The
first camera that we took underwater was an Intova IC-14, which was
marketed as a simple point and shoot camera for snorkelling. The
IC-14 wasn't waterproof and utilised an underwater housing. This
wasn't a problem as the housing was small and lightweight. What was a
problem however, was that The IC-14 was quite simply awful, in almost
every way. The next camera that took our fancy was a Canon G16. which
although a brilliant camera, needed a very heavy and cumbersome
housing. The G16 also suffered from shaky results when shooting
video. So we were looking for a reasonably priced camera that was
simple to use, preferably didn't need a housing and could cope with
getting banged about underwater. We could have bought a Nikon Coolpix
but anything that has “cool” in its title is always, always,
uncool. Also the Coolpix only seems to be sold in the UK in a
horrendous camouflage colour, which makes it even more uncool Our
attention was therefore drawn to the Olympus TG-4.
Not
that the TG-4 doesn't have its own advertising issues. The blurb on
the Olympus website claims that the TG-4 is designed for rough-nature
explorers. We'll let you think about that for minute.... If that
description conjures up in your mind an image of extreme skiers
hurtling down mountains, a vapour trail of powdery snow trailing in
their wake or surfer dudes weaving beneath a curling wave while
scantily clad surf-bunnies wave adoringly from the shore, then the
Olympus advertising team have earned their money. If however you
think like us, then you are probably imaging a pot-bellied German
nudist rolling around in stinging nettles yelling “Ja, Ja, Ja”.
Seriously. Rough-nature explorers! What were they thinking? Anyway,
bad advertising aside, let's get to the camera.
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| Lizard Fish Shot With The TG-4 |
The
TG-4 is the latest in the Tough range and to be honest it hasn't
changed much from the original TG-1 version which was released in
2012. There are however some new improvements. The TG-4 can now go
deeper, it's waterproof to 15 metres without needing a housing and
has dedicated underwater modes. It also now supports RAW and has a
higher resolution 16 megapixel sensor. The TG-4 also boasts a rather
neat microscope mode (macro) which allows you to focus on subjects
1cm away. Like its predecessors the TG-4 is freeze proof to -10
degrees, drop proof up to 2.5 metres, crush proof up to 100 kg and
dust proof. Which is nice to know if you live in a dusty freezer and
consequently your frost bitten fingers are prone to dropping things.
If you're the type who gets all hot and bothered over specifications,
then we recommend you google one of the many photographic websites or
go to the Olympus website, where you'll find all the specifications
you need to get your knees and other things trembling. We however,
are now going to concentrate on whether the camera is any good for
snorkelling.
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| Coral Shot With TG-4 In Microscope Mode |
There
are of course two types of snorkelling. There is the face down,
Easybreath full-face mask wearing, bobbing about on the surface type
and then there is the breath-hold, dive-down, bottom-skimming,
rock-weaving type and if you do either, the TG-4 will meet your
needs. The TG-4 is all about speed, it locks focus in less than 0.1
seconds and starts, focuses and fires in less than a second and can
shoot full resolution J-PEG images at 5 frames per second. So if
you're floating like a drowned rat on the surface, you should still
be able to capture images of all those other snorkellers having a
much better time below you, as well as the odd fish that flashes past
your face. The speedy operation will also allow dive-down snorkellers
to capture the far more interesting marine life that dwells on the
seabed and amongst the rocks.
The
microscope mode is also great for getting those close up shots of
coral polyps, starfish and all the other things that lurk in the
nooks and crannies that surface snorkellers probably don't even know
exist - if you can get your buoyancy right of course. The TG-4 also
lives up to its “tough” moniker. Ours got battered against rocks,
was dropped down some steps (not deliberately mind) and easily coped
with depths of 10 – 15 metres for up to two minutes at a time
without any issue. The TG-4 can capture video up to 1080p quality and
gives pretty sharp results, although we'd recommend that you fit it
to a stabilising grip handle to prevent jittery results, particularly
if snorkelling in anything other than dead calm conditions. If you
want to go deeper or are looking for a camera that can be customised
then the TG-4 can be fitted with an underwater housing for depths up
to 50 metres and Olympus manufacturers various interesting
accessories than can be added.
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| Anemone Shot With TG-4 In Microscope Mode |
There
are of course some downsides. The buttons, like all Olympus cameras,
seemed to be designed for people with very thin fingers and can be a
bit fiddly when wearing gloves. Some may also consider the lack of a
stand alone charger an issue, the company only supply a USB cable,
but we didn't find this an issue. We did find though, that the TG-4
does suffer from condensation forming inside the lens when switching
from sea to beach. The condensation does clear but it can take some
time and can be irritating if you want to quickly switch from sea to
land shots. There are, of course, better cameras on the markets but
these are also much more expensive and much more bulkier. If you're a
professional photographer then you'll probably shrug your shoulders
at this rugged little offering from Olympus and move on. If you're
one of those fanatical photography hobbyists, with a photoshop course
under your belt, then you'll probably take delight in pointing out
all the flaws with the TG-4 and would no doubt bore everyone in ear
shot with pontifications on ISO, compression, zoom characteristics,
noise and muddying of edges et al. If you however, are the type of
person that believes a photograph is less about technical settings
and more about the story it tells, the adventure that lays behind the
image, the memory of the moment that it evokes then you'll probably
not be bothered about all the technical downsides the TG-4 has.
Besides your hobby is not photography is it? Whether you're a SCUBA
diver, freediver or snorkeller, you have enough to think about when
you're in the water than which ISO you should have selected.
Photography is just a way for you to freeze that adventurous moment
in time, to record a reasonable image of that strange creature you,
and no one else saw, and occasionally to allow you to pull out your
laptop in the pub and bore your mates senseless about the trials and
tribulations you underwent to get that interesting snap of the
barracuda that just attacked your fins.... To do that you don't want,
or need, to be dragging around a camera the size of a small child,
along with the accompanying six hundred page user manual. No. What
you'll need is a smart, quick, point and shoot camera that doesn't
mind getting knocked around. In short you'll need a TG-4. A stylish,
tough,easy to operate camera that you can use anywhere – even if
you live in a freezer and like whipping yourself with stinging
nettles.
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| Dive Down |
As we
write this, Olympus have a new camera on the market called the
Tracker. Intova have released the new Edge-X 2 and there are new
offerings from Nikon and Sealife. Which means of course that the TG-4
has probably already become old hat sigh... However this will
probably mean that the TG-4 will drop below the current price of
£280, which is another reason to go buy one.... We did.
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