For those contemplating a compact camera set up here's a thread I posted over on Scubaboard........Too many pics and such to duplicate so I thought this would be easier for anyone interested.

 

https://scubaboard.com/community/threads/anyone-gone-from-an-apsc-advanced-compact-to-a-point-and-shoot.641886/page-2

 

And the text is here:

 

Olympus TG6 /7 - Macro and microscope mode for macro is great even with the small sensor and basically two f-stop choices. Certain strobes like AOI Q1 RC and Backscatter MF-2 can do RC controlled flash which is super accurate automatically. Can capture decent WA shots in good light. Easy set up with several videos out there help minimize menu confusion.

Sony RX100 V, VA, even VI / VII - 20 megapixel 1" sensor with great autofocus, all TTL flash (no manual flash choice to conserve battery power) but most small strobes pair well for very good flash control. Macro challenging even with diopters but good wide angle lens options make this choice a good one. Menus can be "challenging" but larger 1" sensor than Olympus TG-6-7 makes for better wide angle and medium fish shots in sharpness. Most models have great 4K video too.

Canon G7X (original if shooting JPEG as first G7X had really slow RAW processing improved on G7X II and III.) All original G7X, G7X II and G7X III have a 20 megapixel 1" sensor and fast 24-100mm f 1.8 - 2.8 lens producing nice images in macro, fish and wide angle. Some folks complain AF (autofocus) being contrast versus Sony's dual pixel AF is a little slower. In real world shooting it's not as big a deal as some make it out to be. Flash control choice of AUTO (TTL) which pairs great with any S-TTL (Slave TTL automatic flash) plus can do manual flash at low power to conserve battery if one chooses to set flash units manually. Easiest menus to learn and use. Also has best white balance for ambient light shooting color balance. Most housings have 67mm threads for adding SUPER macro lenses or a variety of wide angle options from low cost to expensive depending on housing.

I am biased as a lazy traveling warm water diver. I sold all my remaining SLR gear in 2016 and switched to compact shooting since then.

Recently I even leave behind tray, arms, etc. and only shoot one strobe (currently Inon S220) mounted on my Fantasea housing's cold shoe. Coverage is fine for me and set up and diving with a small rig is a breeze but that's my taste after diving 55 years.
 

David Haas

Compact Camera User 🙂

Biased, but I would suggest to add the Lumix LX10 to the list for video 😉
Older camera, but still quite a few tricks up its sleeve for moving picture enthusiasts.

Edited January 17, 20241 yr by bghazzal

Adding to this list, the insta360 Ace Pro. Returning from a recent trip to Maldives, my wife (and lifelong dive buddy) reported that she found the Sony Nex7 in Nauticam too bulky and old, and that she would prefer diving with a GoPro instead.. As I gave this matter some consideration, I found this recent video comparing the Insta360 Ace Pro with the GoPro12. Would also appreciate more inputs from folks here..

 

 

Kind regards

Ajay

The insta360 Ace Pro is surely interesting, but lacks most manual functions which make compact cameras so interesting for our purposes (especially aperture control, which is set at 2.6, zoom lens and more).
This definitely places it the action-cam category, I think.

 

So called "point and shoot" compact cameras are a dying breed, choice narrowing down to action cams and phones or bigger, interchangeable lens cameras (M4/3 and up). Here are some videos on the subject.

 

It's a shame, because in our beloved underwater photo/video niche activity, full manual controls, a zoom lens and a bigger sensor definitely still have a role to play...
At least still shooters have the Olympus TG series as some sort of hybrid - for video, much less options.

Just a brief note about the three (currently) popular choices for action cameras in this category, namely, GoPro Hero 12, Insta360 Ace Pro, and the DJI Action 4. All of these have a closest focus distance in air of ~0.4m (so, perhaps 0.6m underwater). Of these, Backscatter has a clip-on wet macro lens for only the GoPro among these; it brings the closes focus distance to 15~20cm inch. It's possible similar solutions for other action cams exist or will arrive soon. I hope to report more on the GoPro with the macro attachment (and without) in a month or so - planning to spend 3 days in Anilao in Easter.

 

Kind regards

Ajay

There is the AOI-UCL-03. It' not a rela macro but a close-up lens. The sister wide angle lens is excellent.

AOI and I non lens use the QRS-2 mount. I see that both Easydive and T-housing have a Inon adapter for their gopro and dji osmo housings.

I guess it "ShouldWork" even on AOI lens...

 

It's a simple system and designing and printing at home a mount for the Insta one should be pretty easy.

 

https://www.easydive.it/en/accessories-for-underwater-housing/accessories-for-housing-action-cam/additional-lenses-for-action-cam

 

https://www.aditech-uw.com/en/shop/cat-238-307-767.html

 

Thanks @Davide DB. I haven't studied optics - so this is a naive question.. Is it the case that one can stick any macro/close-focus lens in front of any of these small cameras and expect it to perform (optically) more or less the same? Or is there also some lens design required? I can imagine that if the lens can be used interchangeably, then it should be easy to design (and share) and print adapters.

Kind regards

Ajay

Yes, these lenses didn't change since the Gopro 4.

I did not study optics either but those sensors are so tiny and works hyperfocal. Maybe the new insta is a little bit different with its 1" sensor.

Gopro is the market leader so everything revolves around them. Inon still mentions obsolete Sony action cams.

 

The real truth 😄

 

 

 

On 1/17/2024 at 9:29 AM, bghazzal said:

Biased, but I would suggest to add the Lumix LX10 to the list for video 😉
Older camera, but still quite a few tricks up its sleeve for moving picture enthusiasts.

I’m mostly shooting macro video and I’m tired of changing lenses and not having zoom lenses underwater.

I thought I might get one of the last G7x iii for the next years.

If you have experience in video, what do you think about G7x III (for video)?

Thanks ✌️

13 hours ago, MrPhilipps said:

I’m mostly shooting macro video and I’m tired of changing lenses and not having zoom lenses underwater.

I thought I might get one of the last G7x iii for the next years.

If you have experience in video, what do you think about G7x III (for video)?

Thanks ✌️

Hi - yes, I shoot video exclusively, but have never tried the G7xIII - if I remember correctly, its greatest flaw for video was the manual white-balancing process, which implied working from a still shot, rather than simply using the white-balance button.
These kinds of ergonomic issues were the main reason it wasn't on my list when I was deciding which compact to get for video (even though I love Canon colour balance in ambient light)

If you're shooting macro exclusively, the LX10 works well, but for macro in artificial light the Sony RX100 series, especially the latest in the series, have humongous zooms which sound really good on paper - they will, however, lock you into a macro-centric port configuration, and I say on paper because other than specs, good macro footage shot on these is not that easily found for some reason...

Also while a compact's zoom lens is fine for macro, especially coupled with a +6 to +15 diopter on a compact and the 1" sensor helps in this regard, (you can see some of my macro video on the LX10 here ) , it will still have more limitations than a true macro lens.

cheers!

Edited June 3Jun 3 by bghazzal

2 hours ago, bghazzal said:

Hi - yes, I shoot video exclusively, but have never tried the G7xIII - if I remember correctly, its greatest flaw for video was the manual white-balancing process, which implied working from a still shot, rather than simply using the white-balance button.
These kinds of ergonomic issues were the main reason it wasn't on my list when I was deciding which compact to get for video (even though I love Canon colour balance in ambient light)

If you're shooting macro exclusively, the LX10 works well, but for macro in artificial light the Sony RX100 series, especially the latest in the series, have humongous zooms which sound really good on paper - they will, however, lock you into a macro-centric port configuration, and I say on paper because other than specs, good macro footage shot on these is not that easily found for some reason...

Also while a compact's zoom lens is fine for macro, especially coupled with a +6 to +15 diopter on a compact and the 1" sensor helps in this regard, (you can see some of my macro video on the LX10 here ) , it will still have more limitations than a true macro lens.

cheers!

I agree with all of this, you can get macro range from compacts with a diopter, but it locks you into a narrow shooting range and makes life difficult in that you have to get into the right focus range to even see anything to aim the camera. A regular macro lens allows you to stand back frame and refocus as you move closer . It does depend on how small you want to shoot things as well, the little compacts only focus close at the wide end. If it's shooting things that are around 50mm long you might be able to do something without a diopter, particularly if you went with a G5XII which focuses a lot closer than the G7XIII, but has more limited housing options.

9 hours ago, bghazzal said:

Hi - yes, I shoot video exclusively, but have never tried the G7xIII - if I remember correctly, its greatest flaw for video was the manual white-balancing process, which implied working from a still shot, rather than simply using the white-balance button.
These kinds of ergonomic issues were the main reason it wasn't on my list when I was deciding which compact to get for video (even though I love Canon colour balance in ambient light)

If you're shooting macro exclusively, the LX10 works well, but for macro in artificial light the Sony RX100 series, especially the latest in the series, have humongous zooms which sound really good on paper - they will, however, lock you into a macro-centric port configuration, and I say on paper because other than specs, good macro footage shot on these is not that easily found for some reason...

Also while a compact's zoom lens is fine for macro, especially coupled with a +6 to +15 diopter on a compact and the 1" sensor helps in this regard, (you can see some of my macro video on the LX10 here ) , it will still have more limitations than a true macro lens.

cheers!

Thanks for the detailed answer @bghazzal and @Chris Ross

My current setup is a Sony a6400 with the 90mm 2.8 sony lens. Both are great quality, but with a crop of 1.5 the focal length is 135mm and that’s long for me :D also as I said I would like to have a smaller setup and less port changing, since I have to remove the port to remove the lens, before I can get the camera out of the housing…

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDKq9EAOPhD/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DI10kydt_3Q/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

What I read is, Sony Rx 100 vii is difficult for macro - couldn’t find a good reason online for that.

Canon g7x iii is much better for macro… but that’s only what backscatter.com says.

The topic with a button for white balance is true, would be great to have one, but do you use MW for macro video? I did all my videos with auto white balance. MW was only important for wide angle shots.

1 hour ago, MrPhilipps said:

Thanks for the detailed answer @bghazzal and @Chris Ross

My current setup is a Sony a6400 with the 90mm 2.8 sony lens. Both are great quality, but with a crop of 1.5 the focal length is 135mm and that’s long for me :D also as I said I would like to have a smaller setup and less port changing, since I have to remove the port to remove the lens, before I can get the camera out of the housing…

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDKq9EAOPhD/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DI10kydt_3Q/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

What I read is, Sony Rx 100 vii is difficult for macro - couldn’t find a good reason online for that.

Canon g7x iii is much better for macro… but that’s only what backscatter.com says.

The topic with a button for white balance is true, would be great to have one, but do you use MW for macro video? I did all my videos with auto white balance. MW was only important for wide angle shots.

For macro I'm in full artificial light and just set the kelvin value to the lights', so it's true that it's not much of an issue other than for ambient light / mixed lighting / wide angle.

For sure there must be a reason why the RX100vii, a macro-beast according to specs, doesn't seem to translate to actual footage online. Something is off. I've seen some good footage from the RX100V and VA though.

Yes, that crop on the a6400 sounds really tricky - but it would be great if you could test things out on a compact - coming from the 90mm macro to a compact's zoom lens could take a bit of time to adjust to, and potentially lead to some regrets I think

I was actually planning on upgrading my compact rig to a Sony a6700, but having moved to Japan postponed this project indefinitely for financial reasons.

Look into it, it's an APS-C, great for video and, if lightning fast video AF isn't a requirement, it should work great with the new 16-50mm kit lens, which is a zoom lens and optimised for video, or the Zeiss Touit macro 60mm (which doesn't support fast video AF unfortunately).
AF is actually outstanding on this camera, but video-AF supporting lens options are scarce, especially for macro, unfortunately.
It would also solve port removal issues and should be fantastic to work with for macro video (and you also would gain 4K 60fps, which none of the compacts have, and can be very useful for small fast moving critters / working with shallow DOF)

Edited June 4Jun 4 by bghazzal

Or you could look into m43, great choice of macro lenses including the 60 and 45mm macros and there are plenty of wide angle solutions that don't require pulling the port off to get the camera out. If video is you main aim then a GH5 secondhand might be a good solution, the housing are bigger at least in Nauticam but ports and lenses are a lot smaller. They get down to the equivalent framing of 2x in full frame without diopters, though I'm not sure what you refer to when you talk about not having a zoom lens UW. There are possible solutions to this in m43 including using wwl/ diopter on a 14-42 lens but the macro magnification is a little lacking.

It seems the right choice is somewhat dictated by how much magnification you would like when doing video and how flexible you want to be on a dive. Though there is always the argument to stick to one type of photo/video during a dive.

Canon V1 opinion anyone? We know it's going to provide decent quality WA in a super small package with that small dome but what about macro? I do not shoot wet macro optics and have no idea how it is going to work with that lens ...

On 6/4/2025 at 11:01 AM, MrPhilipps said:

What I read is, Sony Rx 100 vii is difficult for macro - couldn’t find a good reason online for that.

Canon g7x iii is much better for macro… but that’s only what backscatter.com says.

There is actually great opportunity for macro with the RX100 VII and it's massive zoom range.

However I think you will need to pick the right housing for it, one that allows you to use a flat port with the whole zoom range.

The fantasea housing never offered the whole zoom range.

Both Isotta and Nauticam opted for a wide squared port, which is less ideal to get close and compact for macro.

I think Marelux engineered something in that direction.
So I'd be looking into that housing more closely.

If you need wide angle you can use one of the conversion lenses that will require the 60mm focal length position, such as the MWL or WFL09s.

11 hours ago, RomiK said:

Canon V1 opinion anyone? We know it's going to provide decent quality WA in a super small package with that small dome but what about macro? I do not shoot wet macro optics and have no idea how it is going to work with that lens ...

Max magnification is hard to find, but eventually found a reviews that said you could fill the frame with a subject about 10cm wide at the long end of the zoom range which is about 0.2x mgnification on the 1.4" sensor. You would need quite a powerful diopter as the focal length of the lens is quite short.

10 hours ago, Adventurer said:

There is actually great opportunity for macro with the RX100 VII and it's massive zoom range.

However I think you will need to pick the right housing for it, one that allows you to use a flat port with the whole zoom range.

The fantasea housing never offered the whole zoom range.

Both Isotta and Nauticam opted for a wide squared port, which is less ideal to get close and compact for macro.

I think Marelux engineered something in that direction.
So I'd be looking into that housing more closely.

If you need wide angle you can use one of the conversion lenses that will require the 60mm focal length position, such as the MWL or WFL09s.

Yes, the RX100 VII looked very promising for macro but so far the best RX100 macro footage I've seen seems to be shot on the RX100Va for some reason...

If this helps, I can reach macro on a 1" sensor compact, the LX10 (max 72mm zoom), with a powerful diopter like the CMC-1 (+15) or AOI UCL-09 (+12.5) or lens stacks (if I could budget it I would get the AOI +18) - this is for video, not stills.

The V1 has a larger sensor, which will loses some of the smaller sensor benefits.

Edited July 20Jul 20 by bghazzal

On 7/20/2025 at 12:08 PM, bghazzal said:

Yes, the RX100 VII looked very promising for macro but so far the best RX100 macro footage I've seen seems to be shot on the RX100Va for some reason...

If this helps, I can reach macro on a 1" sensor compact, the LX10 (max 72mm zoom), with a powerful diopter like the CMC-1 (+15) or AOI UCL-09 (+12.5) or lens stacks (if I could budget it I would get the AOI +18) - this is for video, not stills.

The V1 has a larger sensor, which will loses some of the smaller sensor benefits.

I think the devil is in the detail, if you look to the port chart the RX100VII fills the frame with a 16 x 10.7mm object and the SMC-3 diopter but it focuses only between between 91 and 103mm Which means the magnification range will be quite small and you'll probably need a pocket full of diopters to cover normal working ranges of a macro lens.

The RX100V on the other hand covers the 35 x 23mm frame with CMC-1 and focuses between 35 and 75mm, so will give a wider range at a more reasonable magnification. (equivalent to 100mm macro lens on full frame at 1:1 at max. With the VII you are stuck up closer to 2x full frame equivalent. I think that is because the min focus distance for the VII is very long at max zoom and becomes somewhat impractical unless you shoot everything at super macro. Zooming out you will soon vignette I guess.

I seem to recall reading somewhere the the VII ended up being impractical for macro.

18 hours ago, Chris Ross said:

I think the devil is in the detail, if you look to the port chart the RX100VII fills the frame with a 16 x 10.7mm object and the SMC-3 diopter but it focuses only between between 91 and 103mm Which means the magnification range will be quite small and you'll probably need a pocket full of diopters to cover normal working ranges of a macro lens.

The RX100V on the other hand covers the 35 x 23mm frame with CMC-1 and focuses between 35 and 75mm, so will give a wider range at a more reasonable magnification. (equivalent to 100mm macro lens on full frame at 1:1 at max. With the VII you are stuck up closer to 2x full frame equivalent. I think that is because the min focus distance for the VII is very long at max zoom and becomes somewhat impractical unless you shoot everything at super macro. Zooming out you will soon vignette I guess.

I seem to recall reading somewhere the the VII ended up being impractical for macro.

Thanks Chris, that totally makes sense and explains a lot!
Just goes to show — don’t judge a book by its cover… or a compact by its long zoom lens! 😁