Sea & Sea DX-1200 HD for first time purchaser?

[FrankPro1]

FrankPro1,

I can't seem to find any details on the 2G from the Sea & Sea site.
Would you have a link with all the details?

~Keath

The 2G isn't on their site yet, its due for release this spring some time. I've been wondering about the quality of the 1200hd pictures. Could you send me a few, so I can view its quality? "Doesn't matter if its underwater or not, I just want to get an idea for how good the lens quality is"

My email is frankpromutico@sbcglobal.net

The reason I stated about lens quality "I should have said sensor" was from this quote by a Sea&Sea rep: "The DX-1G accessories are 100% compatible with the DX-2G - Wide-Angle Lens, Close-Up lens, macro diffuser, etc. If interested, you can download the 2009 Product Catalog HERE.
The DX-1200HD, while @ 12MP and with HD video does not produce the image quality that the DX-1G or 2G does. This is due to a variety of things, most importantly the sensor quality. Additionally, the DX-1200HD is approximately 50% less at MSRP than the 1G/2G. We highly recommend NOT comparing these 2 cameras based on resolution alone."

 

[H2O Photo Pros]

I will get the specs for you guys on the 2G. One thing I just learned last week, that I was not aware of, is the new 2G will NOT have HD video capability. I thought they would have it since they have it on the 1200HD.

 

[justaddwater2001]

I have bought this kit for the HD video capability which works fine but apparently DX1200-HD performs very nice as a still camera as well. I have used it with magic filter and manual white balance and got some nice results.

Pros : HD video , 12MP camera, Very Compact, Good Housing
Cons: Limited Manual Controls, Short batery life with strobe

Cheers,

A comprehensive review of this camera can be found in my blog under the tags DX1200-HD.

 

[justaddwater2001]

Here are some examples that i have shot under very bad conditions for photography,
(i.e. very little light, cloudy weather) without using a strobe in shallow water

another shallow water photo

and this one was shot at 67 feet without strobes and with manual whitebalance.

Cheers,

 

[ltcmiller]

OK folks, I bought the new HD1200 Apr 2009 in prep for dive trip with PADI Sport Diver Mag editor Ty Sawyer and crew to Tobago, Speyside for photo assignment. The camera takes great top-side pic and videos. I had tried it out prior to this trip in local 80 ft depth water and had problems with the camera freezing up underwater. Over the course of seven days in Tobago with Ty Sawyer and Michael Pitts of the BBC (famed under water videographer), the camera failed each and every dive after one or two pictures. We thought the rubber lens boot might be seizing the lens so we applied a little lubricate to it and that didn't work. We next trimmed some of the boot and that didn't work. Can't tell if it is a heat problem or what. The camera works fine and gives great pictures and video in and out of the housing. But fails to keep from freezing up under water in the housing after 1-3 pictures. I have notified Sea & Sea to see what their response is and I will keep you posted. This is my second camera and I am a PADI Master Diver and from the company I keep you should see I am not an amatuer photographer.

 

[Blazinator]

the camera failed each and every dive after one or two pictures. We thought the rubber lens boot might be seizing the lens so we applied a little lubricate to it and that didn't work. The camera works fine and gives great pictures and video in and out of the housing. But fails to keep from freezing up under water in the housing after 1-3 pictures.

Sorry to hear that. Sounds like this might be an isolated case? I haven't had any problems with mine (bought in May) and used it extensively in Maui for several hundred shots in and out of housing at mostly 30 ft depths, then four dives at Molokini and it worked great between 80 and 100 ft. My only complaint is that the AV cable is not mini HDMI, so you can't view the HD videos on an HD TV. Macro is nice on this camera too, although not enough glass to get sharpness all the way to edges, and a little chromatic abberation.

Not sure if I can adjust aperture settings on the 1200 HD, but you really need it on macro.
Shot below was shot in 3000 x 4000 pixels, then reduced for web to 756 x 1025, and cropped a little, keeping most of the detail in the central part of the pic.

 

[ltcmiller]

Yes, great top-side pictures and underwater pictures. However, in a week on diving with the camera last week I had major problems with it freezing up each dive and the only way to fix it is to surface, dry it off, take it out of the housing, and then do a "hot reboot" with the battery pulled for a second. Major pain in the butt. Has to do with the on/off button being pushed wrong, or by mistake when you want to use the take a picture button. I see it as a design flaw, in that their positions need to be swapped. Your first week long diving vacation is not the time to have problems with this camera.

 

[netdiver]

I have the DX1200, and this happened with mine as well. I took it on 4 dives in total. On the 3rd dive the camera "locked". I had to take out the battery and reinsert it to get it working again. This was back in April, but I recall that it didn't work immediately. I removed and replaced the battery, but it was still hung. I took out the battery and left it sitting in the hotel room for a few hours while away. When I returned, I inserted the battery and it was working fine. So this might not be the same issue but instead related to humidity/moisture in the unit.

I do agree with the button placement for the power and shutter being poor. It's not really a factor except when in the housing.

 

[netdiver]

I just went on a dive trip to Cabo San Lucas with the DX. It locked up again, which I think was due to heat. When I took out the camera is was cooking. Four minutes later it was working fine.

When I got home, I had another problem with lock-ups. I was attempting to download, and the battery went dead. Th camera shut off and the lens stayed out. I charged the battery and replaced it, but I couldn't do anything with the camera. All buttons did not work. I pulled the battery and no help. Finally, I took out the battery and waited approx. 20 min. When I replaced it, it was working again.. This was similar to my first experience which I attributed to humidity. This time I was in my home with air conditioning ( so extremely low humidity and temperature) so that shouldn't be a factor.

Picture quality is good. The 720P HD quality movies is a nice feature.

Short battery life... Camera seizes.... Limited ability for macro.... Battery life is like an iPhone (too short). I would not recommend this camera overall.

 

[MattiasA]

Have you recieved any feedback from Sea & Sea on the issue of the cam freezing up?

I just returned mine to the local distributor after the same thing happening during 3 dives and once on the surface (back home in my apartement). If the freeze happened during the dive, the battery was dead and the camera very warm once I ended the dive and got things dried up. I could see the "wait"-diod being lit up through the housing until the battery went out.

I also had issues with the "take-picture-button" not triggering until after several tries (blew a shark closeup for me and I ended up with a "tail-photo"). This was usually solved by a "soft reboot" using on/off, where as the freeze required me to remove and replace the battery.

Yesterday I got an email that they have so far been unable to replicate the error but will continue testing, so I'm interested to see what replies you got.