not undermining the fishwrecked forum but go have a look at the wadivers forum theres heaps of info there in their photography section and some good photogs amongst them too.

not sure that a little digital water camera would go that deep (a couple of hundred bucks) i have a housing for my camera witch i use for surfing photos and that is only recommended to go 6m deep, if your going to go that deep im pretty sure you would need to look into getting a diving housing, and from what i know they are over $3000 just for housing

I have had a couple of housings for point and shoot digital cameras. They cost a few hundred each and were good for 40m.

The last one was a Casio and was pretty good. The case is still in good nick, but the camera is a little worse for ware. Its now 4 years old.

There are plenty on the web, something like this with the corect camera will get you taking pics. A strobe will set you back quite a bit more, but see how the pics turn out. Obviously at depth, you start to loose colour and get a lot of back scatter if using the camera flash.

http://www.digitalcamerawarehouse.com.au/prod2321.htm

after re-reading my choice of words was poor.when i meant couple of hundred i didnt mean $200 i was thinkin $500ish

cheers

Olympus Tough 8 or Panasonic FT2

should get you a housing and compact digital camera rated to 40meters, canon camera's you'll probably be looking at a touch over 500 as their housings tend to be cheaper around the 250-300 mark. leederville camera house have always given us top notch service and are one of the few stores that usually stock a small range of housings to match their stock, most local's will give you "but we can order one in for you if you want to purchase?" line.

If you can try and get a camera with a white balance function, great for diving and compensating red in your shots

Thought about a GoPro? for around 399 for HD video to 60 meters that will be my next purchase. only ever seen video but i'm sure their photo's would be top notch.

No expert in photography mate but I use a intova 12 which is rated over 40m and you should be able to get for around $200 these days. If you have a look on you tube you should be able to find some video footage. Im happy with the results Ive got in both video and photo so far. In saying that I know the real photo gurus wouldnt go near it because it doest take the kind of quaity finish there looking for, but their equipment certainly cost much more ie I mean $1000,s. Check ebay and you will find its much cheaper almost by half importing from another country. Good luck. As Reefmonkey says the hero also seems to work very well and can be head mounted so you can go about your business under water without having to hold a camera.

The most popular compact models amongst underwater photogs are:

Canon powershot G series - G9 to G12

Canon Powershot s90, s95, s100

Panasonic Lumix LX3 to LX5

Olympus XZ-1

Some good information here: http://www.reefphoto.com/kb.php?id=28

I've just bought a canon s95 in an ikelite housing. The s95 has just been phased out so should be on the market a bit cheaper and are near top of the range for point and shoots which gives you a better chance of a decent photo in low light. The canon housing would do the job and you might be able to find it cheaper.

Total outlay for camera and housing for me was about $780. I bought the housing from Digital Diver in Queensland and the camera from Adorama in the US with a spare battery, big memory card and other bits and pieces.

Digital diver have a deal for $550 on the canon ixus 220 with ikelite housing atm, but I don't know much about that camera. http://www.digitaldiver.com.au/shop/product/i-pcix220

Give Ann at Digital Diver a call and she might be able to help you with other options.  07 4031 9266

my mate has a Canon G12, and you can get a 40m housing for about $350 - a great starters combo that knocks out some great pics !