Hi Folks

I’m looking at getting a DSLR. For the moment it will be mainly used for above water shots, but in the future I’ll probably get a housing for using it underwater. When I do take it UW, the shot’s I’ll mainly be interested in taking will be silloute & natural/low light shots.
The two units I’m interested in are the Nikon D70S & the Canon 350D.
My question is, which one would people advise me to go for?

Cheers

Giles

I am going through the same thing right now.  I am leaning towards the Nikon becuase there are better deals on the body and two lenses (they seem to both spec out around the same, and I have shot both and like them) My only holdback is that the Nikon has a minimum ISO of 200, though the camera rates well in having low noise, my old days of shooting ISO 64 on Kodachrome still nag me a bit and I would like the ability to change exposure more on the ISO setting as oppossed to the f/stop or shutter speed depending on the situation, though the exposure compensation would help somewhat

For the lowlight/natural it is low noise even at the higher ISOs, I just have not tried it enough to see how it handles situations that are brighter and if the ISO 200 is too much.  My guess is practically will not be an issue unless shooting on sand or macro where stepping down the f/stop is something you usually do anyway.

Unfortunately have not been able to use either of these underwater, just above.  My friends have let me play with them a few times and have to pry them away from me because they are just so nice to shoot

Do you have any previous canon or nikon lens’s ?

No I don’t have any lenses by either manufacturer. I’ll be trading in an old 35mm flim SLR that I no longer require, so it’s pretty much a start from scratch.

Cheers

Giles.

I will give my opinion now i am imparital to canon .  But i would take the 350 d IT does have more MP of 8.2 and both cameras have the same frames per second .  and both have almost equally manufactures for housings hope that helps .

Hi VTR,

you might also consider how important super wide-angle is for you underwater.
If you go for Nikon it will be more affordable to get a full-frame fisheye lense.
With Canon you have to invest in a 5D to have 180 degree coverage. If you
use a traditional fisheye on the 350D it will still have 108 degree. I used it on
some sharks and was satisfied.  :wink: But my friends also enjoy the 10.5 DX !

Andi’s point is a good one

I do think the canon has been said to perform well iin low light, but i think on paper the Nikon does betterj.

You aren’t going wrong with either camera.

Hi Folks

Thanks for your advice & info. I’ve managed to get a good trade in deal on a used D70 for my old 35mm setup. From what I can see there’s not that much difference between the D70 & the D70S, & with the cash I’ve saved I can get some more lenses :D

Thanks again.

Cheers

Giles