uw video cam housings

[rnorman]

i have a sony dcr-trv310 & a 320 cam, i'm looking at ikelite,equinox, and lite & motion stingrayII top dogII housings.anybody had any experience with any of the above, or other brands?

 

[drbill]

I have several Top Dawg housings and like them very much. Controls are simple and not prone to failure like some of the fully electronic housings. No battery in the control pod to run out when you're 100 ft under in some remote place with no spare (shame on you).

It is a basic housing but has much flexibility... you can just about put any Sony TR or TRV camera and some newer Canons in it and it will work fine. I have no desire for a dedicated housing which may prove worthless if my camcorder dies and the model is no longer made (of course many housings can be fitted with new electronics but Top Dawg doesn't need that).

Dr. Bill

 

[jepuskar]

When I played around with underwater video I did extensive research into housings. By far the best bang for my buck was at www.usvh.com

I'm not even gonna say anymore accept if your serious about saving some money, but still wanting the gadgets..check them out.

Jason

 

[sdwho]

When I played around with underwater video I did extensive research into housings. By far the best bang for my buck was at www.usvh.com

I'm not even gonna say anymore accept if your serious about saving some money, but still wanting the gadgets..check them out.

Jason

My wife has the sony dcr-trv310 and she got her housing from Undersea Video Housings. They were incredible. She decided to get it from them only a few weeks before we were leaving for the Galapagos and they managed to get it to her in time for her to take it on the trip. It is wonderful easy to use. The one glitch was that the back of the housing wasn't deep enough to allow us to use a 7 hr battery. So after the trip, we shipped it back to them and they retrofitted the back so it will handle a larger battery. And they paid for the shipping in both directions!! I strongly urge you to check them out.

Seth

 

[domino22]

are you happy with this housing i like the price but no the lights they offer?

 

[sdwho]

are you happy with this housing i like the price but no the lights they offer?

We are planning on getting lights for our video housing in the next month or so. Can you explain a bit more what you don't like about the lights offered by Undersea? Thanks

Seth

 

[domino22]

have not done my investigation of lights to the point i will open my wallet yet.so here is what i am leaning towards. HID and smaller lite heads. as for what i did not like about these was looks.others know alot more about lights than me,sorry if i mispoke.

 

[Nitrox Junkie]

I have a Sony DCR-TRV 350 and bought a equinox housing. I love the housing. My camera has the option to take digital stills. Well the housing came with levers to take stills and zoom underwater.... What were they thinking? I have done a ton of taping in the great lakes and never have I wanted to zoom in on anything. Also, if you hook the camera up to your television when you get home, you can hit the photo button on the remote while your playing the video in the comfort of your own home to take stills that way. I love the housing but would if had it to do over, remove the two buttons I never use. Fist time buyers with Equinox get big price break. I am from Michigan where they are out of and had a friend pick it up for me (Never had to pay shipping or tax since I live in Indiana). If you have any questions about the Equinox housing let me know or check out their site. www.dive-equinox.com

Jeff "Great lakes diver"

 

[ronrosa]

My camera has the option to take digital stills. Well the housing came with levers to take stills and zoom underwater.... What were they thinking? I have done a ton of taping in the great lakes and never have I wanted to zoom in on anything.

I use the zoom for macro subjects like sea horses, nudibranchs, etc.. How about a close up on the eye, mouth, etc.. of an animal ?

 

[Nitrox Junkie]

The taping I do I don't get close to the subjects because they are very large. I can get plenty of close up's just getting close. The wide angle lense that came with my housing get's blurry if you zoom in with it, and if you don't use the wide angle you can't get a wide enough view of the shipwrecks I tape. The housing comes with a .42 wide angle lense that has a macro option if you take the wide off. I think that would be good enough for closeup's. I am just saying that my type of video does not nor will it ever require the zoom feature. Thanks for the comment. This is what is nice about the board. A thread starter can compile all suggestions to come up with an educated decision..

Jeff "Great lakes diver"