Reviewing the Aquapac

While getting ready for a vacation, I spent some time researching underwater housings for cameras. I knew I couldn't afford a housing for a DSLR, since they often run as much as $2,000. But I thought I might be able to afford a housing for a point and shoot, which run considerably less for smaller, less complex cameras. That's when I ran across the Aquapac waterproof bag. For only $39, it seemed worth a try.

The Aquabag is a simple design... a plastic bag with one open end that is closed by tightening two plastic cams. It has thicker plastic around the edges and thinner, transparent panels on the front and back for shooting and viewing the camera's LCD. The only problem was the extension of the camera's lens, which pushed the bag's thichness to it's limit. Sensing the resistance of the bag, the camera would pull the lens back in and give a lens error message. But by holding the plastic out with one hand while turning the camera on with the other, everything then worked fine. If your camera's lens extends more than an inch and a half, this bag probably won't work for you.

I dragged a Canon point and shoot camera in the Aquapac for several days, snorkeling, diving, kayaking and playing on the beach. Using the lanyard provided, I strapped the Aquapac to my wrist and dove dozens of times, as deep as ten or twelve feet, without a hint of a leak.

The image quality through the Aquapac was far better than expected. Despite bad water clarity, the bag worked well. In most cases, visibility in the ocean here was limited to two or three feet at best, a poor test. The bag did extremely well out of the water or right at the surface. I can't wait to try the bag in better water clarity or in a swimming pool. It's not a sexy solution, but it gets you and your camera off the beach and out in the action.