Wetpixel

Sea & Sea 5000G 5.1 Megapixel UW Camera

by Eric Cheng

The new 5.13 Megapixel Sea&Sea DX-5000G

No waiting: Snap what you see with the world’s fastest shutter lag of only 0.12 seconds on a compact digital camera.

The 5000G camera has many advanced features:

○An exposure compensation function . If a subject has too much contrast, or you would like to photograph a white subject even whiter or a dark subject even darker, this function adjusts exposure under or over the meter reading to get the best image. Exposure compensation is within the range of plus or minus 2.0EV in steps of 1/3EV.

○A built-in flash that can fire the correct amount of light even if the subject is as close as 15 cm / 5.9 inch . Macro photography requires the camera to be in close proximity to the subject. The camera or photographer typically casts a shadow and darkens the scene. The 5000G has a close-proximity flash that lights up subjects even when they’re as close as 15 cm (telephoto). The 5000G ensures proper illumination of plants and detailed text while avoiding overexposure.

○Six scene modes that provide the flexibility to handle different subject situations with ease. Users can choose from six various modes: portrait, sports, text, high-sensitivity, night scene, and landscape. A simple touch of a button sets up the camera to shoot any of a variety of subject conditions.

○Three metering methods provide correct light metering in differing conditions. Users can choose “multi,” where the entire scene is segmented into 256 metered parts, “central,” where the metering point is placed in the center but balanced by light from the full scene, or “spot,” where the metering point is placed in the center and used alone to determine exposure.

○Accurate manual focus when autofocus can’t focus on the subject. In low-contrast or low-light situations where autofocus can’t successfully focus, users can focus manually to get a crisp focus.

○Image non-compression mode available for fine detail. In addition to the N ( Normal) or F (Fine) modes, users can choose NC (Non-Compression) mode. NC mode captures accurate high-resolution images that are easily enlarged without distortion.

○Manual white balance setting for accurate color balance . Different-colored lighting sources can throw off the color balance of captured images. Automatic white balance can handle many of these situations, but if not users can select five non-automatic modes to get the best color balance: Outdoors, Cloudy, Incandescent light, Fluorescent light, as well as a one-push manual white balance setting.

○Long-lasting battery . The optional high-capacity lithium-ion rechargeable battery (DB-43) extends camera operation during holidays or business trips when users want to capture lots of images.

○Camera memo function . You can pre-set text memos in the camera such as " Honolulu," "Kona," and " Maui," and then apply these memos to images as you capture them. When you download these images to a personal computer, you can automatically catalog them by memo name--a real help when capturing large numbers of images over a long period of time.

○Internal 16MB memory. Although the camera uses a compact, fast, and highly reliable SD memory card as a recording media, it also has internal memory. This makes it possible to record images without a memory card.

○Video recording with sound. The camera records up to 300 seconds of high-quality moving images (in AVI format) with minimal block noise and flicker. You can use digital zoom while recording. You can also capture voice alone as well. Voice capture is a useful technique for recording field observations.

○S-Continuous and M-Continuous recording functions. The S- and M-Continuous recording functions allow you to capture 16 frames in 3 seconds and record them all to a single file. These functions are very useful for sporting events and wildlife photography: you can replay one frame at a time, similar to slow-motion video, to view nuances of motion.

○Simple image transmission via USB. You can transfer images from the camera to a computer very easily using a connecting USB cable—no extra software necessary. Once the images are in the computer, you can resize, organize, store, and print them. You can also exchange them with friends via e-mail.

Main characteristics for the Sea&Sea 5000G camera

Main specifications for the 5000G camera

Item Specifications

Recording format Still: Compression: JPEG (Exif ver. 2.21) Non-compressed (TIFF) DCF*1 compliant, DPOF compliant

Text: TIFF (MMR system)

Motion: AVI (Open DML Motion JPEG format compliant)

Sound: WAV (Exif ver 2.21)

Video signal method NTSC / PAL switchable

Recording media SD Memory Card (3.3V 8/16/32/64/128/256/512 MB)

MultiMedia Card (16/32/64 MB)

Built-in memory (16 MB)

CCD 1/1.8-inch primary-color CCD with effective 5.13 million pixels (5.25 million square pixels)

Resolution Still: 2592 x 1944 、 2048 x 1536 、 1280 x 960 、 640 x 480

Text: 2560 x 1920 、 2048 x 1536

Motion: 320 x 240 、 160 x 120

Recording mode Still (continuous, S-continuous, M-continuous), aperture-priority/manual exposure),

Scene (portrait, sports, landscape, night scene, text, high- sensitivity), motion, sound

Picture mode F (Fine); N ( Normal); NC (Non-Compressed)

Storage capacity (No. of pictures) (internal 16MB memory) Still: 7 (2592 x 1944 Fine), 13 (2592 x 1944 Normal), 1 (2592 x 1944 NC), 10 (2048 x 1536 Fine), 20 (2048 x 1536 Normal), 20 (1280 x 960 Fine), 39 (1280 x 960 Normal), 141 (640 x 480 Normal)

Storage capacity (time) (internal 16MB memory) Motion: 44 seconds (320 x 240), 158 seconds (160 x 120)

Sound: 33 minutes 53 seconds

Storage data capacity Still: Approx. 9.61MB (2592 x 1944 non-compressed), Approx. 1.79MB (2592 x 1944 Fine), Approx. 1.03MB (2592 x 1944 Normal), Approx. 1.29MB (2048 x 1536 Fine), Approx. 671KB (2048 x 1536 Normal), Approx. 686 KB (1280 x 960 Fine), Approx. 356KB (1280 x 960 Normal), Approx. 82KB (640 x 480 Normal)

Lens Focal range f: 5.8 - 17.4 mm (equivalent to 28-85 mm for 35 mm film cameras)

Step-zoom intervals: 4 steps (28 mm, 35 mm, 50 mm, 85 mm)

Brightness F: 2.5 (W) – 4.3 (T)

Lens structure: 9 glass elements in 7 groups

Digital zoom 4x zoom (maximum x 12 in combination with optical zoom)

Shutter Still: 30, 15, 8, 4, 2, 1 - 1/2000 sec. (electronic/mechanical shutter). Includes noise-elimination function for long-term exposure.

Moving image: 1/30 - 1/2000 sec. (electronic shutter)

Object distance Approx. 0.3 m - ∞ (Macro: Approx. 0.01m - ∞, Telemacro: Approx. 0.08m - ∞)

ISO sensitivity Auto, 64, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600

View finder Real-image optical zoom finder

LCD monitor 1.8 inch low temperature polysilicon TFT LCD (approx. 130,000 pixels)

Flash Auto (automatic flash in backlight), red-eye reduction, on, slow synchro, off

Distance: 0.2m - 5.0m (W), 0.15m - 2.9m (T) (land , ISO auto or ISO400)

Focus Autofocus, manual focus, fixed focus (snap), infinity (includes AF auxiliary light)

Exposure adjustment Multi TTL-CCD photometric system: Multi (256 segments), center weight, spot

Exposure compensation Manual compensation (+2.0 to -2.0 EV in 1/3 EV steps),

Auto-bracket (-0.5 EV, ±0 、 +0.5EV)

White balance Auto, daylight, overcast, tungsten light, fluorescent light, one push (manual) white balance bracket

Self-timer Delay: Approx. 10 sec., 2 sec.

Interval timer Shooting interval: 30 sec. - 3 hours (30 sec. steps)

PC interface USB 1.1 (compatible with PC’s with Windows 98 / 98SE, 2000 Professional / Me / XP Home Edition / XP Professional pre-installed or Macintosh with Mac OS 8.6 - 9.2.2 or Mac OS X10.1.2 - 10.3)

AV interface Audio out, video out

Battery Specialized lithium-ion rechargeable battery (DB-43 optional)

AA battery (Alkaline or nickel mercury rechargeable battery)

Shooting capacity Using DB-43 battery: approx. 3,700 pictures (continuous), approx. 400 pictures (normal). Continuous reproduction of still pictures: approx. 340 minutes.

Using AA alkaline batteries: Approx. 120 images (normal)

Dimensions (W x D x H) 113.6 x 29.0 x 58.0 mm (excluding projections)

Weight: Approx. 205 g (not including battery, SD memory card, hand strap)

Operating temperature 0 – 40 C (32 – 104 degrees F)

Main characteristics for the Sea&Sea DX-5000G camera housing

Specifications for the DX-5000G camera housing

Included with the DX-5000G Housing+ Sea & Sea 5000G camera set

USB cable (exclusive), AV cable, CD-ROM, two AA alkaline batteries, hand strap

LCD monitor hood, O-ring, desiccant, strap

* The specifications and appearance of the DX-5000 and 5000G here were described as of October 2004. Please note that there may be changes without notice.

Wide-angle conversion lens 0.6x for the DX-5000G

The 5000G camera by itself has wide-angle image coverage that is the equivalent of a 28 mm lens on a 35 mm camera. Adding the 0.6x wide-angle conversion lens increases its wide-angle coverage to the equivalent of a 17 mm lens.

Wide angle lens specifications

* When the camera’s zoom lens is in its widest setting, some vignetting (dimness at the corners) may occur. If so, zoom slightly towards telephoto to eliminate vignetting.

* Can be used on land.