Nikon Underwater Digital Camera

- Which is the best, affordable, underwater digital camera?
Affordable = less than $250 I am a full time college student so $ is tight and my old film underwater camera is broken beyond repair. I would like to replace it with a decent digital camera but don't want to spend a lot because it would just be for snapshot quality stuff. My other digital camera is a Nikon D40x, so I don't need this one to be fancy , just a little, but reliable underwater digital camera. Any recommendations?

A Olympus Stylus 850SW. Waterproof to 10', shockproof to a 5' drop. You can check prices at: http://www.bhphotovideo.com http://www.adorama.com http://www.keh.com http://www.beachcamera http://www.ritzcamera

- Do underwater housings for digital cameras work? Is it worth it?
I'm thinking about buying an underwater housing for my Nikon digital camera. It's a pretty expensive camera and I want to know if taking it underwater with a housing for it has any chance of damaging the camera. Where is the best place to buy a good housing? Has anyone had a bad experience with an underwater housing? I really want to take my camera scuba diving but i don't want to risk ruining the camera.

A I have both compact and DSLR underwater housings. I have my Nikon D100 in a Sea & Sea housing, with a compact flat port & extension ring. I also have a Sea Sea YS110a strobe. You will need additional strobe(s) underwater. I've never had a flood, but I know people who have flooded their housings, but its almost always down to user error. It's rare for a housing to flood otherwise. Housings are manufactured for a particular model of camera & are not cheap. Mine cost nearly £2000 when new! that doesn't include ports. You need different ports depending on what lenses you mount - a flat port for macro and a dome port for wide angle lenses. As I mentioned you'll also need a strobe & strobe arm. Total cost around £4,000-5,000. That DOESN'T include the camera & lenses btw. Most common cause of flooding is not taking care of the O rings. The slightest bit of sand, grit, hair or any nicks, cuts in the O ring can cause a leak. Before every dive session you need to remove & inspect the O rings, clean the O ring channels, grease & correctly seat the O rings back. There are O rings on the main camera body, the ports, the strobe & the sync cord connectors. Post dive always rinse the housing well in fresh water for a good long time before you open it - a short dunk isn't sufficient. Make sure when you open it that you don't drip water into it or onto the electrical contacts. If the camera floods during a dive DON'T make a dash to the surface - you risk a bend and its probably too late in any case. If you spot a small leak, point the camera lens down (this will keep the water in the bottom of the port where it'll do least damage) and do a safe ascent. If you're worried about your DSLR getting wet then I suggest getting a compact & housing package - they'll do reasonable shots provided there's enough light (they don't perform well in low light) although the shutter lag will be more than a DSLR. Edit: If you're in the UK, Cameras Underwater are good dealers; http://www.camerasunderwater.co.uk/