CHOBi CAM Super-mini Waterproof Digital Camera Announced

From Japan, JTT company recently announced a very luxury products, a dubbed “the world’s smallest” super-mini digital camera model CHOBi CAM. The product is priced at 9,980 yen, or about 730 yuan or so.

 CHOBi CAM measurements for size only 29 × 44 × 12mm, weighing only 14g, I believe it will be good for portable performance.

Although its size is very small, but it did not compromise the function of the place. It can shoot 1280 × 960/30fps of AVI video or the JPEG 2048 × 1536 photo. Meanwhile, CHOBi CAM also supports the multi-shot 3fps and mono recording capability, built-in rechargeable battery ensures 45 minutes of video or 50 minutes of recording. In addition, the machine can be used in Windows XP/Vista/7 and Mac OS X 10.4 system, which can charge via USB interface, while the storage medium selected microSD / SDHC memory card (up to 8GB).

The Panasonic Lumix TS1 Waterproof Camera

We bought this camera for summer and were so excited to test it out at sea! This camera is waterproof at 10 feet high, dustproof, has a movie mode, automatically and easily zooms and focuses underwater, and is very user-friendly! Not to mention it’s super-cool metal casing appearance, when I first saw it my first thought was:”THAT’s a waterproof camera?!” It surely does not look like one. At $300+ it seemed like a steal! No doubt we can use it at tons of underwater adventures!
We used this camera to take the usual underwater pictures, from sitting and sinking underwater on the sand to snorkeling and making the corny “mermaid swim”, anything we could think of within it’s capturing range, which is again 10 feet - above average than the other underwater cameras which ranges only from about 6-8 feet.
Everything was dandy until we got back home from that vacation. My brother opened the camera to check if there were any damages or if it was still working and he saw the screws were rusted! It was dustproof and waterproof alright, but apparently not rustproof! I did not know how he cleaned it but he tried to and the rust somehow lessened. If we only knew we would pay $300 for a rustproof waterproof camera we would have bought a cheaper one! This camera seemed disposable! How can we replace rusty screws and nails each time we get back from a trip? It is just not practical and reasonable. The best bet would be to buy a new waterproof and rustproof camera in the market, which would be hard to find. We would not want to make the same mistake again now would we?!
On a lighter note, I admit the quality of this camera is way way sharper than the other underwater cameras. I guess each has it’s pros and cons. Our other friends posted their underwater shots and even if they were already photoshopped just to be clear, I could not even make out the background, it was like seeing people swimming on a very dusty and sandy beach down below.
Nothing tops the quality of the Lumix TS1. If you’re not worried about rusty nails and think you got the right tools for cleaning it, get it, but if you’re just someone who wants to take shots underwater, I suggest you try looking for another camera that is less expensive but with a quality that is almost the same as this.

Choosing A Waterproof Digital Camera

The underwater world is full of wonderful serene scenes making us wonder at nature and why species bothered evolving out of the sea. Seeing its beauty is one thing, but capturing it on Camera can be tough. Well, not really. There are two routs really to shooting underwater – getting yourself a waterproof digital camera or waterproof casing for your current model. Pros and the unevitable cons of both are underlined below.

Waterproof Cameras
These are specifically built Cameras for underwater photography. There are no fiddly casings to mess with, the Camera is ready for the dive, but on the flip side it is not that great on land. The Sealife Reefmaster pictured below is a great little waterproof digital Camera with a depth rating of 40m and is perfect for all those expeditions to the beach or sea.

Waterproof Camera Casings
Alternatively, if you have a digital camera that you prefer and love, you can buy a waterproof casing for it to take it diving with  you. This housing provides rubbery waterproofness typically down to 40 metres and easy to use big bright buttons. On the downside, you can always forget to pack your casing when going away, plus they’re not suited to more serious depths, but apart from that they should help you have all the fun a dedicated waterproof camera would. Jessops sell a large choice of casings, including many for the Canon IXUS and Nikon Coolpix range.

Loss of Picture Quality Underwater And The Use Of Flash
A big problem that underwater photographers face, apart from unfriendly marine life and wild hairdos, is the extreme loss of colour and contrast at depth. This is due to colours such as red and orange being easily absorbed by water, which is why the sea appears so blue and green.

One way to solve this is to cut the distance to your subject, ideally to under one metre, as this will minimise the colour loss. You can even use wide angle Lenses to get really close. Another way is to use flash, either your built-in one or a dedicated off-camera unit, which will fill-in the scene with a full spectrum of colour.