Canon A720IS or Oly Sp560??

Hi !!

I'm looking a camera for underwater photography, i read few posts here and decied to chose canon A720IS or olympus SP560, but i realy dont know wich one will be better for a beginner like me??
Maybe you will be able to help me, so im watinig for any advice!!

Thanks for any advice!!!

I have an a720is. The reason I got it is that I had an a710is and I really liked the features that make it uniquely suited to UW work. To begin with I shoot only manual mode underwater. You might be a beginner but you must understand and use manual settings to get GOOD results. The only exception to this is probably macro work as the flash is doing the thinking. The a720is manual mode shutter and aperature adjustments are simple. The MWB and manual flash settings are also straightforward but accessed from the menu (I'd prefer buttons). I think that MWB is THE most important feature of a P&S UW camera. You can configure the "special feature" button to display the MWB menu. The MWB works in movie mode as well - big plus. I really like the way that the a720is screen displays the image at the current exposure with the flash set to off (as it will appear in the picture - dark to black when underexposed, and light to white when overexposed). This makes setting the exposure a breeze. It also allows you to set the background exposure accurately when using an external strobe -- just turn the internal flash off, set the background exposure and turn the flash back on. I like a darker background when using the flash --- let the flash illuminate the subject. I would like to see more than three flash power levels - but you can adjust the aperature to fine tune exposure. Tha A720is also uses AA batteries - a great feature. You can use hi-capacity NiMh rechargeables and take a LOT of pix on a charge. Add 6x optical zoom and optical image stabilization and you've got a great little camera. Oh - one drawback - no RAW mode; but most beginners don't use that feature anyway. And you can't have everything. BTW I bought this camera to replace an a710is that I gave to my son after his Oly 5050 flooded. The 5050 is probably the best UW consumer camera ever made but costs more used now than a new a720is. The a720is can be had at Office Depot right now for $170.

Having said all that, I've looked at the features that the oly sp5060 has to offer:
Steves Digicams - Olympus SP-560 UltraZoom - Hands on Review
Looks like the oly has all the features that the a720is has and more (color lcd viewfinder...) It also uses AA batteries, has RAW mode and an 18x optical zoom. Realistically you'll never use that much zoom underwater - but above water YES!
It's a bit bigger than the a710is as well.

So my conclusion is that the oly is a better basic camera because of the zoom, RAW mode, viewfinder... I have not used one underwater but I'm sure that it does great. I'd most surely get the oly if that were my only camera.
I got the a720is for travel because it's compact for an advanced camera and because it was inexpensive. I use a DSLR now for underwater work - but I'm still considering a housing for the canon for simplicity and video capability.

Hope this helps!

M

I have to agree with howard4113. They are both great cameras. I went with the A720IS because I liked the smaller size, both U/W and on the surface.

Several other good options are the A570IS (very, very similar capabilities to the A720IS and a bit cheaper) and the A640 that uses 4 AA batteries which is selling point for some people. People get excellent results with all 4 of these cameras.

Thanks for advice howard4113 and Rickg I use oly E500 as basic camera, so i think better choice will be A720IS (and cheaper).

luki2678:

Thanks for advice howard4113 and Rickg I use oly E500 as basic camera, so i think better choice will be A720IS (and cheaper).

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luki2678,

You are welcome. Look forward to seeing photos from your new camera.

If you would like to see some pictures taken with an A720IS just click on the "picasaweb" link on the bottom of my signature page and select the Sipadan 2007 Underwater folder. All of the photos were shot either with natural light or the in-camera strobe and have had only minimal photo editing done to them (because I'm not very good at photo editing and because the only photo editing programs I've used are those that are free). Photo editing is something that I want to get better at.

Anyhow, good luck with your search and hope you enjoy your new toy.

Can someone recommend a strobe for the A720IS?