Underwater camera recommendations?

[aksclix]

Hello folks!
I have some snorkeling plans coming up in the future. Any recommendations besides a GoPro or something alike? I have a Sony a6600 in compact camera systems and the housing for that and other cameras are outrageously expensive! 1.5x times the camera itself..
I'd like really high quality images (& videos - 4K) and that is why I am trying to look beyond the GoPros. (or am I mistaken? are the GoPros capable of producing such images these days? I had one 5 years ago and it was just "OK")
Any first hand experiences with good underwater gear? Please share..

Thanks,
AK

 

[ggibson]

I dive with a Sony RX100 II, housing, and strobe. It does indeed get a lot pricier when you start looking at interchangeable systems (I used to have a m4/3 setup). If you're just snorkeling, a Chinese housing by Seafrogs would be affordable for your A6600 and won't really test the limits of the depth rating. I've generally heard good things about these discount housings even for diving though. All underwater housings are a risk to some degree.

Some other things to be aware of with housings and underwater photography:
- If you're just snorkeling, anything below 15ft or so will have very little red light. Just to set expectations. Shooting RAW or adding a red/orange filter will give you a little latitude to WB but again expect blue images. The only way to get around it is to use strobes/video lights to add light at depth to expose true colors. But that's a challenge for diving, not snorkeling. I would definitely not recommend strobes for snorkeling. On camera flash is mostly useless because of backscatter.
- If you're buying a housing for your A6600, a flat port will magnify the field of view of your lens by about 1.25x. Ultrawide lenses inside a flat port will have corner smearing. A dome port will give you the native field of view of your lens in the housing, but you generally need to make sure you're matching the port to your lens.
- With a flat port, you can add a wet wide angle converter lens on the front to give you an ultrawide view. I use my ultrawide wet lens 95% of the time. Unless you're shooting macros, you don't need to zoom.

A GoPro is much better suited for snorkeling IMO. Underwater housings are large and more difficult to swim with. You need to be aware of the housing's buoyancy if you want to dive down below the surface. A small camera will be easier to manage getting in and out of the water. Less worry about banging front ports on coral or rocks, which will scratch immediately with poly. And no concerns about a housing flooding and ruining your main vacation camera.

GoPro's also have ultrawide lenses, which let you get closer to your subject to improve visibility and frame up more dynamic scenes. Much better for video. From what I've seen, image quality is on-par with today's smartphones which is pretty dang good for how small they are. The Hero10 does 5.3K 60p video, which you can grab a decent 20MP still from. I'd say get a GoPro and enjoy the scenery.

 

[aksclix]

Thanks @ggibson
Those are some solid insights. I didn't realize I'd have to consider so many different aspects! I have a Sony zv-1 as well and it looks like they make cases for that too. That's on the table too now I guess. Any impressions on the Sealife cameras (DC2000 which seems to be discontinued now), Olympus TG-6 compared to the GoPro? I will consider the GoPro too.

 

[aksclix]

I was hoping I could get a housing for the a6600 + PZ 18-105 lens which would cover a pretty solid zoom range

 

[ggibson]

You don’t really need/want zoom for underwater photos, visibility underwater severely limits longer focal length use to all but macro. The 18-105 is not a lens I’d want underwater, I’d rather have something wider.

I had an older Sealife camera for a while and it was an ok compact setup to start with. Simple and small, but I quickly wanted more. This was before GoPros were useful for photos. My sense is that the DC2000 is older and probably has outdated specs. Check out Backscatter’s guides to compact cameras for some reading.

 

[Shashin]

The effective focal length (to be accurate, the field of view) is longer underwater than on land. 18mm on an APS-C camera is not going to be very expansive.

 

[aksclix]

yea I agree the wider lens is more conventional and captures the scene as you may want to see it. I have NEVER done snorkeling before.. I don't quite know what to expect, so I thought an all in one lens might help. Also, 18mm (~27mm) should be wide enough I thought. I guess it makes total sense to keep it simple considering I have never done this before. Anyway, as you say, I'll probably just go for a gopro or an olympus tg-6 sort of a camera.. Already carrying a whole lot of camera gear for land shooting.

 

[ggibson]

yea I agree the wider lens is more conventional and captures the scene as you may want to see it. I have NEVER done snorkeling before.. I don't quite know what to expect, so I thought an all in one lens might help. Also, 18mm (~27mm) should be wide enough I thought. I guess it makes total sense to keep it simple considering I have never done this before. Anyway, as you say, I'll probably just go for a gopro or an olympus tg-6 sort of a camera.. Already carrying a whole lot of camera gear for land shooting.

A flat port will make the ~27mm more like 34mm underwater. Also, housings don't always support all camera/lens functions. For interchangeable zooms, you often need the port to support the size and offer the appropriate gear ring to let you turn the zoom. Not sure if the PZ rocker would be supported, I'd guess not, but maybe the camera has a way to customize zoom on a dial.

A GoPro or TG-6 can both be great for snorkeling. Kinda depends what you want for which you'd choose. I'd go for the wider lens of the GoPro for sure, personally. I'm guessing you can get way better videos on that device and pulling 20MP+ stills seems great. The TG-6 might have better photo quality(?) and maybe more expandability if you wanted to add wet lenses for macro/ultrawide or a dive housing in the future.

 

[aksclix]

this really seems like a whole new dimension with different rules I have the goPro Hero 3+ which is REALLY old.. it has 4K too! Looks like the Hero 10 (or even 9) might be a good enough no-nonsense choice after all. It's decided then... I'll just buy a GoPro! All other options require some homework on my end and some sophisticated gear too.. will save it for next time!

 

[atanabe]

AK,
So far from what I have read, you have been given good advise from Graham. I snorkel almost daily and have learned the limitations of being an air breathing creature. I currently have the Olympus TG5 and Nikon J2 in a Nikon housing. First, I agree that a compact system is much easier to swim with than a larger housing. I always shoot RAW so color balance is not a problem, the GoPro is a good solution, just remember to color correct using filters. Gear selection is the easiest thing to do, mastering your technique and holding your breath are the hardest. If you are a novice at snorkeling, the GoPro maybe your best solution. Using the selfie stick and lowering the camera is much less intrusive and will result in better shots of the fish than diving down. Motion is your enemy, floating in the water plus a moving subject results in many blurry images, a fast shutter speed of 1/320 or higher.

Good luck and stay safe1

 

[aksclix]

Thanks for the tips @atanabe . I will be keeping it simple. I don’t know what I was thinking initially.. I was clearly getting ahead of myself when I have zero experience under water I’ll be taking a GoPro and that should be it

 

[Paratom]

The Oly TG6 is a good "compromise". it is a small sensor but you can still get some decent images. It also has some nice macro and super macro capability, and it is also a great "beach and boat" camera.
I have used m43 gear (EM1) in a Nauticam hosuing with 2 flashes on the sides etc. - IQ is better of course, but it is a lot of bulk! You really need to want this.
GoPro is a good plan as well, add a good underwater light and a grip and enjoy!

 

[ggibson]

Using the selfie stick and lowering the camera is much less intrusive and will result in better shots of the fish than diving down. Motion is your enemy, floating in the water plus a moving subject results in many blurry images, a fast shutter speed of 1/320 or higher.

Great point here--fish and other animals are skittish and will swim away quickly if you make big movements, which will frequently be the case when snorkeling and you try to approach from the surface in the span of a breath. Never tried a selfie stick on a GoPro myself, but it seems like a great add-on piece of kit!