WI never go out in my kayak without some sort of camera. To me it is an essential piece of equipment much like my paddle. And if I am paddling with the family, I also make sure they have a little point and shoot with them. It is great to get home late in the evening and pop those images into the computer and re-enjoy the whole trip once again.and that is even better if there are a few shots of me in the mix somewhere. Not to sound morbid or anything.but I once had the chore of going through all the thousands of photographs my grandfather took of his life travels to give to all the family members and I found that it was actually quite easy.there were very few that had a shot of him or my grandmother in them.all of those neat places meant little or nothing to the rest of us since neither of the two of them were in the photos. My point is that it is as important to everyone else on the trip or in your family to get shots of everyone including you to keep those memories going. So with that being said, and we are all in and around water being paddlers, let's consider adding a small, compact, waterproof point and shoot camera to the paddling gear.

Just about every major camera manufacturer out there these days offer a small waterproof point and shoot. They are generally about the size or a bit larger than a pack of playing cards and generally cost less than $400, most being around $250.less money than a good carbon fiber paddle costs. The image quality coming from these little gems is actually quite good especially if you just intend to capture a moment of your paddling trip as a basic landscape shot. You can find many good reviews of the many different models out there by simply doing a search on the internet. I strongly suggest reading actual user/consumer reviews and not settling on what you can find from a photography site as they often can be a bit biased for one brand or another. They also know all the neat little settings way back in the camera menus to make the most of their photos that most of us will never find.so when it is time to go out and make a purchase, pay attention to what those that already have the cameras are saying.

Why a waterproof? Well for one.you are paddling a kayak. And if you end up doing what I do and let the kids use it.it will get wet! Just a little bit ago, my daughter wanted to make a photo of her boat like the product shots she sees in the catalogs and web sites.don't ask me why.but that is what she wanted to do. She had a 4-H camp photography competition, and she wanted to enter some shots of her kayak trips. She set her boat up on a rock and had a nice view of the lake behind the boat. She took several shots and even surprised me by noticing that the reflections of the boat were better from a certain angle.

Well after taking the shots she wanted, she slid her boat in the water and placed her gear and camera on the deck.went to get in swinging her legs around from one side and just continued.all the way over the other side. Every thing took a dunk.including the camera. Luckily I had the insight to attach a small section of pool float to the camera's strap and when she bobbed to the surface she was staring right at the camera. I asked her if she was planning on taking some low angle shots of the boat! On the point and shoot I use, I don't use a float, instead I stole my son's nylon webbing key chain neck strap. I keep the camera around my neck at all times. While paddling, I can easily slip the camera down my life jacket.but it is always ready for any shot I may come upon.

These cameras may not be the best thing or even close to the best thing to take wildlife pictures with, but they are capable of taking quite good landscape images and all of them will feature a landscape setting.what I use the most for documenting my paddling trips. They also have excellent Macro capabilities.the ability to focus down on a small object very close to the lens. They will focus within millimeters of a subject.want a shot of the pollen particles on a wild flower? No problem.just push a button or two and the camera is ready. That green tree frog hiding on the stem of a cattail is just a button push or two away from a lasting memory.

They can also take fairly nice video clips.but some are much better than others, so your user review research will come in handy here. Where many of these cameras can fall short on is the focusing speed and speed at which they capture an image.and in noise or grain in an image in lower light situations. So again, research your camera choice. Because of the slower focusing speeds some may have, you may not be able to get that instantaneous shot of say.your daughter flipping over.you'll get the shot of her poking her head out of the water.but for instances like this, set the camera to the 'sports' setting. This setting uses a faster shutter speed at the expense of the depth of field (things in focus).but the setting will also help stop some of the motion blur you may get compared to the same shot using a landscape setting.

I guess the most important thing to remember with any of these cameras is to read the user's manual and then experiment with them. It is so easy to shoot a hundred fun pictures learning what works and what doesn't.and then deleting all of the junk shots off of your computer after you saw what didn't work.knowing you didn't spend a small fortune on film or disposable cameras. Remember to let the kids use them.just take a little extra precaution attaching some sort of float when you are around water.test the float to make sure it will actually float the camera, but make sure it isn't so bulky that it interferes with your shooting or your ability to take the camera completely under water. Have them take photos of you too.the last time I checked, I was as big a part of the family trip as everyone else on the trip.so where are the pictures? And don't forget to bring a small micro-fiber lens cloth to clean off all those water droplets left on the lens!

Happy paddling and pass the camera!