Pocket Camera

So, what camera/enclosure takes the best pictures but still fits in a thigh pocket?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Lynne Flaherty on May 3, 2009 at 5:07pm

If you can find a used Olympus D'image, the camera and housing together were about the size of a typical small camera. I loved my D'image, right up until I drowned it.

I now have an Olympus 720. With housing, it will still fit in a pocket, but not if there is anything else in there. The nice thing about that camera is that it is intrinsically water resistant (to 10 fsw), so if you get a little water in the house, your camera won't fry. If you are looking for a small point and shoot type camera for simple pictures, I'd highly recommend looking for one like that. As a picture-taking friend of mine says, it isn't WHETHER you will flood your camera, it's just when.

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Permalink Reply by Bob Bailey on July 24, 2009 at 2:46pm

I've had excellent results with Casio Exilim cameras ... both the Z-1000 and Z-1050 models. The only potential downside for these is the way the flash diffuser mounts on the housing (high potential for breakage when in a drysuit pocket).

Friends who've used Pentax Optio models have also produced high-quality shots with this tiny package.

One thing to keep in mind is that even the best compact point-n-shoot models are really not much good for anything besides macro (and maybe portrait-type shots if the vis is very good). For wide-angle photography you really need a strobe.

On the other hand, most can take some reasonably good video as long as you get a big enough memory card.

... Bob

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Permalink Reply by Jeff Seckendorf on July 25, 2009 at 6:15am

Hi Michael,

I've been using the Canon A650 in the Canon housing. It's a bit bigger than some of the others but still fits in my pocket.

Pros: AA batteries (never lose the day due to an un-charged battery), great lens (long enough for very nice work on land), unlimited video times in various resolutions, cheap.

Cons: jpeg only (not raw) but the files can be big (12 mpx), 130' max depth.

The camera seems to make better looking video than stills underwater, but it's been a great all-around camera for me. It's what I used in your class.

Best,

Jeff

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Permalink Reply by Chris Johnson on July 29, 2009 at 12:21pm

Another one you might look into is the Olympus Stylus series. They are nice because they are compact, but they are also waterproof w/o a housing down to 33 ft. This is good because even if there is a housing leak while you are diving, you will not hurt the camera unless you open the housing.

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Permalink Reply by Don Chennavasin on August 5, 2009 at 10:37am

Haven't tried this, but there is CHDK hack that allows for RAW on many Canon point and shoot cameras.

http://chdk.wikia.com/wiki/CHDK

Jeff Seckendorf said:

Cons: jpeg only (not raw) but the files can be big (12 mpx), 130' max depth.

The camera seems to make better looking video than stills underwater, but it's been a great all-around camera for me. It's what I used in your class.

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Permalink Reply by Andrew Georgitsis on August 5, 2009 at 5:33pm

Guys

I did a bunch of research and found out the best video and pictures mind you come from the panasonic ZS3. I bought it and the housing and so far the results are fantastic. I will dive with Don on Friday and post some video but it shoots in HD at 30 fs. Amazing quality and great chip set. Plus the lens is 25mm wide and shoots video in underwater mode as well.

Andrew

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Permalink Reply by Don Chennavasin on August 5, 2009 at 10:55pm

The ZS3's quality is impressive, and I was eager to see results from our Tuesday dive. However, the default HD is a proprietary format and not Mac compatible... Hopefully Friday will prove fruitful.

Andrew Georgitsis said:

Guys

I did a bunch of research and found out the best video and pictures mind you come from the panasonic ZS3. I bought it and the housing and so far the results are fantastic. I will dive with Don on Friday and post some video but it shoots in HD at 30 fs. Amazing quality and great chip set. Plus the lens is 25mm wide and shoots video in underwater mode as well.

Andrew