newbies question, what should i get ?

Hello

it's funny, i have seen this question in many photography forums, and always thought: read the forums and search reviews...

and now i'm here asking the question

i am going to tonga to shot whales (with tony wu), for now my main setup is a 1ds mk3, and i'd like to be able to shot some video, with a light setup as i'm already very overweight.

for now i won't need lights as it's all surface shoting and snorkeling ( maybe in the future who knows)

i have thought about the sanyo xacti hd as there's a thread about this camera here, but i still would like to ask:

what would you recommend as a light and versatile housing

thanks

alexis

Hi Alexis,

Welcome to the wonderful world of video. It is a creative climb that I hope you will enjoy. Before answering your questions however, if you could provide an idea of the budget you will hope to stick to, it would make it easier for videographers and editors here to be more specific with their suggestions. Keep in mind that we all don't think alike and you may be given several different options to choose from. Also, what camcorder will you be shooting video with?

Steve

Hello steve

i am not sure of what would be a medium budget to start with video, maybe less than 3500$ camera and housing (don't have a cam yet, so all the choices are open

thanks

alex

One suggestion I would make is to look at some good used video systems. Many times you can get quite a bit for your money and some of these systems are like new. Take this link for example:

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31144

I'll tell you right up front I don't know Mike and these folks other than by just their posts on here but this is an example of what I'm talking about. Light and Motion makes a great product and you'd be getting a top of the line housing that's like new for a lot less money. Add the Sony SR11 or SR12 and you would be right around what you budget is and this wouldn't be a beginner outfit at all.

the problem is i might be looking for something that doesn't exist

my main setup will remain a still camera for now, and i'm already a bit overweigth, that's why i'm hoping for a compact setup, even if if it's a bit worse

This is one the the most compact housings out there as far as I can tell and while I don't own one, I have heard good things about them. It seems like they wrap just around the camera. No extra space.

http://www.seatoolusa.com/hc7/index.php

They make the housing for several different models.