nikon d70?

$1200 USD retail plus ports.... most dealers will discount a little

Karl

You can find the MSRP for the housing here:

http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/2dslr_d70.html

Actual dealer price will vary but will hopefully be less.

Cheers

James

Heh, Karl beat me to it by 9 seconds...;-)

ok ive read all the specks of the d70, the d100, and canons 10d but i dont know how they preform in the field and how it feels. stuff i cant really read about on nikons or canons site. for the guys who use these slr's how do u think these preform in live action conditions. changing the functions, weight and maneuverability, editing at home. im looking for a all around camera i will be using it mostly for shooting my sisters highschool wrestling matches for now and when i save up enough money for the housing i will be taking it in the water to shoot surfing, spearfishing, and just to catch whatever cool wildlife i can find. do i even need this quality of a camera? i understand that i will be able to get nicer shots and more diversity with the more expensive slr's but it is also a lot more confusing to set up those functions??? lol soo many Qs so little time. so basicly what kind of camera should i get?!!!?!?!?>MIKE

Only way to know is to try them all out from friends or camera shop.....

FWIW, the D70's menu is very easy to use.....changing camera functions is even easier...IMHO..

Karl

Hi Mike,

Yes the D70 seems to be a nice camera, and the others mentioned are great too. There cerainly has been a lot of "hype" on the d70, but the question on how "good" it is all depends on the answer to the question "good for what purpose?".Often these threads get very techie, even if the question isn't. One could compare the D70 and dreb till the cows come home, but the differences (maybe with the exception of the lens lineup) are really pinpricking. C'mon, who cares if you can shoot at 1/8000 or "only" we 1/4000... etc...maybe someone does, but it is rare.The question is, do you really need all those features? Are the extra $$$ worth it to you or would you rather put the towards something else.

From what you describe in your last post it sounds like you would maybe look into a P&S camera. Ok I know this is the uncool thing to say... If you have not used a SLR before, you would have a bunch of stuff to read up on and learn, and if that is not what you would like to do, but rather get out and take pix at once, you would be better served by a p&S. You would probably get "good" pictures faster with a P&S, both of wrestling sister, surfers, and wild moose. Now, some of the dslr's come with P&S functionalty, and you could use it without learning about controlling your exposure, but if you intend to use the camera just as a p&S, then you might as well save the money and buy a great P&S in the first place. Also, if you are looking to take the camera into the water, and are looking to save up for a housing; you can get a good P&S + housing for less then just the camera body of one of the digital SLRs. Now, the cheapers DSLR bodies (the canon Dreb - a great camera btw) might come under $1000, but the lenses are not cheap, the housing price is more then the camera, you need to get ports to match the lenses you choose, you need to get at least a strobe, you will have higher insurance... it adds up. For example, in my case, I went with the "Cheap" solution (dreb, ike housing, one ike stobe, kit lens, 50mm macro, DEPP insurance), and have what I consider almost the bare necessities, but it has cost me $3000+ and counting. Also, if you are looking to use the camera for shooting surfing and other "wet" activitries where the camera is above the surface, be aware that a housed slr is going to be heavy and clunky above the surface (unless you go with an ewa marine ziplock bag). Maybe the road to bliss and instant gratification isn't in the dslr in this case, but rather in a Nikon Coolpix or Oly 5060 or similar...

But if you on the other hand have heaploads of $$$ and/or are looking to make the uw photography a serious hobby, the you probably want to go with a housed dslr.

Photography CAN be fun and exciting while keepin it simple! And it doesn't have to cost a lot to get into.

Being new to this, I have to ask a stupid question.

What does a 4+ diopter do and where do you get it?

Hi Bannie,

Do a search here on Wetpixel using the work "Diopter"

This has been discussed in depth so you should be able to read a lot about it.

Look at the top of the page, and click Search

Cheers

James