which waterproof compact camera?

p1tse

p1tse

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won't be required for deep water, snorkelling etc.

more for young family use, pool, beach etc.

any recommendations?

also how do they compare against in terms of features, picture quality against another compact of similar price which isn't designed for rugged use?
 
there a couple of issues with aquapacks - you may be better with a compact and dedicated housing. I keep hearing reports of the 'Tough' type compacts having their battery & card doors opened by accident - then they ain't waterproof anymore
 
suggest and will consider (nothing too fancy as looking at low end £)
 
boyfalldown said:
there a couple of issues with aquapacks - you may be better with a compact and dedicated housing. I keep hearing reports of the 'Tough' type compacts having their battery & card doors opened by accident - then they ain't waterproof anymore
Click to expand...

Care to elaborate on the issues?

I can appreciate they're no match for a dedicated housing but as a cost effective occasional use item i think they're spot on, i've certainly had no problems from pool use and my lads spraying super soakers at me whilst using it etc.
 
There was that TV advert with a Young boy and His mum on phone and he puts the camer through mud and drops etc can't remember which camera it was for i think it's either Kodak or canon.

Found it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyZlwwJQdH4

Olympus Mju 790 not sure on the camera itself but advert says it does what you want
 
would be cool to take some underwater shots too in a pool
 
Mark Anthony said:
Care to elaborate on the issues?

I can appreciate they're no match for a dedicated housing but as a cost effective occasional use item i think they're spot on, i've certainly had no problems from pool use and my lads spraying super soakers at me whilst using it etc.
Click to expand...

Hi Mark,

There's a couple of issues with them - though you're not likely to come across with a soaker or pool, you may do snorkelling though.

1. They don't cope with zooms lenses (or the action of zooming well)

2. They (particularly as you get past 2/3 m) tend to shrink wrap your camera as the air inside compresses. This makes buttons and controls diffilcut to use.

Hugh
 
so any recommendations from the bottom of the price range moving up?
 
boyfalldown said:
Hi Mark,

There's a couple of issues with them - though you're not likely to come across with a soaker or pool, you may do snorkelling though.

1. They don't cope with zooms lenses (or the action of zooming well)

2. They (particularly as you get past 2/3 m) tend to shrink wrap your camera as the air inside compresses. This makes buttons and controls diffilcut to use.

Hugh
Click to expand...

Oh right cheers, just didn't want to put it through anything that could wreck my camera.

I wouldn't even consider taking it any further than just under the surface anyway.

I've had no probs zooming though, i use the one with the protruding lens area though rather than the smallest one which is little more than a thick plastic bag.

If i was going to do anything serious with it though i'd definitely go the dedicated housing route.
 
I have a canon D10 and I love it.

I use it as a general compact point and shoot and for swimming/out in the rain etc. I've used it snorkelling etc. Takes a bit of getting used to holding it as it's rather round and the zoom is a bit of a pain as it's 2 separate buttons (1 to zoom in, 1 out) but it's not that big a deal.

Only thing to watch out for is not accidentally opening the battery and SD compartment when holding it. I can't see it would be that easy to do actually but someone else warned me of that.
 
ukphd said:
I have a canon D10 and I love it.

I use it as a general compact point and shoot and for swimming/out in the rain etc. I've used it snorkelling etc. Takes a bit of getting used to holding it as it's rather round and the zoom is a bit of a pain as it's 2 separate buttons (1 to zoom in, 1 out) but it's not that big a deal.

Only thing to watch out for is not accidentally opening the battery and SD compartment when holding it. I can't see it would be that easy to do actually but someone else warned me of that.
Click to expand...

You could always use duct tape to make sure it didn't open accidentally.
 
I am watching with interest.
The D10 looks nice and has a long exposure (30s max iirc) but others seem to have better iq and the D10 has no proper view finder!
 
Check out your local branch of Boots, I bought a fuji Z33 wp (waterproof to 3m) for kayaking, normally around £120, they were selling the blue model for £60.
Works fine for that money, has a nice little silicon protective cover too (£6.99 normally around £13).
Good luck :)
 
As above, also got a Fuji Z33WP for my hols later in the year. Hoping to go snorkelling. I got mine direct from Fuji shop on the internet.
 
thanks

but i think an all in one unit would be better suited for needs and requirments

it also means the wife can chuck it in her baby bag and use it daily being more rugged etc
 
I owned an Olympus Tough 720ws once, theyre ok, but I flooded it for some unknown reason (i opened the battery door within 1 hour previous to the snorkel I dont think it sealed fully in time. I think theyll be able to show you some of them at Bristol Cameras too
 
I just got a D10.
It got rather damp underground yesterday and is still functioning well
quite impressed but it could do with some kind of lens cap
 
i'm thinking of something like

Mju Tough 3000 olympus

fujifilm Finepix XP10
 
Used to have an Oly Mju 770 SW waterproof compact. Now have a smallish, blue anodised paperweight... And a Canon D10 which is (so far) waterproof. IMO, images from the Canon are better both in air and water than those from the Oly, although I didn't take many underwater shots this holiday due to laziness and not swimming/snorkelling much!

Again, my opinion but the Canon's easier to use and feels better in the hand. Must remember to take the Oly armband and coily camera strap next year though - almost dropped the Canon but only in about 5m of water, so shouldn't have come to any grief.
 
I've used an Olympus 850 SW for a couple of years now. Use it sea kayaking - it takes the bumps and is waterproof. Does the job.

Ken
 
Go into your local dive shop and talk to them, most have a range with housings to look at.
'Aldi' did an underwater sports camera last year for about £70, so they are out there.
Forget 'Aquapac', plastic bag, naff, tried it.
I bought an 'Intova' compact + casing, for my Granddaughter they are on 'Google', we get pretty good results, YOU NEED A RED filter to combat the blue, about £120ish for the setup,
Jim
 
For what it's worth, 2 non-photographer friends of mine had the same Olympus MJU model a few years ago (can't remember the exact model but it was a waterproof one) and both broke mechanically.
 
I have an Olympus 770sw which I have been very pleased with
I have used it many times in salt water for the past 3 years with
no problems. I also hand it over to the village kids in Turkey to play
with, it usually comes back a bit sticky but eh just need to run it under
the tap and hey presto as good as new, its actually quite fun to see
photos from a kids perspective:D
 
jessops dont do the panasonic, as i had some vouchers ;-(
 
over budget, but john lewis has this:
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX5S Digital Camera, Silver
any thoughts?

i have £20 capital bon and £35 the mall (cribbs bristol) voucher
 
Waterproof 12MP Camera - Silver. 056/2115
Save £110.00
£189.99
was £299.99

from argos but out of stock everywhere near me
 
I recently got a Panasonic FT1 and I'm pretty impresed with it. It's a little noisy if you crank the ISO up but hey that's compacts for you.
 
have you tried it under water?

also where from and cost?

ideally i want a compact which would rival mid range normal ones, but be robust and waterproof. not much review on the sony one, but i like the sleek look.

mainly used on holidays,pool and for the wife to carry round
 
If you can, try and get one with as wide an angle lens as you can. Also look for low light performance. I can see why you wouldn't want a camera and housing as they are pretty bulky and need to be cared for properly (the tiniest hair in the o-ring and if you go a bit deeper it'll flood). I guess you should also check the orings on the battery and card compartment very carefully too.

If you get one with the deepest setting you can, it should be fine for snorkelling as most people won't go any more than say 5 m deep and there's a lot to see at this depth anyway. Just adjust the white balance and you're in business. The maximum I have tended to go is about 8m as by the time I get there, grap hold of a rock (not coral) or something and compose and take a picture I'm needing to surface.

When I looked, I quite fancied the panasonic and I guess as the new model is out the older model should be a reasonable price. This was potentially for my wife as I have a G9 and housing and strobe etc for when I go diving (I'd love to take my SLR but am scared of flooding which has happened to me despite being very careful).
 
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