[pct-l] camera for thru hiking

[Elisabeth M. Chaplin]

I carried a Canon S95 this summer on my thru hike, and it takes beautiful
photos and HD video. The camera survived, and in fact looks and performs
like new still.

I carried it in my hipbelt pocket, tucked inside of a bubble wrap envelope
(open on one end, but folded over) inside of a silnylon "dry" bag -- which
was totally not waterproof in practicality but, doubled with the bubble
wrap, was good enough. I managed to not drop it, thanks to being diligent
with the wrist strap. The battery life was more than enough to get me
between towns, though I avoided playing back the movies and photos if I was
worried about the battery. I simply mailed the charger ahead to a town a few
weeks out.

For me, aside from the quality of the images, the biggest selling point of
this camera this summer is its ability to take low- light photos well. I
could capture images that my peers needed a flash or a tripod (yeah right)
to capture well -- usually it meant I got the shot and they did not. That
came in handy on several occasions, and is something to keep in mind.

-Liz.