Point and shoot options Vol. 2

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Tripophobia

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Messages
56
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Location
Frankfurt
# of dives
200 - 499
Scubaboarders,

I need your help again as priorities have changed a bit since my previous considerations on underwater cameras:

We will fly to the red sea in October for the first trip since COVID planning to do two dives a day for ten days. With a baby this will probably be our only annual dive trip for the next couple years, so we will not have >50 dives per year as we have regularly done in the past...

With my focus being on videography for underwater, I would still like to use the opportunity to tinker with underwater photography, but without investing a lot of money. Hence, I am checking the market for used equipment for some time and concluded on a few options where I would like to get your thoughts on.

I do not plan to buy any strobes, wet lenses as the package should be rather small. I have a 5000 lumen video light for my GoPro that supports a flash mode which I would then also use for the camera. I did have an RX100 M1 some time ago but the pictures were mostly crap (probably due to my limited capabilities).

Option 1: Olympus XZ-2 with the respective Olympus housing. I like that the lense is very bright and the sensor comparably big. It has underwater modes. However, I read the housing has only one o-ring and it is comparably old. I have an offer for roughly 150 USD

Option 2: Olympus TG-4 with an Ikelite Housing. I understand this camera has the macro mode similar to TG-5 and 6 moreover it is waterproof and thus less risky to drown. However, it has the smallest sensor and least bright lense. I have an offer for about 130 USD

Option 3: I use my backup Sony A6300 and buy a new housing (eg. Seafrogs Salted Line). This delivers probably the best picture quality but bears the highest risk. Moreover, I only have the Sigma 30mm f2.8 that would fit the housing. With another port I could use my Sony 18-135 but then I would spend like a 500 USD

Option 4: Go back to Sony RX100, maybe the M3 but this requires the most significant investment and as previously mentioned I was not really happy, neither with wide angle nor macro in the past...

Your thoughts are highly appreciated!

EDIT: I am a decent photographer above the surface, so I know what I am doing :cool:
 
Consider the TG-5 rather than the 4. Much better.
Consider the Sea Frogs housing for it. Much cheaper.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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