Camera for Fly Vest?

[Buckethead]

There are some great shots of fish on this site (cough...wildbrookies...cough) and I am interested in digital camera recommendations.

I wont be taking my new digital SLR fishing due to it's price and bulk (mostly its price). i have a bad habit of taking a spill out on the water now and then.

I am looking for something small, fairly reliable, and waterproof. There are waterproof cameras on the market, along with waterproof bags to put cameras in... I just don't see too many recommendations or reviews from sportsmen that may actually use them--just sales pitches.

Any suggestions?

[warden's worry]

I own the Pentax Optio 43wr- a cult object amongst angler/photogs.....it is the older version, but people like it better than the latest one. It is submersible, but cannot photograph underwater without a special housing. It takes great photos....my husband has the Olympus Stylus 720sw, which is very impressive, and can do just about anything under the sun, including underwater images.....
Good Luck

[Cahill]

I've got an Olympus Stylus 400 (I think). The writing is worn off of it. From what I remember it is weatherproof/splashproof but not for underwater photgraphy. It is very small and is often in my waders or pfd. It has been submerged countless times in fresh and saltwater and is still fine. I'm quite amazed!

[Kevin]

From what I've been told all Olympus Stylus cameras are weather resistent, and to some degree water resistent (but not a very high rating and cannot be used underwater).

My full $0.02 can be found here:

http://www.adkforum.com/showthread.php?t=4541

[aaronlawson]

I researched this myself last year -the camera I decided on was the Nikon Coolpix 5600. It quite small and light, and wasn't too expensive -a good compromise. It takes good outdoor photos (which is what I wanted) but not such good indoor photos.

If I were to get one today it would be the Kodak EasyShare v570, VERY small, very light, dual lens, 5X optical zoom, a great 'close-up' camera for wild brookie phtotos! They were REALLY expensive when I was shopping around last year -but they've come down a lot. This one is $249 -same as the Coolpix was when I got it.

If I was flush with cash I would get the Kodak EasyShare v610 -10X optical zoom! $345 at Amazon.

I want one...

-Aaron

[JohnnyMac]

Here's a listing of waterproof camera's and reviews from a very reliable source:

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

My favorite point & shoot camera isn't all that small but has a 10X zoom lens. It's the Panasonic TZ1. It has a macro feature but the real fun is the zoom lens. You can find it for under $300.

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/cameraDetail.php?cam=823

As much as I often wrestled with getting a waterproof camera, I realized how little I would taking pictures in the rain or underwater. If it drops in a creek or stream, chances are it's going to get damaged by the fall. Therefore, I passed on the waterproof camera and just spend a little more energy into being careful around water. I do keep my camera's in a waterproof baggy. By passing up on the waterproof feature, the sky's the limit on small digital camera's.

[jbrown]

The Olympus Stylus 720 SW.
Shock proof from 5 feet
Waterproof to 10 feet
Bright capture technology- for shooting in low light.
Digital image stabilization mode
7.1 Mp CCD
3x Optical zoom

You're supposed to be able to go snorkeling with it.
It's built like a tank, just checked one out today (I work for one of Olympus' wholesale distributors.)

[coolrobc]

It's built like a tank, just checked one out today (I work for one of Olympus' wholesale distributors.)

That mean you get discounts?