good camera for taking photos under MHs

[eleyan]

I haven't been able to take many good photos with my Sharp camera under MHs and Actinics. It worked fine with 50/50 PCs, but with the MHs the photos are either bluish, or too white. Also, the auto focus is a little slow (Maybe I shouldn't say all these bad things about it if I want to sell it later) ... scrach that, its a nice camera, but .. uh.. the color does not match my shirt ... yeah, thats int. :)
Anyway, whats a good basic camera for taking macro photos under MHs. I don't have the budget for an SLR, so I'm just looking for a basig 4-5 Mpixel point and shoot type. A plus would be if they sell the scuba dive case for it as will. If you have a recomendation, can you also post some photos taken by the camera.

Thanks

[NaCl_H2O]

Honestly, I think it has more to do with technique than the camera! I am using a FujiFilm FinePix S5000 and my pictures were awful until I started playing around. Not so much with camera settings (I use auto focus, macro mode on everything), but with camera placement & stability. I take all my shots with the lens flat against the AQ glass, or as close as possible, and use various macro lenses to get the best zoom & focus combination. Also, a tripod is an absolute must to stabilize the camera. I tilt the tripod forward on two legs and rest the camera lens against the glass - nice and stable!

AQ lighting just isn't a good subject for the software built into these cameras. I have never gotten the post-processing "White Balance" technique to work very well, but I do use PhotoShop to Crop, "Auto Color balance" and to enhance sharpness.

The newer FinePix (S5100 or S5200) are available on Amazon for $300-$400 Here (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007GIXSI/sr=1-18/qid=1132767457/ref=sr_1_18/002-0251672-2209636?%5Fencoding=UTF8)

I am Using These (http://www.bugeyedigital.com/product_main/ken-cu.html) Macro lenses

My Gallery (http://www.maast.org/modules.php?set_albumName=NaCl_H2O&op=modload&name =gallery&file=index&include=view_album.php) has some of my better PhotoShopped macro shots. These represent the best of a session in which I took over 600 shots :o

Oh yea, lots of patience is required too!

Also, here is a site with lots of good "How To" (http://www.ximinasphotography.com/lessons/index.html) Info!

Good Luck!

[witecap4u]

Try playing with the white balance on the camera. Some cameras will have an option to set it manually, but some will only allow you to choose between the presets. If you can do it manually, set it while pointing at something white like the sand.

Check out the canon S1 IS. Its a very nice camera and they are getting cheaper since the S2 IS just came out. Also, the Nikons are decent for a cheap camera. I have a coolpix 3200 that can take some decent shots. You could probably pick one up for 100 or less on ebay.

cs