Hi folks-
Heres the deal: I have a DSC-W1 and just got the mpk-wa marine pak for it. I am not very experienced at all with underwater shooting. I need someone to kinda guide me here with what I should do about settings on my camera for shooting. I am going to be diving in St. Thomas probably no deeper than 80 feet and no shallower than 30. What should I do about a flash or lighting? Shutter speed, iso etc...??? Also should I get the red filter?
In febuary I was in mexico and bought a $40 underwater camera from the dive shop. The pics were TERRIBLE!!! Tons of scatter and the color sucked!!! I want to minimize this problem by using my DSC-W1.

Thank you so much for your help. I dont get to dive the ocean much, so I want to try and get some good pics.

HI -
I returned from the Bahamas last week after using my UW housing for the first time.  It worked like a champ!  The color was slightly washed out - partly cloudy day with slightly rough water - but was adequately corrected using MS Picture Manager (would probably be better with other software, but I was lazy).
I did not have any accessories except for the housing, but the quality of pictures was great.  I used it to 90’ in The Blue Hole off of Nassau, and at shallower depths over several days.  No problem with ambient light except in some overhang areas in the hole.
Even the movie mode worked well (I have a 512mb stick).  I used the Auto mode for all pictures, with AF Mode on Monitor and AF Illuminator OFF.
I recommend a 15 min warm water wash in the sink after use with a soft t-shirt to remove any spots/sunscreen.  I went 2 days before putting more lube on the gasket (it doesn’t take much).
Email me for sample pics or small video if you like.  Enjoy!

I have both MS Picture Manager and MS Digital Image Pro 10.  MS Digital Image Pro 10 does a far better job at correcting color, in fact it is remarkable in bringing out the true colors, and has separate Auto-Color, Auto-Contrast, Auto-Exposure, and Auto-Level fix options (in addition to ones with additional control settings).  It is on the shelves for $70 and includes a $40 rebate. 

I’m glad you let others know your Sony worked well for you!

Thanks, I’ll give it a try!