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looking for a ride along camera.

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Old 02-02-10 | 07:14 AM
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looking for a ride along camera.

icyclist inspired this thread with his excellent ride report photography.

i see a lot of you folks photo-document lots of your rides and some of you are excellent photographers, especially to my untrained eye.

i'm looking for a nice, inexpensive ride along camera that is relatively rugged, lightweight and easy to come out of the jersey pocket and snap pictures. my smartphone takes ok-ish pics, but its very cumbersome to use, and even more cumbersome to get pictures off of.

what are you all using?
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Old 02-02-10 | 07:19 AM
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Cannon Power Shot A710



Keep it in a stem bag

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Old 02-02-10 | 07:28 AM
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Old 02-02-10 | 08:58 AM
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Olympus iTough. Waterproof, shock proof, modes, easy one handed operation. Mine has been dropped on the move, ridden over and survived many tropical storms. Before this I killed 2 Canon Powershots

The "best" camera is one that you actually you carry with you, this one is one to put in your back pocket and forget, no ziplocks, no worries!

Some sample images:






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Old 02-02-10 | 09:02 AM
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Originally Posted by rollin
Olympus iTough. Waterproof, shock proof, modes, easy one handed operation.
What's the ISO range?
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Old 02-02-10 | 09:10 AM
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I have a little Cannon Elph, which is small and takes good photos but it doesn't take regular batteries, so that's inconvenient. Also, in order to recharge the battery, I have to lug around the entire docking station.
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Old 02-02-10 | 09:17 AM
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I think something like the Olympus is a great bike camera. I'm not sure that concerns over ISO range in a point and shoot are valid. It's going to handle ordinary lighting situations very well. If you are looking for exposure control you need to look at a camera that is configured differently than a weather proof, shock proof compact camera. My biggest irritation with compact digital cameras is the slow shutter lag times.

Nice pictures, ROLLIN. And a nice bike. Do you use those old wheels after you got the Zipps?
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Old 02-02-10 | 09:24 AM
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I have one of the Nikon Coolpix. Can't remember the model, but it is ver handy and good. I think the most important things when it comes to a camera you can bring along when riding are resistance to elements, and how easy it is to take out and use while still riding. The iTough above is a good suggestion.
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Old 02-02-10 | 09:30 AM
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Originally Posted by ahsposo
I think something like the Olympus is a great bike camera. I'm not sure that concerns over ISO range in a point and shoot are valid. It's going to handle ordinary lighting situations very well. If you are looking for exposure control you need to look at a camera that is configured differently than a weather proof, shock proof compact camera. My biggest irritation with compact digital cameras is the slow shutter lag times.

Nice pictures, ROLLIN. And a nice bike. Do you use those old wheels after you got the Zipps?
The iso is not adjustable. For that I use one of the 3 G9s or 3 5ds that are in the apartment (wife is a photographer).

Problem with cameras like the G9 on a bike is bulk and fragility. I take a lot of photos on the move, can't do that with a camera in a ziplock bag.

I do use the ESs when I travel and on longer rides, touring on tubulars worries me.
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Old 02-02-10 | 09:34 AM
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Originally Posted by rollin

The "best" camera is one that you actually you carry with you,
reminds me of the first rule of gun fighting, bring a f-ing gun. same goes with photography.
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Old 02-02-10 | 09:35 AM
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actually if I was buying a riding camera today I would look at the Panasonic Lumix (DMC-TS1?) waterproof camera because it has HD video recording. Not sure of the price.
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Old 02-02-10 | 09:41 AM
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my canon sd550 is the camera that i've used for my various ride and gran fondo reports. seeing as it's 4 years old, i assume there's a new version out there, but i'm in no rush.
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Old 02-02-10 | 10:48 AM
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Originally Posted by rollin
Problem with cameras like the G9 on a bike is bulk and fragility.
Canon's S90 surpasses the G11 (the current G series) in a lot of ways. Like the G11, it shoots RAW files, has the option of manual control for everything,same sensor as the G11.

But it has a faster lens, and the S90 fits in a jersey pocket.

Only disadvantage is lack of an optical viewfinder.
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Old 02-02-10 | 10:50 AM
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Another option travelling light is a cell phone camera.

My Bahamas pictures, which admittedly are pretty much just record shots, were taken on a Blackberry.
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Old 02-02-10 | 11:09 AM
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Originally Posted by merlinextraligh
Another option travelling light is a cell phone camera.

My Bahamas pictures, which admittedly are pretty much just record shots, were taken on a Blackberry.
cell phone cameras are fine for the unexpected moments, but that's it.
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Old 02-02-10 | 11:10 AM
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Originally Posted by merlinextraligh
Canon's S90 surpasses the G11 (the current G series) in a lot of ways. Like the G11, it shoots RAW files, has the option of manual control for everything,same sensor as the G11.

But it has a faster lens, and the S90 fits in a jersey pocket.

Only disadvantage is lack of an optical viewfinder.
who uses optical VF with a point and shoot?
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Old 02-02-10 | 11:11 AM
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Can't go wrong with a Canon Elph. Even the larger A-series isn't bad. Just takes up more pocket/bag space.
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Old 02-02-10 | 11:15 AM
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Originally Posted by botto
who uses optical VF with a point and shoot?
Actually I have because I cant see the screen on my old Nikon coolpix cameras in bright sunshine. And I don't replace something until I have a compelling reason to do it.
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Old 02-02-10 | 11:23 AM
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Originally Posted by x136
Can't go wrong with a Canon Elph. Even the larger A-series isn't bad. Just takes up more pocket/bag space.
yep.

elph pics:






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Old 02-02-10 | 11:36 AM
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I use an Olympus Camedia C-560 Wide Zoom on the bike. I made a lot of the on bike shots on VeloWeb with it. Video quality is very good as well (compressed example). It is pretty bulky though. For Paris-Brest-Paris, I borrowed a waterproof Pentax Optio. It rained the whole time but I just pulled the camera out of my soggy jersey pocket and grabbed shots. Great little camera. The new W80 -- 12.1 megapixel Waterproof, Dustproof, Coldproof and Shockproof Wide-angle 5X internal optical zoom -- looks awesome and I'd like one of those when I can afford it.
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Old 02-02-10 | 12:48 PM
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I had fun with the camera but for now, I'm having fun with the videos!...Extract still shots, not as nice as a digital camera but the vids are cool


The video


BF'er Dutchboy2 and The Greasers


RiverVelo riders, few BF'ers in the mix


Gina, all smiles when it's over!
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Old 02-02-10 | 12:54 PM
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my daughter has this one and I was thinking of getting the same for my rides:

Nikon - Coolpix 10.0-Megapixel Digital Camera

Model: L20 | SKU: 9220167
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/Nikon+-+...ikon%20coolpix
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Old 02-02-10 | 01:44 PM
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Originally Posted by botto
yep.

elph pics:






Wow! Numbers 3, 4 and 5 are ... just ... wow. Passo Sella Italy?
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Old 02-02-10 | 02:08 PM
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Originally Posted by ahsposo
I'm not sure that concerns over ISO range in a point and shoot are valid.

I disagree, but I won't argue about it, I'll just look it up. Thanx!
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Old 02-02-10 | 02:30 PM
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Originally Posted by botto
cell phone cameras are fine for the unexpected moments, but that's it.
Cell phone cameras are getting better



Originally Posted by botto
who uses optical VF with a point and shoot?
Me, until I started using an S90. You can hold a camera more steady to your face, than arms out in front of you, and you can see better in bright daylight that washes out the screen.
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