U/W Photography Shop in Ottawa
- Thread starter divemed06
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Are you looking for some place that sells the equipment? Or some place that "knows" how to develop u/w pictures?
It's been my experience to date that not many shops "actively" carry any of the equipment 
, but all are more than willing to order it in for you.
So actually seeing the equipment before you buy is hard to do. I do know folks around the city who have video, digital and SLRs, so if you are interested in a particular brand/model I may be able to put you in touch with someone who is near by. Drop a PM if you want to persue this idea.
As for developing u/w pics. I take my film to Motophoto, and have been very happy with the results. The one I go to now also does digital prints right in the shop, so when I make the move to u/w digital I'll be all set.
, but all are more than willing to order it in for you.So actually seeing the equipment before you buy is hard to do. I do know folks around the city who have video, digital and SLRs, so if you are interested in a particular brand/model I may be able to put you in touch with someone who is near by. Drop a PM if you want to persue this idea.
As for developing u/w pics. I take my film to Motophoto, and have been very happy with the results. The one I go to now also does digital prints right in the shop, so when I make the move to u/w digital I'll be all set.
DivingGal once bubbled...
It's been my experience to date that not many shops "actively" carry any of the equipment
So actually seeing the equipment before you buy is hard to do. I do know folks around the city who have video, digital and SLRs, so if you are interested in a particular brand/model I may be able to put you in touch with someone who is near by. Drop a PM if you want to persue this idea.
As for developing u/w pics. I take my film to Motophoto, and have been very happy with the results. The one I go to now also does digital prints right in the shop, so when I make the move to u/w digital I'll be all set.
The reason that so few stores carry it is that most manufacturers have gone into retail via the web and offer such a low margin to retailers (commonly less than 10%) that it is hardly worth the trouble of bringing it in except as a convienience for a customer.
As to how to learn how to do this then seek out the folks that are getting reasonable results and ask them how to do it. As a rule of thumb if you just want results go video as any one can point and shoot and most mini DV cameras offer a good enough resolution to allow you to rip fairly good stills off the tape. That being said it takes a lot of practice to get good video.
If you wish to go still then Nikonus 35mm is still the way to go if you can be lucky enough to find one now that they have been discontinued. Digital has it obvious advantages but it is much more difficult to get good results.
Safe dives,
Dan
vlada
Contributor
divemed06, if you want advice on what to get - ask here. There are several photographers hanging out in Ontario section that can offer advice on film or digi set up
The set up that you'd what to buy would depend on primary use.
For film set ups, if you are planning to shoot mostly in the lakes, then Nik V with 15mm lens is the way to go - this set up is vastly superior to anything else on the market for Great Lakes conditinos
If you are looking into mostly warm clear water tropical settings - look into Sea&Sea set up or Nikonos again.
I don't do digital, so can't help you there, but i am sure the others will
BTW, given that i still shoot film and use discontinued equipment ;-)), 90% of all my photo stuff came from eBay. Used Nik V body in a good condition can be had for about US$400. Used 15mm lens is still hugely expensive and could be had at about US$1,300-1,500. Used Sea&sea 16mm wide angle lens for NikV is half or third of that price.
As for development, find the lab that does good job on your prints and stick with it (make sure they don't scratch the negs). We had good results with our local Lablaws lab, Walmart in Kingston does a good job about 70% of the time
Vlada
The set up that you'd what to buy would depend on primary use.
For film set ups, if you are planning to shoot mostly in the lakes, then Nik V with 15mm lens is the way to go - this set up is vastly superior to anything else on the market for Great Lakes conditinos
If you are looking into mostly warm clear water tropical settings - look into Sea&Sea set up or Nikonos again.
I don't do digital, so can't help you there, but i am sure the others will
BTW, given that i still shoot film and use discontinued equipment ;-)), 90% of all my photo stuff came from eBay. Used Nik V body in a good condition can be had for about US$400. Used 15mm lens is still hugely expensive and could be had at about US$1,300-1,500. Used Sea&sea 16mm wide angle lens for NikV is half or third of that price.
As for development, find the lab that does good job on your prints and stick with it (make sure they don't scratch the negs). We had good results with our local Lablaws lab, Walmart in Kingston does a good job about 70% of the time
Vlada
tektom
Guest
I do underwater photog with a housed digital camera (Olympus C-4040). I got the camera at Future Shop. The housing (PT-010) I got from www.underwaterdigital.com in the US via the internet. The latest Olympus standard is the C-5050 and you can get the PT-016 housing for it. You can get whatever accessories you want for the housing from the same source, including macro lenses, strobes, etc. I'm content just to go with the basics and have got some amazing shots both in the St.Lawrence and the Caribbean. Don't bother trying to find any u/w digital camera accessories in Canada. There just does not appear to be a market for it. Fortunately, with our dollar at 75cents, it's getting cheaper to buy in the US. 
I wasn't critising the stores -- sorry if it came across that way. I understand why they can't. Not only the low margin, but also the low volume.
One thing to watch for, is when a shop is offering "seminars" for products. I attended a Sea&Sea product demo this year, that proved quite useful.
I agree with tektom finding accessories is hard here in Canada. I've had good success with
BH Photo Video
Col.Cluster
Guest
For those of you that are into photography. The time is fast approaching were the water clears up considerably. This is one of the few times each year that provides you with the best chance of choice conditions for catching those award winning shots of our Great Lake Wrecks. You might consider siezing upon the opportunity for a charter out of Kingston before they pull the boats for winter.
Enjoy the dives
All the best
CC
Enjoy the dives
All the best
CC
