Sea and Sea DX2G - any experiences?

[Tassie Diver]

G'day

I'm looking for a new UW camera. I want wide angle, >10MP, RAW and accessory external lenses. Oh, and I want to be able to use Inon strobes with it.

So I thought I was onto something with the Canon G10, then I found out that wide angle accessory lenses don't work that well. Now I'm really interested in the DX2G.

I could go Housed DSLR, but for the cost of the housing, I could buy three or four decent housed compacts. And for my purposes, I don't need the extra image quality.

If anyone has used the DX2G underwater and can give me an opinion, I'd love to hear it.

Cheers

TD.

[jugglematt]

i think the dx2g would be a good option .
also have you thought of the nikon p6000 , it has 3x optical zoom , good wide angle ability and raw as well , as i understand consumer cameras with lots of optical zoom don't perform well with wide angle underwater due to the port length.
there are several housings available including ikelite , fisheye and others i think.
i use the previous model and am very happy with its wide angle abilitys , and combined with the inon uwl100m67 and dome attachment it is a great setup. the inon wide lense is main lense i dive with now.
Matt

[Tassie Diver]

Thanks Matt

So are you using the DX1G? How does the Inon fibre optic link with the Sea and Sea connection?

I'm using an old Oly 4MP with an Inon D2000 and love the sTTL feature, so don't want to lose that convenience.

I considered the Nikon but had heard of some issues with the proprietary RAW format.

Cheers

TD.

[DevilDiver]

I shoot the S&S DX1G and have been very pleased with the camera (above and below the water) (Flickr: devildiver's Photostream). I believe you will need the Inon L Type Fiber Optic cables to use with the S&S with the Inon Strobes.

I have not shot the 2G at this time but have had great reviews from others (write time for RAW).

The Nikon P6000 is a great option as well and worth seriously looking into. The G10 is a great camera but to get beyond 24mm W/A (UW equivalent) you would need to look at the Patima or Fix housings.

Let us know what you end up with and post some pics and a review...

[DevilDiver]

I had the oppertunity to work with the DX2G a little yesterday, I did not get to shoot underwater though. The camera Ricoh GX200 is a great little camera, same size and layout as the GX100 with the same (24-72mm/f2.5 wide - f4.4 telephoto) zoom lens and basic features and a 1/1.7" CCD sensor with 12 megapixels.

The software upgrades are apparent as soon as you turn it on, fast start up and focus, full manual controls that are super easy and quick to acsess as well as the usual P,A, and video plus three personal "my settings" that can be saved as your favorite go to shooting modes. Various photography settings menu (exposure compensation, white balance, WB compensation, ISO, picture quality, focus, picture settings, metering, continuous shooting, auto bracketing, light intensity adjustment, manual flash) can be set up for one touch acsess.

This is a fun camera to shoot, great for beginers, intermediate and pros, small and light enough to easily fit into a pocket. For topside shooters there is a available 19mm wide angle lens and 128mm telephoto available.

The underwater housing is small and compact with a sturdy feel (looks just like the DX1G) and a secure snap and lock that is easy to operate. The lens port has a bayonet mount and takes the same wide angle and close up lens (adapter ring required) as the DX1G.

The only issue I found was with the fiber optic conections on the front of the camera. Just like the DX1G the DX2G has two ports that fit the "L" fiber optic cable from Sea & Sea, the issue is the cameras flash appears set a little higher inside the housing than they allowed room for so the ends of the fiber optic cable do not sit directly in front of the difussed flash. To fix this Sea & Sea has included a small adapter that fits on the front of the housing where the cables should go and then you plug the cables into the adapter. My concern would be how secure is this? I could see the possibility of the adapter coming loose (no chance of loosing because it would still be secured by the fiber optic cables) witch would be a pain. Personally I would permanantly attach the adapter to the housing so this would not be a issue, but Sea & Sea should have thought of this in the first place. No big deal in the big picture but still an issue, this might be corrected now after the fact but not on the one I worked with.

I really wish I could have got this in the water for some test shots.

Overall from what I have seen I would say the DX2G is one of the top U/W P&S options on the market today.

[Paula Schi]

Hi- regarding the Strobe adapter:
it does stay in place although it looks like it wouldn't want to stay put.
I have done about 15 dives with the adapter so far and have had noch issues about it falling off. My photo-buddy has one on her DX-1G housing as well and doesn't have any problems what so ever.

[Tassie Diver]

Bumping this thread up again - does anyone have any firsthand experiences with using the DX2G underwater?

Cheers

TD.

[CompuDude]

Nope.

But it's looking less interesting with the imminent release of the G11 and the S90. Although it'll be a little while before housings catch up.

[Tassie Diver]

Originally Posted by CompuDude

Nope.

But it's looking less interesting with the imminent release of the G11 and the S90. Although it'll be a little while before housings catch up.

Depends on whether Canon get their s#1t together and provide a housing that will take a supplementary lens. The G10 looked good until I discovered all the vignetting issues associated with wide angle supps.

Cheers

TD.

[CompuDude]

Originally Posted by Tassie Diver

Depends on whether Canon get their s#1t together and provide a housing that will take a supplementary lens. The G10 looked good until I discovered all the vignetting issues associated with wide angle supps.

Cheers

TD.

Several companies have been working on that. The main issue is not the Canon housing, but the zoom lens which forces a different port, just like a DSLR, for wide angle work.

That said, IIRC, there is a true wide angle lens coming out shortly (or is it already out?) from one of the big players, I think maybe the Fisheye FIX housing? For the G10 at the moment but I assume it would work with the G11 as well, since the lens is the same at the wide end.