Waterproof Disposable Cameras

by Christina VanGinkel

Here I am, heading off for a weekend of fun with my family, after I recently purchased a brand new camera, have a second back-up camera, and I need to run to town before we leave to pick up a couple of disposable cameras! Why you might ask? We are going to a Waterpark and neither of my cameras are waterproof in any way, shape, or form.

The biggest hurdle is, I have not a clue as to what camera to buy, or even if I will have a choice. A quick look online before heading out has turned up only two disposables that are waterproof, both by well-known manufacturers. The first one I found online, featured at BizRate.com, is a Fuji Quick Snap Waterproof 800. Average price quoted is $10.00 and is a manual rewind, standard on most disposable cameras. It is a 35mm film camera, but beyond that, BizRate.com does not tell me much. I will have to do a more detailed search if I want any more information than that. The second camera I found information about online is the Kodak Water and Sport one time use camera. Not only is it waterproof up to 50 feet, but the Kodak site states that its outer shell is made of shockproof rubber to help protect it from bumps and bangs in conditions exactly as I plan to use it in, a Waterpark! It also comes packed with Kodak's best film, their MAX Versatility Plus 800 film. The lens is specially made to be scratch resistant and not blur or smudge from sunscreen. Whoever thought up all the design features of this camera has spent time on both shoreline and in line at a Waterpark to be sure.

If none of these features were enough, the Kodak site has thought to post an article on photographing underwater. While most of the pictures I intend to snap will be above water, the idea of taking a few of my son swimming underwater is interesting. As I love to scrapbook, I am always interested in different ideas for taking photographs. The article proves to be short, to the point, full of actual photographs as comparisons to what they are talking about, and in the end, useful. I printed it off and plan to re-read it on our drive to the Waterpark.

While I am leaning towards the Kodak, in part because I was able to find so much information on it, and it has features I appreciate, I will check out any other cameras I find when I stop at the store in the morning. I also plan to look into a digital waterproof camera for future trips. I realize now how much I enjoy just plugging my camera into my home computer and downloading my pictures in a few easy steps. The thought of having to bring in a camera to a store to have the film developed almost seems archaic! Now that I think of it, I had better purchase several of the disposables, as I am so use to checking my photos with the review on my camera, I will not have a clue if my pictures are turning out until I get the film developed.