Looking for Purchase Advice (Video Kit)

[Scubanoobi]

Hi Folks, I'm looking for some advice on UW video solutions.

First some background, I'm an amature photography on dry land and began getting into doing both video and stills (leaning more towards video lately). I currently have a Canon 5D2 and some decent L glass. For underwater my current setup is an old GoPro 960 with a flat lens housing that I either mount on a 2 ft extender or hand hold.

I was looking at upgrading my gopro to the new Hero 3 black and then adding a decent light/tray system and a red filter. Being compact is a huge for me because a lot of my video will be done while traveling. I also lug around my photo gear and scuba gear so space and weight is important.

I'm happy with the gopro now, except for the color (no lights or red filter at the moment).

For those of you that have gone through this decision (basically starting from scratch), what would be a better long term option for UW video. All video is amature and only for personal use / uploading to the web.

1) Get the Gopro Hero 3 / Tray / Light(s)
2) Get something like a Canon G15 or G1X with Canon/Ikelite housing + light(s)
3) Bite the bullet and get an Ikelite housing for my 5D2, then buy light(s) later once I can afford it, I think this option will be way too big/heavy for me.

Keeping in mind that SIZE MATTERS...

Thanks

---------- Post added December 4th, 2012 at 10:45 AM ----------

A follow up question: if I get the proper filter, do I even need a light? At what depth would the light be needed?

 

[BDSC]

Based on what you have said I'd go with a new GoPro 3 Black Edition. Lights are always a plus but really only good for closeup stuff unless you have some very powerful lights. Here is an excellent thread going right now about the GoPro.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/gopro-video/438512-hero3-black-testing-underwater.html

I shoot video with a more advanced system but have already ordered a new GoPro for the wife.

 

[sharksdelight]

Hey Noobie,
There are a great many lights for underwater work but it depends upon your own budget in deciding. Lights are always needed as they bring back the colors that are lost as you descend. Even the best lights like the Keldans have a limited throw underwater but for medium shots as well as tight shots, they are an absolute necessity. Of course,don't forget to manually white balance each time your lighting changes either because of the time of day, direction of ambient light or your own positioning of the light arms. You will certainly need lights for any night work that you do as well. The GoPRO can be very grainy in low light situations so lights are imperative. The GoPRO is a great little POV niche cam but should not be used for your A roll footage but more as a supplement to the footage you have shot with your main system.
Since the footage from the Canon Mk2 is quite good, why not get a housing for it? Nauticam makes a fine housing and it is possible to get one 2nd hand. I just sold a Canon 7D and Nauticam housing to a fellow diver in Belgium and recently receive an email from him saying how much he loved the system which he is using on a trip in Thailand.
Bottom line, get a GoPRO. I use mine very frequently but wouldn't consider having it as my sole source of footage, especially without the use of lights.
Steve

 

[sinistar]

Might depend on how spoiled you are on the 5D2 photos and video. I have a 5D2 and bought a used Ikelite housing. I really like the setup - but it is very heavy EVERYWHERE but underwater! And it takes up a lot of space - especially since you'll need the larger dome port to shoot anything wide angle. That being said I can fit:
In legal carryon Pelican case:
- The 5D2 Ikelite enclosure, dome port, port extension plus all orings, etc
- My HOG regulator (long hose, short hose, primary, octos, gauge)
- 3/2 wetsuit, trunks, t-shirt
- Mask
- Wrist dive computer, write compass,
- Batteries, charger
In a medium sized Think Tank photo backback:
- 5D2
- Wide angle lens (was using 17-40, now using Samyang 14mm with hood removed)
- 40mm pancake
- flash cards, download cable, card reader, 320gb laptop portable drive
- one ikelite small strobe, etc

...and then one large roller bag which is checked. But this is for travel directly to a hotel or resort. If I had to travel all around the world, this setup would be way too crazy heavy. Just depends on how much you like the 5D2 video quality - it's awesome, especially underwater in lower light situations.

If you go the DSLR route, definitely try out Magic Lantern - the whitebalance options make it a lot easier to WB often underwater.

The other option would be to see of the EOS-M will have housings out anytime soon. That with a APS-C 8mm lens would be very compact and still give great video and stills. The magic lantern gang has already cracked it. The same could be said of any of the other mirrorless but I think the EOS-M would be a better fit and with the 18MP sensor taken from the T4i you'd get very good low light performance with a lot of video data to work with.

The go pro is probably your better choice if you are moving around a lot. They are so compact and overall image quality is pretty darned good!