Compact Camera Course Part 1

Maria Munn · Issue 47, Mar/Apr 2009 · pp. 52–56

Products mentioned: Ikelite housings, Canon Ixus, Canon Powershot, Olympus compact cameras, Fuji Finepix F300, Fuji F31D, Canon Powershot A570

Getting into underwater photography is addictive. For those just starting out and looking to buy a compact camera (or perhaps a more advanced underwater photographer looking to buy a back-up to an SLR system), the choice of cameras and accessories is nothing short of overwhelming. Over the next few issues I will be sharing some tips to help you get to grips with the set-up and show how to achieve award- winning results with any kind of compact. The hardest part in getting started is knowing what camera to buy. What do you look for? Which camera? Ask yourself what you want to achieve from underwater photography and what your budget is? What kind of depths do you dive to so that the housing is adequate. If you like deep diving, then housings made by Ikelite for compacts will be more robust than the camera’s own brand of housing. Then look at a system with which you can grow in the future. …