Hi there I have been reading on this site for a week or so now, my husband and I are in the planning stages of our first trip to Bonaire in feb. We are avid snorklers and have been to several caribbean islands and to Belize last feb. I want to purchase a decent underwater camera, but I am hoping to get some advice here first. We have only used those disposables and I really want to get into it more. I have a digital canon that I love and I believe they have a housing unit for it but I am a little skeptical about leaking and ruining the camera, any suggestions? Thanks Sue

First off welcome to BT, Susan. If you are a snorkeler there are several small waterproof digital. Olympus, and Pentax all make cameras that work to 10' without a housing.

Check out the Olympus 1030 and 850.

For Pentax check out the W30.

Now on housing your present camera, do not think about what you paid for the camera, see what it would cost to replace it on E-bay. That's probably a lot less. If you do choose to house it, you should buy a spare camera. Remember there are two kinds of UW photographers, those that have flooded and those that are going to.

Hi Susan, welcome to BT.

My husband and I bought a Canon SD750 for our first trip to Bonaire (May 2008). Great little camera and user friendly. We bought the corresponding Canon underwater housing via amazon.com. We used it for a week, no leaks. As Cecil mentioned, best to buy an identical camera when the camera gets outdated by newer models and goes down in price, that way you'll still be able to use the underwater housing ... which in our case, cost almost as much as the camera itself. I'm watching the prices on our camera and when it drops considerably more, I'll be snagging 1-2 extras!

We also have a Canon SD750 and are very pleased with it. The Canon housing was only $130 on Amazon.com. Canon has housings for most of their SD and Digital Elph models at very reasonable prices so odds are they have one to fit the model you already have. Olympus also makes housings for most of their models--I have an old 5050 and the Oly housing was around $160, again on Amazon. Leaking should not be much of an issue, especially if you limit yourself to snorkel depths--just follow the instructions for care and maintenance. The Canon and Olympus housings we have are rated to 130 feet.

We both have Olympus U/W cameras, I have a 3030 and Dave has an 8080. We both like them a lot. Just recently got a Bonica U/W Video camera but have not used it yet, am looking forward to doing that in Aug.

I have a Canon A570IS with the Canon Underwater housing (WP-DC12). I've used it on 2 dive trips now + snorkels. I've been very happy with the pics. I haven't had any trouble with the housing leaking, but I pay very close attention when applying the silicon grease to make sure there is no loose dirt, etc. on the O-ring or case. I also put a silica pack inside the housing to help with fogging, but that's rarely a problem- only occasionally with changes in temps on the surface after a deeper dive. The camera also takes video, so that's a plus. I just purchased an 8gb card to allow for more video/pics during dives. I added a Fantasea Nano Cool Flash strobe to it in February. Works for what I need it to for now. Also added Canon weights to the housing to make it a little less positive. IMO the set up is pretty economical for the results you get. Look at prices at B&H or Adorama.

Kimberly expressed it very well, including the silica gel pack.

The key with ANY camera housing is to make sure there is no dirt, salt crystals or hair on the o-ring or its sealing surface every time you close up the housing. Inspect both the o-ring and sealing surface visually and then run your finger over both to ensure no hairs, salt crystals or particles of sand, etc. After the housing is closed, make sure it is properly and securely latched and then slowly immerse it in water (as far as you can into a bucket or the sink) pointing the lens plate down. If it is going to leak, this is when you will find it out, and by pointing the lens plate down, there is somewhere for the water to go without damaging the camera. If you see any water inside, remove the housing from the water, dry it off and check the o-ring seals again.

I have been using Canon PowerShot cameras for about 5 years now (S400 originally and now the SD850IS) with the respective housings and so far have not had any issues. Other brands/housings are equally as good. I do not grease my o-ring every time, but rather after about every 10 - 15 dives and again at the end of each dive trip. Use the o-ring grease sparingly (only on the o-ring and not on the sealing surface) after you have cleaned the o-ring with a lint-free cloth or tissue and the sealing surface with a dry cotton swab. (Make sure neither the tissue or the swab leave debris behind.) The only purpose of the o-ring grease is allow the o-ring to move slightly under pressure thereby creating the seal, and too much is a no-no. Also remember to rinse the housing in fresh water immediately after each use and dry it off well before opening it. Alternatively, keep the housing wet (even with salt water) until you can rinse it with fresh water. I leave a gallon-size plastic bag half-filled with fresh water in our truck and put the camera housing into it after the dive until I can further rinse everything later. Ditto with the strobe in a second bag.

Unless you are using a high-end Canon SLR, Canon makes inexpensive housings (as others have said) for almost all of their point-and-shoot cameras. If you have an SLR you will need a special housing for it (really big $) or alternatively you might consider buying one of the point-and-shoot cameras (PowerShot or G-series) and their respective housing and using it just for snorkeling. A low to mid-range Canon PowerShot camera and housing should cost less than about $500, and is more than adequate for most casual underwater photography.

Two further thoughts. Since it seems you are planning to use the housed camera mainly for snorkeling, unless you also plan to descend significantly below the surface, the likelihood of a leak with most properly prepared housings is pretty remote. (Most of the housings are good to depths well in excess of 100 feet.) But if you are worried, you can get flood insurance for the camera. We use Divers Equipment Protection Plan (DEPP) where for a very reasonable price (about $50 - $60 per year) you can get insurance against loss and camera floods for up to $2000. Their website is http://www.awryinc.com/index.html, and then click on DEPP.

Hi Susan,

have a look at Casio Z77 + EWC-11 or Z80 + EWC-130 http://underwater-photography.webconrad.com/equipment.php

Hi Susan,

I recommend the Olympus Stylus 1030SW with a PT-043 housing. Here is why: We are four snorkelers who started out with low-cost u/w camera and over the years have upgraded. Several years ago Olympus came out with the Stylus 770 which was marketed to be able to go to 33 feet without a housing. Being snorkelers, we never exceed 20 feet so this camera was great; not bulky, took great pictures and really took a beating. Unfortunately, all of us experienced leakage and Olypmus repaired or replaced all four cameras over time. We had many phone conversations with Olympus techs and bottom line turned out to be the fact that the camera cannot be submerged for more than one hour at a time. (not noted in the manual) When snorkeling in Bonaire we rarely spend less than 1 1/2 to 2 hours in the water.

Olympus was wonderful to work with. We were put in touch with a customer service manager who replaced the four Stylus 770 cameras with new 1030's and sold us four PT-043 housings at cost.

We now have systems that can go to deeper depths if needed but more important we can stay in the water as long as we like and if the housing were to develop a leak - no harm done - the camera is still waterproof! In addition, if we are jumping in for a quick evening or night snorkel we leave the housing behind.

My only complaint with all digital cameras is the glare on the LED screen. The wizards need to come up with a GOOD solution. Non-reflective film on the display that works somewhat on land is useless u/w and the reflector hoods are also useless.

I'm heading to Bonaire for my first trip on Oct. 18 - I can hardly wait! I just bought an Olympus Stylus 770 for the trip. It will likely take you farther than the Olympus 1030 or 850 because you can take it to 33ft deep. I am guessing that I'll be totally addicted and want to learn how to dive - so why not get a camera that can go deeper?
I found mine on Ebay.

Hi Denise, Hope you have a great trip! The Olympus 1030 and the 770 both are rated to 33 feet. As stated in my previous thread, unless you buy the additional u/w housing make sure you do not keep the camera submerged for more than one hour. Keep it above water for at least 30 minutes before submerging it again. Olympus techs told me it has to do with the type of seals used.

Thanks Bob! I didn't realize that. I suppose keeping the camera in a watertight container until I want to use it on my snorkel will extend the time I can keep it out in the water with me. Thanks so much for the tip!

You probably want to dive with a camera _other_ than your land camera. You _will_ flood the camera case someday. If you don't, it's because you are not diving enough. I freedive with a Nikon CoolPix 2000 (an older, 2MP camera now) and I use it in an IkeLite underwater housing. About 3-4 years ago in Anguilla -- when travelling with a Kodak land camera and just the 1 Nikon dive camera -- I flooded the underwater housing at some point shortly after entry. That was Day 3 into a 3-week visit to the island. You can well imagine how I felt after THAT!

Upon returning home, I checked the eBay prices for used Nikon CoolPix 2000 cameras -- since I already had a sizeable investment in the underwater case. The prices were not that bad -- if one bid carefully. I now have three (3) Nikon cameras and I travel with _two_.

I echo the comments about the silica gel packets. I used to see condensation on the camera lens at times until I started using that trick. I 'cook' a dozen or more of'em prior to leaving on a trip. I seal them up in a small Zip-Lock to travel. I tuck 2 of'em into the camera case and use those two for 2, maybe 3 dive outings before starting with two fresh ones.

I modified my underwater housing to remove a number of superfluous pushbuttons that I would have no use for while diving. If I were scuba diving I might not bother. But, as a freediver, I didn't want to get down to 60-70 feet and find I had the *+@^#%$^@! thing in MENU MODE, or had RED EYE turned on, or had set the TIMER on, or had IMAGE REVIEW turned on, etc. :-)

Every time you open the case carefully inspect the O-ring for cleanliness. Have a _spare_ O-ring if at all possible. I generally do not close the case on the O-ring _unless_ it's for a dive outing. Between trips I store the O-ring in a baggy in the underwater case. And, between dive outings, I leave the case ajar with a towel draped over it to keep out dust, etc.

I do videos (just 20 sec for my model -- but interesting, none-the-less), and close-ups in addition to the normal frame-and-shoot stuff.

You'll learn a little more about how to do underwater photography on _every_ outing you take.

I'll leave you with one tip: As a snorkeler, go ahead and take pictures upside down (standing on your head.) The eel, lobster, octopus don't care. You don't care. And Photoshop doesn't care. :-)

Well, ok, another tip: Do NOT make photography the the single focus of your snorkeling/diving outings.

Enjoy yourself!
Marvin

Hi Sue,
I recently bought a Sea Life ECO Shot SL 321 from Amazon (about $175), to use on my second trip to Bonaire coming up in January. This camera seems easy to use and is small, both a plus. I was reading a Trip Report, written by F.Keaton Sept. 16th and 17th, and that's the camera he used (he gives the link to the photos he posted, using that camera). I was sold!
Cheryl