OK, it's Christmas, so before I buy the wrong camera, do any of you have good or bad to say about the following:

1. Sony Cybershot, 3x zoom, 7.2 mg pxls., Zeiss lens, $179. Not waterproof but good, and cheap.
2. Olympus, 5x zoom, 8 mg pxls. WATERPROOF to 10', $269.
3. Olympus, 5x zoom, 8 mg. pxls, Waterproof to 33', $339.

Q. Do any of you have one of the above, are you happy with it?

Have you had any problems with the "waterproof" Olympus cameras? Are they really waterproof? They cost more than I really want to spend but being waterproof would be nice to take out on the boat and get some action shots while racing.

Or is there some other camera in the $200-$250 range that does all that and is reliable too?

PS, I don't know squat about digital cameras so I don't trust the sales men when they say, "they are all the same..."

Any sugestions would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Hmmm check w/ Craig VanEaton, he has a nice camera.

Craig probably has an SLR ($1-2K) which isnt waterproof without a waterproof case.
What you want is a point and shoot, most aren't waterproof without a case, the few that are such as the Pentax W30 are only waterproof to 10 feet.
My friend just bought this camera waterproof to 33 feet, def the one you want. A little more expensive than you want but it'd be worth it as your going to spend $150-200 for a waterproof case for any other camera (as I did and i'm regretting not getting this camera)

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Olympus-S...roductDetail.do

i like to stick to standard rechargeable batteries, aa or aaa, and sd memory cards. that way i can surf batteries and cards around between cameras, shavers, gps, flashlight etc

so i wouldn't recommend sony and their memory stick or olympus and their xd memory

however on a boat a splashproof camera is a really good idea and olympus, (xd cardw) and pentax, (Li battery) both make good splashproof cameras.

an optical zoom is really good, digital zoom is crap

Timbo, if you are looking for a point and shoot with occasional splash environment action, check this underwater cases. They are very cheap compared to Brand ones like Cannon or Sony. Go for a cheap underwater case like this and buy a camera with SD card and AA's. Photographers say there are only 2 brands to look at Cannon and Nikon. At least that's what I heard. I was very pleased with my ancient Sony, but the proprietary Mem Stick and battery are expensive.
I suggest you buy an Olympus, Pentax or Nikon. A buddy of mine has a very nice Nikon. Check out Nikon Coolpix L14/L15 range. Compact and high quality.
I just bought a Cannon A570IS for my g/f and I am very disapointed with it's quality. Very bad indoor quality, outdoor is ok.
Don't be fooled by the high Megapixel number. That's just marketing. The compact ones with high Mpx shoot soft/blurry pics. Go for 4-6mpx.
If you want to do some action shots I also recommand you buy one with Optical Image Stabilization. It really does a good job.
In my opinion these underwater cases are ok and cheap, so don't buy a camera specifically to be waterproof from start.
I'm planning of getting a case like that too, for the crappy cannon I got.

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll...&category0=

http://www.dicapac.com/eng/info-01.htm

The manufacturer says these cases are waterproof (underwater), but I'd b cautious with that. But they look like they can def protect from splashes.

I bought the Olympus 770 SW earlier this year.
Its a great camera for taking pictures while sailing or from another boat.
The quality of the pictures and videos is good, although for the same money you could probably buy a non-waterproof camera with more features.
(IMHO picture quality on the water is mostly dependent on how still you can keep the camera anyway).

Its a very tough little camera, battery life is good, the only downside is the lack of an optical viewfinder.

Tim,
I'm using a Cannon 400D with a 70-300mm zoom lens for on water shots.
You may have seen a couple reduced resolution shots I've done for the F16CG and Kurnell Top Gun Regatta.
Some F18 Pics

It is 10 megapixels and takes hi res shots up to A3 size.
These large hi res shots are just under 4 megabytes per shot in size.
It's not waterproof.
Hope this helps.
Regards,
Phill

Phill, that's a really good camera, I assume it's way over budget that Timbo had in mind.
But the extra $$ spent is worth. SLR and DSLR cameras are the Porsche's of photography, while the Compacts are the crappy europeean 1,2 litre family compact car.
I'm really frustrated with the quality of the compact cannon I got for g/f.
Really good advice if you will want quality pics indoor and outdoor - go for a camera with big image sensor and lower Mpx, that way you'll have less noise in the pics and higher quality.
A camera like Phill's is worth every penny.
www.dpreview.com
if you have the patience....

If the image sensor is small (phisically small) and has high Mpx number it will induce big amounts of noise in the pic.

And happy Xmass to all.

Make sure you buy a camera with a view finder, the waterproof camera I just purchased does not have one and the digital viewfinder is black when wearing polarzed prescition sunglasses. I have to point and hope because I can't see anything. I'm looking for another now.

We had an old 1 Mpx Sony forever and we always talked about replacing it...but it took such great photos with great color and clarity, we kept putting it off. Someone stole the camera this fall so we had to go out and buy a new one. I spent a good deal of time researching and we ended up with a Sony W90. Yes, the proprietary Memory stick is a pain - but I do like the rechargeable battery...then I found out they are using a proprietary USB cable too...that one still bothers me a bit. However, it's pictures are great in some instances although I wouldn't say it's quite as good as the old Sony we had....although I probably don't have it setup quite right yet. I have found, however, that the Sony point and shoots are by far the best at outdoor sunny photo color and exposure. This one though, I'm having a difficult time getting a consistent white balance indoors....probably just a setting I need to play with.

This was from our old Sony DSC-50 camera and the photo is untouched:

My buddy swears by the Pentax:

Pentax Optio Camera Overview

Good to 10' underwater for up to 2 hours.

7.1 MP
3x Optical Zoom
Focal lenght 38-114mm
2.5" LCD Display
No optical Display (sadly)

Here is an excerpt from a review about not having the Viewfinder:

"The only big negative is no viewfinder. Naturally, out in the bright sun it is nearly impossible to see the LCD screen. But hey, leave it at a short focal length and literally just point and shoot."



And you can buy from J&R.com for $229 (after $30 mail-in rebate).

or

Amazon.com for $199 (after rebate)

Thanks for all the input guys, I'm headding out the door to start my Christmas shopping, I want to get a jump on all you guys who will wait until Monday... <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

I've got a Sony point and shoot that I am very happy with. Bought myself the waterproof housing on ebay for $40, so I'll see how it does on the boat. I'd rather loose a $179 point and shoot than a 2k slr.
http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stor...552921665079070

I love my D-80. I know it's not a point and shoot but I can print this image (in its original form) at roughly 36x53. Love it. I took around 800 pics that weekend (Area D North Qualifier) camera didn't skip a beat.

Point those toes Jake!

Here are three more resized a little smaller. Couldn't leave out: Nigel & Tammy, Mike & David, Mosley & Sully.

[censored]?!? Jake's doing all the work and weighs half as much as Sasquatch, there! Jake! Nice form! Wick! Lay down, Sally!

hee hee - I love when pics are posted. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />