canon s80 vs sd800
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Just in time.. Been researching alot abt the housings.
Dunno abt the S80, but the SD800 is is a DREAM. lost mine during a dive, and will be gettin the same one. The image stabiliser is awesome, plus wide angle capability. Shoots good macro shots too.
Housing wise, the Ikelite seems a good choice, but it does not have a regular tripod mount like the WP-DC9, so mounting other strobes (cheaper ones i mean) seem to be a huge problem.
The WP-DC9 housing is more compatible with the lower end strobes in the market. I'm still deciding which housing to get too. Let me know!
Good luck!
Dunno abt the S80, but the SD800 is is a DREAM. lost mine during a dive, and will be gettin the same one. The image stabiliser is awesome, plus wide angle capability. Shoots good macro shots too.
Housing wise, the Ikelite seems a good choice, but it does not have a regular tripod mount like the WP-DC9, so mounting other strobes (cheaper ones i mean) seem to be a huge problem.
The WP-DC9 housing is more compatible with the lower end strobes in the market. I'm still deciding which housing to get too. Let me know!
Good luck!
Seems kinda redundant, but check these threads out
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=174067
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=174067
if you fill in your profile, sometimes it is easier to answer - I will give a pretty generic response. If you find a post by Alcina - on her signature are some links with good information about cameras...
anyhow : s80 vs sd800 :: very different cameras....S80 is now hard to get (and so can be expensive) but it is a great camera - you have manual controls on it and hence can take exceptional photos if you learn how to use it. SD800 is a true point and shoot (no manual controls). So really depends on you and where you are now with diving/photography and where you want to go with it... S80 will grow with you, SD800 will be limited (but it may be suffucient) : you should be able to get very good results from either,
as to Ike vs Canon housings: Ike housings are bigger and heavier (but built like tanks) Cannon are smaller, lighter weight and feel more fragile (i.e. you need to take a bit more care with them)...it really comes down to preference...i like my Ike housing (S80)
anyhow : s80 vs sd800 :: very different cameras....S80 is now hard to get (and so can be expensive) but it is a great camera - you have manual controls on it and hence can take exceptional photos if you learn how to use it. SD800 is a true point and shoot (no manual controls). So really depends on you and where you are now with diving/photography and where you want to go with it... S80 will grow with you, SD800 will be limited (but it may be suffucient) : you should be able to get very good results from either,
as to Ike vs Canon housings: Ike housings are bigger and heavier (but built like tanks) Cannon are smaller, lighter weight and feel more fragile (i.e. you need to take a bit more care with them)...it really comes down to preference...i like my Ike housing (S80)
What Stu said. I have an S80 and bought it for the manual controls. The only complaint that I have is....well....none. It has accompanied me on over 200 dives (mostly from shore) in the Canon housing.
I've gone over this a couple of times in recent-ish threads.
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=158499&highlight=sd800is
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=169139&highlight=sd800is
I currently own an S80: great camera. I used to own an SD550: great camera. (SD800 is similar in size and features, but has better lens, electronics, megapixels, you name it)
Many here will fight to the death before accepting a camera with no manual controls (sd800). Only you can decide how important that is to you. If you can live without the manual controls, I would choose the sd800is over the S80 in a heartbeat.
My S80 is a joy to play uber-photographer with underwater. My SD550 was a joy to take pictures with underwater, and I was able to get some amazing shots. It was also a joy to have with me on land, and slipped easily into any pocket. The OEM Canon case was small and easy to travel with, too. My S80 is just a bit too big to fit easily in a pocket, and the Ikelite housing I have is enormous by comparison to the SD550's Canon housing, and it doesn't travel as well as a result.
BUT if you're serious about photography and want to take this new skill to the nth degree and be in full control of every detail of your shots, you're going to want manual controls and the S80 (or perhaps an A series camera) is going to be a better choice for you.
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=158499&highlight=sd800is
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=169139&highlight=sd800is
I currently own an S80: great camera. I used to own an SD550: great camera. (SD800 is similar in size and features, but has better lens, electronics, megapixels, you name it)
Many here will fight to the death before accepting a camera with no manual controls (sd800). Only you can decide how important that is to you. If you can live without the manual controls, I would choose the sd800is over the S80 in a heartbeat.
My S80 is a joy to play uber-photographer with underwater. My SD550 was a joy to take pictures with underwater, and I was able to get some amazing shots. It was also a joy to have with me on land, and slipped easily into any pocket. The OEM Canon case was small and easy to travel with, too. My S80 is just a bit too big to fit easily in a pocket, and the Ikelite housing I have is enormous by comparison to the SD550's Canon housing, and it doesn't travel as well as a result.
BUT if you're serious about photography and want to take this new skill to the nth degree and be in full control of every detail of your shots, you're going to want manual controls and the S80 (or perhaps an A series camera) is going to be a better choice for you.
stu_in_fl... I've updated my profile if you think it may help.
I sounds like the controls on the s80 are differently something I'd use... unfortunately it's looking like the're extremely hard to come by at the moment and floating about with 800 -1000++ price tags.... Makes me feel like at that price point there's plenty of other competitors.
So, I've know stumbled across a SONY. Being new to the board here, it does seem as though SONY is not welcome in this house. So, sorry if these questions are out of place or offensive.
I'm currently looking at a SONY P200 in an ikelite house.... ANy thoughts/experiences?
It has the manual functionalities and an ikelite housing. As well as wideangle adaptors available for both the camrera and the housing.
Will the sony wide angle adaptor fit onto the camera and still allow for a deccent fit in the ikelite housing? Anybody have experience with this? Or will I be forced to go the Inon route?
Thanks for all the great advice everyone's offering here!!!!!
I sounds like the controls on the s80 are differently something I'd use... unfortunately it's looking like the're extremely hard to come by at the moment and floating about with 800 -1000++ price tags.... Makes me feel like at that price point there's plenty of other competitors.
So, I've know stumbled across a SONY. Being new to the board here, it does seem as though SONY is not welcome in this house. So, sorry if these questions are out of place or offensive.
I'm currently looking at a SONY P200 in an ikelite house.... ANy thoughts/experiences?
It has the manual functionalities and an ikelite housing. As well as wideangle adaptors available for both the camrera and the housing.
Will the sony wide angle adaptor fit onto the camera and still allow for a deccent fit in the ikelite housing? Anybody have experience with this? Or will I be forced to go the Inon route?
Thanks for all the great advice everyone's offering here!!!!!
dogatecat:stu_in_fl... I've updated my profile if you think it may help.
I sounds like the controls on the s80 are differently something I'd use... unfortunately it's looking like the're extremely hard to come by at the moment and floating about with 800 -1000++ price tags.... Makes me feel like at that price point there's plenty of other competitors.
So, I've know stumbled across a SONY. Being new to the board here, it does seem as though SONY is not welcome in this house. So, sorry if these questions are out of place or offensive.
I'm currently looking at a SONY P200 in an ikelite house.... ANy thoughts/experiences?
It has the manual functionalities and an ikelite housing. As well as wideangle adaptors available for both the camrera and the housing.
Will the sony wide angle adaptor fit onto the camera and still allow for a deccent fit in the ikelite housing? Anybody have experience with this? Or will I be forced to go the Inon route?
Thanks for all the great advice everyone's offering here!!!!!
Hi - yes, the S80 was discontinued (and was a really nice camera) hence now high prices (last April it was $350-$400 brand new !) - so other alternatives are to look for......you may think that you don't need the manual settings now but you may want to in future - it gives you flexibility - you can of course use "auto mode" and then gradually change if you want....or simply upgrade in a year or two.....the only problem of upgrading is that the housing is specific to the camera (so adds some $ to the idea of upgrading)..you will find the more you dive (and photograph) the more your interests may change......
Sony do have underwater housings for some of their cameras - i never used one, but they seem quite nice - people who have them seem to like them.
Another one that you see various threads on - Olympus SP350 - Costco seems to have it for $199 and you can get an (expensive) Ike housing or an Olympus (much cheaper) one. ...seems like a great camera - especially for the price.
dogatecat: It's not that Sony is not welcome here, it's just that you are in the Canon forum, so most of us reading here use Canons, so our ability to make recommendations re other cameras limited by lack of experience.
If you want opinions on the Sony camera, I recommend a new post in the Sony forum instead.
THAT said, if you want Canon alternatives, I have heard more good things about certain Olympus and Fuji cameras than Sony.
And finally, have you considered other Canons, or is the S80 the only one you're interested in right now? They are a bit bigger than the more compact S80, but the A series cameras are considerably less expensive, and quite well regarded. Might be worth looking into. Another thought: Canon is expected to release a successor the S80 at some point, so discontinued $800-1k cameras will not be the only option for long.
If you want opinions on the Sony camera, I recommend a new post in the Sony forum instead.
THAT said, if you want Canon alternatives, I have heard more good things about certain Olympus and Fuji cameras than Sony.
And finally, have you considered other Canons, or is the S80 the only one you're interested in right now? They are a bit bigger than the more compact S80, but the A series cameras are considerably less expensive, and quite well regarded. Might be worth looking into. Another thought: Canon is expected to release a successor the S80 at some point, so discontinued $800-1k cameras will not be the only option for long.
Anyone know why the S80 is so rare these days? The Canon USA website still has it listed as one of their high end PnS's but is it really being produced?
BTW, I love mine and am glad I got it a year ago -- using the Canon housing and an Inon strobe -- great package.
BTW, I love mine and am glad I got it a year ago -- using the Canon housing and an Inon strobe -- great package.
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