Intova cameras

[maildiver]

Does anyone out there know anything about Intova? Are these cameras any good? I am a beginner at taking pictures, getting better, looking to update my Sealife DC500. Intova makes a 10mp camera resonably priced. I was hoping to get a Sea % Sea 10mp but it's out of my price range. If anyone has used one let me know what you think.

 

[Lee Taylor]

Look up JoyfulLee on scubaboard and send her a private message. Ask her about her Intova. I do not know which model she has but it has failed to produce one good photo since it was new. She has taken hundreds of photos with it. All the photos are out of focus. She is very unhappy with the camera. Tell her I sent you.

 

[apertyx]

On the other hand, I'm on my second Intova, and have some wonderful photos AND video from them. Far from a DSLR, they are also far in price! There are better camera and housing combinations out there, but as you say - it depends on your budget. They've performed reasonably well for me: value for the money, if that's all you've got to spend (or want to spend).
Steve's Photography
All underwater photos and videos taken with Intova cameras.

 

[Shayne]

Hi I have an Intova ic-800 8meg one and it takes pretty good underwater photos also so use intova strobe on it and it is quite powerful have got some photos on Scubaboard if you want to have a look at them, under "shayne" all taken with that camera.

 

[kevinl4270]

I too have two IC 800 Intova cameras. I love them. I was really skeptical about the price. I have been shocked at how well they do. The only issue with them is a slow shutter speed. If you are on a drift dive it's tough to get a good pic. You have to learn to move your body around your subject to get a good clear shot.
I think for a first cam it's pretty hard to go wrong. I plan on after I get some more experience (2 or 3 years) to upgrade to a higher end rig.
One other down side to the Intova and it's the same with all cameras that use AA batteries is the burn rate of those batteries. It eats them up pretty good, but so does my Kodak Easyshare that I use on the boat.

 

[stilldivin]

Use Lithium AA batteries. They will give you much more use; up two seven times more, though I usually see them last three to four times as long as alkaline. I think the new Intovas use chargeable batteries.

 

[Rascally Rabbit]

Intova's product line seems to be a cost/value concious line. Many of their products are rebadged products that can be found under other manufacturers lines at highers cost.
I own 2 different model strobes from them, both can also be found under the Fantasea brand as the Nano and the Remora. Many people also have found them to make a good dive light. In general their products seem to function well and can be found discounted. I'd consider the cameras as a worthy product for a diver looking to take some quick snapshots underwater with reasonable results but it isn't for the avid experienced photographer looking for an advanced point and shoot.

 

[kevinl4270]

I recently bought the Intova Supernova and the the two armed base tray. I use the Supernova as a focus light and I have the IS-2000 strobe on the other side with an IC-12 camera in the middle. Wow. The Supernova adds so much light, and much underwater pics are much sharper and richer now. I will post some of the pics after I resize them, so they are not so big.
The IC-12 does have a rechargable battery now, instead of the AA's of previous models. You can charge the battery in the camera via a USB cable that comes with it.
Great feature so you don't have to worry about finding the proper plug/voltage when you are traveling. I did notice some variance in how long the battery lasted. I did 3 dives a day for 14 days. Most days the battery lasted all three dives, a few times it did not make it to the end of the 3rd dive. Some of it could be contributed to operator error. (ie me leaving the camera on during surface interval) I am ordering a back up battery as I am writing this, so as to make sure that is not a problem in the future.
Bottom line, after two years of owning Intova products, I am super pleased with their quality, performance and value. Add to that the support that I have gotten on this site from reps and fans alike and I can't see how you can go wrong with Intova.

 

[Ludicrous Depth]

All,

Purchased an Intova sport 8 camera a few years ago and still struggle with getting good pictures. It has a ton of features that allow you to change settings to different environments, but I still don't get the quality of pictures I think I should.

If anyone has this camera and is able to get good underwater pictures, I would love for you to reply with the settings that seem to work best for you.

We are planning another Caribbean dive in the Fall and would like to get all the bugs worked out before we go.

Thanks for the help