Need a new camera...

[theloneboot]

My focus the past 6 months has been on transitioning from a more traditional setup and toward a LW/UL setup. The camera (and yes, I do need one) is giving me some interesting problems because I haven't found a way to sort products by weight and battery type. My normal camera is about 18oz, but it's also quite bulky, meaning I often have to bring a separate case to pack it in too. Definitely needs to be upgraded. Can anyone help steer me toward some potential candidates? I'd like it to be comparable to my regular camera, which I'm very satisfied with, but closer to 8oz at least.

Requirements:

• Digital (of course)
• Single, built-in lens - I don't want to be carrying or looking after multiple lenses
• Integrated flash
• At least 10 Megapixels
• Runs on regular batteries - AA, AAA, or 9V - as I will not always be in areas where I can easily recharge. No proprietary battery packs.
• At least 15X optical zoom (I'm used to 20X with my current camera)
• Not limited in memory (haven't seen this be a problem in a long time since most cameras now allow you to use your own SD cards, but you never know).

Basic features like a self-timer, adjustable ISO, simple movies, image stitching, and image presets are nice but not required.

[kayak karl]

ill be watching this. i used a canon where the lens moves out when turned on, but it froze and broke. got another canon and it drowned. the third fell to its death. i now use a Pentax WG-1. great,but batteries are not AA.

[rafe]

http://www.dpreview.com/

A site dedicated to reviews of the latest and greatest in digital cameras. I used to spend a lot of time there. My hiking camera is seven or eight years old -- a Canon A620.

[SunnyWalker]

Nikon CoolPix. It is waterproof also.

[BryceB]

The no proprietary battery packs us really going to limit the selection.

these do have proprietary batteries, but both nice ruggedized all weather point and shoot cameras. We ended up with the Nikon
http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Pro...PIX-AW110.html
http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Pro...PIX-AW110.html

[BryceB]

Sorry... This is the other camera we liked
http://shop.panasonic.com/shop/model/DMC-TS5D

[pyro_]

One other option to get around the proprietary battery packs if you are willing to consider it is a camera that charges via USB and carry a USB battery pack with you. This would probably allow for a larger number of cameras to be considered.

The USB battery pack could also be used to charge other devices you might be carrying such as a GPS or phone

[Nooga]

I think the two issues are the regular batteries and the 15X optical zoom. A 15X zoom is not going to be small or light.

[pyro_]

Just took a look on dpreview using their search feature and there were no cameras that used aa or aaa batteries and a weight of 8oz or less that had 15x zoom. They were mostly in the 3-5x zoom with a handful that were up to 10x

You might need to rethink the requirements a bit and either accept that it will weight more and/or have a proprietary battery

The other question I would have here is how many pics are you thinking of taking before you get back to a point where you would be able to recharge a battery? A lot of the current camera batteries can take 300+ shots on a single charge and some a lot more than that. A couple of small batteries does not weight all that much

[Odd Man Out]

I have a Canon SX280 that fits your descriptions except for the battery - 20X zoom, 12 mp. about 8 oz, fits in pocket.

http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consum...Specifications

It is part of their S-series which are their high-end point and shoot line of cameras. It is not designed to be weatherproof, so you would have to be careful with it. Pretty much all cameras today will have at least 10 megapixels. In fact, your problem might be to find one that doesn't have too many. Small cameras with small sensors won't give better resolution, even with more mp. 10 to 12 MP is plenty, if they are clear.

I think finding a camera these days that uses AA batteries will be a real challenge. My guess is the only ones still made will be very low end cameras. There is another strategy you could look into. My Canon uses NB-6L Li battery. They are very small and light (1 square inch, 1/8 thick, about). The charger is also quite light and compact. You can buy them on-line for less than $8 each (the non-Canon brand ones are cheap). You could buy a bunch, charge them up, and probably be set up to take thousands of pictures for not much more cost or weight of carrying AA's. Not sure how many pics I get on one charge with my SX280. Reviews say it's a bit a battery hog. So rather than shop for cameras that use AA's, maybe another strategy would be to estimate how many pics you might want to take on a given trip and then use the battery life and battery cost specs to see what it would take to meet your needs.

[slbirdnerd]

Bombproof for long distance hiking (shockproof, waterproof, HD video...):
http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Pro...PIX-AW100.html

I think you really need to reconsider the battery issue, like said above that will really limit you in terms of the features you want and the quality of the camera. For the AW100, and probably others like it, you can either get an extra battery to take along--they are very small; or get a USB charger (like an iTorch from New Trent).

I've had my AW100 on an s-biner on my hip belt for a year now, for 5 weekend backpacking trips and many, many day hikes. I couldn't be happier with it.

[Snowleopard]

There are some Olympus cameras that fit your needs except for weight. My old camera is a Olympus sp-565uz, uses AA batteries with decent battery life, 20x optical zoom, image stabilization, 10 megapixels, but weighs 14.4 oz.
http://www.amazon.com/Olympus-SP-565.../dp/B001CCJO1Q
It's not made anymore but available used; there were some follow on models and previous models that are similar. I might even sell mine if my kids don't want it. On dpreview.com, I think these are called ultra zooms and there were some comparison reviews.

For image quality, the size of the sensor is more important than number of pixels. Most point and shoot cameras including my old one have small sensors. There are large sensor cameras that don't have interchangeable lenses.
Also, for the telephoto end of the zoom, you need either image stabilization or a tripod; without stabilization or tripod you might as well use a smaller range zoom and magnify it digitally. An example of an image at the telephoto end of my camera is the picture of the moose on my gallery; this was about 600' away with no tripod.

[rafe]

For image quality, the size of the sensor is more important than number of pixels. Most point and shoot cameras including my old one have small sensors. There are large sensor cameras that don't have interchangeable lenses.

All excellent points. The camera manufacturers don't play up the sensor size, but it's what matters the most for image quality.

That said... big sensor means more glass and a heavier camera overall. That's the hard truth. It's all about gathering light.

[Odd Man Out]

All excellent points. The camera manufacturers don't play up the sensor size, but it's what matters the most for image quality.

That said... big sensor means more glass and a heavier camera overall. That's the hard truth. It's all about gathering light.

I recall the old days when the camera body was mainly just a mount for the lens and the film. In those days, it was all about the lens. Now, computerized lens design and manufacturing has made good lenses widely available. Since so much of the image processing is done by the camera, the software and hardware of the camera gets most of the attention and no one seems to much care about the lens anymore. But that is really where it all starts and I suspect it is something that people should pay more attention to.

[Drybones]

My focus the past 6 months has been on transitioning from a more traditional setup and toward a LW/UL setup. The camera (and yes, I do need one) is giving me some interesting problems because I haven't found a way to sort products by weight and battery type. My normal camera is about 18oz, but it's also quite bulky, meaning I often have to bring a separate case to pack it in too. Definitely needs to be upgraded. Can anyone help steer me toward some potential candidates? I'd like it to be comparable to my regular camera, which I'm very satisfied with, but closer to 8oz at least.

Requirements:

• Digital (of course)
• Single, built-in lens - I don't want to be carrying or looking after multiple lenses
• Integrated flash
• At least 10 Megapixels
• Runs on regular batteries - AA, AAA, or 9V - as I will not always be in areas where I can easily recharge. No proprietary battery packs.
• At least 15X optical zoom (I'm used to 20X with my current camera)
• Not limited in memory (haven't seen this be a problem in a long time since most cameras now allow you to use your own SD cards, but you never know).

Basic features like a self-timer, adjustable ISO, simple movies, image stitching, and image presets are nice but not required.

If you're going to spend some $$ on a camera I'd add waterproof to the list of requirements.

[bflorac]

I second the Panasonic DMC-TS5D mentioned above. I have the older version of this (DCM-TS3) and love it. It is really rugged. I have dropped a number of times and since it is waterproof, I keep it out while hiking even when pouring rain. The charger is lightweight or you can pack an extra battery. (Turning off the GPS does extend battery).

The only advice I have about waterproof cameras is that you need to remember to clear the lens of water before you take a shot. That is, if you have something dry to clean it with. I understand that since I got mine, they have added an anti-fog coating to the lens.

[Toon]

I just got a 4s phone. 13 mega pixles. Great photos and video. That way you can only carry a Phone and not have to have the extra camera

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

[Toon]

The Nixon waterproof one is good I took it in 2012 13mp

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

[Furlough]

My Nikon Coolpix suffered the same fate Kayak Karl's Cannon. Len's froze shut after only about a month of use.

[DeerPath]

Bombproof for long distance hiking (shockproof, waterproof, HD video...):
http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Pro...PIX-AW100.html

I think you really need to reconsider the battery issue, like said above that will really limit you in terms of the features you want and the quality of the camera. For the AW100, and probably others like it, you can either get an extra battery to take along--they are very small; or get a USB charger (like an iTorch from New Trent).

I've had my AW100 on an s-biner on my hip belt for a year now, for 5 weekend backpacking trips and many, many day hikes. I couldn't be happier with it.

Ditto above. I carry two extra batteries and a PowerGen Rapid Smart Charger, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Prsy7d0zeEE .
I can charge camera, phone, etc. batteries with this charger. Find it at Amazon.
Happy Trails