Ika

Hi.

Need advise!

Going to Kenya for a five day safari in September and are about to buy a camera to use during this time. We´ve read a lot of good stuff about Canon S3si and this is our first choice, but we are concerned about the reliability of this “advanced compact digital camera” concerning dust.
What we have heard, this type of automatic camera is VERY sensitive to dust and will malfunction if ANY dust gets into the motor-driven zoom optics. (read that it´s one of their common e18-errors)

The real DSLR-camera like NIKON D40 is less sensitive since it´s more manual operated optics and you can clean it easier or even make it work by applying more force by hand.

What are your, ”experienced” travelers and photographers, opinions of this problem and the magnitude of it related to other problems/value for money etc.
We can´t afford two cameras of either sort, but we do have a decent video camera.

Thank you for your time.

safarichuck

I'm not sure where you are getting advice but I think some of it is just plain wrong. Firstly, SLR cameras are much more prone to dust issues, even if you don;t change lenses than are the point and shoots. The S3si is a point and shhot but one of Canon's newest and a very evolved one at that. These S3 Canons are pretty well sealed and are going to be your best bet unless you are willing to spend quite a bit more and get into expensive image stabilized lenses for the Nikon. The S3si has buit in image stabilization and a 12X optical zoom lens. That's the equivalent of approx. a 600mm lens. Also the learning curve on the Ssi will be much quicker than on a SLR. Since your safari is only 5 days I would not worry much about dust anyway. We use SLR cameras but take along a good point and shoot as well. For many situations the flexability of the point and shoot is better and you will be getting a lot of value and technology for a very reasonable amount of money. I have seen a lots of great images from these prosumer, point and shoots. Oftern impossible to tell them from good SLR shoots. Take extra batteries, flash memory storage, and a blower and microfiber cloth to clean the front surface of the lens. And last, between now and September practice a lot. Cheers,
Chuck

Chris_GA_Atl

Chuck is totally right about this. A DSLR is much more prone to dust issues than a point and shoot like the S3. What you heard about dust interfering with the zoom optics sounds totally false to me.
I use a DSLR and I prefer it to a point and shoot, but my preference has nothing to do with dust. If you think the S3 is appropriate for your needs and budget, I would not let this "issue" deter you.
Chris

GrannyJoan

If you get a Canon S3 si & the zoom lens does "appear to malfunction" or "hang" ... just check to see if your batteries need replacing before panicking.

My husband purchased one of these a week or so ago as a backup for his SLR camera & for me to use on our game drives. He thought the zoom was broken, but discovered it was just a low battery.

He is very pleased with this new camera and has been testing it out since he got it. He was able to get some fabulous photos of some remote control airplanes. He says he did this to test his ability & the camera's performance to get a good photo of birds in flight.

- Granny Joan

kimburu

Mine has survived three trips without croaking yet. Plenty of dust and rain for good measure. I am not really a very careful person.

The display went wonky for a bit after too much rain in Meru but it recovered admirably.

I would avoid dropping it in the sand or shooting in a torrential downpour too often, though.

fbirder

The zoom mechanism on a P&S can get clogged by dust - but it requires a lot of it. As long as you don't try burying the camera, or using it in the middle of a sandstorm, you should be fine.

patlanta

Just popping in to say that reasonable care like keeping the S3 in a case when you're just riding, keeping the lens cover on when the camera is not in use, and a microfiber cloth to wipe the lens worked for us.

It's been a few weeks and we're marveling even more at the great pictures we got using our S2. I studied and practiced before going and at times really felt like it would just be luck, but on Auto and waiting for the zoom to focus, we really have more than our fair share of prize winners.

Have a great time.

andybiggs

Pickup a Visible Dust Arctic Butterfly and you will be good to go. If you don't change lenses then dust won't be an issue on your sensor. If you do, well, an easy cleaning of the sensor is in order. Takes 20 seconds of your time.

I clean my camera sensors about 2 to 3 times per 10-day safari. Fairly simple to do.

Chris_GA_Atl

I use the Arctic Butterfly as well, and I love it. But to be clear, you would not use that for cleaning a camera like the S3, because you can't access the sensor very easily. The Arctic Butterfly is for DSLRs only. Since the original poster was asking about the S3, I wanted to make that clarification.

Chris
www.pbase.com/cwillis

sunshine007

I was camping in the Sahara & used an underwater camera case to keep out the dust.

Ika

Thanks for your replies, we want as many opinions about this as possibly. If you got more, keep it coming! Or as we say in Sweden, it´s "fina fisken" (i.e. good stuff).
Looks like we´re going for the S3...or maby wait for the S5.
Our kindest regards!