(F)P7000 opinion

[meni 0]

Hello,

 

I am an amature photographer (Nikon DSLR + lens + flash, etc...) and do scuba diving as well.

So far I've mixed my hobbies using a Canon S40 + Canon housing.

 

The S40 is too slow to operate and the housing shows some cracks and I would therefore like to have it replaced.

 

The D200 housing is way too expensive, and I think it'll also be too complex to operate underwater. I am therefore trying to decide between G12 + WP-DC34 and P7000 + FP7000.

I know that the G12 has an underwater WB settings that the P7000 is missing, on the other hand the FP7000 seems to be a much better housing comparing to the WP-DC34 (support for external flash, double O-ring, depth rating suggests more robust case).

Also when shooting off-water, I can use my Nikon SB-800 with the p7000.

 

Will appreciate your suggestions regarding the two alternatives (LX5 + Ikelite is too expensive for my pocket).

Also if there is a FP7000 owner that is willing to share his experience on this case -- I'll be happy to get some real user experience information as I couldn't find one on the net.

 

Thanks, !,

Meni.

Edited April 22, 2011 by meni

[derway 2]

The g12 is slower autofocus and full shutter lag than your s40. No improvement at all.

 

The p7000 is faster shutter lag, in full bright conditions, but so sporadic and randomly strange behaving, at everything else, just about unusably slow, by reviews.

 

The oly xz-1 we all had hopes for. But the focus and shutter lag is not up to snuff. Faster than the g12, but not fast enough.

 

Shutter Lag: Full autofocus shutter lag is average, at 0.52 second at wide-angle and 0.54 second at full telephoto. Enabling the flash increased lag to 0.84 second. Prefocused shutter lag is 0.071 second, not the fastest, but still quick enough.

 

 

If you can find an s90, those were reallly good. Otherwise, save up for the lx5. Panasonic and sony really are the best contrast detect Autofocus out there. And sony no longer makes a serious p&s.

[meni 0]

Thanks a lot Don,

 

I've heard P7000 got a firmware update that should solve the slow RAM writes and AF performance. Generally I'm a Nikon fan in the DSLR space.

 

I appreciate your help deciding against the G12 due to its AF and shutter lag performance. I also noticed that in order to get AF working in video mod I'll have to use a customized firmware. A functionality that is native to P7000.

 

I think i'll read more about the P7000 firmawre fixes and possibly go that direction. In that case, I promise a complete authentic user experience review on the set.

 

PS. If I remember correctly, S90 doesn't shoot 720p video, also S90 / S95 housings I've seen don't support external lights which is an option I would like to keep open.

[crawdad 0]

also S90 / S95 housings I've seen don't support external lights which is an option I would like to keep open.

 

 

Of course they do.

 

James

[derway 2]

http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/P7000/P7000A.HTM

 

I would not buy a p7000, there are so many issues and bad handling problems, in addition to the shutter lag getting extremely slow in dim light.

 

What housing are you going to buy for it, that is more affordable than the ikelite for lx5?

 

For a few bucks more, you can buy the oly epl2, and oly housing, which would beat the heck out of any of these in speed and IQ.

[meni 0]

What housing are you going to buy for it, that is more affordable than the ikelite for lx5?

 

On eBay, both LX5 and its ikelite housing are approx. $550 each that comes down to a total of $1,100+ approx.

The deal I was thinking of is $850 for both camera and fantasea housing. (on sepaeate auctions, its $460 for the camera and $400 for the housing).

 

I was thinking of the Oly pen as well..., but its about $650 for the camera and another $650 for the housing, $1,300 is already far far away from $850 I was aiming for.

 

@James, I was refering to the canon WP-DC?? housing that requries external fiber optics installed (not sure how good this is as I have no experience in external lights for underwater photography).

I was under the impression that the fantasea housing that already has those fiber optics installed would work better.

[meni 0]

Just to let you guys know, I've purchased the P7000 with its FP7000 housing.

First thing I did was firmware update to 1.1. Last weekend I took it for a test dive and it worked seamlessly.

Focus was very fast, shuttler lag is minor (practically none). Very easy to perform manual underwater WB.

The housing's flash diffuser is huge and provides very natural light distribution.

 

Will share some photos soon !.

 

Meni,

[Sharon 0]

Hi All,

 

The Coolpix P7000 itself introduces some advantages that are extremely important for underwater photographers, such as the shortest shutter lag among all compact cameras in this range. It also introduces a very user-friendly color enhancement and white balance menu, which I found very efficient for both underwater stills and videos. With HD video capabilities, a short start-up time, 3 programmable mode settings (wonderful for setting up different exposure and color parameters for different depths or different hours of the day), a highly responsive focus mechanism and much more, this camera surely has a lot to offer once you take it to the blue.

 

However, for any underwater photographer, the standard of the housing is important just as much as the standard of the camera is, and therefore the different housings available in the market for each camera model often serve as an important consideration when reaching the point of deciding upon the camera you will get yourself. The high standard, upgraded features and affordable price of the Fantasea FP7000 Housing certainly provide the Coolpix P7000 camera with another significant advantage over other compacts in this range.

 

If I may share my personal obvservation, while many compact digital housings out there are designed in order to simply allow taking the camera underwater, the Fantasea FP7000 Housing was designed in order enrich the photographer’s experience and to enable producing the best results with the Coolpix P7000. Underwater photographers’ needs were carefully taken into consideration when forming the features of the FP7000 Housing to ensure easy, comfortable and intuitive operation. Furthermore, the FP7000 Housing was designed to be compatible with a wide range of accessories, thereby allowing photographers to further enhance their results and to produce absolutely stunning images and videos.

 

The FP7000 Housing doesn't feature the minimum required in order to submerge the camera in water, but realizes and fully utilizes the great potential of the high standard Coolpix P7000.

 

Recently I was happy to find out that I share this personal observation with other professionals as well.

 

Peter Rowlands just published an FP7000 Housing review on the UWP Magazine, where he states that "For its price, the Fantasea FP7000 is the least expensive rigid housing on the market and I would argue that it is the market leader in terms of quality, performance and therefore value for money".

 

You can read the full review here - http://www.fantasea.com/downloads/FP7000_UWP.pdf

 

Another interesting review was posted by Tal Mor here in Wetpixel just a few days ago - http://wetpixel.com/i.php/full/review-niko...fp7000-housing/

 

Reed Hoffmann spent some time in Galapagos with the FP7000 Housing and posted a review about it as well - http://bluepixel.net/blog/articles/underwater_wonder/

 

If you have any questions regarding the FP7000 Housing, you are most welcome to contact us at info@fantasea.com

 

Dive Safely!!

[A.Y. 15]

APS-C system with 1080 HD is well worth the cost.

APS-C - 2½ stops better ISO than G12 & P7000: NEX-5 $600 + Nauticam $1,550 = $2,150

 

IMO, Olympus with 720 HD offers overall the best image quality for the money.

M43 - 1½ stops better ISO than G12 & P7000: Olympus E-PL2 $555 + OEM housing $600 = $1,155

 

P7000 & G12 (both use the same Sony P&S sensor with 720 HD) ISO "600" image quality (½ a stop between ISO 400 & 800) = M43 ISO 1600 = APS-C ISO 3200

P7000 $405 + FP7000 $400 = $805

G12 $490 + OEM housing $185 = $675

Edited May 11, 2011 by A.Y.

[srdiver 0]

I recently purchased an FP7000 underwater housing. Upon taking delivery I was surprised to find that there was no lens protector for the housing. I also could not purchase a protector. I sacrificed the flash diffuser that comes with the housing to rig it as a protector. It turns out that you need the diffuser because the flash aperture shades the flash resulting in part of the frame illuminated while a part is shadowed.

 

I traveled to Fiji and used the camera for six days and within this limited experience it appeared to do the job. On the sixth day the housing broke. The liveaboard I was on uses skiffs and on the trip to the reef all cameras are handed to the driver and are set on the floor of the skiff during transit and returned to the diver in the water. I proceeded with to dive and about fifteen minutes into the dive I saw water collecting in the casing. I immediately surfaced. The housing broke while in transit. A broken piece was found on the skiff floor. Most divers were photographers and I was the only one who experienced a problem. To me, the handling of the cameras appeared to be within what you would expect in a dive situation. No cameras were dropped or thrown. The boat and crew has the highest reputation in Fiji and I have only compliments for their professionalism. I have over 500 hours logged and most of them with cameras.

 

The leakage problem was a broken case near the outer O ring. The case comes with two O rings. The inner O ring kept the camera from flooding badly but it failed to keep water out. Fantasea sent me an email that said they never tested, nor do they intend to test, the inner O ring for its performance under pressure.

 

When I tried to buy just the part that broke Fantasea said that they would not sell me the part but would sell me another housing for $300. This surprised dismayed me.

 

I am not taking fantasea up on their offer.

[henrikhedegaard 0]

Hello,

 

I am an amature photographer (Nikon DSLR + lens + flash, etc...) and do scuba diving as well.

So far I've mixed my hobbies using a Canon S40 + Canon housing.

 

The S40 is too slow to operate and the housing shows some cracks and I would therefore like to have it replaced.

 

The D200 housing is way too expensive, and I think it'll also be too complex to operate underwater. I am therefore trying to decide between G12 + WP-DC34 and P7000 + FP7000.

I know that the G12 has an underwater WB settings that the P7000 is missing, on the other hand the FP7000 seems to be a much better housing comparing to the WP-DC34 (support for external flash, double O-ring, depth rating suggests more robust case).

Also when shooting off-water, I can use my Nikon SB-800 with the p7000.

 

Will appreciate your suggestions regarding the two alternatives (LX5 + Ikelite is too expensive for my pocket).

Also if there is a FP7000 owner that is willing to share his experience on this case -- I'll be happy to get some real user experience information as I couldn't find one on the net.

 

Thanks, !,

Meni.

 

Hey,

 

I'm working with the Scandinavian distributor of Fantasea (www.fotografit.eu) and have seen what the P7000 housing can do.

Must say I'm quite impressed.

Based on reviews of the G12, I'd go for the P7000 any day.

 

BR

Henrik

[JackConnick 75]

I think that these consumer P&S like the G12 and P7000 have been surpassed by the slightly larger sensor, much better lenses and processors found on the Olympus XZ-1 and Panasonic LX-5. These are now defining the high-end digicams range and have a similar price.

 

They have much better low-light performance with high-end 24 -28mm Zeiss or Zuiko EG f1.7 lenses and shoot incredible HD video, especially on the LX-5. The XZ-1 has the same processor as the PEN. They are smaller than the G12/P7000 physically. They have an array of wide angle and macro lenses available; which is almost impossible with the OEM Canon, or Fantasea housings.

 

The combo of Olympus XZ-1 and Olympus OEM housing is only $800 MSRP. The LX-5 is more due to better housings available. There are housings from 10Bar, Nauticam, Ikelite, Olympus available to suit your price range. All of which are fully extendable to a complete system.

 

Jack