by Bill Graves
About 10 years ago I purchased my first digital camera, and since that time I’ve owned and used a half-dozen or so updated and improved digitals for outdoor photos to support my hunting and fishing articles.
Since digital outfits require no film and can be viewed, edited and printed on a home computer there’s a great savings in money and time. Poor pictures can just be deleted and memorable images can be saved by the thousands on a hard drive, CDs, or a memory stick for posterity to be printed or viewed over and over with no degradation of color or clarity.
Despite how enthralled I became with the digital format and the seemingly endless parade of new and better cameras, I never let myself be completely weaned away from my favorite Canon EOS 35mm film outfit. Despite the extra weight and the hassle of traveling through airport security x-rays with film, I persevered. Last January that back-up 35 mm film camera saved my bacon on a sailfish and marlin outing to Costa Rica,
Really in need of a photograph depicting a sailfish in mid-leap, I snapped over two dozen pictures during the first day on the ocean. That night back at the room during a review of the digital images it became clear that the camera was not fast enough to stop an airborne acrobatic fish, all of the pictures were blurred. For the next two days I reverted back to my 35 mm film camera with zoom lens and finally ended up with a few crisp, colorful mid-air pictures.
Then and there I made up my mind to find one digital camera that would meet all my outdoor photo needs from stopping action on flying waterfowl, running deer or jumping fish, to long range still photos of wildlife or picturesque scenery, or “hero shots” of sportsmen posing with fish, fowl or fur bearing trophies. Of all the outdoor equipment packed for any Maine cast or blast outing, a dependable, durable camera is as important as rods, guns, or camping gear.
Over the last six- to eight- months I’ve field tested almost a dozen cameras in every imaginable type of woods and water outing, in all kinds of weather, and while several were good only three were really great. With a multitude of hunting seasons just getting underway, now might just be the right time to outfit yourself with a new camera to record a few sporting memories of family and friends.
On first consideration, a small, lightweight compact camera might seem perfect since it’s easy to carry. My first digital was roughly the size of an eyeglass case, perhaps a bit smaller. Although it would easily fit in a fly vest or hunting jacket pocket or even a shirt breast pocket, the diminutive unit harbored several drawbacks. Small cameras have under-sized dials and control knobs, these are difficult to operate with large hands and big fingers, especially when said digits are cold, wet or both.
Even during warm weather, small cameras need to be enclosed in a waterproof bag when carried along on fishing, camping or canoeing trips or even when hiking on rainy days. A Ziploc bag will do for waterproofing — until you stumble and fall, like I did, crushing the camera between body and a large tree trunk. A hard case would have helped, but then the unit becomes more cumbersome and less simple to carry. On top of all this, most small digital cameras have very limited telephoto lens capacity so long range photos of game animals, birds or scenery are unlikely. Finally, back to my initial complaint, compacts seldom have the speed to stop action on fast moving action.
Nikon’s new D60 kit includes a digital camera body and an 18-55mm image stabilizing lens, add on a 70-300mm Nikkor zoom lens and you’ve got a go anywhere, do anything outdoor outfit. The camera is 10.2 megapixel for unbelievable color and clarity, has an instant shutter response of 1/4000 second, and can snap off three frames per second if needed.
Nikon’s D60 offers an auto mode perfect for amateur photogs like me or there’s a dozen programmable shooting options and even video capability. At only one and a half pounds the D60 is the smallest ever Nikon full-featured digital and well worth the $750 price for the outfit and accessories.
Although not an SLR with interchangeable lenses, the SP 570-UZ by Olympus offers almost as many features at only a $500 price tag. With dual-image stabilization and sequential shooting of 13.5 frames per second, no photo is missed and all action is frozen in time. Best of all, this hand-fitting unit offers a 20X optical zoon lens — that’s equivalent to a 500 mm lens on an SLR outfit. There’s 10 megapixels of clarity, a 2.7 inch Hypercrystal LCD, 33 shooting modes, built-in face detection and shadows adjustment technology, and ultra quick manual zoom.
I also found an exception to the rule among compact digital cameras, and its’ fantastic features far outweigh its diminutive size. I purchased one sight unseen as soon as I read about it online. About the size of a hand-held calculator, this tiny digital is a sportsman’s dream. The Olympus Stylus 1030sw is totally shockproof when dropped from as high as 6 ? feet, it’s crushproof up to 220 pounds of pressure, and freeze-proof to minus 10 degrees Celsius.
The clincher for me was its ability to take photos underwater to depths of 33 feet. Obviously its O-ring system also makes it impervious to dust. With a 2.7 inch LCD, 10.1 megapixels of picture reproduction quality, digital image stabilization and Perfect Fix in-camera editing, it’s almost impossible to take a poor photo. Add on Perfect Shot preview, in camera panorama, face detection, and shadow adjustment and I’m not sure how they packed so many features in a wallet-size camera. This rough and tough digital may just be the all-in-one choice for the average outdoorsman who can overlook its inability to stop action on fast-moving wildlife.
Every sportsman needs a dependable camera to record that once-in-a-lifetime event. That camera must have all the right features and be of a size that allows it to be an integral piece of equipment on every outing. Each one of the three outfits I’ve mentioned meets my stringent guidelines and I’ll bet one of them will fit your sporting needs as well.
PRICELESS PHOTOGRAPH — If you don’t have a digital camera that takes good, crisp photographs, or it is not compact enough to carry with you, you’ll miss opportunities for shots like this eagle perched on the branch of a tree.
