Canon WPDC300 Camera Marine Case

Product Details: Canon WPDC300

Product Description: Canon WPDC300

User Reviews: Canon WPDC300

1. It's a great starter for underwater photography, b

   , October 25, 2004
   Reviewer: Havoc - See all Havoc's reviews

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   3 of 3 Yahoo! Users found this Canon WPDC300 review helpful

   Pros: Very simple to use, definitely survived down to 88fsw, relatively cheap.

   Cons: Positively buoyant, fogs badly, can't use left/right button, good only to 100ft

   I bought the WP-DC300 to house my Powershot S50 in my initial foray into underwater photography. On the positive side, it's very simple to use. However, it has some flaws and drawbacks which range from quirky to downright annoying.
   - First off, the plastic hinge/latch system does not inspire confidence after seeing metal latches on other housings (Olympus PT-020 for my C-5060 camera). Of course, it hasn't failed, so maybe I'm just a pessimist.
   - Second, you can't turn the camera on or off while in the housing. So, you simply turn it on and then turn off the display, and the battery lasts longer than you'll most likely dive. Of course on a surface interval, you may have to open the case and turn the camera off, and every time you do that, you have to check the o-ring to make sure you're still getting a good seal. As far as I'm concerned, that's one more opportunity for the case to fail, killing your expensive camera.
   - Next, the housing is only rated to 100ft. Come on Canon, why not get with the program and design a case good to the limits of recreational diving--130ft/40m.
   - Number four, you can't use the left/right portions of the 5-way button by your right thumb. Up/down/in are great. Why does this matter? Well, say you forget some menu setting (red-eye comes to mind). You can't make any changes without surfacing and opening the case! Fine--just plan ahead and you'll usually come out on top of this little problem.
   - Next on my list is the fact that the case fogs like crazy. The de-fogger compound helps a lot, and I'll try cutting the gasket between the lens and the main housing (though something tells me it's there for a reason). I did find after several dives in 53F water that stuffing all the remaining available space with silica desiccant packs virtually eliminated the problem. Keeping the camera cool before going into cool water helps too. I bagged mine and kept it in the cooler.
   - Finally, last on my list and thoroughly annoying (even potentially dangerous), is the positive buoyancy of the case. After clipping to my top D-ring and having to get my buddy to untangle me once, I realized this could be dangerous. Even clipping my lanyard to the bottom right d-ring on my BCD and leaving just enough coiled cord to bring the camera up to my face, the camera tended to get "lost" or get tangled up in my hoses or other equipment because it was always trying to bob around above me. Not cool--I haven't found weight plates that screw into the tripod adaptor, but I'm going to look some more or possibly have a friend machine one. Another option is to maybe use a stronger retractor that will hold it right against my body, but why should I have to pay more money for this when I've already shelled out on the case, you know? ...

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