-What housing Brands are good?
Mid-level Electronic: Ocean Images Top Dawg or USVH
Mid-level Mechanical: Ikelite, maybe Equinox
High-end Electronic: Light & Motion or Amphibico
High-end Mechanical: Gates
Links to all the above are
here.
-Electronic versus mechanical?
For me it was electronic. I recently purchased my second electronic housing so maybe I'm biased. I like being able to concentrate on what's in the viewfinder by having all the controls on one control grip. And the ease of loading is a factor for me also. I have read of mechanical controls slipping off during a dive if they're not positioned right at the start - due to user error - not a function of the housing.
Which is more reliable/leak proof?
Both/neither. There used to be a problem with some electronic controls but people who claim that now are playing old tapes. Especially with the mfr's I've listed. The biggest factor in keeping your housing leak proof is operator error, make sure you clean and inspect the o-rings on the sealing surfaces of your housing
all the time. I've had no leaks in 4+ years of filming. And we do a lot of dives, 20+/wk. is normal on trips. I also never open my housing except in a clean dry place unless it's essential.
-External LCD versus mirror, versus other solution?
External LCD is probably the best, costliest solution. Ikelite's been doing the mirror for years. Problem with the mirror is that pans are backward. They've recently started offering reversing circuitry on their higher end housings to correct this but I've read there's some other electronic limitation when using it - not sure of the details so you might ask them. Another option with Ocean Images, Light & Motion or USVH is an internal LCD mounted at the back of the housing. If your camcorder is HD, there's no good solution available yet. Amphibico is working on an External HD Monitor but it's going to be about $2200 from what I've heard.
-Do I really need hydrophones? What will they pick up other than bubble sounds?
I have one. I pick up bubbles, people on DPV's I'm diving with, anchor chain rattles. Last summer the
crunch of bones as the sharks tore apart the feed ball during a shark feed. I do a lot of diving in Hawaii so if I'm ever lucky enough to see/hear Humpbacks off the Molokini backside, I'd kind of like to get that on tape. Or dolphin clicks.
-Fish eye lenses or flat glass window?
-Should i buy a wide angle lense for it?
My personal taste runs to a standard port that will do semi-wide angle. I have the standard lens on my camera and shoot mostly at wide-angle settings for anything under about 10'. I do have a full zoom-thru port for those longer clear water shots - it cost more. But I tend to shoot more panoramic stuff and shots of fish swimming in open water. If you're interested in macro work, you'll want a w/a lens on your camera/housing.
-Do i need to get one that allows changing of color filters while underwater?
You'll want to remove the filter above about 15' or everything will be yellow. Most of the better manufacturers build an internal flip filter into their housings. You won't change colors during a dive, you'll either be using a blue filter in the tropics or a green filter in green water.
-Given the startup costs of this, I am thinking I may start with a mount for my HID Light Cannon for lighting when needed and see where I go from there. Is this adequate for a starter?
If you do that, use the diffuser with it, otherwise the beam will be too focused. If you're handy, you can fabricate a cheap arm using
loc-line tubing, it's what Gates/Night Rider use.
I don't imaging that i will find a used housing for this new camera so where do I look for the best prices on housings? How much should I really spend for a starter housing ( if that concept even exists)?
You might find used housings on eBay. Two that might work are the Top Dawg II or the Ocean Images Dolphin. The Dolphin won't be as customized to your camera as their dedicated housing would be though. You can get into a basic mid-level housing for around $1000. The upper end housings start at between $2-3000 depending on features, ports etc.
Reputable vendors (my personal list):
B&H Photo Video
Backscatter
Reef Photo & Video
H20PhotoPros
Any starting advice and referrals to other underwater video sites would be helpful.
Wetpixel.com
Digital Diver.net
UWDV.com
Link to a good Underwater Video training DVD. And a good
book.
PM if you have other questions.