Underwater video

[talbazar]

Hi All,

I might be a bit of topic here, sorry if I am.

I've been playing around with my UW PS for the past 2 years. Trying photography with not great result and I recently started to take more and more videos, editing them and put small films together.
I'm now really considering going a bit more on that domain and the photography to the ones of you (many of you) who've got talent for that art.

Would any of the readers here have some knowledge base I could go through? Website, forums, etc...
I read few threads on ClubSnap, but there is not much on that topic.

I'm mainly looking for information on the different set-ups possible, what to take care about when looking for hardware, tips, etc...

Thanks.
Pierre.

[antacid]

if you;d like, i know a friend who has a JVC DV video cam with ikelite housing for sale at $1k..

you can try wetpixel.com, but be forewarned..they are dangerous folks. i spent lots of money because of them
hahaha

[diver-hloc]

Hi TS.... a few question

*What type of Video Quality are you looking for ?? Normal TV or HD TV ??
*Are you going for video's like those on BBC Documentary... full of colours even when under 20 metres of waters ??
*Your buget ??

I've for years... been using the video mode on Canon's PowerShot series of cameras to make U/W video for my diving buddies after our trip. I found that movies clips in AVI format with resolution of 640x480 would be good enough to make DvD videos for viewing on normal CRT TV (look slightly 'pixelated' on LCD or Plasma TV due to higher resolution). And I use Ulead Video Studio for my editing..... Good and fun videos but with limited colours when in deep waters.

Like U/W photography..... finding enough lights is the main problem. A friend of mine using a JVC video cam was trying to get himself an affordable HID type lighting for his video cam at last years Adex (and you could check out such equipment on this years Adex btw). I don't remember how much he paid for the lights.... but I did remember of how my head hurts after I hear the price

Btw.... ScubaCam does deal with U/W video equipment too....

http://www.scubacam.com.sg/

Why not go down and have a talk with them.... after you have some ideas wetpixel.com 1st....

[malcom7373]

Originally Posted by talbazar Hi All, I might be a bit of topic here, sorry if I am. I've been playing around with my UW PS for the past 2 years. Trying photography with not great result and I recently started to take more and more videos, editing them and put small films together. I'm now really considering going a bit more on that domain and the photography to the ones of you (many of you) who've got talent for that art. Would any of the readers here have some knowledge base I could go through? Website, forums, etc... I read few threads on ClubSnap, but there is not much on that topic. I'm mainly looking for information on the different set-ups possible, what to take care about when looking for hardware, tips, etc... Thanks. Pierre.

Hmm,

What is your budget? Since you are familiar with ikelite. Then stick with it. Otherwise be prepared to payup double of the ikelite setup.

I also noticed when you switch between any setup you can get frustrated with it as you find it not user friendly. Generally, it is a matter of getting used to it. Personally, if you got budget , then at least go for any with full manual controls, allowance for adding on lens and filter. Invest on some lights will be good too.

Cheers

[talbazar]

Originally Posted by diver-hloc Hi TS.... a few question *What type of Video Quality are you looking for ?? Normal TV or HD TV ?? *Are you going for video's like those on BBC Documentary... full of colours even when under 20 metres of waters ?? *Your buget ?? I've for years... been using the video mode on Canon's PowerShot series of cameras to make U/W video for my diving buddies after our trip. I found that movies clips in AVI format with resolution of 640x480 would be good enough to make DvD videos for viewing on normal CRT TV (look slightly 'pixelated' on LCD or Plasma TV due to higher resolution). And I use Ulead Video Studio for my editing..... Good and fun videos but with limited colours when in deep waters. Like U/W photography..... finding enough lights is the main problem. A friend of mine using a JVC video cam was trying to get himself an affordable HID type lighting for his video cam at last years Adex (and you could check out such equipment on this years Adex btw). I don't remember how much he paid for the lights.... but I did remember of how my head hurts after I hear the price Btw.... ScubaCam does deal with U/W video equipment too.... http://www.scubacam.com.sg/ Why not go down and have a talk with them.... after you have some ideas wetpixel.com 1st....

Thanks for these.
To answer your questions:
- I reckon normal TV might be enough, as you said. But I'm open to something else as I'm just trying to make up my mind for now
- The more colorful, the better, but I know the limitations of underwater imaging, so...
- Budget... Not really defined yet either: the cheaper the better That's why I'm trying to understand a bit more

What I like about using my PS to do video: light weight and minimum hassle underwater
What I really don't like: image quality is quite poor, almost impossible to adapt a filter and the small size of the camera make it a lot harder to stabilize resulting in a lot of average shots I can't use.

Originally Posted by malcom7373 Hmm, What is your budget? Since you are familiar with ikelite. Then stick with it. Otherwise be prepared to payup double of the ikelite setup. I also noticed when you switch between any setup you can get frustrated with it as you find it not user friendly. Generally, it is a matter of getting used to it. Personally, if you got budget , then at least go for any with full manual controls, allowance for adding on lens and filter. Invest on some lights will be good too. Cheers

Thanks.

As I said, budget is still to be negotiated with my 'finance department'
After doing some readings, what I'm trying to look for are mainly:
- ease to adapt filter (and maybe lenses at a later stage)
- manual white balance (that's probably the main feature)
- possibility to plug-in with a Mac as this is what I use for editing (and my old DVD-cam from Sony doesn't work with my Mac)

Lastly, thanks to all of you who answered (either here or on PM)...
Keep answering though, there are many information I need to get... ha ha ha....

Cheers,
Pierre.

[diver-hloc]

Originally Posted by talbazar Thanks for these. To answer your questions: - I reckon normal TV might be enough, as you said. But I'm open to something else as I'm just trying to make up my mind for now - The more colorful, the better, but I know the limitations of underwater imaging, so... - Budget... Not really defined yet either: the cheaper the better That's why I'm trying to understand a bit more What I like about using my PS to do video: light weight and minimum hassle underwater What I really don't like: image quality is quite poor, almost impossible to adapt a filter and the small size of the camera make it a lot harder to stabilize resulting in a lot of average shots I can't use. Cheers, Pierre.

Blue part -
As you said.... we can't have it all.... cheap and HD at the same time I'm very much willing to suffer a little less 'Bright' colours from (Cheap) usable fotoage.....

Red part -
Bro.... its not that bad.... use AVI files with at least 640x480 resolution in 30fps..... works very well for me and my buddies.... I've even show off my videos at Toa Payoh CC for a U/W talk.....

[talbazar]

Hi everyone,

Thanks a lot for all the replies and the proposals for video set up.
After long hesitations, I decided (well, my bank account decided) to only invest in a Magic-Filter for my Olympus Mju700.
I tried it last week in Aur...

Result is, filter works well up to 10-12 meters, after that, the image tends to become blue-grey.

If you're keen, here is the final edited result:
Aur - June 09

Thanks and good underwater imaging.
Cheers,
Pierre.