Broke down and bought Olympus TG-6

[bigrednole]

I had the TG-4 a while ago but sold it because I have a GoPro and a Insta360. The Insta360 died first time it touched water. What a PoS camera and company to deal with. I started to look for another underwater camera option. I received an email from CapitalOne Shopping on the OIympus TG-6. It was on sale for $375 and $175 in rewards back. I took the plunge and bought it. Not a bad deal for a brand new camera for $200 once I get my rewards.

[donaldsc]

Just remember that if you let go of the camera in the water, it will sink.  Got a positive buoyancy strap and verify that it works properly before you use it for real.

 

https://oceanleisure.co.uk/cameras/floating-strap-for-olympus-tough-tg-6

 

https://www.bristolcameras.co.uk/p-olympus-pt-059-underwater-housing-for-tough-tg-6.htm

 

DON

[bigrednole]

11 hours ago, donaldsc said:

Just remember that if you let go of the camera in the water, it will sink.  Got a positive buoyancy strap and verify that it works properly before you use it for real.

 

https://oceanleisure.co.uk/cameras/floating-strap-for-olympus-tough-tg-6

 

https://www.bristolcameras.co.uk/p-olympus-pt-059-underwater-housing-for-tough-tg-6.htm

 

DON

Already have one 😁

[nicoleinwi]

We have had two previous Olympus Tough cameras.  Our most recent one died last summer and now it's time to replace.  It was an older series the than the TG line.  Curious if you looked at any other brands or just went back to Olympus?  Looking at the Coolpix W300 as well but it's hard to find an actual review comparing both, all are canned spec reviews which I could do myself.  

[canadianbear]

On 3/6/2022 at 3:18 AM, bigrednole said:

I had the TG-4 a while ago but sold it because I have a GoPro and a Insta360. The Insta360 died first time it touched water. What a PoS camera and company to deal with. I started to look for another underwater camera option. I received an email from CapitalOne Shopping on the OIympus TG-6. It was on sale for $375 and $175 in rewards back. I took the plunge and bought it. Not a bad deal for a brand new camera for $200 once I get my rewards.

I’ve been debating buying a TG6 but I’m in Canada and our prices are high.  Was tempted to try the iPhone I have in one of those plastic type cases but reading reviews I think I’d rather splurge with the TG6.   We have an old Canon underwater camera we’ve used for years but it’s very, very slow now.  
 

Have you had a chance to try your new camera yet?
 

 

[bigrednole]

6 hours ago, canadianbear said:

I’ve been debating buying a TG6 but I’m in Canada and our prices are high.  Was tempted to try the iPhone I have in one of those plastic type cases but reading reviews I think I’d rather splurge with the TG6.   We have an old Canon underwater camera we’ve used for years but it’s very, very slow now.  
 

Have you had a chance to try your new camera yet?
 

 

I did get to try it out. The water conditions were not ideal: partly cloudy out, deep and cloudy water. I got about 5 keepers out of 25 shots. Where we got to snorkel was not what was anticipated. El Cielo, Palancar, and Columbia reefs were closed due to wind conditions and waves. 

 

The only reason I got it was due to the discounts. From what I did shoot, I am extremely happy with it and cannot wait to use it in better conditions.

[bigrednole]

This was zoomed in a bit if I recall at about 15-20 feet down. The water and sky were cloudy, so getting great pics was very difficult. The first picture is straight out of the camera. The second is with a few slight adjustments using DXO. I am not a photo editor. These adjustments are very slight. Most of it was DXO's automatic lens adjustments. About the only adjustment I did was the Red. Slight adjustment on that brought the colors more in line with how I saw this.

Edited April 27, 2022 by bigrednole

[canadianbear]

@bigrednole

the camera up here is over $500 to buy plus tax. Just not sure I want to spend that much.  We’ve got a South Pacific cruise booked which is why I was wondering.    I’m tempted just to use our old Canon underwater camera.  As seniors not sure how much more snorkeling we will do to justify the cost of the TG6. 
 

Thanks for answering so quickly.  

[bigrednole]

11 minutes ago, canadianbear said:

@bigrednole

the camera up here is over $500 to buy plus tax. Just not sure I want to spend that much.  We’ve got a South Pacific cruise booked which is why I was wondering.    I’m tempted just to use our old Canon underwater camera.  As seniors not sure how much more snorkeling we will do to justify the cost of the TG6. 
 

Thanks for answering so quickly.  

I went through all of those thoughts too. We were suppose to snorkel 2 excellent reefs and the starfish sanctuary in Cozumel. Then, a full day in Roatan at West Bay. We got neither of those on our trip and it made the cruise far less enjoyable. I can honestly say, I probably wouldn't buy the TG6 for $450 that it is in the US. It went on sale to $375 (after discounts) and then my cc company had a $175 rewards for the purchase. In the end, I paid $200. I think that was a good price. I wouldn't pay more than $250 for it, that's for sure.

[canadianbear]

19 minutes ago, bigrednole said:

I went through all of those thoughts too. We were suppose to snorkel 2 excellent reefs and the starfish sanctuary in Cozumel. Then, a full day in Roatan at West Bay. We got neither of those on our trip and it made the cruise far less enjoyable. I can honestly say, I probably wouldn't buy the TG6 for $450 that it is in the US. It went on sale to $375 (after discounts) and then my cc company had a $175 rewards for the purchase. In the end, I paid $200. I think that was a good price. I wouldn't pay more than $250 for it, that's for sure.

Thank you!  I will watch for any sales here but doubt they’d ever go lower than $400. I also recently bought a new iPhone 13 pro max but don’t want to risk using it underwater.  I was tempted just to get one of those inexpensive holders I’ve seen people use like this photo I’ll attach. Any thoughts? 

[bigrednole]

Personally, I would not risk my phone for underwater unless: 1. It was rated as waterproof 2. Insurance would cover water damage. 3. That plastic bag does not interfere with the quality of the pictures. I am pretty sure 2 of those are No to begin with.

[canadianbear]

19 minutes ago, bigrednole said:

Personally, I would not risk my phone for underwater unless: 1. It was rated as waterproof 2. Insurance would cover water damage. 3. That plastic bag does not interfere with the quality of the pictures. I am pretty sure 2 of those are No to begin with.

Hmmm….I bought the extra Apple Care, lol.  For the price I paid for it (in Canadian ugh) I won’t risk it.   I did read the plastic interferes with quality of photos.  
 

A few years back we were in the Caribbean with our son and DIL.  He had a casing that fit over the iPhone 6 and it worked really well.  I’ll have to ask if he still has it and if it would fit on my phone.  
 

[edward01ca]

9 hours ago, bigrednole said:

This was zoomed in a bit if I recall at about 15-20 feet down. The water and sky were cloudy, so getting great pics was very difficult. The first picture is straight out of the camera. The second is with a few slight adjustments using DXO. I am not a photo editor. These adjustments are very slight. Most of it was DXO's automatic lens adjustments. About the only adjustment I did was the Red. Slight adjustment on that brought the colors more in line with how I saw this.

I have a TG 4.  I have photoshop and when I choose just ordinary Auto Colour, all of the blue goes away and you can have a great pic.

[bigrednole]

Nice. I don't have PS. I got DXO mainly for DeepPrime. The auto stuff works fine for me.