Underwater camera for a beginner

[The.Cancerian]

Hi..
I am looking for a underwater camera that i can use while diving, i don’t want something professional but something good at the same time.

Any suggestions?

 

[rwardjr]

I'm a newbie as well and been shopping the past week. I've talked to a few guys that use the Sea & Sea HD1200 with single strobe and really like it for stills and video. It's change under $1k.

I'm going next week on my first salt water dive and decided to focus on getting there and back and then will look at a camera

 

[The.Cancerian]

Thanks a lot
waiting for others opinions

 

[damage]

Lots of options around here, depends on your budget, I've been using a canon G11 for a while, and really liked, the OEM canon housing is cheap and you can access to all buttons, if you are willing to spend more you can get the Ikelite housing.

The only con is that the G11 is not a very small camera, if this is an issue, you can get a S90 a great camera too and a more travel friendly size.

Check this threadhttp://www.scubaboard.com/forums/canon-corner/334949-cannon-s90-g11.html

 

[1_sl]

As a beginner, a simple but good point & shoot camera with a housing that's good to depth of 130 ft should be sufficient for you to bring some nice memories back from the water.

A strobe may help you get better color, but some camera's built-in flash works fine too if most of your dives are in tropical water with great vis. So that could be a later upgrade.

The housing price could change dramatically if you need something deeper than 130 ft.

A new set of P&S camera (like Canon G series or Olympus) with basic manufacture housing (<130ft) and accessories would cost about $600-700 without considering additional lens, strobes, etc. Later could easily cost another grand or two.

If you're looking for something less than that, then a used set might be an option (I might have one up for sell soon).

 

[Larry C]

Right now, you can't do much better than a Canon-G11 or S90. In the Canon housing, you can use the built in flash. I think if you get and aftermarket housing, you'll need a strobe. Eventually, you'll get a strobe anyway.
Before you task load yourself with photography, make sure you're a competent diver. Your buoyancy skills and your knowledge of navigation and safety procedures should be automatic before you touch a camera underwater. You should also have a really good handle on your gas consumption because the camera will take your attention away from your gauges.