Moose shooting camera

[BrentD]

I'm headed to Alaska this fall (not far off at all!) and I need a camera. I've got no use for Go-Pro video things. I just want to take some decent still shots. I need a very light, small, rugged camera that will fit in a pocket - not an SLR type of camera with extra lenses and all, just a simple digital, but built tough and of decent quality.

I would also much prefer that it ran on AA batteries instead of a custom battery that I can't recharge in the boonies of AK without lugging along even more junk like solar panels etc.

So what is a good, simple, rugged and small camera for a hunter? Any recommendations?

Olympus TG3 and TG4 seem to be in the running but lack the AA battery feature. What are the differences between the TG3 and TG4?

I would love to hear about any experience with these or similar cameras.

Brent

[starmac]

Can't help you on the camera issue, but good luck on your trip and have a great time.

What part of Alaska will you be visiting?

[BrentD]

starmac,
I'll be hunting from a drop camp that will be somewhere not too terribly far from Bethel.

[starmac]

Well, I thought I might buy you a cup of coffee, but it would be a pretty good flight just for coffee. lol
I have never been to bethel, but my son worked a season 62 miles out of it, lots of game where he was at, lots of bears there too.

Good luck with your hunt.

[BrentD]

Thanks! I'm not much of a coffee drinker anyway, but I would have enjoyed the company.

We will have a grand time I'm sure. I believe all the moose in that area are bulls and all of them have at least 65" spreads on their antlers. How can it be otherwise, it is ALASKA!

I've been dreaming about this hunt since I was about 5 yrs old. That was over 1/2 a century ago.

Brent

[fouronesix]

Oh! Plenty of cameras out there and most are good. Just go to a "pick up and try" counter and select from the ones that seem to be most user friendly and yield good photos in the various modes.

Bethel- quite a delta town! If you go with either Steve Powers at Papa Bear Adventures or Mike Renfro at Renfro's- both are good outfits and you should have a good trip. There may be others in that area, but I'm not familiar with.

Plenty of bears that have learned what a gunshot means (aka dinner bell :)). Pay attention to meat care and salvage and plan accordingly. The regs are strictly enforced and rightfully so.

Have a good trip!

[BrentD]

Yup, we will be hunting through Steve.

Not too worried about bears but very worried about the meat. Not just getting it out of the bush - getting it out of AK and home too. That is not going to be easy or cheap.

As for P&S cameras, I have been through a bunch of them. Sooner or latter, the cover stops opening or closing, the lens gets stuck and then it gets worse from there. I"m looking for something a little better than that.

Brent

[Alvarez Kelly]

After the wife killed a few very nice Sony point and shoot cameras, I bought her an Olympus "Tough" model. So far, she hasn't been able to break it. It does take a special rechargeable battery though...

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

while AA are easy to find , they lack the power for weight , a better quality battery can provide , if you found the camera your looking for and it has removable batteries of good quality , and you can buy several extra to have on hand I think they will make more sense weight to power than AA even if they cost a but more


we have 5 digital cameras in the house ,I really like our cannon power shots , we have 2 cannon power shots , a casio and a Sony oh and the wifes good camera a Sony digital SLR the casio is so so it was a less expensive camera

the lithium I on battery packs are now cheap enough that you can get one for every 2 boxes of alkaline or 1 pack of good AA batteries most of our battery packs give a day of use unless we are very pic heavy going into the hundreds of photos

[Plate plinker]

But a good camera with a really good zoom lens. Alaska is big country and being able to reach out is a plus.

[rush1886]

I have a Canon, can't recall the model # off top of my head, that takes 2 AA batteries. Excellent little camera, but iirc, I picked it up 8-10 yrs ago. It has both digital and optical zoom features and takes great photos.
Perhaps a visit to a local photo specialty shop may be able to put you into a used one if none currently available. I got it initially, just for the reason you describe. I didn't want to get stuck in the boonies with a dead battery pack.

Never kept hard records, but it will take numerous photos over several days on one set of batteries.

Pm me if you want the model info. It lives out in my trailer, and I'll need to walk out and get the info.

[fouronesix]

BrentD,
The only things I could add to what to look for or look out for would include:

Be wary of inexpensive cameras that boast of high digital zoom but kind of mention optical zoom as a footnote. Good optical zoom with good internal stabilization is far more useful than really high digital zoom. All that will happen with images from those cameras at high digital zoom is blurry, pixelated images.

Also, while AAs are handy, modern quality batteries that are fresh and fully charged will power a lot of images. Remember to set the camera on auto shut down if that function is available or just remember to turn it off. Take a couple of extra, fully charged batteries and you should be good to go.

As to water proof or weather proof- the best insurance is take care to protect it from weather and water. Truly water proof cameras will be expensive. Again probably get what you pay for in all regards as to the type of camera you are looking for.

Not all cameras are equal nor do they automatically yield good images- no matter the brand. Good glass, electronics and mechanics are usually more expensive but there is a lot of leeway in those spreads. Currently, I have a Panasonic Lumix, Canon Power Shot 120 and a cheapy Kodak Easy Share 530. Only the Canon uses AAs, but while that's handy, the image quality is not that great. The Lumix is a superior camera and is user friendly but is more expensive and larger. The little Kodak is the least expensive and smallest but yields images of very high quality. All the cameras I have use standard SD cards- which seem to be most handy for my purposes.

DIY drop camp or float moose hunts are not easy!!!!- but usually always an adventure! Best of luck.

[BrentD]

416,
I have chewed up a bunch of the better small Nikons and Olympus cameras. Taking case of them, I do, up to a point. However, I find myself slithering in the sand in Namibia or slopping around in a swamp in Alaska, and all the things in between and pretty soon, the cover won't open or the lens will not extend. It is almost always the mechanicals that let me down. For that reason, I'm looking for something that has been "ruggedizes" for lack of a better word. I prefer to carry a camera in a shirt or vest pocket where it will be instantly available. I end up using it a whole lot more.

Pocket carry exposes the camera to a lot of grit and and dirt, and also leads to being banged up a bit. I can easily find myself belly crawling over a rock outcrop, while inadvertently laying on my camera in my pocket. Or taking a header crawling in and out of muskeg and what not moving between lakes. The cameras billed as waterproof (to 50 ft) like the Olympus TG series have my attention. I don't see other lines like that one. All it lacks is the AA batteries. I"m pretty much resigned to using the manufacture specific batteries though I loath them. They don't hold charges well, and they are expensive. 2-3 extras will be needed for this trip and they won't serve any other purpose like a headlamp or GPS. But that's what it looks like I'll be doing.

If there are any other cameras similar to the Olympus TG-3 TG-4 and the latest one that I think it just labeled "TG-Tough," I would like to hear about them. GoPros seem plenty tough but mostly built for video which interests me not at all.

The days are going fast and time is starting to become short. But this will be a grand adventure for me. My buddy and I will be dropped on a small lake system somewhere out of Bethel and left for a week to do our thing. I can't think of a better way to hunt.

Brent

[onefunzr2]

I have a Canon Powershot A520 I took on my plains game safari to Namibia for sale. I especially bought it because it uses AA size batteries. All original in original box with software and instructions. $50 shipped if you live in the lower 48.

[BrentD]

onefunzr2,
Thanks for the offer. That is very much like some of the cameras i have broken over the years. They work okay for as long as they function. I think the Olympus TG series will be my next camera, however.

Brent

[fouronesix]

What you are trying to say is that you are hard on electronic equipment. Not much recommendation or suggestion can be made to that point. As far as "wildlife photo" opportunities?- maybe some but hunting (or hauling meat) will be primary so general photography along with the obligatory camp and hi mom photos will probably be the bulk of the images. The major risk would be very wet weather or dropping something into a slough or small river. I don't think there's much Namibia sand around there.

But you seem to know what to expect and have it all figured out.

[BrentD]

I don't think I'm so terribly hard on them. But I am hunting. On my feet. It is not the same as taking pictures of birthday parties and waterfalls on family car vacations. It seems to only be asking for trouble taking a generic point and shoot given that they aren't really made for that sort of duty. There does, however, seem to be dearth of alternatives and the Olympus TG series is all I can find. I was hoping someone knew of something similar/better. Apparently, that's all there is and I will make do with that.

[RugerFan]

I use a Olympus Tough TG-810 (14 megapixel). I go on a lot of hunting and fishing excursions here in Alaska and this camera is fantastic. Great quality pictures and definitely "tough." I bring one exta battery and have never run both out of juice while filling up the memory card with pics and video.

[Gofaaast]

Whatever you decide to go with make sure to use Lithium batteries. It makes a huge difference. I used a pocket size Nikon on a Canadian fishing trip a few years back all week on one set of batteries.

[MtGun44]

My latest two digital 12X and 18X zoom pocket cameras (Lumix and Canon) will go
hundreds of photos without a recharge. Buy an extra battery and you are good.

Bill

[BrentD]

Well, after looking at a whole bunch of different makes and comparing reviews and what not, it came down to the Olympus TG4 and the Olympus TG860. I went with the former, mostly because it has a somewhat faster lens and these cameras are challenged in low light. The TG4 also takes a handful of accessories that the TG860 will not. Anyway, it is in the mail somewhere and I expect it will do what I need. I'll get and extra battery pack for it too.

Thanks every one.
Brent