Waterproof. Shockproof.
The Olympus TG-610 – A Review
Shockproof. Waterproof. So the label said. I’d been looking for waterproof camera for a long time – so when I had the chance to test out the Olympus TG-610 in the Florida Keys, I jumped at the chance.
Or, more accurately, snorkelled at it.
Like the first time you jump out of a plane, abseil or try to speak in public, it’s amazing how much a smidgen of everyday faith in the reliability of equipment (parachute, rope, vocal cords) can vanish in an instant.
Sitting on the edge of the boat, surrounded by syrupy sunshine, something seemed wrong. Very wrong. After months (ahem, decades) of trying to keep camera equipment perfectly dry, not only was I going to expose it to the odd raindrop, I was about to plunge straight into the ocean.
Ah well. With a queue gathering around me, I double-checked the wrist strap and jumped on in.
The First Shot…Ahem
Underwater – (Read this in a warbled, disoriented underwater voice)
First off, the good points. The camera didn’t fizz and pop and stop working. In fact, the images were clear, the buttons easy to operate and the settings helpful. The Olympus TG-610 had a few too many menus for my liking. I prefer buttons instead of scrolling through screen options – as I can change the settings more quickly. Still, I was bobbing around underwater and could find everything I needed.
However, said bobbing of waves, plus the darting of the fish and the intermittent flailing of the photographer did make timing the photos tricky…A faster response time of all concerned (minus the fish) would definitely be an improvement.
Video, however, was much easier…
Olympus TG 610 Underwater Scene Options
The Olympus TG 610 comes with more scene options than I knew what to do with. Underwater with small fish, underwater with big fish, sunset settings, portrait settings, fully auto and more. I spent most of my time in the semi-manual state of P – where I could adjust the flash, exposure, white balance and ISO, but I know plenty of other people who would prefer to select a scene and be done with it.
Next up was the chance to get wet but stay above water by kayaking through Florida’s mangrove swamps. Here’s how the camera performed…
I loved, loved, loved the fact that I could take a camera aboard a kayak without worrying about the splashes from the paddles or the catastrophe of falling in. The Olympus TG 610 is so light and small that it’s perfect if you want to capture a few memories while out in the wild.
Shockproof – The Olympus TG-610
Like the good journalist I am, I subjected this claim to a stringent test. Zooming along on a Segway (don’t laugh, they can pick up some speed) – I had the Olympus TG 610 strapped to my wrist, ready to record the riverbed of Valencia as it whizzed by.
Just as I cried out “I wish we could make these go faster,” I hit a pot-hole, catapulted through the air, landed in the mud with the Segway on top of me, rucking and mauling me like an angry bull.
The ligaments on my thumb and cartilage around my knee have yet to recover. The Olympus TG-610, however? Absolutely fine…
Grabbing Action Shots Above Water – The Olympus TG-610
Florida also had us visiting the Dolphin Research Center. Just like beneath the sea, the response time of the camera couldn’t quite keep up with the pace of the animals for still shots, but the video had no problems…(Video clips to follow…)
Macro Shots – The Olympus TG-610
When it comes to getting up close and personal, the Olympus TG-610 excels. Here’s a tiny sand crab on an outstretched palm on the beach in Portugal. Nothing further to say – I love this feature.
When it comes to beaches, however, this is where you can really play around with a waterproof camera…Er, like this…
In the water with a camera – the Olympus TG 610
And this…
Learning to Surf with PreseliVenture
And this…
Bahia Honda State Park with the Olympus TG 610
And this…
Sunset in the Florida Keys with the Olympus TG-610
Not to mention the photo at the top of this post, taken while kayaking through the bullet-like rain in Wales. Great performance from the Olympus TG-610, but I thought we’d all rather finish with a warm and cosy sunset shot…
Update – underwater videos with the Olympus TG-610
A big thank you to those who helped me to take these photos:
The Florida Keys with Virgin Holidays
Virgin Holidays (0844 557 3859/virginholidays.co.uk) offers seven nights in Florida Keys from £1,089pp (two sharing), room only. Price includes return flights from Heathrow to Miami, four nights at the Sheraton Suites Key West, three nights at the Hilton Key Largo Resort and seven days car hire. For departures November 1-December 9, 2011. Florida Keys & Key West: 01574 794555/fla-keys.com/photoadventure
Preseli Venture in Pembrokeshire
And…my lovely husband for taking all the photos that have me in them…
Olympus TG-610 Specs – According to Olympus
- Waterproof to 5m**, shockproof to 1.5m*** and freezeproof to -10°C
- 5x wide optical zoom (28-140mm*)
- Dual Image Stabilisation
- Eye-Fi Card compatibility
- 3D photo shooting mode
- 720p HD Movie and HDMI Control
*Equivalent to a 35mm camera
**According to IEC standard publication 529 IPX8
***Equivalent to MIL Standard (Olympus test conditions)
Wow. I am impressed! I am lusting after a small camera because of what you describe at the beginning – the necessity of having to take so much care of my SLR. I’ve been wanting a camera I could carry all the time, anywhere, and this so looks like it might be the one. I’ve never considered Olympus before, but I will definitely take a look at this the next time I am in the UK!!!
I’m a big fan. It’s small and light…if ONLY it reacted just that little bit faster…Perhaps I’m just too picky ;)
wow… that’s a pretty tough camera!
I know. And you saw the Segway fiasco…
This looks like a great option. I hope your knee is better.
A lot better than it was! But sadly, still not right :(
It definitely gave you some great shots!
It seems like the lens is great for not having water droplets stuck to it too, all the pictures came out clear :)
Ah, I’ve a few smudged ones and a lovely video shot of my husband staring crossly into the camera and then wiping a smear away. But yes, most of the time it wasn’t a problem :)
I had a waterproof Fuji, but it ended up waterlogged. Very unhappy! :(
I will have to take a looksee at this one — love the close-up of the crab!
Sad to report that it didn’t survive the salt of the Dead Sea…The only chink in the armour!
What do you mean it didn’at survive the salt of the Dead Sea? weren’t you in salt water in Florida? Trying to decide if this is the right camera to buy for my son-in-law.
Yes, I’d used it in salt water in Florida, Portugal, Wales and Malaysia with no problem. It stopped working after the Dead Sea. The salt concentration is much, much, much higher there – to the extent that you float and don’t need to swim. I’m just guessing that’s what caused the problems – it could be coincidence. But it worked in many other seas and oceans, so for most people in most places I’d be happy to recommend it. Just perhaps not in the Dead Sea…
The same thing happened to my camera!! It’s supposed to be waterproof and all that, and then it stopped working when I submerged it like 3 inches under the dead sea. It has cristalized salt in the lens, so I don’t know how the water got in there, but it most definitely did. I thought it might be due to the low altitude (below sea level) of the dead sea, that perhaps it added extra pressure?
Sad, but comforted that it wasn’t just me!
Oh, shame! The Dead Sea kills cameras…
I used this camera for the first time underwater. It was only about 1 foot underwater, which is much less than the max, and it is now ruined. It will not even turn on. I messaged the company and their only advice was that I should have replaced the waterproof seals. The camera also cracked the screen from dropping it 3 feet, which should not happen either. In addition, it takes an extremely long time to take pictures in dim light. It is not a fast camera in great lighting either though.
DO NOT BUY THIS CAMERA. IT IS NOT SHOCKPROOF OR WATERPROOF. There are many better options out there for you. I wish I would have known this before buying this camera!
Hi Jamie – sounds like you had a crap time! Can’t answer for the company as I don’t work for them but it does sound as though you were unlucky that it broke to begin with. I went snorkelling with four other people who had one and theirs didn’t leak and I certainly fell for more than three feet in my embarrassing-yet-painful Segway accident. I appreciate that that doesn’t help you very much, but for anyone looking to buy a shockproof, waterproof camera, I’m still very happy with the Olympus TG-610 and would still recommend it.
I have this camera, I bought it for 9,500php. I used it alot almost everyday, mostly I snorkel when tides is low. It takes very good photos under water even in land.Video is good. It is pretty fast specially if you choose the unlimited shots setting instead of single shot. But after a month of using it it just went dead while I am in the water. It start leaking. Do not know why. I know I secure the locked and everything before I use it. I fallow the direction before and after using it. Right now my camera is in the costumer service they were fexing it. I have to wait for two months before I can have it again.
Hi Abi Just read your review of Olmpus Tg-610. My question is how bright is the screen underwater? Can you actually see the fishes??
Yep, no problem seeing them. Hope that helps, Abi
Hello Abi, I bought this camara but I can’t find the manual settings.. could you recommend me the manual settings for this camara underwater ? I want to do photos and videos underwater.
Head into “P” and you can change the following settings: flash, white balance, exposure, timer, macro, ISO and burst shooting. You can’t change the aperture or shutter speed directly but you can approximate them by playing around with the scene settings (there are a couple of pre-programmed settings for filming underwater. Look out for the icons under SCN with fish in them!) Good luck!
Aloha, Abi -
I enjoyed this review, well done.
When you wish for a faster response time – this means the delay between your push and the snap of the e-shutter? In published reviews, I thought this camera scored well in this regard. Have you used others that suited you much better?
Cheers, Bruce
You may delete this, I hit the books again and see you’re correct.
Whatever the case, I enjoyed your review.
Hey Bruce – glad you found what you were looking for. Thanks for coming back to let me know how you’d got on – much appreciated.