a gift for my diving friend

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chalxx

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Hi all,

I am not a diver but would like to get your opinion which digital camera should I buy for my friend's birthday. She is a junior diver been diving for 2 years. She enjoy seeing the fish, etc.

Anyway, I couldn't decide what to get her:

A. Sealife Reefmaster Digital w/housing SL121- $350
comes w/1.3 mega pixel
3x Macro Lens - $ 40
Strobe - $190
Macro Kit - $140

or

B. Sea & Sea A-40 Powershot Package - $760
comes w/2.1 mega pixel, 3x Optical Zoom.
20 mm super wide lens - $330
More accessories

Thank you for all your help! ;-0
 
Don't know much about cameras yet. There is a photography section where they can help you. Here's my quesiton to you...

WANNA BE MY FRIEND????? LOL. Really thoughtful of you to do something like that!

Kristey:wink:
 
I would bet that if you are a very good friend, your certification and promising to be a good buddy would be a great gift. However, a nice digital camera is nice, too. Very, very nice.
 
Originally posted by chalxx
Hi all,

I am not a diver but would like to get your opinion which digital camera should I buy for my friend's birthday. She is a junior diver been diving for 2 years. She enjoy seeing the fish, etc.

Anyway, I couldn't decide what to get her:

A. Sealife Reefmaster Digital w/housing SL121- $350
comes w/1.3 mega pixel
3x Macro Lens - $ 40
Strobe - $190
Macro Kit - $140

or

B. Sea & Sea A-40 Powershot Package - $760
comes w/2.1 mega pixel, 3x Optical Zoom.
20 mm super wide lens - $330
More accessories

Thank you for all your help! ;-0

Of the two you mention, I'd go with the S&S 2.1 mp package. Mainly because the 2.1mp will give you the better pics and I trust S&S quality, although I'm not familiar with this particular product. The camera probably has a decent macro feature and the wide angle lens will be appreciated.
 
Thank you for all the reply.

I didn't meant to brag how much $$$$ I want to spend for my friend's bday. It's just I kinda got some xtra cash from side job and just get my best friend something that is memorable.

I called the seller and he said depend on the user's purpose.
S&S is ideal for poster print and if use to email takes long time to send a pic, which I doubt it.
SL121 is enough for regular prints and email.

So, I think for a beginner is decent.
 
My husband & I have had both Sealife & Sea & Sea cameras.

We had trouble with Sealife because the shutter lever wears out very quickly (we were using the camera nearly every weekend.) The shutter button on Sea & Sea has held up much better.

And I think it is beautiful that you are so tuned in to your beloved friend's hobby. If she is not too overwhelmed, I am sure she will be thrilled!
 
Originally posted by chalxx
I called the seller and he said depend on the user's purpose.
S&S is ideal for poster print and if use to email takes long time to send a pic, which I doubt it.
SL121 is enough for regular prints and email.

If you go for the 2.1 megapixel camera, the image files will be big enough (detailed enough) to produce a photo-quality 6x4-inch print, or an acceptable (depending how fussy you are) 10x8-inch print. They'll be on the big side for e-mailing to people, but making them smaller is trivial. Your friend can do it on her computer, before she e-mails the file, or she can (in most cases) set the camera to take a smaller picture if she only wants a quick snapshot to e-mail to someone.

I suspect that the camera in the Sea & Sea package is the Canon Powershot A40 -- check with the seller. You should be able to find a review of it on the Digital Photography Review site at:

http://www.dpreview.com/

The 1.3 megapixel camera won't make such good prints. She'll get an acceptable 6x4-inch print, but if she has a decent printer, people will probably be able to tell that the photo was taken with a digital camera, rather than a conventional one.

All other things being equal (and I can't tell you whether they are -- I know quite a lot about digital cameras but very little about underwater photography), the 2.1 megapixel camera is the better option if your friend will want to print her photographs.

Hope that helps,

Zept
 
thank you for all your great input.

I checked the prices on the 2.1 megapixel they are at least $400 and with the house at least another $300. Too much for me.

I think I'll settle with the SL121 with housing at $350.

and Dee, I read your site and they are very informative.

thank you!
 
I wish my wife would be that nice!!
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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