Nikon, Oly, or Canon Which P&Shoot?

[jp_bowers]

Simple question...... but I'm sure..... Not a simple question to answer.

I'm getting ready to buy my first point & shoot (digital) with the idea that it must, of course, do both land and UW pictures as well as I can afford.

The budget: Somewhere around $500.00 for both the housing and the camera.

I have been giving serious consideration to the Canon A95 ....... but have just decided to ask you pros your opinions about which ones to look at.

Thanks for your help!

 

[hdtran]

Look for the housing first, then, add the camera.

I think the Canon & Oly housings run in the $170-$200 range. So, for a $500 budget, you're looking for a $300-$330 camera. I haven't looked at the Sony or Nikon housings recently, but I suspect that they're also in the same price range.

Fish through the DPREVIEW website; it's got lots of good reviews of the various (unhoused) cameras.

Of course, we haven't included about $100 for flash memory media (which you will want). Other considerations are: Proprietary batteries, or AA/AAA size batteries?

Not to give you a hard time, but I think you'll be happy with whichever camera & housing you choose!

 

[ChrisA]

Simple question...... but I'm sure..... Not a simple question to answer.

I'm getting ready to buy my first point & shoot (digital) with the idea that it must, of course, do both land and UW pictures as well as I can afford.

The budget: Somewhere around $500.00 for both the housing and the camera.

I have been giving serious consideration to the Canon A95 ....... but have just decided to ask you pros your opinions about which ones to look at.

Thanks for your help!

I have a Canon A80 and like it. One nice feature is that it take four AA batteries. Even with the flash the four batteries provide enough power for hundreds of photos. This is not the case with a camera that takes only two AA bateries. You do NOT want to be openning the housing in an uncontrolled environment. Nice to be able to do an entire day of diving without need to open the case.

the A95 or A80 internal flash is good enough for subjects up to a few feet away.

Figure on getting a 512MB CF card and a couple sets of rechargable nickle hydride batteries and a charger

The larger Olys really are nicers but your budget would be squeezed

 

[DesertEagle]

The A95 is a really nice camera. The A85 is the 4MP equivalent and is also nice. I would prefer the Canons to Olympus because they use CF instead of xD which is more expensive.

 

[andrea31419]

I have the Olympus C4000Z, 4mp. I've enjoyed this camera.

A.

 

[ChrisA]

The A95 is a really nice camera. The A85 is the 4MP equivalent and is also nice. I would prefer the Canons to Olympus because they use CF instead of xD which is more expensive.

The Oly 5060 takes either xD or CF, there are two slots. The 5060 has several other large advantages over the Canon A85/95. The most impotent is the ability to same images in "raw" format but also the 5060 has a TTL "hot shoe" mount for a strobe. I think the Ikilite housing connects this to an external conector. I could go on listing more features. The 5060 seems to be targeted at the more serious photographer. It also costs about double the price of the Canon

 

[herman]

If you intend to use it UW, I would suggest you reconsider getting a P&S. You really need to be able to go manual for UW. As a suggestion look at the Oly C-765. It has a very good macro mode (very important UW for me), a 10x optical zoom (IMO very important on land and the only thing I dislike about my C5050's 3x) and you can get the PT-022 housing for it. I just priced them at B&H - Camera $335 and housing $230 or about $600 by the time you add a couple of cards and batteries. If you get into UW photography, you will be glad you spent the extra and got a camera with macro and manual modes. As it happens a dive buddy was wanting my opinion on this camera the other day so I had the figures close at hand. You can also use an external UW strobe with this camera, something you may well want to add later.

 

[msandler]

Sealife ReefMaster DC300 under $300! Takes decent pics too. Very happy with it for the price. Added 512Mb SD memory for another $45. 3.3 mega pixels and 200ft depth rating. Had it to 170 so far - bone dry. Call Scubatoys.com

 

[RonFrank]

I chose the Canon S70 for UW, and as a small carry around camera.

You don't bother to really say WHAT your goal with the camera is? If you just want take and post images online, than a lower mpix model (3.3mpix) will work well.

If you plan on making good 8x10's and may want the capability to go larger, than you will want to look at a 5mpix+ model.

Optics make a BIG difference as does focus capabilities and speed (how fast can it focus and shoot). RAW has some big advantages in Digital as well. The S70 and Oly 5060/8080 also go wide (28mm/27mm). IMO as these camera's are not really fast enough to capture action, having a big zoom is less important vs. WA capabilities.

As others have pointed out, you can NOT just plan on the expense of the camera/housing alone. An extra battery (look online, off brands work well, often have more power and are cheap), Media, a case, extra o-rings, etc. are all going to cost.

I paid about $400 including shipping for the S70, and about $150 for the housing. I did a LOT of research, and it boiled down to the S70, and the Oly 8080. My #1 choice was really the Oly 8080, but I really wanted a pocket sized camera for land use, and the 8080 was just too close in size to my DSLR's. I really wanted a camera that was a non-event to carry around.

The S70 also can fire any UW slaved strobe on the market as the pre-flash can be cancelled. The Oly's are larger, but they have the advantage of flash TTL.

The A95 is a reasonable solution, and love that tiny size. The optics are NOT as good as the OLY or the Canon S70, nor is it very wide (36mm I think). Nikon also makes some interesting choices mainly the 5000 lines (5600/5200).

You are right it's not a simple question. Also many (most?) pro's don't use PnS's and the only reason I ever came up to speed was I just happened to be in the market and researching them.

Good Luck,

Simple question...... but I'm sure..... Not a simple question to answer.

I'm getting ready to buy my first point & shoot (digital) with the idea that it must, of course, do both land and UW pictures as well as I can afford.

The budget: Somewhere around $500.00 for both the housing and the camera.

I have been giving serious consideration to the Canon A95 ....... but have just decided to ask you pros your opinions about which ones to look at.

Thanks for your help!

 

[scubajunkee]

I chose the Canon Powershot S40 (4MP) camera. $250 used, housing $180 new.

But before getting this camera I did lots of research. A good place to start is www.stevesdigicams.com. This guy reviews all of the digital cameras that are currently on the market. He takes sample shots, evaluates the menu system, and other features. He also has a section for underwater cameras, but mentions other cameras can be housed for underwater use.

After doing research I talked to divers in my area (Monterey, CA) and the popular point and shoot cameras seem to be the Olympus 4000, 4040, 5050 & 5060; Canon A75,A80, A95 & S40-S70. I had a few buddies with the Olympus 5060s and another buddy with the Canon Powershot S40. After seeing the results my friend got with the S40, I decided to get the same camera. I would've gone with the Olympus 5060, but the price was over $500 w/o the housing.

Since buying my Canon S40, I've been real happy, except for the camera's battery life. It lasts for about 80 minutes and then dies. Most of my dives are about 50 minutes and during the 2nd dive, I lose the camera halfway through. I'm definitely picking up another battery for the 2nd and consequent dives. Just last month I picked up the Inon D2000 strobe, Inon wide-angle lens, & Inon macro lens. Also, got the Ultralight arms and tray. Those pieces total were just under $1800. For sample shots, check out my photo gallery.

Hope this helps,

Ericson

Simple question...... but I'm sure..... Not a simple question to answer.

I'm getting ready to buy my first point & shoot (digital) with the idea that it must, of course, do both land and UW pictures as well as I can afford.

The budget: Somewhere around $500.00 for both the housing and the camera.

I have been giving serious consideration to the Canon A95 ....... but have just decided to ask you pros your opinions about which ones to look at.

Thanks for your help!