Take Awesome Underwater Pictures!
Linus Tech Tips
·Linus Tech Tips
·2017-05-06
·
1,662 words · ~8 min read
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water is the enemy of most technological devices cameras included so what are
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your solutions for keeping your camera dry while still being able to capture
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the memories that you're making in and around water Teran suggested buying an
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aquarium to put the camera inside and shooting downward like a glass bottom
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boat but surely there's a better way let's look into
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it cooler Master's master case maker 5
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features their free form modul system allowing you to customize adjust and
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upgrade make it yours more info in the link in the video description let's open
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with a retro solution the classic disposable waterproof camera this
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Fujifilm quick snap is limited to 27 shots needs to be developed at a photo
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lab costs $15 and isn't rated for depths
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greater than what you'd reach while snorkeling the advantages are that it
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floats making it hard to lose and if you're using an older smartphone the
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resulting digital negatives will deliver higher quality prints however I'm not a
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huge fan of the solution for the reasons outlin so let's get into the more modern
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ones like this generic dry bag for smartphones this one is from jtec these
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simple little pges are shaped to fit your smartphone protecting it from
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splashes and dirt and even allowing you to fully submerge your device here is
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the biggest problem with using a dry bag like this as your waterproof solution
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using your screen can be frustrating most camera controls and even the
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shutter button on most phones is controlled through the touch screen
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which would frequently fail to register touches my recommendation here is to map
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your shutter button to a hardware button on your phone which as long as you're
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happy with full auto operation will allow you to not have to fiddle with
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your onscreen buttons iPhones use the volume buttons by default and some
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Android phones have dedicated buttons but if yours doesn't there are apps that
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enable this functionality this will also allow you to press the shutter button
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underwater since touch screens do not operate well when fully submerged the
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other possibly even more frustrating issue I face when using these dry bags
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was the frequent unintentional screen presses caused by water splashing onto
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the screen during use this is just a limitation of a capacitive touchscreen
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so unless we want to go back to pressure sensitive technology it's likely you
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like me will end up with Zoomin and pictures taken that were never intended
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thankfully we don't pay for film anymore and without having to spend hours in
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Lightroom tweaking at least the image quality seems surprisingly okay but I
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would still describe these dry bags as at best a possible lowbudget solution if
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your main goal is to keep your phone safe from the elements which it did a
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great job of and the actual usage of your device is second secondary if
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however consistent usage of your device is more important to you you might want
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to give a waterproof case made specifically for your model of phone a
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shot in this case we picked a Lifeproof enclosure made for the Galaxy S7 called
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The Fray this solution proved to be much more functional since the buttons on the
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case are formed to your phone allowing use with your devices physical buttons
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to be much easier the case also did not register as many accidental inputs
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making the camera with water splashing around a much more manageable experience
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I found myself appreciating how much more comfortable the case was to use for
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regular use above water since the form factor was much easier to manage not to
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mention the advantage of not needing to suit up your phone before entering the pool cost-wise this case comes in at
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nearly five times more than a generic dry bag and it can only be used with the
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smartphone model it's made for however if you're a casual underwater photo
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Taker and care about regular use of your phone while on a trip or you spend a lot
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of time around water this is probably the best option for you now for those of
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you who want something a bit more powerful action cams like our GoPro Hero
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4 Black Edition are a great choice image quality has gone from awful to actually
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surprisingly good in the last 5 years but the biggest advantage of using
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something like the GoPro in my mind is the sheer number of places you can put
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it the Hero 4 has a multitude of first and third party accessories that allow
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mounting to basically anywhere your imagination wants it to go from using it
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on a selfie stick jumping into a clear Cenote using the head mounts to get a
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firstperson view while running up a May ruin and even capturing a sea turtle on
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a 70t dive we made great uses of all of
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these mounts during our trip in Mexico what's great about this is that it
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enables us to get shots that otherwise aren't possible due to space or
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operational constraints sometimes you just don't have any hands free to hold a
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larger camera the biggest obvious drawback of a GoPro is that it does not
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by default have any way to preview your image on the camera gopro's solution to
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this is to monitor your camera through their app on iOS and Android which is
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fine if you're mounting it statically and you are certain it won't get bumped
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when you're in the middle of the action but in practice this is not always
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simple to achieve while gopro's marketing is centered almost entirely on
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their products in extreme situations I included it in this Roundup because with
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the Hero 4 black you can shoot 12 megapixel Stills in a variety of
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different modes including single shot Burst Mode time lapse and nightlapse
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while the Hero 4 Black Edition is the highest tier model of GoPro there are
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other models available at more affordable price points but overall even
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though the waterproof housing is included a GoPro and mounts can end up
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being a dauntingly expensive option for casual users and on that note here's an
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even pricier option an underwater housing made specifically for your
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camera we've opted for the iite housing for the RX100 markv a wonderfully
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powerful little point and Sho camera that is great for travel and that I explored in more detail here the oculate
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housing allows you to use the ARX 100 completely submerged with a depth rating
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of 200 ft though you'll need to make sure to check your seals each time you
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submerge because Linus forgot to grease the over and managed to get water into
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it on a 70t scuba trip though fortunately the camera survived with the
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ARX 100 unlike the other options we have looked at so far you have a greater
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range in your field of view thanks to the RX1 100's great 24 to 70 mm
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equivalent Zoom range now before you go out and buy a fancy underwater housing
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for whatever camera you love to use keep in mind that while this was the best
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option we looked at from an image quality point of view in no small part
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thanks to its 24 to 70 mm equivalent Zoom range and the excellent 1-in sensor
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from Sony with this particular particular ecet I had no controls for
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the dial on the RX100 forcing me to set my aperture and shutter speed before
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getting into the water along with the limited exposure control I found the
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zoom rocker on the housing to be very stiff to use I would turn it in One
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Direction but it would very easily go past the focal length that I intended
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minor control hurdles aside housings like this are mainly made for those who
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are seriously getting into underwater video and stills since you'll pay
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upwards of $300 for the housing alone so
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in conclusion waterproofing your particular camera solution can vary from
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simple and hands-off to requiring patience and setup time I hope this
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video helps you make your decision regardless of your budget Speaking of
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awesome things that you could travel with mass drop we have an awesome
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feature deal from them today the DJI Phantom 4 bundle this bundle includes
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the Phantom 4 which you can watch Li's review up here a water and impact
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resistant rolling travel case from Mustang and an extra battery for a total
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of two batteries included in this bundle they also have an optional add-on
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available the track emo a tiny gps-gsm
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device that allows you to track your drone or any other item across the globe
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at the time of filming this spot they're still working with the seller to get a lower price for you but they told me
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that the final price will be more than $100 less than you can find this bundle
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anywhere else so if all that sounds pretty great too you should check out
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the bundle in the link in the video description that's draw do/ lt- DJI D4
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so thank you guys for watching if this video sucked you know what to do but if it was awesome get subscribed hit that
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like button or even consider supporting us directly by using our affiliate code
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to shop at Amazon buying a cool t-shirt
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or with a direct monthly contribution through the Forum now that you're done
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doing all that stuff you're probably wondering what to watch next so click
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that little button in the top right hand corner to check out my video on starter
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cameras under $1,000 you might find something useful