advice on choosing an underwater system

[JKist3]

I just posted this over on wetpixel but wanted to post here as well for additional advice, thanks!:

I want to get something to record the few dive and snorkel trips I go on (maybe 1 a year on average) and am having a hard time deciding on a good system for what I need. I mainly value the following:

1)ease of travel
2)ease of use
3)ease and cost of maintenance
4)quality of footage

Obviously there must be a trade off between these, so I'm trying to figure out what system offers the best balance. Originally I had thought I would get a compact system like an rx100 and take pics and video with it, but lately I'm having second thoughts. It seems to me that a video setup would be better than a photo setup for what I want because it would take away less from the experience of the dive and I wouldn't be a hold up to dive buddies while fumbling around with manual settings while trying to frame that perfect shot (please correct me if you think this assumption is wrong). As a result I'm seriously considering a gopro setup. I assume it should have a compact video system beat in ease of travel, use, and maintenance, but by how much? Also how much will I be giving up in terms of quality of footage? I'd appreciate any comparisons between these 2 options based on my criteria. Also if there's an option I'm not considering I'm open to hearing it. Thanks!

A few other thoughts:
-If I go the compact route I'm tempted to go towards an rx100 ii instead of a newer model because it seems better if I ever wanted to take pictures and I don't particularly care about 4k resolution for videos.
-the compact system has the added benefit of doubling as an above water camera. I would have more limited use for the gopro above water.
-I do snorkel about the same, if not more than I dive, so I want my setup to be good for snorkeling as well as diving.

 

[jfe]

Welcome first.
I think you need to look at a compact that you can use without having to carry an additional housing for. You want a camera that you can put in your BC pocket. Have a look at this page, maybe it will help you make a better judgment.
My personal recommendation is the Canon D30 (own one and love it).
The Best Waterproof Cameras of 2017 | Top Ten Reviews

 

[Hoag]

Last year, I went on a trip to Grand Turk and I wanted to simplify things. Normally, I take a full camera set-up with a camera (housing), tray, and two strobes. Last year, I didn't want to deal with all that and went very minimalistic. For underwater I took a GoPro with a red filter, a Deep Blue double handle tray ay a pair of small iTorch lights. By about the 2nd day, I found that the lights added so little to the shot that I just started leaving them in the hotel. (FWIW, I also took as small mirrorless camera for above the surface photography.)

The Good:
Very small set-up
Easy to maneuver underwater
Having two hands on the tray made for a relatively steady shot
It gave video that was very high quality considering all of the limitations (I am including me as one of those limitations.)

The Bad:
The dive lights were only effective if I was within a couple feet of the subject. If I forgot to remove the red filter, it gave "other worldly" colour casts to everything and if something started off several feet away and swam toward me, the colour shift was impossible to correct in iMovie. (This happened with a very friendly turtle.)
The GoPro that I was using was an older one and did not have an LCD on the back, so I had no real idea what I was videoing (how the shot was framed) until after I downloaded the video.

The Ugly (What would I do differently next time):
I would leave the video lights at home. (Yes I know that they will give a skilled videographer a far better shot, but for me, they resulted in more bad than good.)
I would use one of the Backscatter Flip 5 (or similar) systems to allow for different coloured filters for different depths.


Let's be honest, with a set-up like I am recommending, you probably won't win an Oscar for cinematography, but with a little practice, you will get high quality video that you will be happy to show your friends. One of the few big advantages of going for a system like this (a GoPro on a 2 handle tray and a couple filters) is that there is very little learning curve while underwater. The learning curve for me came after my trip when I was editing my video, but by then, I had all the time I needed.