Need Input: Canon SD800IS, SD900, A640 or ???

I'm getting a new digicam this year and want to be able to use it underwater and on land. Price is not an issue on these for me but I'm not willing to spend more then what these cost since I also need to buy an underwater case for them.

I'm trying to decide between the A640, SD900, and SD800IS or maybe even the A710IS, or something else if you have a rec?

My "likes' for each...

A640 : AA bats, 10mp

SD800IS : Image Stabilization, small size, Digic III chip

SD900 : small size, 10mp, high-res lcd, Digic III chip

Questions / Thoughts...

Will the IS will help underwater?

Does the A640 or SD900 have that much better IQ then the SD800IS?

- I want to be able to print as large as 8x10.

Please respond if you have used these cameras and especially for scube or snorkel... Thank you for any input you have!

Hi Livin,

i can't tell you much, i haven't used any of these. what i can say is that I would choose a SD800IS over an SD900 any day. The SD800 has a wider lens (28mm equivilent) which isn't too wide for UW but will help get as wide as possible if you can put a conversion lens on the housing.

IS is awesome, I love it on my DSLR lenses and think it would help with macro shots of still subjects (where P&S cameras are strongest) or WA available light shots of reef/wreck/something still where you may need a long shutter speed.

The difference b/w 7MP and 10MP cameras is negligable, anything 6MP or higher is fine for most uses, IMHO. I shoot an 8MP Canon IDMkII at 3/4 resolution to save space cause I shoot so much for work (newspaper) and print them in quality at all sorts of sizes.

The downside to these cameras vs bigger digicams is you often have little if any control over white balance and exposure settings. Though nothing compares to colour temperature WB, focus area selection, instant firing response, continuous focusing and dedicated wheels for aperture and shutter speed on my D200 underwater. Ahhh

my 2ï¿

Cheers,

Chris

The SD cameras are "point and shoot" only - no control over aperture and shutterspeed. Not good for underwater use.

James

My friend has an A640, and the photos are good. more control over functions than the SD cameras. I would definitely go for the A640 over the SDs

I just spent two weeks in Bonaire with my Canon A630/WP-DC8. Great camera !!!! I'm still figuring our how to use it efficiently with an Inon D-2000, tho. Did not try shots using internal flash. Set camera for Tv=1/60; but aperture too big for good depth of field. Not "talking" correctly to flash. Need to test flash vs camera settings on dry land - highly recommended!!

8MP gives me lots of cropping ability. But first need to throw away trash from 800+ pics.

4xAA batteries last multiple days.

IS would have been nice. Look at A710IS ? Only 2xAA, tho. My S1-IS is great on long shots (above water). Didn't buy UW case 'cause only 3MP.

This is from my experience with a Canon S50 (full-manual) and Fuji F30 (only A or S modes, but not M) - if you plan on using an external strobe, take a camera with full manual controls (A640 in this case), otherwise it's very difficult to get a correct exposure, the camera outsmarts your external strobe and as a result you spend a lot of time in PS.

Amigos,

I just taught a quickie 2 hour "UW Digital Photography Made Simple" class yesterday, and two people had the SD800IS and Canon A640. In addition I've used the A640 a bit above water.

The SD800 IS Canon camera as many mentioned has IS, which is nice. It does has a "M" mode where you can adjust a limited amount of parameters, but not true Shutter Speed and / or Aperture adjustment. I have found people can get around this limitation with an accessory UW strobe by trying the "Scene modes".

"Sports mode" which will select a higher shutter speed is one favorite. Forget about the "usual" small f-stop and depth of field theory with these little cameras.....The AF will lock in on your main subject and usually does pretty well in the resulting photographs.

The SD800 IS screen is HUGE. Battery life is not quite as long as 4 AA NiMH in the Canon A640. Very compact and I saw some 8X10 the guy printed on an inkjet printer. Even a couple shot with the "Underwater" mode which simply boosts the red channel that looked darn good.....Built in flash shots closer than 2' looked really nice, too!

The Canon A640 as stated uses AA batteries, which is nice if you pair it with a small strobe using the same power source....Also has a full "M" manual mode allowing you to set shutter speed and aperture. FAST AF for a P&S, too.....A little easier to hang on to, and prices are dropping abit (I've seen $310.00 or here in Ohio)

If I had to buy one for UW use it would be the A640 or cheaper but still good performing 8 MP Canon A630. I think they're a little easier to hand on to above water, too....

dhaas

www.haasimages.com

One more thing.......People obsess over a small P&S camera with a slighty wider 28mm lens. Once it is in a housing, which to my knowledge are only available with flat ports, this lens angle is narrowed back to maybe 35mm or so......

So forget this being a "wider" view for underwater use....

dhaas

But, then if you have a compact with 35mm eqv focal lengt, wouldnt it get an even further narrowing tnan the 28mm that would make a difference when selecting camera?

One more thing.......People obsess over a small P&S camera with a slighty wider 28mm lens. Once it is in a housing, which to my knowledge are only available with flat ports, this lens angle is narrowed back to maybe 35mm or so......

 

So forget this being a "wider" view for underwater use....

 

dhaas

oskar,

Yes, but adding an accessory wide angle lens, if that is what you want to shoot, is the best solution....Some WA accessory lenses are actually sharper behind a P&S lens that doesn't go wider than 35mm.

It just always bugs me hearing people tout 28mm versus a 35mm on a P&S camera as having ANY advantage underwater in a housing behind a flat port. Just not very much IMHO. You're talking like a difference of 1' distance to subject maybe....

dhaas

It just always bugs me hearing people tout 28mm versus a 35mm on a P&S camera as having ANY advantage underwater in a housing behind a flat port. Just not very much IMHO. You're talking like a difference of 1' distance to subject maybe....

Actually, a difference between 28mm and 35mm is 0.8x, whether in air or underwater behind a flat port. An Inon UWL-105 wide-angle converter has an underwater magnification of 0.68x I think (0.51x in air). So a difference between 28mm and 35mm would get you 2/3 of the way this wide-angle lens would get you. If any compact had f=24mm, in terms of the field of view it would be equivalent to having this $400 lens attached to a f=35mm camera. (Too bad they don't make compact cameras with such lenses.)