View Full Version : advice on trustworthy digital cameras
ThrashHammer
03-08-2009, 14:52
Hey all,
Quick question. I am looking for any recommendations for digital cameras that may be waterproof and trustworthy enough to handle some of the abuse that it may take out on the trail.
I am looking to spend between $200 and $400
Thanks
I live/ work at the beach and it loves to destroy electronics. I would search for 3 key words, water proof, shock proof, and dust and/ or sand proof.
I don't know models but I do know they make "rouged" cell phones, radios, camera, and even laptops. i just don't know models of camera but I know they make them because I use them for work in the summer. They are usually designed for the military.
High Life
03-08-2009, 15:11
i took a nikon on the AT that cost 170 $ it took awesome pics
i dropped it in a spring in the SNP . it was fully submerged for a few seconds
i took out the battery immediately took out the battery . it didnt work for a few days
once dried out it worked fine and still works fine ..
FritztheCat
03-08-2009, 15:44
This is the camera I'll be getting:
http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/product.asp?product=1314&fl=4
Shutterbug
03-08-2009, 15:57
Hey all,
Quick question. I am looking for any recommendations for digital cameras that may be waterproof and trustworthy enough to handle some of the abuse that it may take out on the trail.
I am looking to spend between $200 and $400
Thanks
I have been using a Panasonic DMC TZ4 for about a year now. It has taken some hard knocks and still works well. I have not gotten it wet, but I keep it in a zip lock plastic bag when it is raining.
It has a Leica Lense and a 10X Optical Zoom. You can see examples of the pictures it takes in my Grand Canyon album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/shutterbug.dave/GrandCanyonAgain#
Desert Reprobate
03-08-2009, 16:43
Nice pictures Shutterbug. I love that trail. Great fishing at the bottom.
Cabin Fever
03-08-2009, 16:49
The Olympus 1030 and 1050 SW are both made for the outdoors. Waterproof to a point and shock proof from at least 6 feet. I have friends with both and they swear by them. The 1030 is very high on my list of stuff to get - probably on the top now that I just ordered a new pack.
The camera Fritz linked to earlier is part of product line from olympus. I bought the 1030 SW, which is similar to the one he linked but is also "crush-proof" and has 10.1 megapixels (you know, when 7 millions pixels just isn't enough). Also, as I discovered after buying it, it has an altimeter built into it for reasons unbeknownst to me. I really like mine and it feels pretty bomb-proof, but that ruggedness cost's you 50 bucks and 1.5 ounces on the camera Fritz recommended.
The Olympus 1030 and 1050 SW are both made for the outdoors. Waterproof to a point and shock proof from at least 6 feet. I have friends with both and they swear by them. The 1030 is very high on my list of stuff to get - probably on the top now that I just ordered a new pack.
Near as I can tell, the 1050 is a compromise between the 790 and the 1030:
crushproof pixels weight cost (retail)
1030 Y 10 6.3 350
1050 N 10 5.4 300
790 N 7 4.8 300
Also, 1030 has a wide angle lens and a nicer LCD. On the other hand, you lose the "tap control" feature that the other 2 have (it's for when you're wearing gloves...instead of finding the little tiny button, you just tap anywhere on the side of the camera and it knows you want to take a picture.
Honestly, they're all good cameras. I chose the 1030 'cause I tend to crush things. :D
A camera is either waterproof (and in some cases shockproof as well ) or is not.
About the commonest repair problem is water and sand damaged. For every one that has had a camera surviving after coming into contact with water, there are many that have a different outcome. So don't relay on luck.
Olympus have the largest wp/shockproof selection, the Stylus Tough series. I would recommend the ones with the 28mm wide end. (6000/8000).
Another contender is the Pentax W60 (28-140mm) also small,light and tough.
Panasonic now have the TS1 (28-128mm) first Pana with a folded lens design (IE internal zoom) so no idea of how it performs but I have been impressed by the movie mode on their most recent models. Should be more than adequate for the trail.
Canon now has the D10, (35-105mm) looks like a budget version of this genre.
Franco
A camera is either waterproof (and in some cases shockproof as well ) or is not.
I'm not sure if this was in response to my breakdown of crushproof or not, but, at least according to the olympus site, there's a difference between shockproof and crushproof. All of their cameras are listed as shock proof, i.e. "safe" to drop from a height of six feet. Only the 1030 is listed as crushproof, i.e. can withstand a force of 200 foot-pounds being applied to it. I believe the distinction to be the ability of the camera's components to withstand sudden deceleration forces (or as my high school physics teacher forced us to say, "negative accelation," because the word decelaration is not really a word at all) in regards to the former quality and the ability of the camera's external construction to withstand having my dumbass sit on it in regards to the latter.
Petr
No, my comment was about the High Life type scenario, it does happen but in most cases you will end up with an ex-camera. It's not economical to repair a water damaged camera.
For the ones that do not want to baby their camera, the most basic safety net is the weatherised type, like my Pentax WPi, good enough for the occasional dunking and to wash down when dirty.
Then there are the waterproof/shockproof versions. I have dropped tested a few of the Olympus SW on the shop hard floor. The rep used to through his from one side of the training room to the other...
Now Olympus has upped the ante with the crush proof version, the 8000, apparently even stronger than the 1030SW.
Really any of the SW are more than tough enough...
Franco