recommend a camera for extended trip

Hey all,

I have a friend who is doing a 3-month long canoe trip up north who is looking for suggestions about what kind of camera would work best. They are far less interested in photo quality and having interchangeable lenses and more interested in having something with a small profile that has an incredible battery life.

I think he will be able to re-charge every several weeks or so (as he arrives at a new community), but that's it.

Do you have any suggestions ?

I think that segment is more saturated then ever right now, if a viewfinder isn't desired, there's the Sony rx100, the Panasonic lx7, canon s100 or whatever, I'm sure Nikon and olympus have things worth looking at.

If it was me I'd want a viewfinder, and I'd probably choose the Fuji X20 or one of the canon G models.

I would look into the soft flexible solar panel battery charger systems. Then it opens up a much wider range of camera options.

http://www.amazon.com …rds=solar+batte​ry+charger

I'd also suggest that there are few portable options with exceptional battery life.
The only solutions are multiple charged batteries, and the solar chargers as gonzo pointed out.

Honestly, given their request I'd go for one of the waterproof, impact proof, dust proof, kid proof cameras out there that takes AA batteries.

Drop it off a cliff? No problem. To the bottom of a river? No problem unless you can't find it.

The defining requirements are flexible on IQ yet small.

Even go with one of the indestructo-cases for their iPhone.

Fernando wrote in post #16890985
Honestly, given their request I'd go for one of the waterproof, impact proof, dust proof, kid proof cameras out there that takes AA batteries.

Drop it off a cliff? No problem. To the bottom of a river? No problem unless you can't find it.

The defining requirements are flexible on IQ yet small.

Even go with one of the indestructo-cases for their iPhone.

I'd agree with this, although I've done more kayaking than canoeing. The thing is, "stuff happens", and when you are out in the water, "stuff" adds up to things getting wet!

So, not only would I advise a water-proof camera kit, but then also having bags that not only are water-resistant but that have foam "bagging" that will float if they end up in the water. You can put your odds-and-ends in the bags, and have the camera ready to grab at a moment's notice, because, well, so much of such things is about "capturing the moment"!

Olympus, Sony, Panasonic, and Pentax all make waterproof cameras that are highly rated by DPreview. A waterproof camera plus a solar charger and an extra battery or 2 should work great. I am not familiar with the changing rates of solar panels so I would recommend extra batteries so one could be charging while using another.

I agree with Tony that things will get wet. I did some canoeing years ago and no matter how hard I tried to keep things dry most things still got wet. Dry bags are cheap insurance for those items that need to be kept dry.

I had a canon sx20 (I think) I chose it for a long trip because it used AA batteries. After I swamped my camera and canoe, I chose a Canon G1X with a waterproof case. I see on the Canon USA web site that the G1X II and waterproof case are now available. At $50 each, spare batteries are an expensive proposition. But then, the whole expedition is going to cost a fortune. What is an extra $100 in the big scheme of things.

I'd definitely invest in a solar charger/battery pack such as the JOOS Orange.