Which cameras does USVH make housings for?

Our housings have electronic controls and all brands of electronic control housings must be used with cameras that have a LANC jack. This symbolis next to the jack. Only SONY and CANON cameras have this jack. If you must use another brand of camera you'll have to settle for a custom-made housing with mechanical controls from another company.

We make housings to fit all SONY digital video cameras except the MicroMV cameras because their image quality is not as good as the other choices from SONY.

SONY TRV-950, HC80, HC65, TRV80, TRV70, TRV38, 50, 30, 27, 26, 25, 20, 18, 17, 11, 10, 8, and same models in "E" (PAL format). Also: DVD-301, 201, 101.

And same models in "E" (PAL format),

SONY TRV-900, 7, 350, 250, 840, 740, 540, 340, 240, 230, 330, 530, 730,120, 320, 520, 720, 110, 310, 510, 105, Hi8 models sold before 2001.

And same models in "E" (PAL format).

SONY PC-330, 120, 115,110, 109, 105, 101, 120BT, PC-101, PC 110, PC-9, PC-100, PC-5, PC-1, PC-7. Also, TRV-33, 22, 19, HC-20, 30, 40.

And same models in "E" (PAL format),

Which cameras can I use in a video housing?

We suggest you choose a SONY camera because virtually all video housing companies make housings for SONY cameras. Some housing companies, including us offer housings for some of the CANON cameras. CANON offers some excellent cameras at a good value but they are not widely distributed and we see relatively few requests to make housings for CANON cameras. CANON also has a bad habit of changing their camera body styles each year which makes it difficult for housing manufacturers to offer small housings that will fit snugly around more than one or two CANON camera models.

For example, most of our small housings for a SONY Digital8 or MiniDV camera will fit 10-15 different SONY cameras made in several consecutive years. If you ever decide later to use a different camera in your video housing this interchangeability becomes important. If you choose a camera besides SONY you will have limited choices in housing brands and most of the other cameras will require a housing with mechanical controls custom-made to fit that camera.

Should I choose Hi8, Digital8 or Digital MiniDV?

Beginning in 2001 SONY no longer included a LANC jack on its Hi8 cameras, so the choice is now between Digital8 and Digital MiniDV. As of 2003, SONY began phasing out its Digital8 cameras because their ability to play old Hi8 or 8mm tapes has become less important. If you're purchasing your first camera we suggest you choose one of the MiniDV cameras because that is a widely-available format that will be around for at least several more years.

What about the DVD cameras?

There are several limitations with the SONY cameras that record directly on to a DVD. First, they allow for only 20 minutes of recording at the high-quality setting. There will be many times when you'll want to record more than 20 minutes during one dive. At other times you may only record 10-15 minutes from one dive but you would still want to change disks between each dive. The second problem for divers who travel is that the camera's are a bit larger than the MiniDV cameras with similar features. Third, the DVD cameras cost $200-$300 more than the MiniDv cameras with similar features. The extra money may be better spent on a DVD read/write drive for your computer that will have many more uses.

What other camera features are important?

Camera size: The smaller the camera the smaller the housing can be made. Digital8 cameras are the largest cameras and require the largest housing shell. The SONY MiniDV TRV and HC series cameras are about 25% smaller than Digital8 so their housings can be smaller. The MiniDV PC series and similar cameras are slightly smaller than the standard MiniDV TRV series, but many people prefer the TRV cameras because some of the buttons on the smaller cameras are tiny and hard for some people to operate accurately. If you are considering buying a PC series camera or one of the small format TRV cameras (TRV33, 22, 19 or HC 20, 30, 40) we strongly suggest you hold one in your hands to determine if the ergonomics are acceptable to you.

Video Resolution: The table below shows the different sizes of the CCD imaging chip and the resulting number of pixels on the CCD that are available for video images. Generally speaking, more pixels means a sharper video image.

Still image resolution: Virtually all of the cameras available with still image capability can produce a still photo big enough to fill an average size computer screen at the highest quality that a computer monitor can display. The real difference among cameras is how large of an image can a camera capture that can be printed out at a resolution that will look acceptable. If the camera has less than 1 megapixel then you're essentially limited to an approximate size of a 4 x 6 inch color print. The best MiniDV cameras offer resolutions of approximately 2.0 megapixels and these images will still look good when they're printed out at sizes up to approximately 8 x 10 inches. The PC330 offers 3.0 megapixels and can provide nice prints larger than 8 x 10 inches. Samples of still images are found here and here.

Monitor size: This feature is only important for your use outside of the video housing. The flip-out monitors available on digital cameras are not viewable in small video housings like the ones we make. Some other companies offer housings big enough to allow use of the camera's flip out monitor but these larger shells are heavier and more buoyant, and they require even more weight to make them neutrally-buoyant. It is also very difficult to see a monitor opened inside a housing because it is too far forward inside the housing to be seen in normal filming and swimming positions. A much more attractive option is the use of an auxillary monitor mounted inside the housing behind the camera. More information about these monitors is here.

Zoom Range: All of the cameras have at least 10X zoom range and that's all you'd ever want to use underwater.

Other features: All of the housings we make offer control over manual focus and the ability to switch back and forth between video mode and still picture mode.

Camera prices: SONY offers cameras from under $500 to about $1600. The lowest priced cameras provide a video image that is okay, but not great. Since you're spending lots of money on dive trips and video equipment we suggest you choose a camera that offers at least 690k pixels for video and at least 1megapixel for still images.

Performance in low light: This is something we hear a lot about in camera discussions. Many so-called experts on cameras and their use in low light are professional, or semi-professional users who want to use their camera to film indoors in very low light, like at weddings and parties. As divers we are more concerned with the amount of light available in reasonably clear water with sunlight. Generally speaking, all of the SONY digital cameras will be fine without artificial lights in water with 50+ feet (15+m) of visibility, at depths to about 70-80 feet. Perhaps 10-30% of your shots would be better with the use of artificial lights, but you can still get lots of good video with a camera that has a minimum lux rating of 7-which is the most common rating now.

TRV-950/PDX-10: These two cameras use 3 CCD chips and are very impressive. They are SONY's highest-quality consumer camcorder and they provide an excellent video image. The colors and sharpness in the image are better than the other camera choices. Their mail-order price is currently in the $1550-$1700 range. The difference between the two cameras is that the PDX-10 offers a slightly better 16:9 widescreen performance than the TRV950, so if you will be using a widescreen TV for viewing your video the PDX-10 is the better choice. The PDX-10 costs about $100 more than the TRV950. These two cameras account for about half of all the housings we make.

SONY TRV-70/80, HC85: All of these models are essentially the same camera except the TRV80 offers the capability of Bluetooth-a technology with very little use at the present time and a slightly larger LCD screen. The HC85 is the 2004 replacement for the TRV70 and other than it's slightly larger LCD screen we can find no meaningful differences between these two cameras except the TRV70 is now on closeout pricing. As of April 20 it can be found for about $750 at Ibuydigital.com, BHphoto.com, and elsewhere. This is about $200 less than the current price for the HC85. Local stores should be offering it on closeout prices too.

These three cameras offer the highest still image resolution at 2.0 megapixels and the video quality is very good. They use one CCD chip and have 1080k pixels for video. If you put the video from one of these camera alongside the video from the TRV950/PDX-10 you can see only slight differences in sharpness and colors. There are some comparisons of their still image capability here. These cameras are the second-most popular choice in our housings.

SONY PC-330: The quality of the video is very similar to the TRV-70/80 and HC85 but the overall size of the PC-330 is slightly smaller, as are their underwater housings, and the PC-330 offers 3.0 megapixel still images. Mail-order prices are near $1300. Make sure you hold this camera in your hands to determine if the smaller size is acceptable to you.

PC109, 105, TRV38, HC65, 40: These four cameras each use 690k pixels for video and the overall quality is good. They offer still image resolution at 1.0 megapixels so you can make nice web pages and good 5 x 7 inch prints. These cameras provide a good value for price vs. performance.

TRV 19, 22, 33, HC20, 30: These lower-priced MiniDV cameras have less capable still imaging capability, and their video quality is not as good as the cameras mentioned above. If you already have one of these cameras and you're happy with the images then you will be happy using the camera in an underwater housing, but make sure you choose a housing that will allow you to use the same housing if you decide to upgrade your camera in the future. If you don't have one of these cameras already we suggest you spend at least another $100-$200 to get a camera that will provide better video and still image quality.

DVD 101, 201, 301: These cameras are mentioned above in the discussion about the limitations of the DVD cameras. They are a nice all-in-one package. They are easy to operate and editing to a DVD is simple. The DVD 101 only has 340K pixels for video so we suggest choosing the DVD 201 (690k ) or the DVD 301 (1080k) instead.

SONY introduced a new line of digital cameras in 2002 called the Micro MV but we will not be making housings for these cameras until their image quality is improved. These cameras may be a signal of what is to come in the future but for now their imaging isn't acceptable for high-quality requirements.

All of the prices mentioned on this page are generally available from reputable mail-order companies like Ibuydigital.com, B&H Photo, and Berger Brothers. We have many customers who have received good prices and sevice from these companies. There are other good online sources but if you decide to buy a camera from one of the mail-order places in New York city (other than the ones mentioned) remember... Buyer beware.

Camera

Avg. Price

Video Pixels

Still Pixels

LCD size

Housing

TRV950/PDX10

$1550/$1700

3 CCD

1.0mp

3.5

MiniDV

HC85

$980

1080k

2.0mp

3.5"

MiniDV

TRV70

$760

1080k

2.0mp

2.5"

MiniDV

TRV80

$900

1080k

2.0mp

3.5"

MiniDV

PC330

$1350

2040k

3.0mp

2.5"

PC

DVD300

$1200

1080k

1mp

2.5"

MiniDV

HC65

$800

690k

1.0mp

3.5"

MiniDV

PC109

$700

690k

1.0mp

2.5

PC

PC105

$650

690k

1.0mp

2.5"

PC

DVD201

$950

690k

1.0mp

2.5"

MiniDV

TRV38

$700

690k

1.0mp

3.5"

MiniDV

HC40

$550

690k

1.0mp

2.5"

PC

HC20, HC30

$500

340k

340k (.34mp)

2.5"

PC

TRV19, 22, 33

<$550

340k

340k (.34mp)

2.5"

PC

DVD101

$800

340k

340k (.34mp)

2.5"

MiniDV