Water resistance

[armand]

Do you have any camera-lens combination that you shoot without much worry in heavy rain for up to a couple of hours at a time? Without a rain sleeve.

[rdonson]

I've shot in rain with a Canon 1DMarkII and a 7D with a 70-200 f/2.8 without worry.  I'm not sure what constitutes "heavy".  It seems that heavy in upstate NY is quite a bit different from heavy in FL or NC.

I've shot in rain with my Fuji X-T1 and 28-135 but not for a significant length of time or in what I would think of as "heavy".

[dwswager]

Do you have any camera-lens combination that you shoot without much worry in heavy rain for up to a couple of hours at a time? Without a rain sleeve.

Not heavy rain as I would think it.  But I shoot a D810 and 70-200mm f/2.8 and 24-70mm f/2.8 in light rain.  I have in the past shot the D300 and even the D7100 is light rain.  I general will carry an Op/Tech rain sleeve (heavy, clear plastic bag) in my bag and will put it on.

Hell, I'm not usually too willing to be out myself in HEAVY rain.  Most images I've tried to pull off like that have failed anyway due to really low, flat light and crappy visibility.

[NancyP]

Pentax apparently has really good water seals, but I don't shoot Pentax and don't know how they perform in extended rain. They can survive a brief immersion, apparently (given a water-resistant lens, not all of the Pentax lenses are rated water-resistant). If I were a kayaker, I would be shooting Pentax APS-C DSLR.

[MattBurt]

I've used my Pentax K-5 and K-3 in heavy rain and it all came through ok. It's not foolproof and I hear if you do a lot of zooming in wet conditions all bets are off.
So I try to zoom as infrequently as I can and shield the camera when I do if it's really coming down. So far the worst I have gotten is some fog in the lens after on one occasion. It cleared up after a couple of hours.
It's a great feeling when covering an event (usually cycling for me) and a lot of cameras get put away when it starts raining but I can keep on shooting.

[SZRitter]

Olympus E-M5 with the 12-50mm has worked well for me. Used it in the waterpark while getting splashed (on purpose) with no ill effects. I'm going to bet the E-M1 and 12-40mm f2.8 are up to the task as well.

[JohnBrew]

+1 on the Pentax. I've shot D810/85 1.4G combo in rain. I don't recall ever having a problem in rain with a 35mm film camera  . No question, much more care is needed in digital era.

[razrblck]

I've shot with many cameras in light rain, even a D3100 with the plastic 18-55 VR. A more extreme environment was the beach during winter, with both light rain and wind.

As long as you properly drain the cameras afterwards (and protect your gear in a water proof bag or backpack) you don't have to worry much.

If the rain is so heavy that you need to worry about your gear, you will get soaked way faster than your camera anyway!

[synn]

I have shot a D800 and various lenses with rubber seals at the back in moderate tropical showers. Wouldn't do it in a heavy rain, even if they assured it is ok.
Pentax and Olympus are two brands that boast the maximum amount of weather sealing.

If by heavy, you mean tropical heavy, you"re not gonna do much autofocusing in it, no matter the camera brand. And you've got to worry more about pneumonia than camera repair bills.

[armand]

Thanks for the replies.

I was up on a mountain and had periods of pretty significant rain, as in a rain that will soak you and your couple of thin layers in 5-10 min. The other times it was a heavy mist that would condense often.
The gear I had was the X-T1 (and I wasn't that worried about it) and various lenses, none of them described WR though. I did use the 23 and the 10-24 for a while until I checked and noticed they weren't really WR. Zoom keeps its length constant during zooming so it should be safer than others.
I did have and use the Optech sleeve but you cannot put your camera in the backpack with it on and it becomes cumbersome to play with it during rain (on/off I mean).
So far the camera and the lenses are fine but I would like a little more freedom.

I was eyeing the E-M1 with the 12-40 and I might be able to put up with the image quality for travel and backpacking (I dislike low ISO noise) if it can endure significantly more adverse conditions (would save a little weight also). The alternative would be to take the D750 with 24-120 but I already bent the memory card door and it didn't look like a very WR resistant area to start with, and the 24-120 extends during zooming which makes me apprehensive about its WR claims.

[DeanChriss]

I've shot for long periods (hours) in variable (light to heavy) rain or wet snow using Canon 1Ds3 and 1DX bodies and 600mm lens with no rain cover. There was never any problem, but I try to use a cover when possible "just because".

[NancyP]

I use the Cotton Carrier vest to carry my consumer-body DSLR (eg, 6D), it allows me to hike and use poles. When it starts to rain, I put a shower cap over the camera and shorter lens. Yeah, I look a little dorky with the pink flower pattern vinyl blob (covered camera) on my vest.    It probably wouldn't work 100% for sustained heavy rain / monsoon, but if it is going to rain that heavily I have the rain gear out anyway, and that shields the camera additionally. I am thinking of making or buying a silnylon long cover / stuff bag with drawstring for when I hike with the 400mm.

[MattBurt]

This was probably the heaviest rain for me. A monsoonal August storm at just under 10,000 Ft. on Kebler Pass.
I would probably try to avoid this kind of rain in most cases but I decided to go for it that day and it worked out well for me.

Pentax K-3 & DA* 16-50 (the DA* lenses are all sealed).
IMGP7667-Edit by Matt Burt, on Flickr

[dwswager]

In the Canon and Nikon line, the top ends are much more weather resistant than lower levels.  For example, the D4 and D3x would be better than a D810 which in turn would be better than the D750/D610/D7200 and so on.

I find it funny people won't just buy a cheap rain sleeve.  B&H sells the Op/Tech ones for $8 for a 2 pack! And they pack down to almost nothing.



The next step up is something like the ThinkTank Sleeve.

[Colorado David]

I know it's not a DSLR, but a friend and colleague of mine shoots underwater with the Nikon 1AW and a couple of different lenses.  He's shot some really beautiful trout images with the camera fully submerged.  I think that would count and being water resistant.  Oh, and he's a diehard Canon shooter for his DSLRs. he just couldn't find a Canon to do what he wanted under water.

Here's an example http://www.lonlauber.com/Fly-Fishing/i-LgwxjQv/A  He had a very nice website that crashed and has to be rebuilt, but this is what he's doing in the mean time.

Here's another: http://www.lonlauber.com/Fly-Fishing/i-rDLj8MK/A

[jerryrock]

FujiFilm XT-1 with the FUJINON LENS XF18-135mmF3.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR is a great water resistant combination.

[armand]

FujiFilm XT-1 with the FUJINON LENS XF18-135mmF3.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR is a great water resistant combination.

The reviews I've seen haven't been stellar quality wise. The other possible problem was that I've read it doesn't have a rubber collar at the mount.

[chez]

Since a light mist from a waterfall caused my 5d2 to stop working and ruined my outing, I've been using rain sleeves. Sure you can throw the dice and come out fine with a day in the rain...but ask yourself if any of your cameras are covered by the manufacturer for water damage.

[rdonson]

The reviews I've seen haven't been stellar quality wise. The other possible problem was that I've read it doesn't have a rubber collar at the mount.

I don't know what reviews you're reading or what you're expecting from the lens.  I have the X-T1 and 18-135 and I think its a really good all around lens that surprised me with what it delivers.  Is it as tack sharp as their best primes?  Hell, no.  I never expected that.  Rent or borrow one and try it.

[jerryrock]

The reviews I've seen haven't been stellar quality wise. The other possible problem was that I've read it doesn't have a rubber collar at the mount.

It definitely has a rubber gasket on the lens mount as well as 20 points of weather sealing. Fujinon actually has 5 weather resistant lenses in the x series line up.

https://youtu.be/bGj2f2yYK0c