Re: [pct-l] Lightweight tarp material, the Cannon Elph camera

[Dude Spellings <dude1@pdq.net>]

> Personally, I can't imagine not having a camera. I've got an Olympus
> Stylus Zoom 140 (38-140) on my Christmas list. It's heavier than the
> Elph but not a great deal.

I had the great advantage of talking with two professional photographers on the
top of Mt. Whitney at the end of my JMT hike.  I have an Olympus Stylus Zoom 70
(35-70mm).  They both tld me that the Olympus Stylus is the "Point and Click of
choice" for pro photographers because its optics are far superior to other
point and shoot cameras.  I mentioned the Cannon Elph series because I almost
went with one, and they said that a major downfall of the Elph is that it uses
the Advantix film.  They said that the main downfall of the Advantix for them
was that they would have to get all new equipment to develop the film.  They
also said that it costs more to edit and alter the film when you take it to
someone to be developed.

In addition, I passed probably 10 people in the Sierras this summer who were
using Olympus Stylus careras.  Some were using the Zoom models, some were not.
If weight is a real big concern for you, the regular Stylus without zoom is
very light and compact (and cheap at $89.00, not even on sale).  Every person
using the Stylus said that they love the carera.  One great advantage of these
cameras is that they are TOUGH.  They advertise on the camera that they are
"weatherproof".  Recognizing this as a sales gimmick, I didn't gove it much
weight.  However, two of the people who I spoke with on the trail who were
using Stylus' said that they had actually DROPPED THE CAMERA INTO A STREAM AND
TOTALLY SUBMERGED IT, AND THE CAMERA STILL WORKS GREAT!!!!!!  When I ran into
the first guy who said this at Vermillion Valley, I was somewhat skeptical even
though the guy who said it seemed very reliable.  Then I ran into a different
guy just before Whitney who said the same thing!  In addition, my camera took
some light beating on the trail.  I once slipped on a rock while crossing a
stream and bumped it pretty hard against a rock...no problem.  I highly
recomend the Olympus Stylus.

peace,
Dude in TX


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