What Pentax Optio to get for aerial photography?

Razor_Racer · 10-15-2007, 06:56 PM

Hi, its my first post here. I fly radio controlled model airplanes and helicopters, and many people use your Pentax Optio cameras for this purpose, as you can use an infrared switch to take pictures in the air. Anyways, I want to know what would be a cheap $100-$130ish camera for my application?

I'm basically looking for one that falls into that price range, and can take good outdoor photos (well, the best in that price range). I was looking at your E40 and M20 cameras, they seem to be well priced, but I dont know how well they take outdoor photos. Thanks!

jnorth · 10-16-2007, 11:56 AM

Regularly visiting my friend at the local camera shop and knowing a few other friends who have done very little to their cameras, but still end up with bust zoom mechanisms I'd be tempted to put an internal zoom mechanism fairly high on my list of features when looking. I haven't looked long, hard or lately, for that matter, but most cameras that I have seen with an internal optical zoom were only 3x. With a lens that zooms out of the body the mech. seems very prone to breaking with a bump. Maybe it wouldn't be too much of an issue but something to atleast consider.

Would you mount the remote on the aircraft or try to operate the remote from the ground? I would assume the aircraft, and if so depending on how much effort one put in to mounting the camera, one would not even need to rely on the ir remote and just use some servo linkage to hit the shutter. My experience with my Pentax remote is that would not have the range I'd be interested in, to operate it from the ground. It is certainly light enough to mount in anything large enough to take even the lightest digital camera though.

A couple years ago I read an article of how to strip down some sort of digital camera to mount in a mid-sized or between mid and large sized model rocket, and how to use it to take a movie. That was using some sort of 'disposable' cheap gear that was not disposable after being stripped out of its original housing.

Razor_Racer · 10-16-2007, 03:07 PM

I suppse then I will make sure the camera mount is fairly sturdy, so the camera wont be bumped on hard landings.

I'm going to be using a different kind of IR switch.. I dont know if it even is IR, but I think thats what it said. You plug one end into the camera, and the other goes into the reciever of the airplane/helicopter. As long as I have range from the reciever (which I have plenty of), the switch should work.