fairybasslet
Contributor
Has anyone tried it out in the store or anywhere? Is it true about no shutter lag? I wonder what kind of photos it takes.
So, anybody hear anything bad, good indifferent about the Sealife DC500?
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Hi Ellen,
I am not a fan of Sealife digital cameras. They lack the manual control that alot of similarly priced cameras offer and is much needed for u/w. I could not find a price for the DC500 but I am pretty sure that you could get a Fuji F810 with a Fuji housing for about the same $$$ (maybe even less). You would then have more MP and manual control (it has auto settings too). Ikelite makes a housing for it too. It is more $$$ but is better made. Then on down the road you can add a strobe.
HTH,
Dave
I am not a fan of Sealife digital cameras. They lack the manual control that alot of similarly priced cameras offer and is much needed for u/w. I could not find a price for the DC500 but I am pretty sure that you could get a Fuji F810 with a Fuji housing for about the same $$$ (maybe even less). You would then have more MP and manual control (it has auto settings too). Ikelite makes a housing for it too. It is more $$$ but is better made. Then on down the road you can add a strobe.
HTH,
Dave
OP
fairybasslet
Contributor
dbh:
Thanks Dave
ScubaJason
Registered
I saw the new DC500 at Underwater Sports Diver's Fair this weekend - they were selling the DC500 for $499.95 and the Pro set for $599.95.
The camera and new style housing is VERY nice. Talked to the reps about the improvements over the DC310 housing (which I have and have had horrible experiences with it - but they are willing to work with me still, which is great.) The new housing's design is great and makes me appreciate their listening to customer's feedback.
The camera and new style housing is VERY nice. Talked to the reps about the improvements over the DC310 housing (which I have and have had horrible experiences with it - but they are willing to work with me still, which is great.) The new housing's design is great and makes me appreciate their listening to customer's feedback.
But is the sea-life digital CAMERA still a cheap Vivatar?
Thats what the DC310 used, you can buy the 3 meg pixel camera for like $120 at Walmart.
I had a DC310 that took horrible photo's even on the surface, didn't even bother trying a dive with it......
Thats what the DC310 used, you can buy the 3 meg pixel camera for like $120 at Walmart.
I had a DC310 that took horrible photo's even on the surface, didn't even bother trying a dive with it......
*Floater*
Contributor
I'm satisfied with my DC310, but I couldn't do without the external flash and macro lenses. All the pics in my gallery are with my DC310 (I took down my old RC pics). All are macro shots. A lot of people here who know much more than I do about photography think the DC310 is a crap camera even for the price, so maybe it's best to avoid it.
My original reefmaster RC was a gift though, so then it made sense for me to upgrade to the DC310 since I already had the flash and 3X macro (plus I was on a limited budget). Now I'm in the same boat again. DC500 probably won't be the best 5MP u/w camera in it's price range, but since I have all the add-on lenses and the flash I'll probably upgrade to it eventually anyway.
My original reefmaster RC was a gift though, so then it made sense for me to upgrade to the DC310 since I already had the flash and 3X macro (plus I was on a limited budget). Now I'm in the same boat again. DC500 probably won't be the best 5MP u/w camera in it's price range, but since I have all the add-on lenses and the flash I'll probably upgrade to it eventually anyway.
VaDiver
Guest
Like Floater, I am also (finally) satisfied with my DC310, although it was not a happy honeymoon. Not until I figured out that only rechargable AA batteries would give me enough juice to get through a couple of dives did I realize that there was some hope that it might prove to be a useful camera, but the jury was still out at that point.
Secondly, there are three external flash settings depending on how far you estimate yourself to be from your subject. Once I figured that out, it was just a matter of experimenting to see which setting worked under which circumstances. I am of the opinion that you have to get this part down because the flash setting is the only variable you have any control over while taking pictures...as opposed to being able to set your aperture or shutter speed, for example.
Part of my initial dissatisfaction with the camera was that I was converting from the Sealife film to digital versions and I had a bit of a learning curve involving the use of digitals. Ditto with my land camera. Now that I understand the camera a little better, and have figured out the flash settings (for the most part) I am getting excellent results.
Finally, a word about the service department at Sealife. They responded awesomely to my request to replace the housing O-ring on my DC310. Seems I removed the O-ring to lube it prior to a dive and then it leaked very slightly thereafter. Only then did I realize that you are not supposed to remove the O-ring as it is factory sealed. So, I shipped it to Sealife with the request that they replace the ring. Not only did they replace the ring but they replaced the entire housing as well which should tell you something about the O-ring seal itself. I was very surprised that they would do this. My thanks to Sealife for excellent customer service.
I do suggest that anyone considering the DC310 invest in the version with all the push-buttons on the back, if nothing more than to allow you to toggle through the different flash settings while underwater. For a basic digital u/w camera I have been very happy with Sealife.
You just gotta know how to use it.
Thanks for listening...
Secondly, there are three external flash settings depending on how far you estimate yourself to be from your subject. Once I figured that out, it was just a matter of experimenting to see which setting worked under which circumstances. I am of the opinion that you have to get this part down because the flash setting is the only variable you have any control over while taking pictures...as opposed to being able to set your aperture or shutter speed, for example.
Part of my initial dissatisfaction with the camera was that I was converting from the Sealife film to digital versions and I had a bit of a learning curve involving the use of digitals. Ditto with my land camera. Now that I understand the camera a little better, and have figured out the flash settings (for the most part) I am getting excellent results.
Finally, a word about the service department at Sealife. They responded awesomely to my request to replace the housing O-ring on my DC310. Seems I removed the O-ring to lube it prior to a dive and then it leaked very slightly thereafter. Only then did I realize that you are not supposed to remove the O-ring as it is factory sealed. So, I shipped it to Sealife with the request that they replace the ring. Not only did they replace the ring but they replaced the entire housing as well which should tell you something about the O-ring seal itself. I was very surprised that they would do this. My thanks to Sealife for excellent customer service.
I do suggest that anyone considering the DC310 invest in the version with all the push-buttons on the back, if nothing more than to allow you to toggle through the different flash settings while underwater. For a basic digital u/w camera I have been very happy with Sealife.
You just gotta know how to use it.
Thanks for listening...
mike_s
Contributor
I've been happy with my DC310 also. All the pics in my gallery were taken with it except one. It did take a few dives to figure out the settings and what I had done wrong. I believe that you "can" get a better camera, but this is a good one for
those of us who just want some snapshots of our dives.
As for the New camera. I haven't seen it yet, but they've got info on it on the manufacturers website now. However, I've heard they had either design or manufacturing problems "getting it out the door". I thought it was going to be more expensive than $499 for the camera and $599 for hte pro-set. If it's that cheap I might "trade in" my existing DC310 (which unfortuallly is only a few months old) and get the new one. One feature I do like is the bigger screen. That and I've already got the strobe and extra lens. I think the new camera comes with it's own rechargable battery which might seem like a positive, but the flash will use rechargable AA's. So now I've got to carry two chargers. Not that big of a deal, but adds to the "bulk"
One thing they need to fix is the "view finder". I've had the film and digital reefmaster and both of the view finders have fallen off during dives. Really poor design. Wouldn't be that hard to make it so that there was a tab on the back of
the housing door to hold the view finder in place. That way you could only remove
it when the door was open.
-mike
those of us who just want some snapshots of our dives.
As for the New camera. I haven't seen it yet, but they've got info on it on the manufacturers website now. However, I've heard they had either design or manufacturing problems "getting it out the door". I thought it was going to be more expensive than $499 for the camera and $599 for hte pro-set. If it's that cheap I might "trade in" my existing DC310 (which unfortuallly is only a few months old) and get the new one. One feature I do like is the bigger screen. That and I've already got the strobe and extra lens. I think the new camera comes with it's own rechargable battery which might seem like a positive, but the flash will use rechargable AA's. So now I've got to carry two chargers. Not that big of a deal, but adds to the "bulk"
One thing they need to fix is the "view finder". I've had the film and digital reefmaster and both of the view finders have fallen off during dives. Really poor design. Wouldn't be that hard to make it so that there was a tab on the back of
the housing door to hold the view finder in place. That way you could only remove
it when the door was open.
-mike
*Floater*
Contributor
For those interested, you may view the manual for DC500 at Sealife's site: http://www.sealife-cameras.com/service/manuals.html
My take: The main improvements are the extra megapixels, the 3x optical zoom (and autofocus if it works well), and the new external flash settings. The shutterlag is also down to 0.17 secs in some settings (though I'm not sure what that really means).
I agree with mike about the new rechargeable batteries; I've been very happy to use the AA's in my DC310. If I upgrade to the DC500, then I have to use some new custom battery, and I may end up needing to buy an extra one if the camera eats up the battery too quickly.
There are many other options too, but a lot of it seems like fluff intended to make it easier for people who just want to snap up some shots and print them out at where ever they may be staying at. This camera is not meant for professionals or serious enthusiasts. The user still cannot adjust aperature or shutter speed.
Also, the manual does not once mention the macro set (8x and 16x lenses) which was crucial for DC310 imo, though there's a lot of talk about the wide-angle lens. That makes me nervous. I hope the macro set still works with this new camera because otherwise I would never buy it.
My take: The main improvements are the extra megapixels, the 3x optical zoom (and autofocus if it works well), and the new external flash settings. The shutterlag is also down to 0.17 secs in some settings (though I'm not sure what that really means).
I agree with mike about the new rechargeable batteries; I've been very happy to use the AA's in my DC310. If I upgrade to the DC500, then I have to use some new custom battery, and I may end up needing to buy an extra one if the camera eats up the battery too quickly.
There are many other options too, but a lot of it seems like fluff intended to make it easier for people who just want to snap up some shots and print them out at where ever they may be staying at. This camera is not meant for professionals or serious enthusiasts. The user still cannot adjust aperature or shutter speed.
Also, the manual does not once mention the macro set (8x and 16x lenses) which was crucial for DC310 imo, though there's a lot of talk about the wide-angle lens. That makes me nervous. I hope the macro set still works with this new camera because otherwise I would never buy it.
mike_s
Contributor
One more thing. I hope the new DC500 "writes" to the memory faster. After the picture preview on the DC310, it writes pretty slooooooooow if you want to take a quick second pic. One solution to this is I know buying a ultra-fast SD memory chip, which I'm prob gonna do. Of course we still have to wait for the flash to cycle back to charged.
BTW.... the new camera, does it use SD memory? (I'm assuming it does).
mike
BTW.... the new camera, does it use SD memory? (I'm assuming it does).
mike
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