Just got an Olympus Tough camera! Any advice?

Hi all! So I wanted a good waterproof, sand and shock proof camera that takes good pics and videos and I am by no means anywhere near pro or even intermediate. I just got the Olympus Tough TG-820. Does anyone have one? Is it good to have in the ocean? Thanks!

I have the Olympus Tough T310 waterproof, and shockproof camera. I got to last year for our vacation. And I have to say that I hate it, it take way to long to focus, the pictures are not clear, and you have to wait forever for the shutter to release. I have called Olympus, got the memory card that they recommend, and it is still no better. Pictures on Christmas Day took forever. I am planning to look for another pocket camera next year. I would not give it any recmondations. Never used it in the ocean, read to many problems if you get it wet.

Hi all! So I wanted a good waterproof, sand and shock proof camera that takes good pics and videos and I am by no means anywhere near pro or even intermediate. I just got the Olympus Tough TG-820. Does anyone have one? Is it good to have in the ocean? Thanks!

We bought ours in St. Thomas last year and love it. Takes good underwater photos and video. Out of water shots are good too. The buttons are small and difficult to operation (IMO). Thinking of getting a different Olympus point and shoot to use above the water but if you need to invest in a single camera to do both that won't break the bank, this one works well.

~ Sheryl

Congrats on your new camera. I have one with a 16gig card. It works great above and below water. When in the ocean make sure camera is securely affixed to your wrist. You don't want to have to look for it on the bottom of the ocean. Takes great pictures & movies underwater.

Wash it off with clean fresh water at the end of the day.

Are kinda of funky, night shots for mosts will be grainy, If I can offer some advice, read the manual fully and try each setting to see what is best.

I got a really good deal on a Pentax WG1, not a camera to use in all conditions, but under right settings, and right light, lots of it, pics are great.

I have an older model...the SW850. Love it!! While it may take a couple of seconds for the shutter to react, don't get discouraged. I practiced with mine in the inlaws pool. And PLEASE invest in a "floating" wrist strap in case you loose your camera in the water. You can get these through Olympus or on Amazon.

We just bought the same camera 3 weeks ago and took it on our cruise last week to the Caribbean. We are thrilled with the clarity of the pictures and the videos and the underwater capabilities are terrific.

Watch the lens ring on the front of the camera and make sure it stays in locked position before going in the water. I have read that others have had problems with them coming loose though it only happened to us one time last week under heavy use and I think it was knocked loose in my wife's travel bag.

Also, be sure to wash the camera off with fresh water when you get back to your ship and when dry, open the compartments and carefully blow out any sand that could hurt the seals.

Overall, though, we found it a great bargain and have been showing all our HD underwater movies and great photos to the family during Christmas.

I have the Olympus Tough T310 waterproof, and shockproof camera. I got to last year for our vacation. And I have to say that I hate it, it take way to long to focus, the pictures are not clear, and you have to wait forever for the shutter to release. I have called Olympus, got the memory card that they recommend, and it is still no better. Pictures on Christmas Day took forever. I am planning to look for another pocket camera next year. I would not give it any recmondations. Never used it in the ocean, read to many problems if you get it wet.

I had the same experience as you. I was fortunate to have bought an extended warranty. While in Hawaii preparing to take it snorkeling in Hanauma Bay it ceased to work. I opened it to find it was full of corrosion deep inside that had apparently been caused by leakage that had been happening slowly over time. There were water droplets inside. Fortunately all the pictures on my memory stick were saved but the camera was beyond repair. Hooray! Best Buy gave me my money back.

It was the worst camera I ever owned. The color was also worse than any camera ever. The flash didn't shoot very far at all. I'll never buy another Olympus.

Gina

I had an Olympus waterproof camera that worked ok the first trip, but leaked the second. I have since found the Fuji W100 for $179 at Sam's, which I am very impressed with. It has 3 preset underwater shooting modes, a double lock on the battery compartment, one-button HD video, 14 mp. Very easy to set and use. I took it to Israel 2 weeks ago, and will take it on its first cruise vacation (snorkeling) in 3 weeks.

Thanks for the replies everyone! I'll invest in a floating wrist strap ASAP! I really want to take good pictures of the cabanas from the ocean on Nellie's Beach in Labadee so I'm hoping this will be good for it :) If it's any type of reference the camera I've been using and been happy with for the last 5 years is a Kokak Easyshare 6 Megapixel camera lol :D

Well I normally shoot with a Canon D10 and I completley swear by it. Awesome pictures day or night and underwater. I love it so much that I bought a 2nd one 2 cruises ago.

Well this cruise (I just took 2 weeks ago) I must have completely lost my mind and left without my Canon charger and extra batteries. :eek:

Once my cameras both died I was done. I couldn't go an entire cruise without pictures so I was forced to by whatever waterproof camera the ship had...which is an Olympus Tough (model TG-620). I have to say I am VERY impressed with it. I'm still learning how to use it, but the pictures are wonderful. It has a lot of functions on it that I didn't even know it had when we were on the cruise (the functions that do tilt shift pictures, fish eye and so on).

I'm very worried now that I see this post and everyone is unhappy with their Olympus. I really would hate to know I just spent $249 on this camera and it's not going to last. But, I was forced to.

If anyone is interested in seeing the types of pictures it takes, I can share. I have tons and they are wonderful.

Please share Mitsugirly- pictures from your trip become your memories & thankfully you got some! Well, you may not have planned it that way, but it sounds like ya made lemonade out of lemons!;)

I have a predecessor the Olympus Tough 8010, and it works well enough. I have had it a couple of years now and have had no issues with it - above or under water.

I don't know if it is fair to base the performance of one model by another, as all manufacturers (cameras or other stuff) do make duds now and again. Of course, I suppose it is not fair to compare the TG-810 with my 8010 either.

You have to realize that the TG-310 is a low end waterproof camera, and only has a 9ft depth rating, whereas the 8x series Olympus cameras have a 33ft rating. Since these ratings are in static water, any current you are in, whether it be a river, surf, or sloshing the camera around will reduce the depth rating.

The thing that impressed me with the 8010 (and 810, 820, etc) is the build quality and magnesium frame. These are fairly heavy cameras for the size. The lower cost cameras such a the TG-310 felt awfully plasticky to me, and while that is not a judge of quality, I am sure the target customer is different between the two models.

The TG-310 has to compete with low cost cameras from other manufacturers, and sometimes they don't get it right. I am not defending Olympus as my other cameras are Nikon and Canon. The Olympus was sort of a last minute/emergency purchase and it was all that was available, and it so far has met my needs.

And compact waterproof cameras (regardless of brand) are usually rated for one hour immersion at a time. So make sure you do not exceed the manufacturers specifications when using (depth and time).

This is not unique to Olympus; virtually all camera manufacturers that make waterproof camera offer a low-cost (usually 9ft) and higher cost (usually 33ft) underwater camera. Panasonic rates their cameras slightly deeper though.

The thing you want to remember to do is wash off the camera after use in salt water.

The only real problem with my Olympus 8010 is the door over the lens tends to trap water. I have to remember to clean the lens after the camera dries out or I'll get visible water spots in subsequent photos. An annoyance to be sure, but manageable. Looks like Olympus has done away with that door with the TG 820.

Please share Mitsugirly- pictures from your trip become your memories & thankfully you got some! Well, you may not have planned it that way, but it sounds like ya made lemonade out of lemons!;)

 

 

I am doing a very thorough review with tons of pictures of my recent NCL Star cruise. I'll provide the link. Most of the pictures were done with the Olympus 620 that I purchased on the cruise and the first few days were done with the Canon D10 point and shoot I have. I believe the Olympus pictures start around post 190 and on. Beware there are TONS of pictures! (Some of the pictures of the ship on the post before those were also done with the Olympus)

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1755846&page=5

My sister has an older model Olympus Tough camera and it takes excellent pictures in and out of water. I, on the other hand, bought another brand that was destroyed on my second snorkeling excursion when the battery case popped open underwater. After that one died (I got my money back), I bought different brand that also malfunctioned on a snorkeling excursion. So, my sister has had considerably better luck with her Olympus camera than I have with other brands.

I had 2 Olympus tough cameras. The first one died on our honeymoon and I was devastated. Water got into it somehow while dune buggying, was able to save the memory card :0

Second one seems more improved. The 6020 has feature that allows the battery door to be locked. Will try it out while Im Down Under. Make sure the battery is in correctly or it won't charge properly. Found that out and almost threw out the camera cause I thought it was broke ::

I know that my new one (TG-620) has the battery lock feature as well. Hopefully mine will last. I think it takes wonderful pictures. :) I would hate to see it take a crap on vacation but at least I have 2 other backups. :p

Make sure the battery is in correctly or it won't charge properly. Found that out and almost threw out the camera cause I thought it was broke ::

That is one thing that seems common with Olympus. For some odd reason, you can insert the battery backwards (so that the contacts do not mate).

Most cameras have batteries with a tab on one side or a asymmetrical shape which prevents this from occurring, but for some reason Olympus doesn't.

Whether this is so you can "store" the battery in the camera without it making contact or just a poor design I don't know. It's either a "feature" or "defect"; depending on your point of view.

I guess I have always paid attention to the contacts on the battery before inserting. I have grown accustomed to doing this because both of my point and shoot Canon's are the same type of setup and the batteries are perfectly square and you can insert them either way.