UW Camera Suggestions

[fishysmell]

Going on a liveaboard this summer and want to get a new uw setup, but not 100% what I want. I definitely want to go with a higher end mid compact, so no DSLR's. I have a Canon G7 that I'm very familiar and happy with, so I was thinking about possibly upgrading to a G12 with the Canon uw case. I'm also looking at the Olympus XZ-1 and the Fuji 550EXR, which both have cases made by their respective manufacturers. HD video is a must, but 1080p is not necessary if the 720p is decent enough. Some manual control would be nice as well as I will be adding an external strobe.

Does anyone have any experience with those 3 cameras or any other suggestions?

Thanks!

 

[BlueCorn]

We've got a G12, and the Canon housing. I used it quite a lot on vacation in Hawaii and was very happy with it. You've basically got full control of the camera and the housing is definitely priced right.

This photo still needs to have the bubbles edited out but it's a good example of what it can do.

 

[BlueCorn]

We've got a G12, and the Canon housing. I used it quite a lot on vacation in Hawaii and was very happy with it. You've basically got full control of the camera and the housing is definitely priced right.

This photo still needs to have the bubbles edited out but it's a good example of what it can do.

 

[Tmot99]

I have an Olympus PEN (EPL-1 and there's a newer version EPL-2) with a DiCaPac underwater bag. The bag was cheap compared to a full fledged hard plastic UW case. Camera takes great pictures.

 

[BlueCorn]

It's hard to use manual exposure when the camera is in a bag.....

 

[fishysmell]

Beerguy: That's a great pic...is that with the built-in flash only? I think I'm leaning towards the G12...I have a few Speedlights and other Canon accessories already that would work with it out of the water as well.

Tmot99: The big reason I'm leaning towards a hard case is because I'll be adding strobes and would like the option to use accessory wet lenses, not to mention being able to control the exposure and other settings, as Beerguy mentioned.. That being said, those are some great pics...in my experience, not too many stock compact cameras can take decent macro like that.

Thanks for your input, guys!

 

[Recty]

This photo still needs to have the bubbles edited out but it's a good example of what it can do.

Try turning the pumps off for a couple minutes next time