I Need Some Advise Please

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Hello to all,
I am call upon all you amateur or pro photographers out there for some advise.
I would like to get into underwater photography/videography but the prices to start are astronomical. Can I use a digital camera to take underwater videos with, that can then be downloaded onto a laptop and burnt on dvd's/cd's. Will the quality of the image be good. I understand that it will depend on how many frames per second etc. But what digi camera can you guys recommend. I would need one that is not limited in capture time I guess depending on the memory card? Any info or recommendations would greatly be appreciated.........Until then......PLEASE!!!
 
Will the image quality of a point and shoot still camera be good?

It will be OK - fine for posting on the internet... Grainy and somewhat distorted for DVD.

One that is not limited to capture time...well that's another story. Would you rather shoot video or take pictures?? You can get into an inexpensive UW video setup for around $1000... You can get into an inexpensive P&S Still camera setup for around $500-600 -

What do you really have in mind?
 
My $199 Olympus point and shoot digital camera (a SP-320 and SP-350) shoot 30 frames per second at 480 x 640 pixel resolution.

Put that with the $199 olympus PT-30 housing, and you're on your way for "decent" smooth motion at 30 fps on a laptop for under $400 us dollars.
 
Moved from Flash Dance :wink:

The Canon A series also do fine video for web viewing. I've also watched these after they were burned to disk and played on the tv, perfectly fine for casual viewing.

If your primary interest is video, then you should probably look into a dedicated video system. Most will take reasonable stills for viewing on the web, at least.

If your primary interest is stills, then one of these compacts with video capabilities is the way to go.
 
One thing that did impress me about my camera (Sony) was the video capability. It also shoots 640x480, 30 fps which looks pretty good IMO.
Kinda discovered it when I went on a dive that was too cloudy for any good still shots with my set-up, so I switched to video.
 
i don't think at the moment that there is a simple digital camera that can play more than 640x480, is there?
 
OK and thanks for all your feedback....I've narrowed it down to 2 cameras------>
The Canon Ixus range between 5-7 mgpxl and the Olympus SP-320/350 7-8 mgpxl with their appropriate housings. Which one would you guys pick? Both shoot at 30 fps while the Canon does give you a 60fps option also.

Many thanks in advance.....I forgot to mention that I need it to take pics and videos and then to burn on dvd for friends and customers to have a souvenir from there dive!!
 
Many thanks in advance.....I forgot to mention that I need it to take pics and videos and then to burn on dvd for friends and customers to have a souvenir from there dive!!
It's going to be a short video.

I have an SP350, It's great for stills, but I wouldn't use it for video - especially not that I was trying to sell. My buddy has a Canon A620, it will store 7 minutes of video on a 1GB card - if he doesn't shoot any pictures first.

The 60FPS option is obviously better. But likely cuts down the recording time significantly.

I'd think about a better video setup instead($1000-1500). Most allow you to shoot stills also up to the range of the CCD sensor - typically around 2MB in the better cameras. And you can also grab good(not great) stills off the tape during editing. I'm guessing that most of your customers will prefer seeing themselves on video - especially if you're selling them.

If you'd like, PM your e-mail address and I'll send you a short clip shot with the A620. It's completely unedited but will give you an idea of what to expect.
 
I wouldn't be looking at the Ixus range as there are no manual controls for your stills and your stills will be extremely limited without them. I'd keep looking at one of the A series by Canon.

BTW - short video clips are not a bad thing on this type of disk (one combining stills and video). From what I've seen, 1-3 minutes per clip is ample and people love it.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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