Posted by Luke Ormand on January 16, 2014 at 2:42 PM
Sandy - I have a Nikon AW100 which I used on Dominica on my honeymoon... it worked quite well and has stood the test of time. I could show you some photos offline if you were interested.
Also, Nikon released the Nikon 1 AW or something like that which is a waterproof version of their V series camera... looks really interesting and I would certainly be interested in buying it. Less than the cost of the housing and you get a great little camera!
I have the D800 housing, with strobes, ports, etc. you're looking at more like another 6 grand. The Gopro Hero3+ takes 12 megapixel stills, but also does HD video. It comes with the waterproof housing. I have a few and use them pretty often. It would be a nice addition to your current equipment lineup. $399, but you might find a better price. Don't forget to buy the memory chip too.
Posted by Wayne Jones on January 22, 2014 at 5:22 PM
Sorry if this is late, but I thought I'd throw in my two cents worth. I shopped around quite a bit, looking at lots of "tough" underwater camera and GoPros, and decided to go with the Nikon Coolpix AW110. You can get them for around $300 (saw one on sale a couple weeks ago for $250). This camera is Popular Photography's favorite in the class, and it really is rugged. I have shot underwater pictures in 45 degree water, and cooked it on a beach too hot to walk on. Versatile zoom and macro capabilities (see a WP I got with it here: http://www.naturephotographers.net/imagecritique/ic.cgi?a=vp&pr=212201&CGISESSID=eefc7eb872acbd46bb1c3193a1b84b90&u=25170t ). Does not shoot Raw, but it does have quite a bit of control options, using convenient buttons so you don't have to go into a bunch of menus. For instance, I just took it out of my pocket last week, propped it up in the snow, and shot a "selfie" by (1) hit the scene button and picked the setting for snow pictures (I already had it set for that, or you can also do manual over/under exposure quickly if needed, with another quick button); (2) hit the flash button and picked fill; (3) hit the timer button, and chose 10 sec.; and hit the shutter button. Could have just used a default auto setting, and used only the self-timer button, but photographers like to play with our buttons. Now that I thought of if, I'll post the results in the NPN Photographers Gallery, even though it's not a good pose. (No camera can make me look good.). I hope this helps, and it's not too late. One more thing: ATTACHED is a sample underwater action shot.
P.S. Just remembered why I picked the Nikon AW110 over a more expensive (and higher rated) Olympus camera. The Olympus was a close second choice for me, because it has a faster lens, but the Nikon is significantly sharper. I figured I would be using the DSLR in low light, so I went for the sharper pocket camera.
Discussion
4 repliesAnd no, I am not interested in a $1200 waterproof housing for my D800!
Thanks!
Sandy
Also, Nikon released the Nikon 1 AW or something like that which is a waterproof version of their V series camera... looks really interesting and I would certainly be interested in buying it. Less than the cost of the housing and you get a great little camera!
P.S. Just remembered why I picked the Nikon AW110 over a more expensive (and higher rated) Olympus camera. The Olympus was a close second choice for me, because it has a faster lens, but the Nikon is significantly sharper. I figured I would be using the DSLR in low light, so I went for the sharper pocket camera.