Hi Ian,

Not sure about a 'tough' digital camera, but bubba has produced excellent reults with both Digi still and digi video Sony cameras underground- such as the piccys on the front of this site.

The environment in a cave is probably a bit much for most units, but using a Peli case has proved invaluable, as has keeping a damp towel inside our oversuits for keeping hands etc. clean.

My friend has quite a robust Kodak digi cam, robust enought otake the knocks whilst climbing and dealt by the kids etc.

Having spoken to another friend who has the Canon, he isn't that keen on the lens angle.

Plus, the benefit of digital is that you can review your results immediately, make adjustments a snecessary and delete any rubbish. Better than processing a film to find nothing came out properly!

I think the main issue is not the toughness of the camera, but how you transport it into the cave. As Underground says, the Peli(can) cases are excellent, seem pretty indistructable and float too. The one that I use is this one and can be purchased from Hitch 'n Hike.

There are pro cameras which are "environmentally sealed" and have toughened bodies, such as the Canon EOS-1D, but these are very very expensive and are aimed at professional photo-journalists.

One thing to look for is the facility to disable the on-camera flash, as you'll often get really bad fog from breath/steaming oversuits/etc which will just ruin your pics. To eliminate this you really need to use a light source that's mounted off the camera.

I use Canon Sure Shot A1. Sometimes there is frightful reflex light on photos by it's straight flashlight. Photos can be preview by a digital camera. That will take more successful photo.

I've always used an Olympus OM10 with the manual adapter. Great camera, really robust and able to take the knocks. Also use a Peli case to transport it padded with some camping mat sections. Worked really well, even survived when I (stupidly) said, "Just drop that down there for me." It was duly dropped about 10 feet onto rocks, survived okay though.
Unfortunately the seal went on my Peli case and it flooded on a trip into Little Neath River cave which has rendered my camera inoperative. I think it should be okay with a good service though, (fingers crossed).

I am looking to get a good digital one though. The Fuji Finepix s602 looks good but I'm not sure if it would stand up to the sort of punishment that it would receive.

Digital camers are good for close up 'action' shots, but for anything more advanced (better), e.g. bit passages, formations etc an SLR is best. I have moved from being a lowely flash assistant to getting my own camera, Pentx MX. The best camers are oldish ones, which are mechanical, aswell as being cheap they survive the humid environment.

oh and you can get bloody good digital camers disguised as SLR;s, combing the best features of both. Fully recommended if you've got about £1250 to spare! :shock:

I'm really tempted to sell my digital, and my old film SLR and put the pennies towards a new digital SLR - the new Canon EOS-10D has an aluminium body, environmental seals (not waterproof, but should survive a little better in a cave) all for the bargain price of about, as you said Huw, £1250. Looks like a fantastic bit of kit.

Of course the best one is the EOS-1ds which is about $8000 but I've just seen one on ebay for £1400, which has to be too good to be true.

Fuji s602 is about £550 and is highly recommended by the photography press. I've had a play around with a mate's one and it's a very nice camera. But like I said I'm not too sure about it taking the knocks. However, with no moving parts, how vulnerable is it to impact damage?

As to using digital cameras for large passage, you should have had a look at Andy Sparrows talk at Hidden Earth, very impressive and all done with a digital camera, one flash, long exposure times and Adobe Photoshop.

If you can use a separate flash, control the exposure and focus manually, then you can use the camera for whatever you want, not just close-ups. The reason I want to try a good digital is because it allows a whole lot of different options as well as a more flexible approach. You should be able to continue with the older more established methods of placing flashes, slaves, etc. but you get new methods of taking photos as demonstrated by Andy and that little preview ability would make one hell of a difference to the final product.

Another advantage of a digital slr is the ability to change lenses - my digital has a zoom up to 5x, but no wide angle, and the best you can do is to add converter lenses. I find this quite limiting.

The instant review works wonders for difficult lighting coz you can just about use trial and error to get it right.

Good point there Bubba. I do tend to not change lenses much though and have stuck to a 35mm as a good general purpose lens. I can't think of many occasions where the 5x zoom would be of much use. May make framing easier, you can zoom in slightly where a tape might prevent you from moving closer. The macro function would be useful for close-ups and the preview function would be an advantage here as well.

Just checked the s602, 35mm to 210mm lens, so that's good enough for me. It's also got a macro function with a focal range of 10 cm - 80 cm and a macro function from 1cm to 20cm so that's got all the close-up work covered as well. Must admit I've fancied trying that out for a while.

I use a Reefmaster DC100 Digital Underwater Camera. This camera comes with a built-in flash and is fully waterproof and can be used without losing quality out of water. One button operation and instant review and delete function on the spot. Unfortunately, they do not come cheap - £399.95 when I brought mine last year.

Two things to watch for in an 'underground' digital camera -

The built-in lens cap. If it is the shutter-type - thin interlocking metal leafs that cover the lens - it will not like grit very much. My cheap digital has a sliding thick plastic plate that covers the whole camera front.

Some digitals will not trigger slaved flashes, for a variety of reasons. Some pre-flash for autofocus reasons, others scan the image twice per pic. Best to test the camera before purchase.

bubba said:

the new Canon EOS-10D for the bargain price of about, as you said Huw, £1250. Of course the best one is the EOS-1ds which is about $8000 but I've just seen one on ebay for £1400, which has to be too good to be true.

Click to expand...

Don't buy one just yet, Fuji are bringing out a digital SLR for around £700 very soon.

And there's the Canon EOS 300D too which is about £800 - like an EOS-10D but without the ally body/seals/etc.