advice: smallest, lightest camera for the desert

hunnymonster

I'm currently getting ready to take part in the marathon des sables (the world's toughest footrace allegedly!) It boils down to 8 days in the Sahara desert (5-6 of them running). The only support given is rationed amounts of water so I'll be carrying everything else I need (food, camping kit, ....) which means by trusty nikon D50 is not going to make the cut due to weight. I was wondering if the experts here might have suggestions for a camera that
1. is ultra light
2. will withstand 50 C, sand storms, bouncing around in my backpack..... for a week
3. will take reasonable pictures. I quite like these one's from last year's race so would be looking to be able to take similar
http://picasaweb.google.com/smj612/MarathonDesSables2008#

My original plan was just to use my phone (nokia N95) as this could double as a mp3 player. Unfortunately the snaps I've taken with it so far are pretty awful. I'll have a solar charger with me so power is not an issue.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

CabanSail

That sounds like an awesome thing to do.

If you look at This Sticky you will see there is a link to a Camera Selector. One of the fields gives you the choice of Weight (incl batteries). If you select <150 grams there will be a list of models that are light & links to reviews on them.

Have you thought of approaching one of the Manufacturers & asking if they may sponsor you for this event by donating a suitable Camera?

I would tend to go for a Canon compact.

hunnymonster

CabanSnail, mea culpa, sorry, I never thought to check the stickies (I usually do - honest!). Thanks for the reply, I'll have a look now.

Dragan

Hunnymonster,

not only are you running the Marathon Des Sables but you also want to bring a camera with you?

All that has done is reinforce my opinion that you are hard as nails girl. Fair play and my hat is off to you.

It's amazing thing you are trying to do here but i have no doubt you'll get it done.

Mycroft H

Try this range of cameras. Friend of a friend went diving off the great barrier (with it under water!) reef not too long ago and then travelled through the outback so there very tough cameras......

http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/cpg_digital_sw.asp

Anyway dont think the heat will be too much of a problem, a good friend went to bahrain (near saudi ariba) and brought his fuji s6500. It was 40+ in the shade and it worked no problems at all, and he said that his battery lasted much longer aswell!

dakar

Agree with Landyman, one that you could consider is the Olympus 1030SW, it's pretty much everything-proof (especially dust in this case). Specs here say its 170g (+ battery) and operating temp rated up to 104F. I don't know what your budget is but it should be available for €250-300.

It's odd because the last time this was recommended here was for someone going snowboarding!

hunnymonster

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll have a look and weigh (literally!) up the pro's of each.

CabanSail

Just had a bit of a look and the other option could be the Pentax Optio W30 as it seems quite rugged, small & has IS too.

kayakboy

Just put this up on another thread but its all goes here as well...

I've had a Pentax Optio w20 for the last two years and I find it great, it's very robust and has taken lots great shots over the years. I would highly recommend it especially for outdoor sports. It is waterproof only to 3m - not great for real underwater shots but as a all-weather go anywhere sports camera it's a winner. I've also used one of the olympus waterproof cameras mentioned above while it also takes good shots its harder to use on a wet wintery irish day and is much more expensive.
The latest version is the w60 its on ebay at about £180stg also saw a w30 @ £90+postage from hong kong.
Most of the sports shots on my flickr are with the w20 http://www.flickr.com/photos/kayakboy/

fade2che

Holy **** that a hell of an undertaking Honeymonster!
Looking forward to here about how you get on with it. Maybe you could start a thread about your preparations for it and wrap up with a review when you get back?
.....Like you dont have enough do to right!

hunnymonster

Hi Guys,
Well I'm back from Africa with almost all the skin and toenails I left with I just wanted to let you know I went with the Pentax optio W60 in the end. It was very light and rugged with the advantage of waterproofing so I can use it swimming later in the year. Unfortunately I didn't figure out how to take night shots with it in Africa so they are hazy but otherwise I'm very happy with the camera. It's certainly better than my photographic skills so not the limiting factor in the photos I took.

Raw photo's without any straightening, colour changes (even taking out the fuzzy ones) at
http://picasaweb.google.com/fearonj/MDS_raw?feat=directlink

Thanks again for all the advice.

gas_ticket

A friend took her Panasonic Lumix around Namibia last year, and I was stunned at the quality of the images. They certainly surpassed those of my Canon 400D.

I see that this one is dustproof, etc:

http://cameranews.thomaslaupstad.com/panasonic-announces-lumix-dmc-ts1-rugged-shockproof-waterproof-dustproof-high-def-avchd-lite-h264-mpeg-4-based-movie-mode/

Hope that helps.

CabanSail

Thanks for the feedback.

I must say that is quite a well composed image you have posted. Well done!