|
January 04, 2008
|
 |
Which camera should I take on caving and climbing trips?
|
Power Shot A720IS Camera (courtesy, Canon)
|
My son is a Geology major and is going on seven-week, field-study trip in Montana this summer. I saw the Bushnell outdoor camera and am wondering what you know about it. My son is always climbing some mountain or going caving, so he needs a durable camera.
— Nicole
Snellville, Georgia
Do you have a question of your own?
|
|
|
 It’s true, Nicole, there are plenty of choices. Maybe too many. But the good news is that it’s fairly difficult to go wrong. Unless, of course, you get the Bushnell Outdoor Camera. It’s a decent little camera, but for its $300 retail price, there are much better choices. Its claim to fame is a ruggedized case, which to be honest is kind of dorky looking. Otherwise it’s pretty mediocre—3.2 megapixel resolution (low by today’s standards), and it doesn’t have a true optical zoom. Instead it “zooms” by simply cropping the image area. Feh!
Instead, look at the Olympus 720SW ($310; olympus.com), which is waterproof to ten feet, can take a five-foot fall, and has excellent 7.1-megapixel resolution coupled with an above-average 3x optical zoom lens, meaning the lens morphs to get closer or capture a wider area. That results in much better pictures. It also has fast start-up, a 2.5-inch LCD screen for viewing, and a whole array of settings for different picture needs. The one thing that doesn’t make my shutter flutter is that it takes a proprietary rechargeable battery. That’s not necessarily a handicap as power outlets are common enough, heaven knows, and there always are solar chargers. But it can be limiting.
So I often favor cameras that take AA batteries, the battery that powers most of the portable electric/electronic gadgets on the planet. That would include the eight-megapixel Canon Power Shot A720IS ($200; canon.com). Whoa, but this is a lot of camera for the money: 6x optical zoom, image stabilizer, a 2.5-inch LCD screen with image rotation, and much more. And it takes two AA batteries. It’s not waterproof or shockproof, but get a decent case for it (Lowepro Apex 10AW, $20; lowepro.com), and you solve half of that problem.
The 2008 Winter Outside Buyer’s Guide is now online. From snow sports to trail-running to camping, get reviews of more than 300 new gear must-haves.
 |
|
|
|
GEAR GUY FEATURES
Check out the bio of Douglas Gantenbein, aka the Gear Guy.
Readers' Mailbag: The Gear Guy digs into some of your more bizarre, obscure (and let’s face it, downright weird) posts from years gone by to see if he can make sense of it all, or if it’s just time to run up the white flag. Previous column: Beat the Cost of Gear.
The Gear Guy reports from the 2005 Outdoor Retailer summer trade fair, with his rundown of ten products to watch in 2006, plus the inside scoop on what shook down at the bi-annual gearapalooza.
|
|
|
|
|
Many of the items reviewed by the Gear Guy can be found at REI.com. Click here to find the internet's biggest selection of outdoor gear and apparel.
|
