Olympus Tough TG-6 Action Camera, 12 Megapixel, Digital Image Stabilisation, 4x Wide-Angle Zoom, 4K Video, 120 fps, Wi-Fi, Red

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When the mode dial is already set to (Underwater mode), press the arrow pad Left button to select other sub modes. In the end, it’s not about the technical specs of a camera, but what those technical specs let us do as creative people and photographers. Focusing is nice and snappy and the LCD screen has fair visibility in bright light, with easy menu navigation. It's not a touchscreen, but then this isn't something we expect to see on underwater cameras. There’s a lot of competition in the tough camera market right now – it remains one of the only compact areas that hasn’t yet been decimated by the unstoppable march of the smartphone.

The irony is that I had an underwater case for my x100s. But it’s so clumsy to use in the case that it hinders my photography. Where the TG-5 only had one underwater white balance mode, the TG-6 has three, for shallow, mid-depth and deep water. Two additional underwater shooting modes were added: macro and microscope. What stands out? Not to mention that leaving expensive cameras around is a hazard with a house full of kids and their rowdy friends. My kids and I discovered a stream filled with salmon. I knew it was the perfect chance to try out the TG-6 underwater.

Tough performance in any environment: Built for adventure

Normally, you need a dedicated macro lens if you want to take close-up, macro, or microscopic photos. That means a financial investment and another lens in your bag. But the TG-6 has this capability built-in. The close-up function is worth the cost of the camera. Get in, the water’s nice!

Choose an ISO of 100. Choose an aperture of f18. This will effectively choke out the light and force the TG-6 to slow down the shutter speed to let more light in. The slow shutter speed will produce a silky waterfall. At the end of his review Jeff Kellers conclusion is "Not good for those who want smartphone IQ or better...", completely agree. Of course, the reason this list of specs is so exciting is because of what they’ll let you do with this camera as a photographer.Here’s the best part; in P mode, you have direct access to exposure compensation with the camera dial. Your camera will hardly ever get the exposure just as you want it. So use the exposure compensation feature to brighten or darken the photo before you take the picture. There's an accessory ring around the lens. Olympus sells a couple of fish-eye lenses, if you want to get a wider angle of view, as well as a pair of flash accessories that redirect light to surround the lens, filling in shadows in close-up shots. The TG-6 has an especially good macro feature, and I'd consider one of the light modifiers a necessary accessory.