Sea & Sea DX-8000G or Reefmaster DC500??

[oceanic-daz]

So the better option would be an A95 with housing a strobe etc, rather than buy a ready to go set-up?
I believe the A95 has an built in filter for underwater? I've seen this feature on a Pentax camera, another diver was shooting the same subject as me but it really made a superb difference to the picture tones. At the moment I have been using a pocket Sony DSC-T1 with housing and no external light source, I feel its got me some reasonable pics (see my gallerys) but not consistently good pictures, which really p*ss*s me off.

 

[Cecil]

Jeeze, I wish I knew that from the begining. My first comment is welcome to the most frustrating type of photography, underwater. I looked through your galleries and there were some very nice shots in there. I also realize that those few pictures came from many. That is the norm UW, you take a bunch and maybe get a few.

Now to your problem, remember I said the Sonys are green. Even the newer ones have the same tendancy. It is fixable in Photoshop. There are a number of other tricks you can do with the Sonys to get better shots. PM me about those.

But in my opinion, your best bet is to use the T1 for your trip. It is certainly better than either the DC500 or DX-8000, although not quite as good as the Canon. You know this camera and with the right tweaks will take some awesome shots. For some further proof here's my shots from a recent trip to Bonaire in the following links.

Bonaire 1

Bonaire 2

Bonaire 3

Now these were all taken with an older Sony than yours.

 

[HowardE]

These pictures are with a Canon S70 (7 megapixel) with the WPDC40 housing. The whole setup cost us $500. It takes great photos on LAND and UNDERWATER. The most recent photos on my gallery are taken with this camera... My wife shoots the stills.. I shoot video. But anyway, I think she took great photos for being an amateur.

They were all shot in P (program) mode, and only with the internal flash from the camera.


http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/500/ppuser/37789


I would have to agree with the other posts, that the reefmaster or s&s cameras are not for the "serious" shooter. You'll have much more versatility and flexibility with most major camera brand cameras in a UW housing.

 

[kent_1848]

These pictures are with a Canon S70 (7 megapixel) with the WPDC40 housing. The whole setup cost us $500. It takes great photos on LAND and UNDERWATER. The most recent photos on my gallery are taken with this camera... My wife shoots the stills.. I shoot video. But anyway, I think she took great photos for being an amateur.

They were all shot in P (program) mode, and only with the internal flash from the camera.


http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/500/ppuser/37789


I would have to agree with the other posts, that the reefmaster or s&s cameras are not for the "serious" shooter. You'll have much more versatility and flexibility with most major camera brand cameras in a UW housing.

I have the same setup. I have to say I'm very happy with it for the money I spent. For the same money, you are better off with the canon. I have some shots of a recent trip to Costa Rica, and this was my first time ever taking underwater shots with anything other than a cheap disposable, so I was extremely pleased.

 

[sharky60]

I have the Sea & Sea DX5000G, and before that had rented the DX3000G and have been very happy with my results. See my gallery, all underwater pics previous to 2005 were taken with the 3000 and the Cozumel '05's were taken with the 5000.

Sure you can find less expensive and more complicated camera setups, it's just depends on what you want to do with your underwater photography. These cameras are basically point-n-shoot cameras with some manual adjustments. the macro will focus within 1cm of an object and they have the shortest lag time of all digital cameras. Very easy to learn and operate, all buttons on the housing are true to the camera, the whole package is small and lightweight compared to most underwater cameras, which makes it easier to handle.

For me the main drawback is topside the 3x digital zoom isn't quite what I would like to have, but for underwater use it's just fine.

The package I purchased included the camera, housing, YS-25 auto strobe package, pelican case, 0.6x wide angle lens & 2 sync cords for $2000. I'd recommend getting a pelican case for whatever camera setup you eventually get, it's well worth the money. I'm not sure what the 8000 package goes for.

If your interested check the link below to ISLAND PHOTO on Cozumel, Holly can send you a price sheet for price comparisons, the price she quotes includes shipping and handling, it was at least a couple hundred dollars less than other places I checked out. If you don't go with the Sea & Sea, she may be able to set you up with whatever camera you decide on for less than others can, contacting her may be worth it.

 

[Bbarnes]

One HUGE thing to consider when buying an underwater camera is the customer service that the company offers WHEN your camera floods. Olympus quite frankly stunk. They told us that "Most floods occur from diver error. Sorry." Not the "above and beyond" response that I got with SeaLife.

 

[medical1]

I fully agree on the batteries & wish Sealife had stayed with the AA battery format. On the plus side - No need for macro lenses with the DC500 + Sealife has a travel charger & spare batteries available now. They are nothing more then a small drop-in cradle for the battery. You still need the wall adapter that normally plugs into the docking station though. You have the ability to use your camera while charging another PROPRIETARY Sealife battery. We carry 2 spare batteries for each camera with us on dive trips. At least the strobe units still use run of the mill AA batteries.

Snip regarding the DC500
Bad/Not So Good Stuff:
--------------------------

- Custom battery and spares are not yet available.
NOTE: I prefer AA or AAA as if you have a battery failure
or have one go dead, you can easily find cheap spares.
(I'm convinced it is a cell phone battery and I just need to
take it in to cell shop to see which one.)
SeaLife told me that spare batteries will be available "Soon".

- Only way to charge the battery is by using the camera placed
into the docking station. ( you can't have spare batteries
charging while you are out using the camera).

--- bill

 

[Ryan]

Canon's Li-Ion Battery for the S70 lasts on the order of days, and customers using the rechargables in Sea & Sea DX-8000G report excellent battery life.

A camera like the Reefmaster is an entry level point & shoot that permits no growth. My opinion is that investing in that system, or a Sea & Sea DX-750G, or an Olympus Stylus, or a Canon Elph, leaves you with a bunch of stuff you'll have outgrown in anywhere from a few months to a year (depending upon how much you dive).

The S70 is a heck of a lot of camera for the money, as is a Canon G6 in Ikelite's TTL Housing (incredible macro mode, negligible shutter lag).

I often see people regurgitate Sealife's marketing bs, that no macro lenses are needed... The camera's macro mode is equivalent to the macro functions available on EVERY compact camera commonyl used underwater except the previous Sealife offerings. We are speaking reproduction ratios, not focusing distances. The fact that other rigs CAN can accept accessory macro lenses should be a selling point, not the other way around. You won't get this with a reefmaster-
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bob_whorton/sets/1056883/