Waterproof video and stills

[CarpeyBiggs]

Stumbled upon this today, and I know people are always trying to
figure out good waterproof systems... Might be a good solution.

Olympus Waterproof still cameras:
http://www.steves-digicams.com/pr/olympus_06062007_pr.html

And a tiny waterproof video camera. This thing looks rad.
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/watercam/sanyo-xacti-e1-worlds-first-waterproof-camcorder-262461.php

Enjoy.

[Sombeech]

I'd definitely go for one of those for slower paced filming (lower risk of losing the camera)

You can even get a waterproof cover for the Canon PowerShot, which is probably the most popular "casual" photographer's camera. I think it's another $100 though.

[CarpeyBiggs]

Yeah, the housings are okay, but I've found them to be bulky and heavy. Kinda pain in the ass, unless you are doing scuba when you really need the rigidity.

I bought a housing for my DSLR, it'll be here tomorrow. We'll see how it does... Cost me $250, but at least it wasn't as bad as the polycarbonates. Those things are 8 pounds, and cost 2 grand.

[montanablur]

What housing did you get for $250?

[smcqueen]

I've been very happy with my Olympus 720SW. Some people say it doesn't have very good picture quality, but I haven't had any problems with it as long as I keep the "film" speed around 100. It does tend to get a little noisy above that. In canyons, I generally use 100 speed and the vibration reduction setting to get acceptable shots. Since it's waterproof and shockproof (within reason), I just hang it around my neck and go. Swimming with it is not an issue. The worst abuse it has had was on a Colorado river trip (at Moab) when a wave the size of Texas crashed over the boat with me in the bow. That was much more water than it has seen in a canyon! :2thumbs:

[CarpeyBiggs]

Well, I took out the housing tonight and messed around at the pool. Gotta say, I am pretty impressed. It ain't perfect, but the optics are not bad at all, and the bulk is minimal, compared to the hard cases. Probably wouldn't take this scuba diving, but it is good for canyons. I had it in the water about 1/2 hour, pretty pleased with it. Here is the link for the housing:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/17357-REG/Ewa_Marine_UA_U_A_Underwater_Housing.html

It looks kinda hokey online, but I was surprised how robust it was in reality. Has an internal frame to keep the lens port centered. And the optical glass has only minimal aberations. Pretty cool setup.



1- Diving in.... Not bad, in my opinion. White balance is tough to figure out in the water, this is "auto." Prolly not quite right.
http://danransom.com/blog/images/20070613195247_underwater.jpg

2- My girlfriend snapped a couple while I acted like I knew how to swim...
http://danransom.com/blog/images/20070613200120_reach.jpg

3- I like the whole under water, above water combo. Hope this turns out some unique stuff in the canyons. Then again, anywhere outside of Zion, the water is nasty... We'll see how it turns out.
http://danransom.com/blog/images/20070613200149_canyonmeadows.jpg

4- And this is for RockGremlin, just to let him know the girlfriend hasn't totally left me yet... Though she might, if I keep snapping unwarranted pics.
http://danransom.com/blog/images/20070613195851_ashley.jpg

5- And one more for Ice, just because...
http://danransom.com/blog/images/20070613200004_ashley2.jpg

Go easy fellas...

[montanablur]

Nice...

Do you run the battery pack on your 5D?

Would it fit the 24-70mm L lens?

I'm liking it as a lightweight option...