Beginner Equipment Recomendations

[Simon K. 0]

Hi,

 

my girlfriend would like to start taking Videos UW and I'm thinking about getting her a rig.

 

Unfortunaly I have absolutley no Idea about Video Cameras and UW-Video.

 

I'm looking for recommendations for a nice Camera and housing, that is good, not to complicated but is nothing she will be unsatisfied with when she gets better. I think something in a compareable quality/price-ratio class of a Olympus 5050 or Canon S50 with manufacturer housing in the photo sector.

 

What are the important features/desicions i have to look after.

 

What about light: what are the posibilities, what is necessary?

 

Thanks Simon

[craig 0]

I'm not up on this area but I can offer a couple of points.

 

I think finding a camera comparable in price to a 5050 might be doable but finding a housing like the PT-015 is probably not. There are a few inexpensive plastic video housings but they have limitations (flat port only). I think realistically you should expect to pay more for a housing than you would for a PT-015. You really need to look for cameras and housings together (don't pick the camera first) and perhaps you can find something used.

 

Video can be just as hard to do well as still but has the advantage of yielding decent results right away. It's acceptable to operate a video camera in full auto mode (done frequently in fact) and lights are strictly optional. It's common for shooters to be pleased with their results on the very first dive.

 

I'd first consider size. Large housings are actually easier to use but don't travel nearly as well. Next I'd consider optics. How wide can the camera get in the housing and what lens options do I need. Also important is how filters are used since you will nearly always want filters (except when very shallow, very deep or using lights). You can get by just fine without lights except on night dives but you can only get so far quality-wise without them. Macro and CFWA are better with lights if you can carry enough power with you.

 

Only consider a digital camera, of course. Most DV cameras are capable of good results. Make sure there's a firewire option so that the footage can be easily loaded into the computer. I'd avoid the mpeg cameras right now since editing mpeg transport streams is still immature. 3 chip cameras have the edge in quality but are expensive for what you are looking for.

 

Initially for controls you only need power, record and zoom. You may want focus and exposure lock (or even more elaborate control of these things). The most valuable optional control IMO is manual white balance. It's not strictly necessary for beginners but learning to use manual white balance can make an incredible difference. I personally use it 100 percent of the time and consider it more important than focus and exposure. Lack of certain controls will make some shots impossible but good white balance is necessary all the time. This is certainly not a beginner topic but it will limit anyone who gets more serious in the future.

[james 0]

For starters, go to Ebay and do a search on "Underwater Housing"

 

Cheers

James