Cameras on the boat

[Cataboo]

K. Locking biners work a bit better, 'cause some of the others can spontaneously open and lose things (keep one on your keychain and see how often you lose keys)

They do make plastic bags/housings that go over cameras - and they mostly work, the plastic does tend to turn color with age, and you don't get as good of results shooting through plastic - not to mention it's hard to use the buttons. And if you're in salt water, you get salt deposits all over the bag.

Same with the waterproof housings that canon makes for their camera - absolutely awesome if you're snorkeling or diving - but bulky and almost always covered with salt in a kayak. (expensive as well)

I put a little bag of dessicant salts in my drybags for electronics, 'cause you get condensation of moisture inside the bag - and that's killed my cell phone a few times.

[OakLeaf]

I have the Fuji Z33 WP. I got it for cycling, actually, so I could have a camera that I could access quickly and wouldn't have to fumble in and out of my ziploc bag.

It's pretty useless for low light situations, but fine as a daylight P&S. It's been through a couple of downpours, besides just living in a sweat bath.

I was nervous about the lack of a lens cap, so I keep it in one of those microfiber drawstring bags. That's nice because not only does it protect the camera from scratches, but I can use it to wipe the lens or my sunglasses if needed.

I'm not much of a photographer, but the camera does have some basic adjustments.

[NoNo]

Lots of good info. I just got the Harmony cell phone case and kept it inside my dry sack on yesterday's paddle. My friend had a Pelican case yesterday with his iphone and wallet in it, and it stunk to high heaven. I wasn't too impressed. But I like the idea of separate dry bags/cases for various things for both the organization and protection factors.

I played with the w90 and wasn't impressed with the photo quality. Indoor, well-lit shots came out a little soft and grainy. The new Olympus cameras have ditched the xD format and you can now use SD cards! My friend got the 6010 and said he wished he'd gotten the 8010 but was still very happy with it. Naturally, he didn't bring it yesterday so I could check it out. I remember reading about the Canon being a funky shape, but haven't seen one up close. Then I wasn't sure if I'd be better off just getting a regular P&S and just putting it in a dry bag. They're faster and tend to have better image quality, and are cheaper than the all-weather cameras. When it comes to my good camera, yeah, that wouldn't come out in anything other than perfect conditions, but I wasn't sure what to put it in. Maybe a dry bag inside of a deck bag would work.

[Cataboo]

His pelican case stunk? I tend to leave my kayaking gear out on the deck to dry after using it. If I'm in stinky water, I wash it off - otherwise I let sunlight naturally deoderize it a bit. IF you leave stuff in a dark place and it doesn't dry out rapidly, it does end up starting to smell.

None of my pelican cases stink. OR any of my drybags.

Here's the drypak cases:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...1.93_13&fsc=-1

Yes. Basically all of the waterproof cameras are more expensive for shittier cameras because they are waterproof. They make compromises with small lenses that don't extend out. That being said, I can make my optio w60 take a gorgeous picture. I haven't played with the w90, but I know the w60 & the w80 have a tendency to overexpose the highlights, so if you shift the metering in the camera to take a picture at -.7, it takes a much better picture than what it does at what the camera considers a normal exposure. Probably most of the pics I've posted on here are from the w60 while kayaking and I can link to my picasa albums if you want.

I have a couple friends with the older olympuses waterproof cameras ( a year or two old models) and their cameras suck from what I've seen. Maybe it's the photographer and not the actual camera. But the olympuses typically score behind the pentaxes in the photography site camera reviews. The fujis are usually behind the olympuses. And the canon and the panasonic tie for better than the pentaxes - but the canon has its stupid shape and not a very wide angle lens. I tend not to zoom much while kayaking, so having a wide angle lens on the camera is great. If you want to take pics of cool birds that you see, it's an exercise in frustration. When I have my dslr with me, I keep my 70-320 mm lens with it for that purpose.


I have actually killed a camera with salt water while kayaking - so it's basically something I don't risk at all anymore. I will curse my w60 when it's not as good of a camera as my dslr when I'm out on the water - but it can take a nice picture and I absolutely do not have to worry about it. I put it in my bento box while cyling (I've had it bounce out and skitter across the road when I hit a pothole and it works fine after that impact)... and I take it with me skiing. And doing all of that without having to worry about my camera is priceless

It's always tempting when you start kayaking to just buy a big 40 liter drybag or two - but if you ever start camping with your kayak, it's a heck of a lot easier to have a bunch of smaller drybags. I use a lot of 5, 10, 15, and 20 liter drybags - smaller bags pack easier into the compartments. A half filled 40 liter drybag still takes up a lot of space 'cause of all that extra plastics.