Cameras for Recreational Divers

So check this out…I'm gonna make this super easy for everyone. Because you should already know how I feel about diving as a recreational diver. (If not, read this article first, and then come back to this article on this page.)

So here's the thing—Kimo is a recreational scuba diver. I dive for fun. That's it. I'm not a professional photographer or videographer. I dive for fun. Period. Most of you reading this article probably are recreational divers, as well. That's awesome!

So, since we're not professionals, there is no reason for us to have a $10,000 professional photography rig while we're out diving. There is just no reason to have it. Unless you want to spend the money and the time and effort to become a TRUE PROFESSIONAL, then just don't worry about it. Stick with a simple underwater action cam.

I've already spent the big bucks so you don't have to. And guess what I found out? Well, shooting 4K on a small action cam like the Yi 4K+ or the DJI Osmo Action yields video results that are on par with a $10,000 camera rig (and all that gear makes you look like military special ops or a human submarine). The current (as of January 2022) camera of choice is the GoPro Hero 10. You can't go wrong with it!

So let me give you 4 reasons why you don't need to and should not worry about buying super expensive underwater camera gear:

Why You Shouldn't Buy Professional Camera Gear:

1. Its expensive. Period. Most of the time the underwater housing for your camera is going to be even more expensive than the camera itself. I'm not kidding when I say you're going to spend between $5k - $10k. Save that money for a liveaboard trip and buy Kimo a burger.

2. Its cumbersome. Good googlysmook! As if divers don't have enough gear to carry with us already. Do you really want to have to lug around thousands of dollars of sensitive equipment through the airport, through customs and immigration, protecting it on your journeys, locking it up in hotels, and worrying about it non-stop on your trip?

3. It's no fun. If you're a professional, then sure—it's fun to have all that gear and take pictures and videos. But if you're a recreational diver, more often than not, all that gear is going to distract you from the fun of the dive. You'll be thinking about settings and white balance and trying to remember all the "tips and tricks" you learned from YouTube and blogs, and you won't have as much fun.

4. It screws up your buoyancy. If you're a recreational diver, chances are that you haven't mastered the art of buoyancy yet. Buoyancy is probably, in my estimation, the most important skill to master to ensure you have fun and safe dives. Well guess what? When you start lugging around an additional 5 to 10 pounds of camera equipment, everything gets screwed up. You have to learn to carry different weights based on the salt content and the thickness of your wetsuit combined with the weight and natural buoyancy of your equipment (which can differ from dive to dive) and you may even have to learn a new style of swimming. These are not issues for professionals, but if you're a recreational diver, why bother with this nonsense?

What Cameras Should You Use?

Fortunately, we are living in a time with awesome technology. For a few hundred bucks, you can buy an incredible action camera, like a GoPro Hero 7 or 8,a Yi 4K+, or the current champion—the DJI Osmo Action. They all shoot high quality photos and incredible 4K video.

They are crazy small, easy to shoot with, and don't have any of the 4 related problems noted above. And with 4K video capture, its easy to shoot your video, and snag any still frame from the video to get cool individual photos from your dives.

That is why you won't see Kimo reviewing any more "big camera rigs." There's other websites available for that. We're recreational divers here. And all we need are action cams.

By the way, every single picture and video you see here on the Discover the Deep website was shot with a "non-professional" consumer grade action cam (GoPros and the Yi 4K+). All of them! So take a look for yourself and tell me if these photos and videos are "good enough" or not.

So yes, I just saved you a couple of thousand dollars. And tons of headache. You're welcome. You should probably re-allocate that extra dough you just saved to go on a dive trip with Kimo!



Kimo Kealoha is a recreational scuba diver who maintains the Discover the Deep blog for recreational scuba divers who just wanna dive for fun! No egos, no depth records, no condescension, no gear envy—just scuba diving for fun. And to see sharks. And dolphins. And whale. And turtles. Kimo loves turtles. And Mantarays. And burgers. Eat burgers and scuba dive—that's pretty much the life.