True underwater digital camera availability?

[tankboygreg]

I should clarify. I meant that they do not have large stocks of most housings. They tend to do small production runs.

Yes this is a problem. I originally ordered my housing from a Adorama. When I got my confirmation it was backordered which was later reflected on their site. I called Scuba.com to see if they had any in stock and they were backordered. I checked around and everybody seemed to be back-ordered. I finally checked Amazon.com and there was one available. Luckily, I got my housing three days before a trip to Hawaii after starting this process one month in advance.

 

[mach2plus]

Good information and points of view from all, thank-you. You're right in saying that your students should consider the big $$$ DSLR and lenses as a longterm investment, as my box of old Canon bodies/lenses and my old Nikonis attest. With regard to the small production runs, and small underwater photography community, I might take a different standpoint. IMHO, these new digital point and shoots (lets use Canon, Oly, and Nikon here as an example) with the same manufacturer housing (much cheaper than Ikelite) have brought tens of thousands or more divers into the realm of underwater photography that otherwise might not have been there due to the expense of the big guns. These divers, in turn, are very likely to upgrade, and support a new true underwater DSLR market, or so I hope. And while the Nikonis series may not have been Nikon's profit leader (or any profit at all), its line lasted a long time and evolved. Maybe I'm delusional in believing that a modern day company will never produce a marginally profitable product, but I truley believe that companies such as Nikon, Canon, and Oly are for the photography community, and might just produce such a true underwater DSLR system.

Regards to all -- Mach

 

[mach2plus]

Whoops, forgot to ask if anyone knows the status of the so-called digital plug-ins for film cameras. Around the 1999-2000 timeframe, I seem to recall some hoopla about a digital plugin, shaped like a 35mm film canister, that you simply put into your film camera. You could then, supposedly, take dozens of digital pics via your film camera and download them (jpeg as I recall) into your computer. This device, if available today, might breath life back into the Nikonos V and earlier models. Anyone know of such a contraption, or better yet, experience using one?

Regards to all -- Mach

 

[Mariozi]

Last time I checked this company doing "digital film" went bankrupt...
Sad news.

 

[Jamdiver]

They spend 500 bucks in equipment that becomes old very fast, and are scared to death of spending 3 grand on a equipment that they will be able to adapt every now and then.

Quite true Mariozi, but it's all a matter of perspective perhaps.
Chances are the student is new to underwater photography obviously and is not quite sure of the wisdom of bringing a very expensive camera underwater .

Generally as with most things in life as we grow our requirements and wants change, so that little 5MP Compact camera that was quite adequate for a student.
After a few months or year that little digicam doesn't quite cut the cake anymore .

 

[tankboygreg]

I seem to recall some hoopla about a digital plugin, shaped like a 35mm film canister, that you simply put into your film camera. You could then, supposedly, take dozens of digital pics via your film camera and download them (jpeg as I recall) into your computer.

For myself, what I enjoy is the instant feedback of digital photography. As PADI refers to it "SEA": Shoot, Evaluate, Adjust.

If there was a market for it, the better solution would be a "digital back" like they make for existing large format cameras.