Underwater Cameras

Traveling again to Kauai this July and will be spending several days at Tunnels.

I am looking for a decent digital underwater camera to take some pics while Snorkeling only, so I don%26#39;t need anything with a very deep depth tolerance.

Would like to keep price under or around $300.

Anyone with any suggestions on brand and type favorites and possibly where to purchase for best pricing.

Thanks to all for any assistance.

I have tried the cheapie, use one time cameras you can buy in Walmart, etc. I am looking to upgrade a bit from that.

Underwater Cameras

Pentax has a series of WP that are pretty good, I%26#39;ve had one for several years. Just look on-line through Amazon, there are several updated versions.

Olympus has just come out w/a new one, but that may be more than what you are wanting to spend.

Good Luck.

Underwater Cameras

Thanks for the reply, Kiawah

Vivitar has come out with a 6 MP that retails for $120-$150 that someone on the board just ordered - don%26#39;t know if they%26#39;ve used it yet. It has gotten good reviews online.

The underwater pictures I took in this album:

…google.com/slabeaume/2008KauaiForUpload are taken with a small Nikon Coolpix S5 that I got from a camera company advertising on Ebay. The camera, underwater housing (for something like 10 ft---good enough for snorkeling), case, 1 G card, extra battery, charger, Recall program, and subscription to PCPhoto (excellent for photoshop hints), and probably some other assorted stuff that I don%26#39;t remember right now , was all for $179. Not a bad deal and it takes great pictures. Granted I did tweak the pictures a bit in photoshop, but you should do some sort of photo editting with any camera you get.

I haven%26#39;t used it underwater yet, but I%26#39;ve been quite impressed with the pictures from my new Olympus Stylus 790, which came from Amazon

Thanks to all for the tips.

Anyone else,keep em coming.

I just picked up the Olympus 850 and I am very pleased with the ease of use and size and quality of photos. Haven%26#39;t used it under water but did some great macro and super macro shots at the zoo the other day...lots of settings...good telephoto...I%26#39;m pleased and can%26#39;t wait to take it snorkeling.I haven%26#39;t read any instructions yet either so to me that means it%26#39;s really easy to use. I usually travel with a couple cameras but I am thinking this is going to get the most use. I did pay the extra for an extra battery and got a waterproof floating strap which I think are both must haves. First time out I wasn%26#39;t thrilled with the battery life...started giving me the warning about 70 pics in...but of course just learning and playing more, may be to blame.

It%26#39;s 8MP and good for 10 feet UW...the next version up was 100 bucks more, 10 MP good for 30%26#39;...more than I needed as I%26#39;m not a diver. This one was 259 CDN. but I think you may find a better deal stateside. I think your electronics are priced better than ours.

The last time we used the 35mm, refillable WP camera (not disposable but el-cheapo) we ended up with only 3 pics of swimming with the sea turtles in Mexico out of a whole roll. Big disappointment and so wasn%26#39;t going to repeat that mistake. Also with kayaking I didn%26#39;t want to worry about keeping the camera dry. Good vacation investment for sure!

My vote is for an underwater housing for a small digital camera. Husband has a Canon S70, put an underwater housing on it. We had a ball with it at Lydgate and the pics were very clear. MUCH better than the one time use underwater cameras.

Check the link below. There is a couple cameras on it that fit your price range. Bonica, Intova, and Sea Life all have ones under $300. I don%26#39;t have any personal experience with any of them but the Sea Life cameras seem to have good reviews. And the thing I like about them is that they are ';waterproof cameras'; not a camera with a waterproof case. The 2 Sea Life cameras from what I can tell are the same except for their depth rating. I also believe they are made by the same company that makes the Vivitar mentioned above.

leisurepro.com/Cat/…971.html

I bought the SeaLife SL321 last year and used it on my trip to Jamaica in November. It seemed to work really well and took very nice pics. It is a waterproof camera (up to 75ft. depth), not a camera with a waterproof housing and it is a digital camera. I have a 35mm camera with an underwater housing but prefer the SL321 without the need for the housing. You can find it for about $199 on the internet.

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