Bob Miles asked:


First came the camera. Then there was the underwater camera. After that came the digital camera - and now we have underwater digital cameras. Underwater digital cameras are ideal for capturing the beauty of the undersea world (or the bottom of your swimming pool if you have that special artistic eye!). They are used by both scientists and scuba divers. Digital cameras come in many well-known brands including Kodak, Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Olympus. Surprisingly enough, the cheapest brands cost less than $200, although prices rise quite steeply for the highest quality cameras.

Some of the advantages of underwater digital cameras include:

- You can plug them into a TV.

- They are smaller and lighter than film cameras

- Bad shots can be easily deleted

- They can change resolution, which is useful for wide-angle photography in low lighting conditions underwater

- They produce better high-resolution shots

- They never run out of film (because they don’t use film!)

- They have better depth of field (up to 4 times that of film cameras)

- They feature strobe shutter speeds as fast as 1/800th of a second, much faster than even the best film cameras

- Applications include sea mode, land mode, and external flash mode

Here are some examples of the best underwater digital cameras:

1. The Casio Exilim Zoom EX-Z1000

It has a 2. 8 inch LCD screen and 10 megapixels. Housing is required. Up to 3,2000 ISO. 3x optical zoom lens, and it even includes an anti-shake feature.

2. The Pentax Optio

It has a 2.5 inch LCD screen and 7 megapixels. It requires no additional housing. Usable for up to half an hour in depths of up to 5 feet. It can even be used for shooting underwater videos. Up to 1,600 ISO.

3. Fuji Film FinePix A400

Complete with waterproof housing, 4.2 megapixels. What’s more, it’s CHEAP - under $200 at the time of this writing).

4. SeaLife DC500

Includes both Land and sea flash modes. 5 megapixels, 3x optical zoom. Features an anti-shake function that compensates for movement by either the photographer or the subject.

The foregoing is only a small smaple of the total range of brands, cameras, and features available for photographers of almost any budget and any level of sophistication.

Gabriel Adams asked:


Most individuals are now opting for the digital camera instead of the standard camera because of its amazing versatility. The capability to store the photographs using a memory card instead of the typical use of film is also a nice bonus! The amount of photos that can be stored on these cards usually varies with the amount of megapixels used to take the photo. The higher the amount of megapixels used for the photo, the lower the amount of photos that will be able to be stored on the memory card. Many individuals simply transfer the photos to their computer in order to free up space on those memory cards and there are several online storage sites available for use that enable photo sharing with individuals of your choice.

Photographs taken with a digital camera can be easily edited on your computer through the utilization of several different programs, though many cameras offer the ability to edit photos effectively right on the camera. The photographs can also be e-mailed to friends and relatives instantly upon transfer to your computer. The many individuals working in the media will find the digital camera to be very useful for coverage of the latest events due to the ability to instantly transmit photographs around the world; enabling the meeting of very short deadlines.

Digital cameras can be used for taking still photographs but they can also record a series of events. An interesting event that takes place can be instantly captured by a digital camera by way of a short film and then can be processed with the assistance of the computer to create a short video clip.

Most of the digital cameras available today come with custom viewfinders and LCD screens, which will enable the person to view the photo before capturing it in the camera, and thus enables you to capture only what you actually want.

The advancements in digital camera technology enable the user to take photos at a magnified version, using the macro lens and powerful zoom features, which will help in uncovering the beauty present in the universe at the micro level. Digital cameras are used to perfection in many of the adventurous activities that we participate in today. They can be used to take photos of all types of events, from underwater explorations to capture the life beneath the sea to the emotional and exciting birth of your first child.

Most of the digital cameras have been provided with their own image handling software, which is used to edit the pictures in the computer. The pictures can be saved in standard formats such as PNG, GIF, or JPEG. The software can be used to further enhance the quality of the picture. Advanced computer software, such as CorelDraw or Photoshop, can be used to further refine the photos that are captured by the digital camera and these stunning pictures can easily be developed using the digital camera in tandem with your home computer and printer.

For the average user, a digital camera is much superior to a film camera.

Nahshon Roberts asked:


Afraid of drowning in a swimming pool? You shouldn’t be. The Poseidon, an underwater surveillance system, can detect problems and immediately activate beepers to alert lifeguards. The image and location of the drowning person is instantly captured on the CCTV cameras, and a life is saved.

Rewind and fast forward

Once upon a time, people drowning in pools mostly, well, drowned. It was always too late before they were discovered, often already floating lifeless or unconscious. A drowning person probably just slipped without a noise, without the dramatic hand-waving that they do in the movies. Real life drowning is not theatrical and often goes unnoticed because the person just goes under without warning.

The terror of losing a loved one to drowning is something we want to avoid, so you stand watch over your children while lifeguards scan the pool or beach with their binoculars for unusual movements. But still, lapses can happen in the blink of an eye.

Accidental drowning is the 7th leading cause of death for all age groups, the second leading cause of death for children in the 1-14 years age bracket. Drowning can happen at the beach, your home pool, a bathtub or bucket filled with water, or even in soup.

When surveillance is a security, not an intrusion

The welcome arrival of underwater surveillance has changed how we look at surveillance systems. In this case, we understand that when it comes to matters of life and death in very familiar places, like the public and home pool, we dare not object.

True, there is a lot of debate surrounding surveillance security. But debacles aside, the invention of electronic surveillance, including CCTV, has thwarted dangerous intentions. Now the grandfather of all surveillance is here.

This CCTV surveillance is not your regular home and office electronic spies. These are underwater devices designed to detect movement and problems in public and private swimming pools. The Poseidon is a network of cameras that sweeps its unblinking eyes above and below the surface of the swimming pool.

The Poseidon has already saved a life, that of 18-year-old Jean Francois LeRoy of Ancenis, France. Without warning, LeRoy, who was underwater practicing apnea swimming, drowned without warning. The unblinking eyes found him in milliseconds and alerted the lifeguards with incessant beeps. Thus, he was saved in time before brain damage set in.

The Poseidon CCTV is the perfect tool for lifeguards. With this in place, lifeguards increase their chances of saving lives and averting the irreversible damage that may be caused by drowning incidents.

Swimming and safety measures

Still, we can’t be so sure at all times. Here are some safety tips for at home and public pools:

1. The home pool should be high-fenced so children cannot clamber over it.

2. Cover the pool with netting.

3. Do not leave buckets filled or even half-filled with water. Very young children can drown within seconds in buckets.

4. Do not rely on your children’s swim wings, they might slip off unnoticed.

5. Do not also depend on your child’s swimming lessons to save himself. The child will panic and forget all lessons.

6. Never swim alone.

As a further precaution, when swimming in public pools, inquire if there is a CCTV system in and above the swimming pool, just to be sure. You’ll be confident knowing these are around because these cameras never blink.