Keeping electronics dry otr?

[gh]

I want to start carrying my video camera with me on boating trips. It seems that quite a few of you are taking a camera with you due to the footage I have been seeing lately. How do you keep it dry? I have seen pelican cases and drybags but was wanting the lowdown on the best method.

[deepstroke]

I've tried both and prefer the pelican case. You have quicker access so you get the shot. I keep mine carabinered between my legs so I can access it without having to get out of the boat. Just MAKE SURE you can safely wet exit. If not, store in stern. When the day is done, pop the lid, or store elsewhere as moisture from a day of shooting and temperatures can be problematic. A dessicant pack and small towell for your hands doesn't hurt either. Good luck.

[ZLSeth]

I reccomend the Pelican. It will protect your camera also... not just keep it dry. I lost a digital camera on a Westwater trip because it was in a dry bag that got tossed to shore at the takeout. Of course the impact didn't damage the camera, but it busted the can of bug spray... and THAT destroyed the camera.

Rule #1 never keep your bug spray with your camera.

Rule #2 keep your camera in something impact-resistant because your friends don't know there's a camera in your dry bag.

[BastrdSonOfElvis]

another vote for pelican...indestructible and air tight is a good combo...the newest ones are self purging so you won't foget to screw the valve shut. dessicants and hand towels also great ideas. 100% DEET eats anything plastic...just having it on your hands can F shit up. also found that out the hard way.

[westfall]

I have a Pelican case and it works great. Nothing gets wet and I've fitted it with foam so the camera is nice and snug. Also in Costa Rica last winter I saw a video cam in a Pelican case take a pretty nasty swim on the Pacuare and everything came out great.

On the other hand I have two boating friends who are using Pentax Optio waterproof cameras. The new Optio WPi is a 6 mega pixel unit, rated to about 5 foot submersion. These are small enough to fit into a PFD or drytop pocket.

Picture quality with these little cameras is reasonably good and since you can carry it in your PFD they are always close at hand. Prices look like they are running to a little under $250 on the low end. They also do video clips but are limited by memory stick size.

[mania]

yup - pelican.

also recommend the panasonic 3CCD cameras can be found for around $650 works good on macs and imovie/final cut.

[Don]

I'm not sure what they're called, but everyone has seen them. They're those little white "Do Not Eat" packets that are in all packaging for electronics. Well anyway you stuff a couple of these little guys in your drybox or Watershed bag and they will suck all the moisture from the box/bag. Whenever your shooting around water you always have the potential to be trap moisture in the box when you close it. Chrismas is coming up and it's a great time to stock up on these little free-bees. Just store them in a Zip-Lock bag when your not using them.

It's cheap and it works. If it didn't they wouldn't be in everything you buy.

[PhilBob]

Yea I have seen a few set-ups. Pelican case with foam padding is the way to go. Also just drill a small hole to run the wire to your head cam. Since this is a potential leak make sure to silicone seal it really, really good. I would add some velco straps to keep the camera snug in the foam inside the pellican case. The little dry packetts are called dessicant packs or something. A tampon also works fine, anything that will suck up moisture other than your camera. Also triple zpiloc bag for anything else like memory sticks or tape. Also can add some u-bolts to the bottom for bomber tie downs. I never trust those handles 100%, more silicone!


Philbob

[caverdan]

You can get desicant packs, sometimes called silica packs, at Hobby Lobby.

[benrodda]

I would suggest you guys looking into the OLYMPUS cameras. They have started to make them WEATHER resistant. Basically that means that you do not have to dry your hands off when you use them (you wont have to pack a small towel). Plus when you pack it in a the smallest Pelican case it will fit inside of your vest (I use an astral with a pocket) They will also shoot movies. The quality is not super great, maybe the quality compares to the quality you might get out of an old video camera but it passes if you are not planning on making a professional video for distribution. I would recomend a 1 gig memory card which will allow for about 40 min of video. plus about 15 pictures.

The result is that I have been able to shoot video and take pictures from my boat in the middle of the river without having to pop my skirt and without drying my hands.

here is a link
http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_se...tal_stylus.asp

ben