durability

Field Test: One Week in the Lofoten Islands with the Canon EOS R5

I was one of the lucky ones who got their hands on the Canon EOS R5 early in August of 2020. The camera arrived in the morning, just before my flight to the Lofoten Islands. Here's a summary of my experience climbing to 7 summits in 7 days with Canon's new flagship mirrorless camera.

Torture Testing Sony’s TOUGH SD Card to See What It Can Survive

Sony claims its new TOUGH line of SD memory cards are the toughest and fastest SD cards ever made, so the folks over at Cameta Camera decided to put that claim to the test. Here's a 12-minute video in which the NY-based camera store subjects a card to a variety of torture tests to see how it holds up.

This is How Nikon Tests the Durability of the D850

Nikon Asia released this promo video for the D850 that offers a peek at how the company tests the DSLR for durability in harsh environments, ensuring that it's reliable through things like drops, impacts, vibrations, extreme temperatures, and humidity.

Water Torture Camera Test: Canon and Nikon Shine, Sony Fails

Weather resistance is an important attribute of professional cameras that need to endure difficult shooting environments. To see how well some of the top cameras on the market would fare in the rain, Imaging Resource decided to conduct a water torture test, which you can watch in the 5-minute video above.

Running a 10K Mud Obstacle Race with a Nikon DSLR in Hand

Photographer Raymesh Cintron recently ran the Titans Race 10K ultimate outdoor challenge in Puerto Rico, an intense endurance challenge that's filled with mud and water. While competing, Cintron also carried along his Nikon DSLR and GoPro camera to document the race. Needless to say, he's is a firm believer in the idea that camera equipment should be used rather than babied.

Leica M9 Falls Off Balcony and Breaks… the Ground

Leica M rangefinders have a reputation of being extremely durable, and one Chinese photographer recently found out first hand just how much abuse the cameras can take. He accidentally dropped his Leica M9 off a hotel balcony, and instead of the fall breaking the camera, the camera broke the ground.

Video: Torture Testing the Front Element of Canon’s ‘Thrifty Fifty’ 50mm f/1.8 II

Photographers commonly place UV filters on the front of their camera lenses in order to protect the glass front element. Aside from preventing dust buildup, the filter also takes the brunt of any impact seen by the front of the lens. If you have to have some glass shatter, you'd rather it be a relatively cheap filter compared to an entire lens, right?

But how easy is it to damage or destroy the front element of a lens? Photographer Richard Choi had the opportunity to find out a few years ago when he found a bricked lens on his hands.

The Nikon D3s Can Survive Getting Wet, Muddy, Frozen, Dropped, and Burned

High-end DSLRs by major camera manufacturers are made to be durable. After all, photographers find themselves in all kinds of environments documenting all kinds of subjects, so their cameras need to have serious protection against accidents and the elements.

Ruggedness is often a characteristic that's touted in new camera announcements, but exactly how rugged are flagship DSLRs? French Nikon photographer site Pixelistes recently decided to find out by torture testing a Nikon D3s.

The African Elephant Durability Test for Camera Gear

In this social media age, companies are constantly dreaming up all kinds of random ideas for demonstrating the benefits of their products, and hoping that the videos will go viral (an example would be this bulletproof glass CEO that literally stood behind his product).

Nikon D200 Tumbles Down Steep Rock Face… and Survives

My buddy Kyle and I were traversing a mountain road near my home town of Tillamook, Oregon. I am intending to create a tour company that will comprise of local tours in and around the Tillamook County area. We have many beaches, mountains, rivers and bays here and I intend to show people. Without getting too off-track, we were heading up into the mountains on a gravel logging road to calculate mileage and timing for a tour. A road I'd been on regularly as I had worked for the state department of forestry for a number of years. Eventually we came to a freshly repaired washout, where a landslide had completely deleted the road in that particular drainage. The washout had created the most amazing view of the Tillamook valley, a reservoir lake and some mountains with intense directional light catching every crag. I was compelled to take a photo so I might use it on a future brochure.

DigitalRev Durability Test Cameras Tested

DigitalRev has posted a followup to the destruction tests video they published last week. After abusing two entry-level DSLR cameras in all sorts of random ways (e.g. dropping down an escalator, using them as stilts and hammers, pouring hot liquids on them, etc...), many of us were left wondering to what degree the cameras were still functional. This video answers those questions.

Canon Versus Nikon Destruction Tests

This is a 17 minute video showing Kai over at DigitalRev (the same guy that painted a Nikon D90 pink) putting a Canon 400D and Nikon D70 through various torture tests. The tests include stabbing them with knives, dropping them down escalators, smashing them with elevator doors, using them as stilts, and more.

Camera Failure Versus Price and Brand

SquareTrade is a company that provides warranties for consumer electronics. As such, it has a good deal of data on digital cameras and, more specifically, how often they fail. After a three year study of over 60,000 new digital cameras, they've published a report with their findings.