Travel Photography group posting on GLOBOsapiens

Digital camera for ambitious backpacker?

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wojtekd Premium account Joined: Oct 02 Points: 74900 Posts: 411 Posted: 2009-04-30 18:39:00    Hi Globies Slides era will ends soon - I think. I used Canon 300 for my travel photography. Now it is time to swith to the digital one. Any suggestions from professionals? Nikon, Pentax? I want to buy dust-proof and rain-proof machine with a good zoom. Did you hear about such a camera? Thanks Wojtek --- You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced... W.D. Reply    Reply with quote    Contact wojtekd   wojtekd Premium account Joined: Oct 02 Points: 74900 Posts: 411 Posted: 2009-05-16 17:17:00    Dear experts Any advise? I did not decide yet... Somebody say Canon EoS 40 D is dustproof, but yu have to buy two lenses with it - it makes the cost high! Other friend says: buy new superzoom of Pentax X 70. Oh yes, it gives you x24 image, but it is not rainproof. What should I do? Wojtek --- You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced... W.D. Reply    Reply with quote    Contact wojtekd   eirekay Premium account Joined: Aug 03 Points: 19539 Posts: 214 Posted: 2009-05-16 21:24:00    I am a Canon girl, through and through. I have an EOS, which I love, but as mentioned, by the time you get the whole thing, it is expensive. I have three lenses and two flashes to boot. And it's heavy/bulky to carry everything and time consuming to take it out when I want a shot in a hurry so I really only use it locally. For travel I am using a Canon SD600. It fits in my pocket, it has 3X zoom, plus I bought a coooool little zoom extender that I found in a camera store in New York, it has night settings, dust and water resistant. Best of all, it has a large viewing screen. All in all, I've been really happy with it for the three years I've had it. One of my sons has an Olympus Stylus 720SW, waterproof to 10 meters. Turns out it's not so waterproof. He used it in the Red Sea while snorkling and it broke down. We did have it fixed when he got back, but it's not going in the water again. I notice a lot of Globos using Nikon Coolpix and Sony cameras. Maybe that's a hint? --- Life is not measured by the breaths you take but by the moments that take your breath away. Profile Pic: Tikal, Guatemala Reply    Reply with quote    Contact eirekay   louis Premium account Joined: Dec 05 Points: 13399 Posts: 17 Posted: 2009-05-18 10:57:00    For long time I used Hewlett Packard small digital camera. Lately I changed to Nikon D80, I know that this camera is not water proof, I didn't asked about dust proof. One of the great things in my camera is vibration reduction - very useful thing. I bought it lately for quite good price. It had one lense in package. I used for the first time in Philippines and I am happy with the quality of the pictures. As I am not working as a photographer just doing the pictures for memories and fun this camera is good enough for me. Hope it helps little bit --- Louis Reply    Reply with quote    Contact louis   mistybleu Premium account Joined: Aug 04 Points: 53340 Posts: 245 Posted: 2009-05-18 13:43:00    I have two cameras a Lumix and a Sony. I love my Sony (N1) it is compact and gives good pictures. Not sure which is the best model now, as I got mine three years ago. I also bought a waterproof housing that works pretty well for times when it is too wet or sandy etc and cannot be happier. Amanda --- "So many places, so little time" ((*_*)) Reply    Reply with quote    Contact mistybleu   eirekay Premium account Joined: Aug 03 Points: 19539 Posts: 214 Posted: 2009-05-18 22:35:00    Amanda's tip on the housing is a great one! I have had housings for my last two cameras and love the ability to take the camera on a raft or wading into the water without any worries. They are pricey but I got mine on eBay and saved at least $50. --- Life is not measured by the breaths you take but by the moments that take your breath away. Profile Pic: Tikal, Guatemala Reply    Reply with quote    Contact eirekay   whereisliz Joined: Oct 03 Points: 8654 Posts: 164 Posted: 2009-05-19 00:10:00    Just thought I'd chime in with my thoughts... When I shoot professionally I'm a Canon girl all the way, but I like to travel with a small point & shoot, very low-profile and agile. My last three of these have all been Panasonic Lumix (I have the TZ3, TZ4, and my newest, TZ5). All have 10x optical zoom with image stabilization, which lets me get pics that others only dream about, but still can be concealed in the palm of my hand. These cameras are tough, and each successive generation has gotten better battery life and faster start up/shutter speeds. Really my only complaint is the images could be less noisy, especially in low-light situations, but software for correcting this in post-process is getting better all the time. And I'll happily concur on the idea of a waterproof case, I'm saving up for one now. --- travel inspiration & information at whereisliz.com Reply    Reply with quote    Contact whereisliz   adampl Premium account Joined: Jun 07 Points: 11080 Posts: 31 Posted: 2009-05-25 09:21:00    Actually, everything depends on your budget and willingness to carry things. Me personally, I'm using Canon 400D (and I can feel the need to replace it with something better) with three lenses (one kit - very poor quality but the only broad angle I have, one light (2.8) standard zoom 28-70 and one super-zoom 70-300 with image stabilization). It's unfortunately a bit heavy and bulky to carry but covers almost all situations where camera can be needed. Now I'm saving up for a waterproof case and better wide-angle and better body :) If you need any professional tests try a Polish website optyczne.pl. I check them before buying anything. Reply    Reply with quote    Contact adampl   wojtekd Premium account Joined: Oct 02 Points: 74900 Posts: 411 Posted: 2009-05-27 13:44:00    Thanks a lot, dear Globies for your opinions... The choice is difficult - most of the cameras are not dust/rain resistant... Some people recommend quite new concept: -Buy superzoom camera like Olympus SP 590 UZ or new Pentax X 70. It is very handy and you will not change lenses... Yes, the zoom is powerful (like x24) to photograph people or wildlife. But it is not dust/rain proof again... Well, the choice is really difficult, I will search again... Wojtek --- You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced... W.D. Reply    Reply with quote    Contact wojtekd