Upgrade S80 to G11 - Is it worth it??

[khsjsilver]

Let me first say that I am not a professional photog. I am really a point & shoot guy. I just like to take pictures on my dives. I've rarely ever changed the setting on my camera from "auto" with the "underwater" setting.

I have been using a Canon S80 with the Canon housing for a number of years and have been very happy with it. I don't really want to lug around strobes even though I know they would probably improve my shots. I also use the S80 as my out of the water camera as well.

I have the opportunity to buy a new G11 for $259 plus the cost of the underwater housing. All told it would probably cost me about $475 to upgrade.

Is it worth spending the money for the upgrage? Will my underwater and out-of-the-water shots be that much better?

Your advise if very welcomed!

Thanks,

Ken

 

[fjr_wertheimber]

I had a G11 with Ikelite housing (just sold it... prices were so insane in Australia that selling my G11 and housing gave me enough profit for my fiancee and I to do our Nitrox course, including all fills, while we were on a 5-day liveaboard)... LOVED it, the pics were fantastic.
My image gallery from the GBR, Ribbon Reefs, and Osprey Reef

 

[PatW]

Ken,

I have the G11 with an Ikelite Housing and an Ike Strobe. I like the outfit quite a bit. On shore I use a fairly advanced DSLR.

The G11 is the most advanced point and shoot that Canon makes. It is the camera that DSLR owners use when they can not have their DSLR. After owning a DSLR, I have found the controls on the G11 pretty accessible.

I would suggest that you think about getting a strobe. Water absorbs light and it gets the longer wavelengths first (reds). You lose reds at under 15' and at around 70' and deeper it is a blue green world. A strobe will replace the colors that are close to the strobe. It is a really good thing to have.

I am not familiar with your camera. But I bet the G11 has the following "advanced" features that will really help your underwater photography.

1) RAW - RAW allows far more flexibitily in reclaiming everything from a photo. You get something like 10 times the detail in shadows and highlights (so you can reclaim them in post processing). Also you can adjust the white balance without penalty. The camera comes with its own little RAW processing software that is pretty good. I would very highly recommend it. The one drawback is in RAW format, you can get far fewer exposures on a card.

2) Manual - learn to use the manual exposure. I use a strobe, I set the f stop and I can fiddle with the shutter speed to correct the photo exposure.

3) ISO - the G11 has far more ISO capability than most point and shoots up to about ISO 800. Usually because I have a strobe, I shoot at 100.

4) Shutter lag, the G11 still has shutter lag, but if you get focused on a target (fish), there is very little. It allows you to get photos of fast pesky little fish like damselfish and butterfly fish.

5) Macro - the G11 has a pretty decent macro capability. You can get in close and shoot the little things. This can be quite nice because much of the small stuff will sit still and pose nicely for you.

If you get the G11, it is always handy to buy a supplementary guide like Magic Lantern to help you master the camera. Also fool around with it top side before going in to get the hang of it.

I don't know if any of the above features is appealing to you. If they are not, there is not much reason to shift from your current camera. But the G11 is a far more capable camera than your current model and used properly it will give you some very nice photos.

 

[Gilligan]

I am really a point & shoot guy. I just like to take pictures on my dives. I've rarely ever changed the setting on my camera from "auto" with the "underwater" setting.

I don't really want to lug around strobes even though I know they would probably improve my shots.

Is it worth spending the money for the upgrage? Will my underwater and out-of-the-water shots be that much better?

Ken

The simple answer to your question is "No" based on your statements.
Unless you are willing to change your method of taking photos in the "auto" mode it won't make much difference what you upgrade to as respects underwater shots.
If you are willing to use the M, Av or Tv modes then YES.
If you are willing to shoot your non-strobe photos, or better still all photos, in the RAW mode and use the Canon DPP software to process them, then a bigger YES.

Take note that the G10 and G11 have a shortcoming in their respective Canon housings without an external strobe. The length of the lens tunnel on the housing protrudes 2" out to accommodate the lens zoom. This 2" tunnel coupled with the camera's 28mm lens and position of the camera's strobe leaves dark areas on portions of some photos. On very close macro shots the strobe cannot reach the bottom right portion of the photos, even with the diffuser attached.
You can compensate for this by:
backing away from your subject and zooming in on it then cropping the photo in post-processing.
or
position your macro subject in the upper portion of the photo and crop it in post-processing.
The best solution is an external strobe which you don't want to do.

If you are willing to use the camera's features to obtain the best results but don't want to buy an external strobe you would be better off with a Canon S90 or S95 which also have RAW capability. The internal strobe is a pop-up type and is not as impaired by the lens tunnel. Those cameras have less zoom capability, which you don't really need underwater, so their housing (Canon) lens tunnels do not protrude as much.

The S90 and S95 have 2.0 lenses. The G10 and G11 have 2.8 lenses. The 2.0 translates to more light when needed on your non-strobe shots. All four have the same processors but granted the G series have higher quality lenses which I doubt you or I would notice for amateur photography.

Canon G10 housing (G11 is same size) shown without the diffuser for internal flash demonstration purposes:

 

[khsjsilver]

Thanks for all your advice.

I think I'll stick with what I have for now.

Ken

 

[diver 85]

Silver, not to throw a wrench in but the 12 is out as of a couple weeks ago----with HD video, if it matters.....That's what I'm getting ready to order---I think, lol

EDIT:-oops, did not read your statements in post #5 till after I posted back to you.........carry on...

 

[Gilligan]

Thanks for all your advice.

I think I'll stick with what I have for now.

Ken

Ah c'mon Ken, make that leap to using manual settings

 

[Gilligan]

Silver, not to throw a wrench in but the 12 is out as of a couple weeks ago----with HD video, if it matters.....That's what I'm getting ready to order---I think, lol.

The G12 Canon housing will present the same issues as the G10 and G11 with the internal strobe. Keep that in mind if you don't plan on getting an external strobe.