Underwater Housing for 30D or 5D

Mark -

Thank you for a reasoned answer (and the kind words about my images as well - much appreciated). I understand what you are trying to say here and I agree with a lot of it (otherwise I wouldn't be shooting with a housed DSLR).

But to realize those advantages, you have to make a commitment to u/w photography and to overall diving skills. I also happen to be a dive instructor and I find photographers tend to go OOA or lose their buddies far more often than non-photographers. There is a fair bit of task loading with photography and diving, and this gets magnified big time with the additional drag and complexity of a housed DSLR rig.

Moreover, once you have that big box, in order to really utilize its potential, one has to go from being a "diver with a camera" to a "photographer on scuba" mindset. Only if they are willing to work a subject, spend some time optimizing lighting, etc. will they realize the benefits of a housed DSLR. Also, the additional complexity of the housing means it requires a lot of attention to detail - both pre and post dive - in order to ensure no screwups (and the list of potential screwups is enormous). Heck, I dislike EVERYTHING about my housed DSLR, except the images.

So IMO, realizing those benefits is not for everyone - if someone isnt willing to put in the effort, the housed DSLR's added potential will not be realized and it will only be a wasted expense.

I have written an article on this subject here - take a look and let me know your thoughts:
http://www.diveindia.c​om/uwphoto/dslr_or_com​pact.html

But you are spot-on when you say this:

I was one of those people. I got my first u/w setup in 2001 - a 3MP Oly (top of the line! ) and a matching housing. Got lousy shots with it. Got a strobe with a compact, got better shots with it but missed a lot. Finally got a DSLR and put up with all its demands (and a 1+ year learning curve), and now I get satisfying images.

So in short - you are correct, we do agree... I am just qualifying my statements

Safe diving,
Vandit

vkalia,

Your article is spot on. I particularly liked this line:

On my trip to Cayman last month, I was dashing around taking photos of everything on my first few dives, and consequently using up air at much too fast a pace. My dive buddy was getting rather exasperated because I was forcing him to come up with 1000-1200 psi when I was at 600. I learned to pick a spot and work just that spot. Maybe a small coral head, or the time we found an octopus under a large chain on the bottom. The point being, I was much better at conserving my air and energy when I worked diligently on one subject then when I was flitting around like a fly.

I've never thought to include India in my dive plans, but from your posts it is now on my list. Not at the top, however, since my wife and I just scheduled our "spring" trip for Bonaire in early March.

One comment about diver/photographers I would like to make. One the trip to Cayman, there were a number of husband and wife dive teams. In all but one case, the guy was the photographer and the girl was just tagging along. This seemed to work out very well for these couples, because the wife took on the role of scout. While Bob was photographing this cool coral head, Jane was looking in other nooks and crannies for neat opportunities. A great division of labor, and prevented what you described in your article, buddies becoming disengaged from one another and therefore not supporting each other.

Nice article. I'll look for more from you.

Regards

MarKap77 wrote in post #5840470
One comment about diver/photographers I would like to make. One the trip to Cayman, there were a number of husband and wife dive teams. In all but one case, the guy was the photographer and the girl was just tagging along. This seemed to work out very well for these couples, because the wife took on the role of scout. While Bob was photographing this cool coral head, Jane was looking in other nooks and crannies for neat opportunities. A great division of labor, and prevented what you described in your article, buddies becoming disengaged from one another and therefore not supporting each other.

Mark, glad to know you liked the article. Whenever your India plans start to become reality, drop me an email and I can suggest places/locations/etc. for you.

Re your quote above - that is what my wife and I do. She's my spotter and I'm the photographer. Now she has a u/w video setup and we shoot together (although we get in each other's way a little occasionally, it is better on the whole as she is happy to spend more time on one location as well).

Vandit