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| Shooting in the deep |
| Priyanka Joshi / Mumbai Jun 26, 2010, 00:10 IST |
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Headed for a watery vacation? Priyanka Joshi checks out five good waterproof digital cameras that’ll survive some rough handling and still take good photographs. For caveats and fine print, read the tips in the article below.
Pentax Optio W60
This digital camera might not be well-known in India but Pentax claims it can operate in upto 13 feet underwater for 2 hours and at temperatures well below freezing. With a 10 megapixel resolution and 5x zoom lens, the W60 is also fairly straightforward to operate. It offers HD video recording, quick face recognition, and boasts of digital-wide function which merges two shots into one image for ultra-wide-angle image capture.
Price: Rs 10,000
Where: At all leading multi-brand electronics stores
Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS1
Clumsy users will appreciate Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-TS1, which has passed drop tests from heights of upto 1.5 m. This 12-megapixel compact camera is waterproof, shockproof, dustproof and has all the features and settings found in normal digital cameras — which means it can take good quality pictures both above water and below. It also has a separate button for video-recording.
Price: Rs 11,000
Where: At all leading multi-branded electronics stores.
www.panasonic.co.in
Olympus Tough MJ U-8000
Rugged and compact, the Tough MJ U-8000 is waterproof to a depth of 10 metres, can survive being dropped from a height of 2 metres, crushed by 100 kg and frozen to -10 degree centigrade. Or so claims the company. With 12-megapixel resolution, 3.6x zoom lens, 2.7-inch LCD monitor, and features such as face detection, shadow adjustment and dual-image stabilisation, photography is hassle free.
Price: Rs 17,999
Where: At leading multi-branded electronics stores www.olympus-imaging.co.in
Fuji FinePix Z33WP
Made for the young (and young at heart) who like trendy designs, Fuji FinePix Z33WP is a small and light 10-megapixel resolution camera that comes in four colors — green, blue, pink and black. Can be immersed in 10 feet of water. This camera is not just stylish, it comes with 50 MB of internal memory and is compatible with SD/SDHC memory cards.
Price: Rs 7,000
Where: At leading multi-branded electronics stores.
Check www.fujifilm.in
Canon Powershot D10
One of the first waterproof cameras from Canon, the D10 is bigger than most compacts. Its rounded edges, matt-metallic surface and enclosed lens housing make it easy to use in water. This 12-megapixel camera comes with 3x zoom lens with optical image stabilisation, 2.5-inch LCD screen and features such as blink detection and self-timer modes. Buy this if you want a camera that can take a few knocks and has clearly labeled menus that won’t confuse you.
Price: Rs 23,900
Where: Check www.canon.co.in for store locations
Trigger happy
Photographer Ananda Banerjee on how to choose and use the cameras featured above
The ability to take pictures in any available light condition by altering the ISO levels with a flick of a button is what makes digital photography so revolutionary. For the uninitiated, ISO levels are a measure of a photographic film’s sensitivity to light; in a digital camera, the film is replaced by the sensor. So the lower the light, higher the ISO. For example, for a bright sunny day, ISO will be at 100 and for an overcast day, ISO should be at 400 or even higher.
All the cameras featured here do a pretty decent job of shooting underwater where light conditions are generally poor.
Having said this, one should have a basic understanding of how light falls on the subject to capture the moment perfectly. All point-and-shoot cameras deliver great results depending on the skill of the photographer, sometimes even at par with their more sophisticated cousins — DSLR, or the digital single-lens reflex cameras. It’s the way one uses it that makes a difference.
But first, a thorough reading of the user-manual and fine print is of the utmost necessity, especially when there are limitations already mentioned in the product.
For example, the Fuji FinePix Z33WP is waterproof only upto a depth of 3metre/10 feet for upto two hours, and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS1 has passed a drop test from a height of 1.5 metre, in accordance with
“MIL-STD 810F Method 516.5-Shock” test. But this does not guarantee non-destruction, non-malfunction and water-proofing in all conditions. For instance, water-proofing is not guaranteed if the camera is subject to an impact as a result of being hit or dropped.
All the cameras above are great toys which, if used to full potential and intelligently, can deliver surprising variety.
Depending on the mood, one can switch effortlessly from landscape to macro, or from sepia to black-and-white to make the ‘photograph’ look classic or to record a memorable audio-video clip.
Try out the enhanced shooting modes, the various scene modes, face-detection modes and shadow adjustment technologies which are all part of the elaborate menu and features that these pocket dynamos offer.
But it will take a few clicks to get used to handling these gadgets. Owing to their slim and sleek design, they can easily slip and fall. Be extra careful not to let go or drop the camera underwater (use a strap that hangs round your neck) as it will then rapidly sink to the depths, beyond recovery. The one thing they can’t do is float.
(Ananda Banerjee is a Delhi-based freelance writer and photographer)
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