When I decided I was in the market for a new camera that would be the best all-around adventure camera for my buck, the great search began. I had a long list of wants that my camera needed to mostly fulfill. The first obvious option was the GoPro “Hero 2”. It's a fantastic, compact camera that shoots some great video.

However there were a couple things that irked me about it:

~$300 price-tag for a camera that didn’t have a screen ($80 extra)
~Waterproof housing that really dampened/distorted sound
~For the best underwater footage results, I would have to replace the lens on the underwater housing with an aftermarket flat lens.

With my background in audio/video production, I really needed something that gave me a feeling of control over what I could do with it. As nice as the GoPro is, it’s very “bare bones” on its features and settings.

There were quite a few advantages I saw for the Pentax “Optio WG-2”:

~A sharp, vivid screen to allow for composing not just video, but pictures since I do quite a few CPR tournaments.
~Extremely rugged without the need for a waterproof housing, so the audio is much clearer and true-to-nature.
~Dedicated flash to take pictures in low-light conditions.
~5X optical zoom.
~The ability to not just have a “manual” mode, but over 25 program modes to choose from, depending on the situation and desired result.
~$250 after a $50 mail-in rebate.

Here is Part 1 and Part 2 of the video review I did on the camera.

I go into a much more in-depth look at the many features. I’ve also included a video that shows its shooting capabilities both above and below the water.

http://youtu.be/AbBNh41rYsE

http://youtu.be/FbrmCesn9IQ

There are some other great waterproof/adventure proof cameras out there that might be great for someone else’s needs and wants, but I ended up pulling the trigger on the Pentax Optio WG-2 and I haven’t looked back!

Technical Specs: Waterproof up to 40’ for two hours, shockproof up to 5’ drop, 3” LCD screen, 16 megapixel CMOS image sensor, optical zoom 5x with digital zoom up to 36x, Full HD Recording (1080p), 720p HD Recording in 30 or 60 frames per second, sound recording modes, 6 focus modes, macro lights, AF-area modes, continuous/burst picture shooting, self-timer, metering, multiple shooting modes, shake reduction, white balance, ISO sensitivity of 125-6400, playback and editing features, HDMI and PC/AV connections