New point and shoot

[JagDaddy]

The lens and shutter of our Nikon CoolPix 'mysteriously' jammed up after my wife dropped it in the sand on an upper Colorado trip last year so we decided to replace it with something a little more rugged, a Nikon AW130. Waterproof to 100' and supposedly shockproof. My wife is an outdoor wild woman and will surely test it to it's limits haha

 

[Canotrouge]

Decent camera, that is what my wife uses wile teaching here grade 10 Outdoor Ed program... So far so good!

 

[yellowcanoe]

I had one of the predecessors. The Coolpix AW 100. It did not fit the way I travel as the lens does awful zoom shots and I have lots of blobs of loons. When it gets wet the lens is hard to dry and water drops cause wicked flare. Also it is hard to keep the lens clean. Consider adding Q tips covered in microfiber ( not the linty Q tip stuff) to clean the lens often.

Also I learned on a river in the Ozark that it does not swim. I am glad I had orange and I am glad it had a long lanyard on it. But I should have had a floatie on the lanyard.

It was a very good camera for a Pand S that is waterproof. Now I moved to a mini dslr bridge camera that gets the shots I desire ( eagles snakes loons closeup etc.) The camera you got will do well for landscape. just watch for flare. Especially caused by light hitting that recessed lens if it's damp

 

[Canotrouge]

This might well be my next camera, http://en.nikon.ca/nikon-products/product/nikon1/nikon-1-aw1.html seams to be a great compromise in between P&S, DSLR, Waterproofness, Options, size and Zooming ability. Doesn't excel at anything but is better than the average camera. I have a friend that have one since they came out and seams to be really happy with it!!

 

[JagDaddy]

We use some some kind of lens cleaner on the Go-Pro that also reduces water spotting and I was planning on using that with the AW130 and I will pack a small cleaning kit. I'm not really a photography enthusiast and pretty much bought this camera on ruggedness ,ease of use, internet reviews and good experience with Nikon. My wife has a Nikon SLR, something or another, with accoutrements she has packed in a Pelican case and does the real work, but that's too fussy for me and there's no way I would haul it all around on a canoe trip, even if she would agree to it :- )

I put a 550 cord neck lanyard on the AW130, but I'm still going to get an floatie wrist strap for it, that's a good idea!

The AW1 looks like a very nice camera indeed!

 

[yellowcanoe]

There is a filter and lens cap arrangement that worked till it fell in the water when it came off the camera. Was a good idea while I had it

 

[Alan Gage]

This might well be my next camera, http://en.nikon.ca/nikon-products/product/nikon1/nikon-1-aw1.html seams to be a great compromise in between P&S, DSLR, Waterproofness, Options, size and Zooming ability. Doesn't excel at anything but is better than the average camera. I have a friend that have one since they came out and seams to be really happy with it!!

That Nikon looks like it might be nice but the compatible water proof lenses and focal lengths are a bit underwhelming. Only a fixed 27mm equiv. and a 30-75mm zoom with somewhat slow aperture. For tripping I'd want a wider zoom range so I didn't have to carry and swap multiple lenses. A 24-70mm would make me happy enough.

Sounds like it has manual controls though so that's a step in the right direction.

I've been using an Olympus TG-4 and it's been ok. Quality is what you'd expect from a P&S but good enough for what I need anymore. Video was surprisingly good but I don't think it's head and shoulders above anything else in that league. Nice to use but I wish it had manual controls. 24mm equivalent on the wide end of the zoom is nice. Really good macro mode though I rarely use it. Small enough I can carry it in my pocket all day. I bought a floaty strap for it from Olympus.

Alan

 

[Canotrouge]

I think it is still better than a P&S camera.
Like I said it is a compromise, not as versatile as a DSLR, but tougher, more versatile than a P&S but bigger....

 

[Canotrouge]

Also, it is compatible with all the Nikon 1 lenses, so if you need a bigger lens you can get it and keep it away from water and use it only when you know it won't fall in.... I use my camera mostly on WW trips, so waterproofness is my first concern. But I'm a bit tired of the poor quality and limiting possibilities of the P&S