waterproof cameras

[geoff s]

My son asked me the other day if I wanted to go halves with him on a GOPRO. He wants it for video whereas I'm not particularly interested

in that, though I am interested in a waterproof camera that would be acceptable for Alamy. I'm assuming Gopro's aren't.

Last time I looked, there didn't seem to be anything much on the market ( I tend to have a look at this time each year) . The Olympus TG5 has RAW but a small sensor.

Don't suppose anyone knows of anything new or in the pipeline theat would firstly meet my requirements and secondly which might also satisfy the boy for his (helmet mounted ?)

video  ?

 

Thanks

Geoff

[Ed Brown]

Very difficult without spending serious cash.  Sony RX100 in a Sony housing maybe. I have stuff on Alamy using an Olympus EPL1 (4/3) and housing which could probably be bought pretty cheap 2nd hand now.  One of the problems is that youre not only relying on the camera but the quality of the glass/plastic on the housing

[Niels Quist]

- also thought of the Sony RX100 in a Sony housing. However, I would have a fear of leaking seals in a secondhand housing, they are pretty sensitive.

[Allan Bell]

I think that whatever you find to suit your purposes and be waterproof will be too heavy to mount on your sons' helmet.

 

It is a matter of horses for courses I'm afraid.

 

Just my opinion.

 

Allan

 

 

[Johnnie5]

Do a web search for action cameras, there are some really inexpensive ones on Amazon.  It may not meet your needs but it may make the lad happy.

[cbimages]

If you want a camera good enough to take underwater images for Alamy, you'll need to mortgage the house. A DSLR in a good quality underwater housing and bulkheads for 2 lights. Plus you'll need lenses and ports to suit. If you are not already an underwater photographer, you'll need to come to terms with changes to colour spectrum, backscatter, harsh shadows etc, just to name a few issues. and of course you need to be a very good and competent diver too, with perfect buoyancy control, because it's amazingly easy to kick up a nasty swirl of sand right into your photo. Or to concentrate on getting your photo and killing off the surrounding marine life. It's hard work!

 

Because of the cost of the equipment, think very carefully before committing, and with care, you can get a long life from your camera system. I am still using my original Canon 5D, bought new in 2005, in a Subal Housing, with 580ex speedlite (also in a Subal housing) + an Inon 240z. I have 4 ports and numerous lenses and gears and also use a Subsee +5 for tiny stuff.

 

 

[Jools Elliott]

5 hours ago, cbimages said:

If you want a camera good enough to take underwater images for Alamy, you'll need to mortgage the house. A DSLR in a good quality underwater housing and bulkheads for 2 lights. Plus you'll need lenses and ports to suit. If you are not already an underwater photographer, you'll need to come to terms with changes to colour spectrum, backscatter, harsh shadows etc, just to name a few issues. and of course you need to be a very good and competent diver too, with perfect buoyancy control, because it's amazingly easy to kick up a nasty swirl of sand right into your photo. Or to concentrate on getting your photo and killing off the surrounding marine life. It's hard work!

 

Because of the cost of the equipment, think very carefully before committing, and with care, you can get a long life from your camera system. I am still using my original Canon 5D, bought new in 2005, in a Subal Housing, with 580ex speedlite (also in a Subal housing) + an Inon 240z. I have 4 ports and numerous lenses and gears and also use a Subsee +5 for tiny stuff.

 

 

 

I concur with this. I've just started down the road of underwater photography having just completed a level 1 scuba diving course in Martinique.

 

It took four lessons before they allowed me to take a Gopro with me. Even then it wasn't simple and is best mounted on a wrist strap so that your hands are free to communicate with your monitor.

 

As CBIMAGES says just jumping in isn't going to work. From the experience I've just had I found it better to start with a baptism to see if it was something I wanted to continue with then went on to do the level 1 course so that I could learn to stabilize myself in the water.

 

A company in Germany lent me a housing for my DSLR but the reality of that particular brand is that it isn't really suited to scuba diving and as such is better to go for a proper housing.

 

The images and footage from the GoPro look good but you certainly need to understand processing to correct the loss of the various channels in Photoshop etc.

[geoff s]

Thanks for the replies.

I'm not thinking of getting into 'proper' underwater photography. I do a lot of sea kayaking and other activities that are a potentially harmful to cameras so a waterproof or at the very least very weather resistant, small camera would be useful - a waterproof Sony rx100 would be ideal.

Seems to me to be a gap in the market and each year I hope that someone might fill it, though apparently not yet.

[John Rodgers]

6 hours ago, geoff s said:

Thanks for the replies.

I'm not thinking of getting into 'proper' underwater photography. I do a lot of sea kayaking and other activities that are a potentially harmful to cameras so a waterproof or at the very least very weather resistant, small camera would be useful - a waterproof Sony rx100 would be ideal.

Seems to me to be a gap in the market and each year I hope that someone might fill it, though apparently not yet.

 

Maybe get the GOPRO and upload them to Eyeem or a similar stock photo company.

[cbimages]

12 hours ago, geoff s said:

Thanks for the replies.

I'm not thinking of getting into 'proper' underwater photography. I do a lot of sea kayaking and other activities that are a potentially harmful to cameras so a waterproof or at the very least very weather resistant, small camera would be useful - a waterproof Sony rx100 would be ideal.

Seems to me to be a gap in the market and each year I hope that someone might fill it, though apparently not yet.

Geoff, hubby has 2 GoPro's + lights and a backscatter macro diopter.  Even from his newer GoPro5, the underwater images are very poor, and that is with help from the lights. 

[wiskerke]

Don't know how long this one has been around:

https://www.sealife-cameras.com/

https://www.dpreview.com/samples/1764416479/sealife-dc2000-sample-gallery

 

wim

[rickboden]

I was about to start a thread with this exact question so I'm glad I searched first.  I am looking for a waterproof option for kayaking or paddleboarding and have been looking for a camera with at least a 1" sensor which leaves the Sealife or Sony RX0...at least it did until I started to look at waterproof housing options for my Sony a6500.  I came across the ewa-marine housings which are basically a plastic bag with an optically clear glass.  Not real cheap and probably a bit more cumbersome but better image quality for sure.  I'm wondering if anyone has any thoughts on these options or perhaps something else?

 

Rick Boden

[Peter Jordan]

I have a couple of Olympus cameras with waterproof lenses, but a cheaper option, which I also have, is a Sony RX10 (Mk1) 

 

IQ is like an RX100 M2.  

 

Handling is very good, it is laid out like a proper camera used to be.  Only downside, from switching on to getting the zoom extended is slower than I would like. .. 

[Bill Brooks]

Nikon AW 14 megapixel 1 inch sensor underwater camera only good to 49 feet underwater. Only used it around water, not underwater, for stuff like this. Like being inside a washing machine full of sandy water. Over and over until you are washed ashore. Takes a licking and keeps on ticking.
 

 

[rickboden]

1 hour ago, Peter Jordan said:

I have a couple of Olympus cameras with waterproof lenses, but a cheaper option, which I also have, is a Sony RX10 (Mk1) 

 

IQ is like an RX100 M2.  

 

Handling is very good, it is laid out like a proper camera used to be.  Only downside, from switching on to getting the zoom extended is slower than I would like. .. 

 

Thanks Peter, I'm not sure if that model would handle being dropped in the water though...

[rickboden]

Bill, that looks almost perfect for my use.  Thanks, I'll keep my eye open for one.

 

Rick Boden

[Marianne]

I bought an $11 rubber housing at a sporting goods store for my iPhone last year summer (it's a 6S and I was and still am overdue for a new phone - our carrier gives us a break on cost every two years - so I figured I could risk it). Specifically got it for kayaking. Got some beautiful images and some footage that would be suitable for S. Not the quality you're looking for I'm sure, but fun and inexpensive. It floats and has a tie you can attach to your wrist or the kayak so it doesn't get lost. I wouldn't chance it with a new phone but it was good enough that I'd keep my old phone and use it. I'd love to find something better specifically for photos taken on a kayak or floating around in the water.

 

Underwater photography is an entirely different art, though I'd love to learn deep sea diving. The deepest I've done was snorkeling off catamarans in Puerto Rico and Mexico, though once as a teenager a friend let me try his tank diving off a pier in Connecticut - way too sandy to take photos but so much more sea life in the water I'd been swimming in than I'd imagined. As a kid I always dreamed of diving off the Great Barrier Reef. 

Edited July 19, 2019 by Marianne

[Peter Jordan]

3 hours ago, rickboden said:

 

Thanks Peter, I'm not sure if that model would handle being dropped in the water though...

 

Well, no it is OK in quite heavy rain, but I would not try to immerse it. : :

[rickboden]

Bill, thank you for mentioning the Nikon AW1.  It wasn't even on my radar but after doing a little research, it looks almost perfect.  I found a great condition used one locally and picked it up this morning.  Now I think I need something like a floating neck strap so I don't lose it.  

 

Rick Boden

Edited July 22, 2019 by rickboden
Additional text

[Bill Brooks]

On 22/07/2019 at 14:46, rickboden said:

Now I think I need something like a floating neck strap so I don't lose it.  

 

Rick Boden

 

I mainly use a short wrist strap. When you are wallowing around in the water, or in a canoe, or playing action man in the surf, the camera swinging from a neck strap can become a guided missile aimed at your head. You could also get strangled.

 

With  wrist strap, if you need the camera hand, just let go of the camera and it will dangle from your wrist. If you need the camera, flick your wrist and the camera should come around into holding position.

 

Check the "o" ring between the camera and the interchangeable lens. It should be clean, flexible, and undamaged. Get some lubricant for the ring from a dive shop and use once a year. Make sure you are using the waterproof version of the lens. Not all lenses that will fit the camera are waterproof. In the ocean immerse the camera in a bucket of fresh water between dives. Do not hold camera under a faucet. Too much water pressure.

 

Use and enjoy.

 

[rickboden]

Thank you.  Good advice.  I have the 11-27.5mm lens and thinking about the 10mm but it's not that much wider.  I guess better resolution and perhaps better for underwater?

 

Rick Boden