Please recommend an underwater film P&S

[Noll]

Ah, what a coincidence!

I brought a Nikon L35AW a few weeks ago after reading great reviews online, and today I picked up the first roll from the lab.

It's a brilliant camera to use. Very simple, and built with a reassuring weight to it. What surprised me immediately was just how quiet the auto advance is. I was second guessing myself if I had actually loaded it correctly! This was after using a Ricoh FF-70 mind you, which advances like a viking thunder storm.

http://lomographydude.tumblr.com

Click the link above for my tumblr page, where the last 5 or 6 pictures are from the Nikon, loaded with XP2. Remember these are just scans straight from a high street lab.

I'll post a few more up over the next few hours too.

Fred (is it Fred?) - really nice shots on your Tumblr blog - nice scans too. That's a big plus. Being a 1980s camera makes me nervous for underwater use in 2013, but it looks to hold its own on dry land.

What about used Nikonos?

As a travel camera, I get the impression that the Nikonos will be bulkier than I want to pack (in addition to a couple other cameras). Underwater photography also isn't a top priority but I thought it would be fun to snap off a roll or two. Money is somewhat tight too so to avoid an extra $70-100 for a basic Nikonos outfit is all the better. I'm mainly looking for something simple that I won't have to worry about much - but clearly this was a bit naive on my part!

Thanks again for all the advice, I do appreciate it.

 

[Jodoro]

What about getting a couple disposable waterproof cameras from the local supermarket? You could probably (read: definitely) even get them in Hawaii, not have to worry about hunting something down on the internet, or making sure that it works, or space in your bag, or about getting the best results possible and just let them be fun memories that will still have the same meaning for all parties involved.

 

[robbeiflex]

I use a Canon AS-1 both as underwater and general beach/sandproof camera. It is fully waterproof and has a decent flash plus underwater mode. If you can find one on the cheap i would recommend it.

Cheers,
Rob

 

[mbisc]

+1 for Minolta Weathermatic 35 -- I have the same situation: one or two rolls in the pool each year with kids, and a snorkeling trip to Hawaii every few years. Works great so far, and was $30 or so at KEH

 

[nikonosguy]

just my thought.... get the fuji or nikon digital that's good to about 70 ft fuji finepix xp60 -- it's a serviceable digital point and shoot and will honestly serve you better for the trip --- less weight, less space, smaller than a pack of cigs --- have owned one and they are great little machines


http://www.fujifilmusa.com/products/digital_cameras/xp/finepix_xp60/ - -- honestly, you're limited with the film p&s waterproofs --- 36 shots max per outing -0---

 

[nikonosguy]

http://www.amazon.com/MX-5-35mm-und...r_1_50?s=photo&ie=UTF8&qid=1386609362&sr=1-50


there's a lomo waterproof as well - -- remember, lots of light falloff ---

 

[rjbuzzclick]

I have the Canon WP-1 and have used it underwater, but only a foot or two down. It handled that just fine.

 

[nikonosguy]

i gave away a wp1 last year at christmas --- good camera ----

 

[nikonosguy]

http://madison.craigslist.org/ele/4211320208.html

 

[mackigator]

I totally agree with @jkrumsick - I would shoot digital underwater/in the water.

I own a Nikon Action Touch / L35AW. It does pretty well. I make it a point to shoot it anytime I'm in a really wet place, to get a few hard to take angles. But you'll be worrying about seals, fumbling with a film door open while standing in a wet environment, waiting for the body to come to temp and defog, running out of exposures underwater and having to surface, running out of light and realizing you still have exposures but don't want to swap film rolls - the list goes on.

Contrast all that with a small digital waterproof - all those headaches are gone. Some of these used are cheaper than a used Action Touch!

The Action Touch is a cool camera. But you'll probably get more usable images from a waterproof digital P&S.