Digital Cameras for Yakfishers

Post by **Apalach** » January 20th, 2005, 1:38 pm

One of the problems everyone encounters while fishing, is "I sure wish I had my camera", or "I need to get a camera that doesnâ€™t mind getting wet". This is especially true for yak-fisherfolk and other outdoor types. Turns out there is a great Web site by Steveâ€™s Digicams that deals specifically with "Weather Resistant and Underwater Cameras". Note that these are NOT cameras for which you have to buy a separate underwater housing that may cost nearly as much as the camera itself. In addition to all types of digital cameras, Steve covers other types of digital gear as well, and has reviews, prices, where to buy, and pretty complete specs for everything. I wish I had known about this site when I bought my first digicam. I have a great little camera, a Sony DSC-T1, but it is not a camera that takes to getting overly wet.

http://www.steves-digicams.com/cameras_wr.html

Two of the cameras on this site seem to be especially good for kayak, or other types of fishing. The first digicam is the Sony Cybershot DSC-U60. This particular camera is of interest because it is designed for one-handed use (so you can hold your fish up with one hand and shoot with the other), and is waterproof down to a depth of about five feet. You could actually shoot a pic of your fish while it is still underwater if you are quick enough! Now I should mention that I do not own this camera, but it seems like it might be a pretty good general camera for a yakfisher.

The second camera that would work well for yakfishing is the Pentax Optio 43 WR. This camera is compact, takes great pics based on those I have seen published on the Web, has twice the resolution (it is 4.0 megapixels) of the Sony above (Sony is 2 mp), and is waterproof submerged to about 5 feet. Yakfishers that have this just stick it in the pocket of their PFD and forgeddaboutit. Torrential rains, waves, surf, and rolling your yak canâ€™t hurt it based on ownerâ€™s reports. However, based on info on the Pentax Web site, this is NOT a camera that is supposed to be operated underwater, even though it is O-ring sealed. This will probably be my next camera, although it is difficult to find locally. The only two dealers in Tally, so far as I can determine, are Ritz Camera in the malls and I believe Tallahassee Camera. I could not find it at Comp USA, Best Buy, or Circuit City.

Some folks have set up some interesting rigs for mounting their cameras directly on their yaks, especially if they have a hand-held remote to trigger the camera. Here is a pic of one such idea from another forum.

mechanical_fisherman · January 22nd, 2005, 12:04 am

Awesome post. I have been thinking about a camera like these for about 1.5 years but never bothered to do the research. Thanks.

Post by **qoutrage** » January 23rd, 2005, 11:57 am

Nice article, Apalach. I mentioned in another thread about digital cams, that I had bought one of my daughters a Canon A75 (the 3rd picture looks like one) for her birthday and she has become a camera bug, because of it simple operation. The cost 6 months ago was about 10 bucks more than the 188.46, they are offered at now. It is a 3.2mp with a 3x optical zoom and fully automatic for ease of use, but has tweak adjustments for experienced photographer. It runs on 4 AA cells and uses CompacFlash memory, which run a little cheaper than some of the other memory sticks. Whats more, is it,s advertised to have a dedicated waterproof case in the event it is dropped in the drink. Here's Wal Marts page on it.
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product. ... 944%3A3959
I'm getting ready to buy a new utility camera, myself, and have narrowed the choices down to 2. The second being the Kodak 4 MP EasyShare CX7430. It has similar features, but uses 2 AA cells, which I would expect would need changing more often than the 4 in the Canon. And, the description doesn't say anything about it being water resistant. Memory for it is of the SD variety, and is also reasonably priced.
Wal Mart's price is about the same at 185.72.
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product. ... long_descr

Post by **Apalach** » January 23rd, 2005, 2:02 pm

g,
One of the things I have noticed about digicams is that you really have to read the fine print carefully with regard to them being "waterproof" or not. I doubt if any camera with a lens that zooms outside of the camera body is really waterproof because it is virtually impossible to get O-ring seals to work in such a situation. Even "Water Resistant" is often a stretch and generally means you can take a picture in a very light drizzle, but not a downpour. Even the Pentax Optio 43 WR that I mentioned that is O-ring sealed and has an internally zooming lens is only described by the manufacturer as being "water resistant". My guess is this is to prevent lots of warranty claims by people who try to use them as true underwater cameras.

I could be wrong but when they say they have a "dedicated waterproof case", I believe they are referring to a separately purchased (and usually costly), O-ring sealed, underwater case specifically made for that camera model (which is probably what they mean by "dedicated"). If a camera is not on the Steve's Digicams Web site for these Weather Resistant and UW Cameras, I would want to do some extra research before purchasing. Just my $.02 worth.

Post by **qoutrage** » January 23rd, 2005, 3:17 pm

Yep, dummy me. You are exactly right about the dedicated case. I should have known it's not waterproof, probably not even water resistant, having handled the one, I gave my daughter.
This is the dedicated case, they're talking about. You can have one of these at $240. Waterproof to 130ft.

Anyway, guess the best bet would be keep it in a heavyduty ziploc til you are ready to use it.

I know about water sensative electronics- A couple of years ago, I left a
DV camcorder setting on top on the luggage rack while unloading some stuff with the intent on going back for it. 'Got busy putting things away, and forgot about it. About an hour later we got a 15 minute shower, first in like 6 weeks.
When I discovered my error, it was too late....ruined. Sent it to Panasonic in Chicago and was told repairs would be about 500 bucks, if they had the parts. Just as well, they didn't, cause I would have paid that much.
I replaced it with an exact model off EBay (Tx pawnshop) for 300 bucks. Expensive screwup on my part.

Sometimes, I wonder about me...

Post by **Apalach** » January 23rd, 2005, 8:06 pm

Yep--Ziplocs is good! I have a Sony DSC-T1 that is a fantastic little camera with an incredible macro capability that focuses down to less than a cm away. This is one of the main reasons I got it, but unfortunately it does not take kindly to getting wet, even though it does have an internally-focusing Zeiss lens.

I carry this camera in a Flambeau plastic fly box from Wal-Mart, inside a Ziploc bag in the top of my ice chest. If the weather is good and not too much chop, I hang it on a neck cord inside the pocket of my fishing shirt. Great little camera, but not even water resistant, unfortunately.

Here is a pic of my "dedicated" UW case, also good down to about 130 feet. Very nice UW case with complete controls, but again a bit pricey to say the least. Like I said earlier, I wish I had seen Steveâ€™s digicam Web site BEFORE I got my digi.

If the weather looks like it might get really nasty, I carry the Flambeau box and camera inside a Pelican waterproof (really!) box inside my ice chest, or maybe lashed down on deck. So far I have not yet used the dedicated UW case, but I plan to this spring.