First uw camera-g15 or e-pl5??or something else??

[Lntl2887]

Hi there,

I really want to invest on a nice uw camera that takes great photos but also easy to use. I was doing some research and noticed the canon g15 looks nice, but I have also been impressed with the olympus e-pl5 . I know that it is expensive and was wondering do either do these need a strobe for the best photos and how many? I rather not need one if it was possible.

What do you all recommend for my first nice uw camera that is simple but take awesome photos?
I am looking to order one in a couple of weeks. I am open to any suggestions.

Thank you all for your help!!

 

[orenbvip]

What i've learned is that the lighting is more important than the camera. So depends on your budget. I went from a S90 with not strobe to E-PL1 with strobe and now e-pl5 with 2 strobes. I go great shots with the S90, just don't expect wide angle shots but macro was not bad. Most importantly I learned how to use a camera underwater and basic techniques that are fundamental such as getting close and shooting up.

 

[Lntl2887]

Hi,
if I invest for the e-pl5 I would probably most likely need strobes? I wasn't sure if it was completely necessary or not. Thank you for your help!

 

[richard65]

I definitely agree strobes are key. When I got my first point and shoot I added a strobe after a while and suddenly I had colour and not just the green tint. I have now upgraded to the Olympus EPL-5 with duel strobes and what a great set up it is. At the moment it far exceeds my ability but like a pair of school trousers your mum buys you, I will grow into it


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[EskilJ]

If you have a nice strobe like the YS-D1, light is sufficient for the small CCD. You can do nice macro right out of the box.
Note that on the g15 the flash is covered by the lens port, so you will need a strobe.

The larger CCD of the e-pl5 and better lenses will give you the option of slightly better pictures with the strobe, but clearly better pictures in natural light. But you'll need a strobe or two, you'll need separate wet macro lenses for macro.
It's a much larger setup - you can bring your g15 as an attachment when diving, the e-pl5 with strobes is a two hand setup - then you dive to take pictures..
You can then add a zen dome and a 9-18mm zoom for the e-pl5 for really wide photos.. More options for your money to "drip away" with the e-pl5..

You really should decide if you want a handy snapshot camera - then some of the compacts are great - especially those where you can use the flash in "emergency" situations - or a GoPro - for diving and accidentially taking some pictures

Or a big two hand setup, where your focus of the diving is the pictures. But with better possibilities for great pictures, when you get experienced.

 

[glina]

What do you all recommend for my first nice uw camera that is simple but take awesome photos?
I am looking to order one in a couple of weeks. I am open to any suggestions.

As always, a lot depends on your budget.
A Canon underwater housing for the G15 costs $240 while the same for Olympus E-PL5 is $750 and if you want to use zoom on your kit zoom lens, you might need to purchase additional zoom gears as well.
3rd party housings are even more expensive.

Then obviously a lot depends on how advanced you are with photography overall. You'll usually get best results if you set your parameters manually.

The E-PL5 has a bigger sensor and will deliver a better picture quality in general, but if the choice is between a kit E-PL5 + housing, or a G15 + 2x strobes and a macro or wide conversion lens (similar budget), than obviously the second one is a far better option.

 

[PatW]

Here are some tips for choosing a system.

1). Get a camera that handles RAW files. RAW allows you to adjust white balance in post processing.

2) Strobes make a huge difference. Water absorbs the colors out of the light spectrum. If you are deeper than 15', you will not see any reds. The long wave lengths go first. If you want natural colors, you need strobes. Two strobes make for better lighting than one strobe. By the way, a focus light is really nice for focusing on small critters in low light.

3). Long range in underwater photography is 5'. You want to get really close to your subject. If you have a large subject, like a landscape or diver, you will want a really wide angle lens.

4) In most areas, there are many small subjects. For those you will want a macro lens.

5) Metal housings offer a more compact solution with better control. Of course, it comes at a price.

6). You show no more than 24 dives. Keeping track of your dive and taking photos underwater easily leads to task loading which can lead problems.

You might check out the web sites of Blue water Photo, Backscatter, and Reef Photo and Video. They rate certain camera systems and explain the trade offs. They have reviews and articles. They are good places to do research.