Olympus TG-4 16 MP Waterproof Digital Camera with 3-Inch LCD (Black)

This camera was a last minute decision before going on a week long Caribbean vacation. I have a Canon 6D that I had been planning to take on the trip, but had an epiphany that taking such a huge, non-waterproof camera to a beach resort would be a bad idea. Enter the TOUGH. This camera performed brilliantly. We were able to take it absolutely everywhere: onto the beach, into the sea, on the catamaran, kayaking, horseback riding, in the swim up pool, snorkeling, to dinner, etc. It was in my pocket pretty much everywhere we went. My finance also felt comfortable using it, which was a nice benefit. The camera does not come with a separate battery charger (battery must be charged while in the camera by default), which isn't a big deal if you only have a single battery. We picked up a 3rd party accessory pack that included some extra batteries, a wall charger, and a floating wrist-strap that worked out great. We took the camera into the pool and out into the sea with us, and could just let it float around without worrying too much (although we generally tried to not leave the camera underwater if it could be helped... why push your luck, eh?). This all said, the main thing that caught my eye about this point n' shoot camera is that you can shoot in RAW format! For any photographers out there familiar with post-processing your images, this will likely interest you. It gave me full freedom to tweak the images when we got back, and I'm very happy with the results. The low-light capabilities aren't the best, but shots taken in daylight were crisp and sharp with low grain. The macro also impressed me--I can take better macro shots with this than I can with my DSLR (I don't have a macro lens). The camera is a little pricey, and for an item at this price point I'm generally the sort of shopper who will look for a sale before pulling the trigger. But this is not a purchase I regret.

I love this camera! Its purpose is to be a carry anywhere camera and replaces a very small Canon that's been going everywhere (primarily on off-road riding expeditions) since 2009 and finally had enough issues to need a replacement. I wasn't so sure about a "tough" camera - I am really picky on image quality, and most of the offerings in this class were too much of a compromise to want to go that route - better to always keep the camera in a small protective case which is how the Canon lived. But in reviewing DPReview's samples, it looked like this could do the trick - and it does. All cameras are a compromise of some kind and the compactness and toughness of this camera brought little negative into the overall experience. There are some small issues with regard to the jpeg processing (in camera) and you can shoot RAW if you want, but I decided that overall the in-camera processing is adequate for what I want to do. The GPS, while a bit laggy in acquiring a signal, is quite handy. The zoom is not the longest - but is good for most everyday situations and scenics. It is really good at macro shots, I'm somewhat amazed at how well it works at that - almost like that was a primary design criteria. I haven't had the guts to actually put it in water yet - I'm used to cameras in waterprooof cases, not cameras that are waterproof themselves. Someday though! All in all, a super competent camera in its genre - I think - and it's proven to be a very able and competent travel and tough camera with very good to excellent image quality.

I am not an experienced photographer whatsoever, but I have recently become interested in at least understanding the basic concepts and the art of photography. I have done a lot of research and have a decent understanding of camera controls and how changing certain settings controls exposure or focus. I bought this camera as a (relatively) inexpensive way to get started with basic photography, but also as a way to get some beach/underwater shots, as those places are a common vacation spots. This is one of the best waterproof cameras out there and it makes for a decent point and shoot as well. I did a lot of research on underwater cameras and this was clearly the best option available. First use was at a concert that I played in. Gave it to a (non-photographer) friend who took pictures during the show. I think I could have gotten a couple better pics if I had control of the settings during set. It took OK pics. Nothing all that great, but nothing worse than you'd find in most point and shoot cameras. It's very difficult to capture good concert photos without a nice DSLR where you can go manual and have full control over the shot, as the lighting usually fools the camera. In solid lighting, the TG-4 takes pretty good pictures. Took it to the beach over the weekend and it held up well. It rained the whole time, but I still got some decent pictures on the beach. So it survived the rain as well as the pool and ocean. The lens did fog up when it started raining (due to the cold rain mixed with the humid air) but it did clear up after about 15 minutes. That is to be expected with these cameras and is a common issue. The ocean here on the east coast is brown so no underwater ocean pics, but I got some really nice shots in the pool. Clear pics and good colors. No internal leakage or any issues with the toughness. I was very careful to lock the doors on the camera securely beforehand and follow the procedures to rinse the camera and open it in the correct way after it dried. If you're using it in or around the water a lot, I'd recommend getting a floating strap (I got the Nordic Flash strap, it does the job well) as it will save it in case you happen to drop it. I shot mostly in aperture priority mode and got some good shots. I manually adjusted the exposure compensation and ISO setting as it was various degrees of cloudy throughout the day. FYI, shutter speed is automatically set. You can fiddle with the other important settings (ISO, Fstop, exposure compensation, etc) to change it, but you cannot manually control the setting. It's got a pretty fast shutter speed (up to 1/2000) in decent light and with the right settings, however. I got some really cool shots at night with the live composite mode; I would definitely recommend trying that one out on a tripod. Get creative. I'm going to Hawaii later this year and am looking forward to seeing what this camera can do in the crystal clear waters there. So far, this has been an investment/product that has been definitely worth the purchase.

1. Background info: I'm an amateur photographer, I've been shooting for many years, have used many types of cameras (film and digital), I always shoot RAW, process in photoshop etc... 2. Thus, I've always been reluctant to get a waterproof camera simply due to the relative lousy quality of the images. I mean, nothing in life is free; you get the protection against the elements but at the expense of decent photo quality. But this camera will definitely satisfy most photographers out there, including those who may be relatively picky ( ie like me). re: Controls: since it's waterproof, you can't expect it to have a lot of buttons / dials; I like to have some control over exposure / f-stop; will some minor button pushing, I can adjust the f-stop, iso, and deal with exposure compensation. re: Quality: This thing shoots in RAW, which is really nice when I want to be able to post process a potential image. On the downside, there's no burst mode when shooting in RAW ( hopefully the next version will have this). On the otherhand, when properly exposed, the JPEGS are really nice or good enough... most of the time. The sharpness of image, len vignetting etc... is what most people would consider pretty good. re: Video: I don't shoot video much, but it looks fine. re: Underwater shooting: obviously, I use this mainly when in / near the water and it really does add an extra level of photography fun. If you have decent lighting, you can really get some fun shots... and I say fun shots because the main benefit of this would be to get family shots in the water. For anyone looking to get serious / decent shots of wildlife in the water, you really need to go with a regular camera with dedicated housing and lights and etc... re: Lens: I really like the focal length of this camera; esp the wide end. re: Close up mode: I've briefly experimented with this; there is definitely some interesting potential here, but in that I have gear for macro work with my other camera(s), I don't utilize this camera for that . But if you don't, this macro capability along with potential to focus stack (need a tripod) may be a great feature to utilize. 3. Thus, taking the above constraints into account, this is definitely a great camera to consider.

I love this camera for several reasons: Beautiful macro photos, easy to use, held up great in the water (took it on a beach trip and it survived a couple hours in the ocean with absolutely no issues), takes wonderful scenery shots, I LOVE the wifi feature. A lot of people had issues with the app, I have an iphone 5s and got it working in minutes, its the best thing ever, I can use the touchscreen on the phone to select where I want the focus to go on the camera and remotely take photos with the phone as well as change the settings on the camera remotely. CONS: Not the best screen, I often can hardly tell how a photo really looks until I get it on the laptop, and with no view finder there's no other option, its not horrible, but it could stand improvement. Though not a huge deal, the panoramic software is pretty bad, it's hard to use and doesn't do a very good job at stitching photos, just use your phone for panoramic photos, it will do better than this camera, I promise. Overall I love this camera, it does exactly what I need it to and more. The Macro is spectacular and I cant wait to get some of the attachments. Very impressed for the price and size. Sample photos are straight from the camera, unedited. The first 3 were taken underwater. The purple one is a closeup of the center of a thistle flower. The last 2 were taken using some of the built-in filters.

I've been an avid Olympus camera enthusiast for quite some time. I've had all TG-830 to the TG-860 haven't tried the TG-870 as of yet. I wanted to try Olympus newest camera the TG-4. Big disappointment :( Since day of purchase 06-2015 video stabilizer wasn't working properly, the audio when you zoom in or out muffles out and you lose audio. Auto focus on photo & video is just crap...I can be in the most well lit areas and 80% of the time I have to power down and power back on and hope the auto focus adjusts accordingly. When video shooting/recording the working mechanism can be heard throughout the video shoot and usually happens 75% of the time. With all this said....Mine was repaired 3 x's for these issues.... When the camera works it works great, but I do a lot of YouTube and all you hear is the clicking noise from the mechanism inside and camera has been since replaced and replacement one is just as bad :( 1 star folk's sad to say ;( I understand there are very sensitive working parts and the audio can pic them up....but it's not OK when you make videos and you friends and fans ask? What is that clicking noise in your videos? I tried to ignore it...but it's just so loud and annoying. The video stabilizer just straight up a joke in the model....I can get a old flip phone camera and get better results. Remember folk's these were all supposed to have been repaired many times. On the bright side.....when the camera works it take absolutely amazing photos. But video is very weak in this model....Customer service was fair....and did replace the camera, but the replacement was just the same....as for the extended warranty those folk's were a joke. I'll leave it as that cause then this review would be a book/novel. On the flip side....I see and this can possibly only be coincidence....but I feel it really is mostly with the "Red" model....seems the black has it's own special issues. I really tried to love this camera...but the camera is my job and this is just a no go....I'll just have to say this was a waste of $400.00 bucks I may try the TG-870 but now I'm studying up and leaning towards Canon line of cameras :(

I’ve owned mostly Panasonic digital cameras over the years. I currently have a m/43 setup; a ZS19 for occasions where I can’t take all the gear with me; and a TS25 for beach and water park. I had two motivations for buying a new tough camera. (1) The photo quality of the TS25 is adequate for snapshots in the water, but the full resolution “burst” rate, if you can call it that, is 1.3 FPS. I wanted something with a real burst mode to catch our 3-year-old son in action. (2) The TS25 doesn’t compare to the ZS19 indoors, so I end up taking both cameras on water vacations. I wanted to see if I could consolidate down to a single compact camera, tough enough for water but decent enough indoors. I initially chose the Olympus TG-4 over the Panasonic DMC-TS6 because of the f2.0 lens, RAW capability, and the macro mode and light ring accessory. I used it for a day and ended up returning it and getting the TS6 instead. Following are my observations and reasoning for the exchange. Still Images The TG-4 excels in still images outdoors, and even indoors if you’re shooting a stationary subject with natural light. The f2.0 lens and RAW capability, in conjunction with excellent image stabilization, allows it to stay at base ISO longer than you’d typically expect with a small sensor compact. The problem is with moving subjects and/or with flash photography. The first thing I noticed is that my flash would rarely fire on auto indoors. Instead, it would pick ridiculously slow shutter speeds. I tried closing the aperture and locking base ISO, and instead of firing the flash it selected 1/2 sec. Then I tried forcing the flash on. The problem is that when the flash is forced on, it will still use the shutter speed it determined without flash, as opposed to my other cameras which will select a faster shutter when they know they will be firing the flash. So you might be at 1/20s with flash, causing the nearest objects to be completely blown out. Olympus have really done this camera a disservice by crippling it through the omission of a shutter priority or full manual mode. The TS6, just like my ZS19, is much smarter about using flash, making it more likely I can hand the camera to a stranger for a group shot and get back something usable. It also has shutter priority and manual modes. Video I knew from specs and reviews that this camera would only offer 1080/30p and that the quality wasn’t top notch. I figured it wouldn’t be any worse than my other compacts. However, the auto focus was continually hunting even when the subject wasn’t moving, and there was a lot of noise in the video when zooming. I found it to be essentially unusable even for casual use. Macro Mode I bought the light ring with the camera and compared it to my G7 w/ Panny 45 / 2.8. The close focusing ability is amazing. You can actually lay the camera down on a flat surface with the light ring and take a photo. When used like this, the magnification exceeds what I can get out of my m4/3 setup even after cropping. Moving away from the subject a little bit, the m4/3 gear becomes comparable to the TG-4. But, I thought, the TG-4 does in-camera focus stacking, making it the better choice. Unfortunately, this is another area where Olympus crippled this camera. In single shot microscope mode, you can select the desired ISO. Once you move to focus stacking mode, though, the ISO menu disappears and the camera automatically selects ISO. I was finding that it wanted to use ISO 400. So now you have an image with more depth of field but the detail is smeared. If you don’t have an ILC with a macro lens, the TG-4 is certainly a lot better for macro than the nothing you have now. But if you do have a macro lens, you’re better off to do your own stacking even though it will be more work and require your own software. In my case, seeing the extreme magnification was cool, but I really have no need to photograph coins, fabric, salt, and other flat, immobile objects at extreme magnification. For insects and butterflies, and even close-ups of blemishes for eBay auctions, my macro lens is the better tool. Conclusion If you want a tough compact camera solely for naturally lit still images, I think the TG-4 has an edge over every other camera in this category currently on the market. If you want macro capability thrown in, I don’t know of any other compact – tough or not – that can do what this camera does with macro. If you want to be able to shoot a moving subject in less than ideal lighting, the lack of shutter speed control and the inconsistent flash may frustrate you. If video is important to you, I think there are clearly better options. In the end, I found the TS6 to be a more well-rounded camera for what I needed, even though I hated giving up f2.0 and RAW. The fact that it was a hundred dollars less than the TG-4 plus light ring wasn’t the basis for the decision, but helped reinforce the choice. If Olympus can add shutter speed priority, fix the flash, and improve the video, it would be a hard package to beat and the higher price would be justified. I’ll be keeping track of future TG models and hopefully give it another try someday.

I have not used a standalone camera for a couple of years, but wanted to take one on a recent vacation trip. I liked the idea of being able to take pictures near the water or while snorkeling. As well, I wanted to be able to get better pictures than my cellphone camera can get for family keepsakes. Initial impression: * This thing is pretty solid * But there's no cover for the lens * There are more knobs than I am used to * It's small enough to fit in my jeans pocket I read just enough to set up the time/date and learn how to turn it on, record video. I put it on "P" mode and hoped for the best. Outdoor pictures are terrific. Underwater was a mixed bag (probably largely due to my inexperience). **Note: Pay attention to the instructions for cleaning/rinsing the camera after salt water use**. Indoor pictures are significantly better than my smartphone but not spectacular. The camera has a WiFi feature which allows you to copy pictures directly to your smartphone (I use IOS but I think android is available too). The software is a bit confusing with documentation that isn't always helpful, but it does work. It is useful for copying snapshots, but a bit slow if you're copying video; use the USB cable or pop the SD card into your computer for those jobs. Notes after a week: * Battery life better than expected. I took several hundred shots and many minutes of video before the indicator dropped off "full". * Camera turns on and off quickly but power button requires firm pressure. * Can take snapshots then capture video without switching modes * "Panorama" mode is picky about backgrounds. * Display is bright enough to use on open water in bright sunlight. * Wifi most useful for divers who don't want to wait a couple hours to rinse/dry before sharing pictures. A bit gimmicky otherwise. * Wide/Tele button is a bit awkward to use (placement and tactile feedback) * Zoom motor is very audible if recording video in quiet settings Overall, this is probably a bit more camera than I need, but I am pleased with it. If I could change one thing it would be adding some protection for the lens.

I had originally bought the Nikon AW130 camera and eventually returned it due to blurred action shots. This camera, however, is much better than the Nikon AW130 in almost every way. Very glad I spent the extra money on this product. The camera is very easy to use, the layout and user interface is fool proof (my wife can even use it!) and the features are easy to use and produce very high quality photos. The only bad thing I would say about the camera is when zooming in/out while taking a video you can hear the motor inside the camera, and it's very loud and could potentially ruin videos. You can easily download video editing software and overplay music, which is what I'll be doing.

This little camera has been dropped many, many times, dunked in water, covered in dirt, and still works well. Some debris has managed to find its way into the lens section, right behind the glass, so will have to take it apart, but given the punishment it's taken, it's holding up very well. Holding up better than the previous version - the lens extension cover hasn't come off, the battery cover lock is working, the case isn't as easy to dent. Also amazing image quality and extensive settings to capture exactly what you want. One quibble for the ultra zoom (macro) - couldn't get the camera to focus at 1' instead of the ground.

The best point and shoot camera I’ve ever had. Takes Amazing photos, underwater and above water. Easy to use, recommend for anyone. Worth every penny.

The camera takes good pics but the lens fogs up making it useless until the fog clears. Also, the strap setup is silly. Luckily it’s billed as ‘tough’ bc my camera dropped off the strap into rocks. My friend brought her Lumix on the same trip and hers did not dog up. If I could go back, I would buy the Lumix.

I bought this camera for using it in extreme conditions such as skiing, hiking, snorkeling with the different range of temperature, humidity and precipitation. So far, I tested this camera under water for the snorkeling, and it was good! The pictures that I took were clear and sharp, and so far the best among the photos that I were trying to take by different cameras. A video is not bad too under water. There was one glich when my camera is rejected to turn on after I have changed the battery. That is why there only 4 stars. I was able to fix it by clean up the contacts. The camera's battery lives longer than I expected: it was up all day long if there is no video taken. The camera's battery can be charged via USB port when you driving the car. The original package comes with no charger or additional battery, so I ordered them separately. Moreover, the camera has an ability to attach fisheye and telephoto conversion lenses - both of which are waterproof. I have got the telephoto lenses, but have not been tested it yet underwater. Ttg4 still has a bit fogging condensation issue when the temperature has changed. Overall, I am very satisfied with my new camera, it met all my needs and expectation - it is light weight, easy to use (I have Olympus mirror-less camera, so menu is almost the same), real waterproof, and it does not afraid of cold weather - I was tested the camera also on a slopes, when temperature was -10. It works good.