I bought a strobe and that has set me back on the learning curve again. IMO for the beginner underwater photographer, strobes aren't that neccessary and make it more difficult to learn.

STAY SHALLOW. Shallow for me is less than 10m.

If I had my time again, I'd probably get the S100, but the S95 should be a pretty good deal.

 

[TSandM]

I'm like you -- not a photographer on land to speak of at all. I wasn't interested in anything big, bulky, fragile or terribly expensive (since it isn't IF you will flood your camera, but simply when . . . ). I made do with simple point and shoots for a while, but I was never happy with my photos. Then, on a Red Sea trip, my husband pushed his Olympus EPL-1 into my hands, and it was all over. The camera is easy to use, not TOO huge, and takes VERY good pictures. With the addition of an Inon D-2000 strobe (bought off e-bay) I have a setup I don't mind carting around and with which I have been having a ton of fun.

Not too long ago, Adorama had a package of the EPL-1 with housing for about $450; they're gone now, but I believe they have the EPM-1 (which is a very similar camera) on a similar deal.

I think this is just about ideal for a diver who doesn't know a lot about photography and isn't sure how much he or she wants to know, or do -- but might get hooked.

BTW, no lighting setup is going to work very well for large subjects at significant distance. Strobe light is subject to the same constraints as sunlight, going through water -- you lose the reds and yellows very quickly. And remember that strobe light has to go TO the object, and then return to the camera, so the light path is twice the distance to the target, and the wavelength absorption is the TOTAL path. That's why you see all the wide angle photos with some brightly lit area of interest in the foreground, so the photographer could get the colors in.

 

[SailNaked]

Underwater photography is incremental, start cheap easy to use and then sell it and buy medium more complex then sell it and sell your car to afford an SLR with all the features. I think you might save yourself some money and just get addicted to drugs.

 

[Imla]

Personally... I think I go against most people here...

If you have the money, go big at once.
I use a DSLR on land. I regret not going all the way at once.

In your case I would reccommend some of the 4/3s cameras. Mirrorless cameras with interchangeable lenses will give you both the options of easing into uwphotography, easy to learn, and the option of specializing and learning as you go. You can also start easy with regards to money.

Get a good quality housing. Nauticam has good quality housings. Get a good quality focuslight. Sola 800/1200 divelights can triple, both as focuslight when you get your strobes, or as the only light, OR as a divelight when you leave your camera on land.
Good quality strobes will often outlive your camera. Inon have very good ones. Personally I have the Z-240s. I love them.

Uw photo is expensive... but if your are smart, you may not need to change your gear that quickly.
Really cheap cameras and no lights will not get you the nice pictures you see, and you will just get disappointed.


EDIT: And just go as SailNaked above... It is cheaper to just get addicted to drugs...
I fell for Carmen... She is A Nikon D700 with Aquatica housing, 14mm 2.8, and 105mm 2.8, +10mm SubSee, 2* Inon Z-240 and Sola 800 and 1200...

 

[Onewolf]

Olympus PM1/EPT-06 bundle -- System Packages :: Mirrorless Systems :: Optical Ocean Olympus/Sea & Sea PT-EP06 (E-PM1) Special Package -

 

[DeaDLocK]

I'm with Imla on this. Never taken an underwater photo in my life, but finally decided I was going to get into U/W photography.

Went with a full Sony RX100 Nauticam setup, with quality wet lenses, twin high-end strobes, Sola 1200 and a bunch of accessories. Not gotten wet yet, but can't wait!

My reasons were that I didn't want to feel frustrated or limited by the gear. I didn't want to take a look at some shots taken by others and realise there was simply no way I could take those photos with the gear I have. For example, some of the outstanding CFWA shots you see simply REQUIRE a very wide lens and good twin strobes. A compact with its built in strobe is just not going to cut it for those kinds of photos. Period. So I wanted to know that when I take a substandard photo (and I'm sure most of them will be as I start out), the problem was me, and not the gear. I want to be able to grow into my gear.

If I really start enjoying it, in a couple of years I will upgrade to a full DSLR setup, but because I've already made decisions on acquiring high-end gear from the start, I won't have to change everything when I do. I can keep my arms, tray, strobes, focus light etc.

But one thing that does help is that I am a landside photographer, so I have a sound understanding of the basics of exposure and a half-decent compositional eye. So I just had to do some reading on the issues specific to shooting underwater, and then apply that new knowledge to my existing knowledge.

But of course all this is theory - you can all laugh at me when I produce really bad pictures with my expensive gear, but hey, it's a rite of passage I guess!

 

[tamas970]

It depends on the budget and commitment.
I actually started divig because I wanted to do photography underwater (I am doing it on land for 2 decades). Thus, commitment is there and the learning curve was/is quite steep for me:

step#0: Testing a Panasonic GX1 in a cheap Dicapac "bodybag".

step#1: Get OWD and a few fun dives to collect experience, practice bouyancy & task loading.

step#2: Research. In parallel, I swapped my heavy nikon DSLR gear to m4/3 on land. (Olympus E-PL5)

step#3: Get AOWD and Drysuit trainings and more fun dives.

step#4: Bought a 10bar housing for my E-Pl5, two Inon s2000's, an UCL165 macro lens and an ULCS-clone arm system.

step#5: Get in da water! (will happen sometimes in August)

Total investment on photo gear: little above 3000$. Financial risk (camera flood) ~600$ - not going for expensive lenses...

As an equipment, if you don't want to jump directly to high-tech:
If possible, get a cheap polycarbonate housing (Seashell SS-1 maybe?) for your P&S and an orange filter for shallow test-shots. Then, get a tray&arm-system for your future strobes, maybe get a TTL strobe as well. This way, you'll learn to dive with a complex camera unit, that you can't just squeeze in your BCD pocket. You also learn to take care of the housing - o-rings, grease/lube, etc.