	Exilim

	Fuji

	General Electric

	Kodak

	Lumix

	Olympus

	Pentax

	Samsung

	Sony

Waterproof Cameras for Surfers - Olympus 850sw Review

Our Battle Tested
Olympus 850sw

8 Mega Pixels 3x Optical Zoom 640 x 480 Video 32mm Standard Lens Weight 4.8

More Features
Actual Shot w/this 850

2.5 in View Screen Shock Proof to 5 Feet Waterproof to 10 feet Shake Reduction Panorama Photos

Our Review

Write Your Review

The avid surfer can take the Olympus 850sw waterproof camera out into the surf everyday and not worry about ruining the camera. It will outlast its predecessor 700sw waterproof camera series many times over. The 850sw is just a tad step up from all the previous 700 series waterproof cameras with a more powerful 8 mega pixel 3x optical zoom making for some impressionable surfer shots the surf magazines would want. You can video on the same battery charge on two surf sessions but there's a reason, it will only video for 10 seconds. That might be a good thing though as the average wave is usually less than 10 seconds. Its light weight of only 4.8 oz is really nice compared to other Olympus’s. It makes for good steady shots compared to the 1030 or 1050sw.
This Olympus 850sw camera will take quality surfer shots with a good fast shutter speed. The shutter is a bit touchy though. It will shoot off when barley touched.
There's a big downside to the Olympus, all the Olympus waterproof cameras even, they have many useless modes that any surfer will never use and find frustrating getting around them while on their surfboard. When selecting from their menu item you’ll need to refer the instruction booklet even after reading the whole book twice. There is also no way of shutting off the auto-power-off so the camera could always be on and ready. This is necessary because after you've been paddling back out to the lineup after a nice long wave, the camera has shut off and is not ready to shoot on a split second notice when you see your bro posing for you as he's getting shacked coming straight toward you.

Check out my surfer shots in a slide show using the Olympus waterproof camera.

Surfers - Things That Matter

3 feet or 10 feet rated camera depth?
For surfing IT DOES NOT MATTER! Even in double overhead surf. My old Pentax WPi of 4 years is only rated to 3 feet and it works fine. I lone it to my friends all the time in big surf. The depths on these cameras are rated after being that deep for 2 or more hours.

Optical Zoom?
With Video - It matters! You should only use the optical zoom with video because you can not zoom in on your computer with video... Unless you have an expensive edit program... and lots of time.
With Still Shots- It does not matter! (When in the water) You will want the widest angle possible with still pictures. The more optical zoom you use the greater chances of a blurry surfer shot and the surfer out of the frame. You can always crop and zoom in on your computer later.

Mega Pixels? It matters. When you're editing your still surfer shots you'll be amazed on how much you can zoom in and crop a surfer shot on your computer.

Weight? It matters. An addtional ounce or two does make a big difference in the feel and comfort in getting a steady surfer shot. The Olympus 1030sw is the heaviest out right now and you can definitely get clumsy when trying to hold steady.

28mm Wide Angel? It matters. It's very difficult sometimes when trying to get an instant last second shot of a surfer coming fast down the line. You'll wind up having a lot of shots with the surfer halfway out the picture. The 28mm wide angle will aliminate much of that.

HD Video? It matters. Specially when your filming a nice long wave. 640x480 will take in nice videos but when the surfer gets further away the HD will keep it clearer.

Olympus 850sw waterproof camera reviews for surfers and a waterproof digital camera review with more waterproof cameras review.

surf camera