Cheap Diving Cameras for Underwater Photography

The underwater digital camera market has exploded in recent years with waterproof models that are great for swimming, snorkeling or other water sports. But most of these must be used in shallow water. Fortunately, there are cheap diving cameras that can go to the Open Water Diver limit and beyond. All the waterproof digital cameras listed on this page can be taken to 100 feet or more and shoot both still images and video. Prices range from less than $100 to about $300. Take a look and see a few great choices in cheap diving cameras.

(Image of scuba camera mask by Amazon. See link below)

GoPro waterproof cameras have become very popular in the last few years because they're so versatile. They can be mounted on a surfboard, attached to a mask or worn on your chest for great hands-free video and images. They can be used above water or underwater to a depth of 197 feet, and they're shockproof so you won't need to worry about it getting ruined if you get tossed around in the surf. (I've even seen a video of a shark chomping on a GoPro camera, and it survived without problem.) The one thing you can't do with these cameras, however, is take any type of manual control. You simply mount it or hold it, turn it on and let the camera do the work.

Underwater photo by Mark Webster

Now you can keep your hands free while taking photos underwater. The Liquid Image Scuba Series mask has a built-in camera that shoots still images and video down to a depth of 130 feet. The lever-style buttons make it easy to take photos underwater even while wearing dive gloves, and you can get an optional light that also attaches to the mask and helps ensure great color in your images, even when you're deep below the ocean.

When it comes to cheap diving cameras, you're not going to find a cheaper digital camera capable of going to the limits of an Open Water Diver than the Intova CP9. At less than $100 (on Amazon), this camera is a bargain. You can shoot VGA video and 9 MP images down to 130 feet (39 meters) with the CP9, which also offers a 4x digital zoom and multiple scene modes. You'll need an off-camera strobe to get the best results, but if price is your primary concern in a diving camera, this is the one.

If you're looking for a camera that you can use every day and also take underwater, there are now over a dozen underwater point and shoot cameras on the market from which to choose. They can't go as deep as the cameras above, but if you're going to be doing shallow water diving, you may want to take a look at some of these. The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS4 is the best of the bunch in terms of depth - it can go to 40 feet underwater. Others vary from 5 feet to 33 feet. Take a look at some of the choices below.

The videos below show footage taken with the GoPro Hero2, the Liquid Image scuba mask and the Intova CP9. Take a look to see what you might expect with one of these cameras.

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