Best first underwater camera?

[Sassenach]

I was thinking something cheap, just a standard digital, but something that can take relatively good pictures and video. Any suggestions?(:

[Elodea the Mermaid]

I don't know about best... okay, I definitely know it's not the best, lol, but this is what me and my boyfriend are using to start out. You can't beat the price, and neither of us have the kind of photography skills that would have justified purchasing a camera right off the bat. We just though it would be a cheap way to get some fun images and video and check out our technique for now.

http://mernetwork.com/index/showthread.php?10682-Not-perfect-But-Cheap!

[Sassenach]

Haha, I saw that post too, Carabosse. Unfortunate, no one in my family owns a smartphone! I have a 4th generation iPod, but it already takes such crappy pictures that I don't think we'd be able to see anything through the film. Thanks for the advice, though!

[Elodea the Mermaid]

Haha, gotcha! Maybe you could try out the Spongebob camera that was suggested. We could collaborate on an album of terrible grainy mermaid pics!

Good luck with your search. :-D

[Sassenach]

It would be a fantastic album lol!

[Vrindavana Starfish]

GoPro. They're great quality, you should even be able to find used ones and the underwater casings at a good price if you look. Also, they're easy to use for a non-pro.

[AptaMer]

Hey Sassenach, if you want to save money, you could look on your local Craigslist and Kijiji listings. People are often selling GoPros there seriously cheap. Just check whether it has the dive housing, or if you can correct the lens, as has been described in the other threads here.

Also, my dad & my brother got a little waterproof, shockproof camera called the Fujifilm XP70. It's on sale at bestbuy.com right now for $150. They're very happy with theirs, they take great pictures & videos and it has done fine with immersion at the beach, but it's only rated to 30' depth. Realistically, you couldn't take this camera to depth like you could with the GoPro and the Dive Housing, but if all you want to do is take mermaid pictures at shallow depths it would work.

[Sassenach]

Lol, I didn't even think about buying one used! Me, the second hand queen​...

[Yulia]

I bought the Nikon Coolpix S33 for our trip so I could use it in the ocean. It works down to 33ft/10meters. It cost 990sek which is 118usd.
On amazon.com the camera costs 109-128usd. It comes in different colors, like silver, white, blue, pink and yellow.

For the price I'm really pleased with the quality, both in pictures and video.



http://utterberg.net/upload/img/201507021106-Skärmavbild_2015-07-02_kl._11.06.23.png
http://utterberg.net/upload/img/201507021106-Skärmavbild_2015-07-02_kl._11.06.54.png

I'll see if I can show you a short clip of my video later too.
For me the camera could've costed 300 bucks as likely, I'm really pleased.

[Yulia]

Here's a video! :)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5ywTGc9k3w

[Nyx]

I an Olympus tough tg-850 (or something like that)
They cost around the same as a gopro (200 for me). The quality isn't as good but the camera is crazy tough (as the name implies).
I'd say it's a good beginner camera just because of how tough it is.
I have butter fingers, I've already dropped the poor camera on concrete and it still works! Not even a scratch on it!

[Nerdmaid Faith]

I have a GoPro HERO3 , which I bought for about $200 secondhand. If you just want something that can shoot well for cheap, I would suggest buying one of the earlier models off of Craigslist like others have said. Especially since a new model has just come out, plenty of people are looking to upgrade and are willing to sell theirs for a cheaper price than the market.
Here are the specs for the earlier models
HERO1 - Goes for 160 on the website
1080p30 and 720p60 video, 5MP photos up to 5 frames per second, QuikCapture, SuperView™ and Auto Low Light. Waterproof to 131’ (40m). - See more at: http://shop.gopro.com/cameras/hero/CHDHA-301.html#sthash.9XNi2eI8.dpuf

HERO2 - Goes for about $200 on the website


Video Resolution: 720p, 1080p


Still Image Recording Format: Secure Digital


Maximum Aperture: f/2.8


Interface Ports: mini USB, mini HDMI


Mic Input Jack: Yes


Waterproof Depth (Mfr. Rated): 197 feet

[Ciriun]

I have an Olympus Stylus TG-4 and I know nothing about it other than what it says on the box. It was a gift, so I just have to trust my dad's judgement that it is a good camera. So far it has worked fine for my purposes.

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