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Same old camera question.... 18 Years, 1 Month ago
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Short sad story. Sunday I was fishing in Kings Canyon NP, at a friend’s Bachelor Party. The river was pretty high, so we were working the tributaries. I was standing on a rock, looking at a probably accessible pool. I stooped over to crawl across a log to get there, and my camera fell out of my pocket, bounced off the rock, and into a modest plunge pool. I stripped down to the waist and fished around a bit but could not find the camera (it was waterproof and shockproof, so it was worth looking); then my younger son, stripped up to the waist and fished around with his toes for a while, but he couldn’t find it either.
So, I am out a camera. This one was an Olympus Stylus 725 (7.1 mp); and replaced an Olympus Stylus 400, that drowned in the Kings River a bit over a year ago…. Hmmmm.
Anyway I am now back in the market for a compact/subcompact waterproof digital camera in the sub $350 range, that is at least nominally shock resistant.
Contenders seem to be the Pentax Optio W 20 and W 30, and the Olympus Stylus 770, 850, and 790, all water proof.
I am leaning towards the Pentaxes, because I believe they have a faster shutter response time than the Olympus models (which are abominable for that attribute)
I know we go through this fairly regularly, but the answer keeps changing, as the technology matures. So,
1. What other choices am I missing
2. What are the weak points of the Pentax Optio series
3. Who has a good word about the Olympus models (competent but uninspired)
4. Does ANYONE make a small digital that still has an optical viewfinder??
Thanks in advance for the info, advice, and abuse……
Oh, I will go back and look again in September, when the water will be less than two feet deep, right now it is over six feet deep in places….
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Tight Lines,
Ed K
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Phil (Admin)
Admin
Posts: 1029
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Re:Same old camera question.... 18 Years, 1 Month ago
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Ed,
There seems to be a theme here about cameras and Kings. I'd quit fishing camera eating streams.
I can't help much on the waterproof front. I carry a Nikon SLR, and wrap it in 2 ziplocs, and one of these days I WILL dunk it also. But it has already paid for itself over and over. It sure beats not bringing it!
Hope you find it in the Fall.
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I am haunted by waters.
Norman MacLean
A River Runs Through It
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gitt (User)
Gold Poster
Posts: 228
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Re:Same old camera question.... 18 Years, 1 Month ago
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Every consider tethering that camera using light cord or a lanyard?? Like I would ever do it myself, but it sure sounds a good idea from here on out. Ed. I really like the way you justify an upgrade on your camera every year or season in order to be cutting edge on the technology.  |
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SloFly (User)
Expert Poster
Posts: 117
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I stripped down to the waist ???? :shocked 18 Years, 1 Month ago
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A few things you need to know about me:
I has been known to cure narcolepsy, just by walking into the room. My organ donation card, also lists my beard. I'm a lover, not a fighter, but I'm also a fighter, so don’t get any ideas. When it is raining, it is because I'm sad. Even my parents’ advice is insightful. If there were an interesting gland, mine would be larger than most men’s entire lower intestines. My shirts never wrinkle. I am left-handed. And right-handed. Even if I forget to put postage on my mail, it gets there. I once knew a call was a wrong number, even though the person on the other end wouldn’t admit it. You can see my charisma from space. The police often question me, just because they find me interesting. I once punched a magician. That’s right. You heard me. When I order a salad, I get the dressing right there on top of the salad, where it belongs…where there is no turning back. If a monument was built in my honor, Mt. Rushmore would close, due to poor attendance. My beard alone has experienced more than a lesser man’s entire body. My blood smells like cologne. On every continent in the world, there is a sandwich named after me. I don't believe in using oven mitts, nor potholders. My cereal never gets soggy. It sits there, staying crispy, just for me. My pillow talk is years ahead of it’s time. Respected archaeologists fight over my discarded apple cores. I have always been known to rock the casba. Birds have never defecated on my car. I never rock climb with ropes, I feel they are for pussies. I once buried a time capsule full of things that haven’t happened yet. I have been pronounced dead 7 times…make that 8. My bear hugs are actually hugs I give to bears. I can’t be bought, but my beard clippings have been know to show up on ebay. I have never lost a sock. If I disagree with you, it is because you are wrong. My reputation expands faster than the universe. I once had an awkward moment, just to see what it felt like. I live vicariously through myself. Happy Hour is the hour after everyone from happy hour has left. I sleep with a night light, not because I'm afraid of the dark but the dark is afraid of me. I hold a doctorate in originality in which I teach at Harvard where no one ever passes. When I go skydiving Peregrine Falcons always trail behind me. The President of a country once took a bullet for me on a failed attempt. When I look in the mirror there's never a reflection because I am only 1 of a kind. I can defeat anyone in a game of chess without making any moves. It is rumored that James Bond movies are my real life biography. I once gave an autograph in sign language. I didn’t just taste fear… I ordered seconds of it. Restaurants offer me my usual table, even if I've never been there. Stray dogs obey my commands. The Spanish Civil War was started by two women fighting over me. Waiters Tip me. After hearing me play guitar, Hendrix decided life was not worth living. In Pamplona, the bulls run with me. I traveled to the edge of the world…and proved the world was flat. I once fought myself…and won. I took the McChicken off the dollar menu. It has been said that I beat 2 pac and biggie in a rap battle…thats why they killed each other. My tan never goes away. I painted my house with my beard. After seeing me dance…Michael Jackson died of cardiac arrest. I blow a .000…after putting down a case. I went skinny dipping…with my clothes on. Hookers ask me how much? I am so elusive, I can escape anything, even black holes. When a camera points at me, it never goes out of focus. I can strangle you with a cordless phone. I went to Mars, and that is why there is no life there. When I do a pushup, I'm not lifting myself up, I'm pushing the Earth down. I don't read books, I stare them down until they give me the information I need. There is no theory of evolution, just a list of creatures I allow to live. It takes me 20 minutes to watch 60 Minutes. I am The Most Interesting Man In The World.
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Lorvamp (User)
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Posts: 143
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Re:Same old camera question.... 18 Years, 1 Month ago
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EdK,
I have an older Pentax W30 6 megapixels camera. Love it. it is lightweight. Most important, I keep in on a rubber backed lanyard around my neck so it can either fit in my fishing shirt pocket or be tucked inside of my waders. Also get the silicone skin for it since wet hands makes it easy for the camera to slip out of you hands.
Loretta  |
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Re:Same old camera question.... 18 Years, 1 Month ago
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one of the guys at work has a W10, it took nice pictures, he never complained about it.
You need this:  |
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Gear 18 Years, 1 Month ago
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Hey troutnut,
I went through my gear for "your" juvenile delinquents. I have a 7' (one-piece) St. Croix spinning rod with a really nice reel attached. I used this outfit once on the Delta. It's several years old, but basically in new condition.
Sorry, I only have one outfit to donate. If you think they would like it let me know. I'm not shipping the dang thing since it's one piece, but I can drop it off the next time I'm up your way or you can pick it up the next time you're near Oakland.
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"Rivers course through my dreams, rivers cold and fast, rivers well-known and rivers nameless, rivers that seem like ribbons of blue water twisting through wide valleys, narrow rivers folded in layers of darkening shadow, rivers that have eroded down deep in a mountain's belly, sculpted the land, peeled back the planet's history exposing the texture of time itself."
— Harry Middleton (Rivers of Memory)
"Each night as I haul myself onto the back of county garbage truck no. 2, there is a familiar wind, some thread of moonglow or starlight, a splatter of dark rain on my skin, something that stirs my memory, and again, if even for a brief moment, I am on some mountain river, some stretch of bright water, full of possibilities, including the possibility of trout, perhaps one that, when hooked, will haul me in and out of time, in and out of life's mysterious and frightening, wondrous and incomprehensible continuum, even to the edges of the universe." -- Harry Middleton
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Re:Same old camera question.... 18 Years, 1 Month ago
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Ed...get a wading staff retractable tether and attach the camera to that. You can hook it to your vest, pack, or shirt. Works for me for my range finder and is right there when you need to snap a shot one handed.
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Re:Same old camera question.... 18 Years ago
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Well, let's see. I was born at night, but it wasn't last night. 
The camera was ON a lanyard, the lanyard was hooked through a hook and loop closure, and the camera was in a pocket with a zipper. I had just taken a picture, and put the camera back in the pocket but failed to zip the pocket. When I stooped over and the camera fell out of the pocket, the hook and loop closure came unhooked and the camera went into free fall. Gee, maybe I screwed up. I hadn't thought of that!!!! 
For those of you who actually mentioned a camera or responded to one of my questions, thank you. for the rest of you:
Now, this ain't no BS.
Long ago, at a noted Midwestern Catholic university with a famous football team, there was an elective class; Theology 307: Study of the New Testament. The class was very popular with football players, especially interior linemen. The reason for this was that in the thirty years that Father Kowalski had been teaching the class, he had always only had one exam per semester, and it always had only one question on it.
The question was an essay question: Describe the travels of St Paul.
Lo and Behold, in the fullness of time, there came to pass a year that was different. The essay question on the test was: Discuss the Sermon on the Mount, and critique it as a polemic speech.
There was dead silence in the class, then groans, and then hasty removal of the front four pages of the prepped Blue Books, and some half hearted scribbling. The students trickled out after an hour or so of desperation.
Two days later, the football team was gathered around Father Kowalski's door, looking at the posted grades. There were Cs, Ds, and the occasional F. However, Paddy Burke, who played offensive center, (without a helmet) had received the top grade in the class, a B+.
His teammates gathered around. "How did you do it Paddy?" "Did you have some inside info and not tell?" "C'mon Paddy, what's the story?"
Paddy replied: "Well, I went in there with my Blue Book all filled out. When I saw the question, I knew I was a goner, and I really needed to pass the course. So I wrote at the top of the first page:
'Far be it from me to critique the words of my Lord and Savior, but I would like to tell you about the travels of St Paul.' And I turned it in. "
end of sea story
Lord, help me to be patient, with the Paddys of the world, who have not a clue about the question at hand, but feel obliged to open their mouths and remove all doubt about their ignorance. They answer another question, which has little or nothing to do with the question at hand, in hope of impressing someone with their Half Vast knowledge and brilliance. Help me to be gentle and kind to them, for they need it.
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Tight Lines,
Ed K
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brians (User)
Senior Poster
Posts: 43
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Re:Same old camera question.... 18 Years ago
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Hey Ed,
Take a look at the new Olympus 1030SW. They made some improvements, and the macro range is much better now.....and comparable, but not as good as the Optio. I'm leaning towards the 1030SW, because it's shockproof.....but probably not Brian or Ed proof. As for shutter speed, the specs on the Oly look ok, but I don't own it to say it really is in the real world.
brians |
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BHT (User)
Fresh Poster
Posts: 4
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Re:Same old camera question.... 18 Years ago
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I have a Pentax Optio WPi and for the most part I like it. One thing you need to be aware of is the lens does not have a cover over it, so you need to make sure you don't have a big thumb print on it before you take a picture. Also the view finder is hard to see in bright light, but for a small water proof camera, it takes excellent pictures.
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A little's good, A lot's better and Too much is just right.
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Re:Same old camera question.... 18 Years ago
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Thanks for all the help. After a bunch of research, I ordered an Olympus 770 - I already have a spare battery and a 256M spare card - same as my 725.
Almost went with the Optio, but there were enough dubious reports, that I decided to stick with the devil I know.
Still 7.1 Meg, slow shutter, drop proof to 5 feet, water proof to some depth - no help if you can't get it back - Oh, and it comes with a lanyard!!!!
We'll see how long this one lasts. I am still going back for my other one, next month, I hope.
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Tight Lines,
Ed K
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