Olympus Stylus 1030SW 10.1MP Digital Camera Review

When we go on trips we like to snorkel, hike, sail, go caving, etc.  A lot of things that include water.  We had been using an older version of the SeaLife ReefMaster Underwater 35mm Camera.  It was great for snorkeling, but a little bulky for boating trips, jungle hikes, and caving. We decided to try the Olympus Stylus 1030SW 10.1MP Digital Camera with 3.6x Optical Wide Angle Zoom (Silver).  The other camera we use, the Fujifilm Finepix S6000fd 6.3MP Digital Camera with 10.7x Wide-Angle Optical Zoom with Picture Stabilization is sealed to protect from dirt and sand, but it isn't waterproof.  The Finepix S6000fd is much more powerful than the Olympus Stylus 1030SW, but the Olympus Stylus 1030SW impressed the heck out of us on our first trip with it.  The trip to Turks and Caicos that almost didn't happen, which you can read about here. The battery lasted almost a whole day.  Having 2 charged batteries would be perfect for all day heavy use.  I would order an extra battery and an Olympus STRAP FLOAT ORANGE with the camera. This camera will be great for those adventures that you are sure to get wet and muddy on.  We used to lug our SeaLife ReefMaster around or by a cheap disposible that we could trash.  This would have been a great camera to have on the Maid of the Mist. We met a guy who said he has had his 1030SW camera for several years and that it performed great.  He has had it on over 70 snorkeling and diving excursions. Check out the product description below.  This camera can take a beating. Product Description (from Amazon) The Stylus 1030SW is designed for active people who want a tough camera that can keep up with their on-the-go lifestyles. The Shockproof and Crushproof casing is a durable metal body that has an innovative shock-absorbing construction with a floating circuit board that can protect the Stylus 1030SW from drops up to 6.6 feet and withstand 220 lbs of pressure. If you ever wanted to take pictures of aquatic life now you can, the Stylus 1030SW has Waterproof seals and gaskets that keeps water out so you can take pictures as deep as 33 feet underwater. When you're skiing or snowboarding you will enjoy the Freezeproof and Digital Image Stabilization features that allows you to take perfect photos of fast moving subjects in cold climates up to -10c/14f. With the 10.1 MP setting you can capture high quality images and then easily view it on the 2.7" HyperCrystal II LCD display at extra-wide viewing angles even in direct sunlight. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I will let them speak for the camera's quality.  The camera also takes great video.  Check out our friendly turtle swimming by below the pictures.. Click the picture to see a larger version...  The last picture has a humming bird in it, which I took about 10 feet away.  Zoomed in much further than I expected. Landscape...   One thing you need to be aware of is the Olympus Stylus 1050SW 10.1MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom (Silver) is the newer release of the Olympus Stylus series, but has poorer specs. It is only water proof to 10 feet versus the 33 feet the 1030SW is capable of handling.