Stepping up, need some recommendations on where to buy though..

It looks like I'll be able to get my own camera rig instead of using the borrowed rig I use now(SeaLife 310 owned by one friend and a strobe owned by another - LOL). I'll be purchasing an Olympus 5060 with the Olympus housing, however my question will come to where I should purchase this set at.

http://www.17photo.com/
Sells the camera $490
Casing for $185
256 card for $60
Total: $735

http://www.helixcamera.com/home.html
Sells the camera, housing, and 128card for $800 as a package
It also states that the camera comes with:
32MB xD-Picture Card™
(1) BLM-1 Li-ion Battery and Charger
Win/Mac USB Cable
Video Cable
Carry Strap
Lens cap/Retainer cord
RM-2 Wireless Remote
Warranty Card
CD-ROM: CAMEDIA Master Software, WindowsTM 98 Rev 2 Driver, and Camera Reference Manual

Are all these things included with the camera as a standard and should I assume they would come with the camera if I bought it from 17photo, which doesn't list these items as included?

Anybody have any experience with either of these online vendors? I know Yuzo's is good, but its across seas, so I have to ship the cam out to utilize the warranty and the prices are a little steaper.

Thanks for any help

I bought my 5060 through bhphotovideo.com. It was recommended to me by a professional photographer. I don't know if it is more or less expensive than the ones that you are already considering. What I do know is that the customer service is awesome. I think that the price I paid was less than what was stated once I put it in a basket. Good luck!

Ann Marie

Nice site, but for the camera, card, and housing, I'm looking at almost $900 and it doesn't state whether or not the camera comes with this stuff:

32MB xD-Picture Card™
(1) BLM-1 Li-ion Battery and Charger
Win/Mac USB Cable
Video Cable
Carry Strap
Lens cap/Retainer cord
RM-2 Wireless Remote
Warranty Card
CD-ROM: CAMEDIA Master Software, WindowsTM 98 Rev 2 Driver, and Camera Reference Manual

What did yours come with?

That should be the standard package for a US warranted factory sealed camera. Bought my 5050 from B&H. I would suggest a 1 gb card - it will hold about 300 pics shot in SHQ. A typical file is about 3mb, so a 256 will only hold 85+ pics. You could use that much in one dive if you're in a hot spot. Also get an extra battery. Not sure how long the 5060 battery will last. With my 5050 (4-AAs) I change batteries after 2 dives (internal flash fires every time).

SuPrBuGmAn:

Nice site, but for the camera, card, and housing, I'm looking at almost $900 and it doesn't state whether or not the camera comes with this stuff:

32MB xD-Picture Card™
(1) BLM-1 Li-ion Battery and Charger
Win/Mac USB Cable
Video Cable
Carry Strap
Lens cap/Retainer cord
RM-2 Wireless Remote
Warranty Card
CD-ROM: CAMEDIA Master Software, WindowsTM 98 Rev 2 Driver, and Camera Reference Manual

What did yours come with?

Click to expand...

Came with it all except maybe the picture card. It might have but I went out and bought a larger card. I'm trying out the camera tonight! Oh, there is a small reference manual, but you will want to download the BIG manual from the cd-rom.

Thanks for the replies good info - should be ordering by the end of next week.

We bought our 5060 from X17 and are very happy with it. Off hand I believe we got everything your second website offered in their package but don't quote me on that. Hubby also bought a strobe kit for it and I'm not sure what came out of which box.

Here's a tip on the memory cards: I paid $179 at Best Buy for a 1gb Compact Flash card but a friend of mine said newegg.com has the same Sandisk card (1 gig mind you) for $95--WOW! Here is the link my friend sent me. He says he has bought from them often and always had good results. There are 2 different 1gb cards (one is only $68) but I'm not sure what the difference is.

We've had the camera out once and absolutely love it although I have to get used to the fact that there is a rather long pause between the time you push the shutter button and the time the camera actually takes the photo.

Good luck!
Ber :lilbunny:

Ber Rabbit:

We've had the camera out once and absolutely love it although I have to get used to the fact that there is a rather long pause between the time you push the shutter button and the time the camera actually takes the photo.

Click to expand...

Push the button half way first. Then lag will be much shorter.

lukeROB:

Push the button half way first. Then lag will be much shorter.

Click to expand...

So I line up for the photo, do a half button push then a full one?
Ber

Ber Rabbit:

So I line up for the photo, do a half button push then a full one?
Ber

Click to expand...

Yeah...sort of. When you half-press, your camera has time to lock in the focus. When your satisfied with what's in the frame, finish pressing the button....don't release it and do a full push. This makes the shutter lag miniscule although depending on the subjects, it can sometimes take a few seconds, seems like forever sometimes, to lock in the focus. A small focusing light helps tremendously, even in the daytime.