MicrostockGroup
Microstock Photography Forum - General => Photography Equipment => Cameras / Lenses => Topic started by: mupwi on June 14, 2007, 16:15
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hi all I work on sailing yachts and am thinking about geting into microstock photography to make a few bucks on the side. Seeing as I see a lot of awsome sights while working sealife islands ect.
The sales ppl at a few stores Ive been to sugested that I should get the pentax w30 camera as they said that it was the only camera they thaught would stand up to the harsh environment humidity and salt air.
My fear is that this is too much of a simple point and shoot and will not get the great shots that sell what do you guys think?
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well it totally depends on how much $$ you are looking to spend.
Are you going to settle on a point and shoot or use a DSLR?
If you want to spend the big $$ then a canon 1d series camera would suit you well with L series lenses they are 'splash' proof. They would probably die if you dropped them in the water (unlike the pentax one you pointed out) but they should easily survive ocean spray and mist.
you could probably get some cool shots with the point and shoot, but you would have a LOT more control with a DSLR and the quality of the image would be MUCH better. - less noise, sharper, more depth of field control...
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or just another thought.
you could always get the pentax and see how you like stock photography. if it is for you, then invest more $$.
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I recall seeing an announcement from Olympus recently that they have waterproof/underwater cases available for their latest SLRs, and the new inexpensive E410 has just received an excellent review on DPreview.com.
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you can also get underwater cases for most canon and nikon DSLRs but they are costly. Just as much as the camera itself in most cases.
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Here is a link to some underwater digital cameras:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/shop/5236/Cameras.html/mnp/0.0/mxp/0.0/pn/1
The Pentax you mentioned is on the list.
Also, Sea & Sea is pretty well known for underwater cameras.
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My experience is that under good outdoor light, and shooting in lowest ISOs (80, 100) , coupled with good basic understanding of photography techniques, a P&S can easily produce stunning pictures suitable for microstock.
And with a pro DSLR like EOS-1D series with L lenses (not all of them are weather-sealed), they can probably withstand the abuse, but needs to be brought to the service center for more frequent checks and cleanups just to be on the safe side.
Like leaf said, how much are you willing to spend on this venture?
cheers.