Best camera for shooting fish pictures that will last on the boat?

[GringoJohn]

Just got a new Sony Cybershot with the G lens and I spent all day playing with it out on the boat. Some of the pictures turned out pretty good, but I think after today I'm hooked and I'm going to have to buy one of the bigger DSLR cameras. i'm thinking maybe the Sony Alpha 57, or I read that the Olympus E-3 is weather proof, whatever that means.... Any thoughts? The guys we went out with today actually had an awesome Nikon DSLR D5100. If they send me some of the pics they took, I'll post them up here so we can see what the big camera gets the little one doesn't. Here are some pics from the smaller sony cybershot I just bought:

[bjhooper82]

Awesome pics capt.

[GringoJohn]

Thanks!

[Goooh]

Bought a D5100 for the wife this Christmas, pictures can't be touched by any other entry level SLR.

IMO the Olympus will short change you because they skimped on features that make a high quality camera what it is and is supposed to be by adding the "weatherproof" components.

If the weather is bad enough, no camera in our range will turn out the pics you want. To boot, any camera you drop coins on like that will more than likely be taken care of and cased/covered when conditions are bad whether it claims to be weather proof or not.

[GringoJohn]

Yeah, I'm building a mount for a pelican hard case up in the tower where the camera is going to live in between fish. D5100 then. I talked to alot of people that say the lens is just as important as the camera, how do I know which lens are good, or do I just use the one the camera comes with?

[Goooh]

The lens with the camera is good quality and will net you good shots, they also have a package that includes an 55-200mm lens, but it's more for still shots with very little movement going on.

Nikon make the best lenses out of the box in that range from what I understand, and lens that comes standard will do exactly what you need. It also has VR as a standard feature, which is a vibration reduction/image stabilization - perfect for a free hand shot from a rolling boat...

[huntin fool]

The camera is valuable thing. I promise you will take care of it while in nasty conditions. If not, well I don't know. I have the Rebel XS, with a couple lens. Just go ahead and drop the cash on a good lens. I promise you won't regret it, and your only going to way bigger the entire time. Get a good photo editing software, and your pictures will shine.

[Sea-Trac Offshore]

We have a Canon Rebel as well with a couple lenses. I was hoping to take it out on the water for some shots as the picture quality is amazing. My wife did not like that idea so I got a gopro for Christmas.


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[GringoJohn]

And here's some shots the customer, kevin, just sent me. He took them with a Nikon D5100 DSLR. It's funny, he has a lot more action shots because of the faster response time and I think the pictures turned out a little better too. I really like the color the camera brought out in Mike's Feet!!!

[GringoJohn]

[Choupique]

Killer! I love it when folks take the time to get good equipment and good shots on the water.

[GringoJohn]

I'm trying. I'm still trying to figure out what to get, I'm kind of leaning towards the Nikon D5100. It's a decent camera and I just want to see how long it lasts. If all works out, and it's still clicking in a year, I'll probably get one of the expensive Nikons. More pictures coming soon!

[JAg]

If you step up to d7000 it the weather resistance one but the cost is a little more. I have the 5100 they are on sell now but hard to find a bundle.

[meaux fishing]

that nikon takes some amazing pics capt.

[GringoJohn]

Originally Posted by JAg

If you step up to d7000 it the weather resistance one but the cost is a little more. I have the 5100 they are on sell now but hard to find a bundle.

Oh wow, so the 7000 would last longer in the salt air? They are going in pelican cases mounted on the boat, so it won't get wet, but I'm worried about salt air corrosion. I go through cameras really fast so i was hoping that getting a bigger camera would mean it would last longer as long as it stays dry. Would the 7000 be more salt air resistant?

[Choupique]

Weather sealing for professional level cameras is pretty good:
Built to shoot in rain grab with wet hands etc. Salt does add a new problem, and i certainly wouldnt wet them when you dont have to but I used a Canon 7d in a kayak, never had a problem, but i keep a towel in thr pelican to wipe the hands before the shooting. I got the photo bug bad, and am about to upgrade to fullframe myself; even more weatherproof than my current model semi-pro.

www.facebook.com/kayakfishingu

[GringoJohn]

Man, I have no idea what full frame means??? Is that something I would need?

[Choupique]

No definitely not; SLRs are available in a few quality levels:
Crop Frame sensors are the most comon SLRs available from $400 for basic plastic made cameras with simpler processors (canon rebels) and focus systems to higher end semi-professional crop frames built for sports, action, and telephoto uses in the $1500 range that offer some weatherproofing (canon 60d , canon 7d). Then there are full frames that offer better low light capabilities, noise reduction with less available light (iso performance) and are generally excel in portait and landacapes, with more advanced dust and moisture sealing (canon 6d, canon 5diii) $2k-3.5k.

I would invest in a good fast lens (or two) with Image Stability in the telephoto, and a mid range camera body as you will most likely have plenty of light for 90% of your shooting. Get a 17-50mm f2.8 for shooting anglers in the boat and a 70-300mm for shooting those bills tailwalking in the spread behind the boat.

[GringoJohn]

That is quality info. I'm writing that down. What does the f2.8 stand for? Another thought, there is really no way to change lens while I'm driving the boat, I have to go from action shot to portrait. If you could only have one lens for both, in bright sunlight, what size should I go with?

[Choupique]

The bigger range of zoom you have on the lens; generally the poorer F-stop it has (slower), and the less sharp it is (focus). If you are staying with one lens you should go for something like a 24-70mm or 24-105mm; and that would sacrifice on the fish action shots as I would suspect your clients are the most important thing to capture.