The Story of the Nikon Coolpix 4600

Don’t ever let anyone tell you Nikon makes a crappy camera.

When I first started my new job two years ago, I had some extra money and bought myself a little point and shoot digital camera. A Nikon Coolpix 4600. I had it maybe a year, probably less, when my dog decided to take it off my desk and use it for a chew toy. I came home from work, found the case in one room, plastic parts in another, and the what was left of the camera on my dog’s bed with the lenses all mangled and tooth marks all over the back. Yeah I was pissed. $300 for my dog to chew up. Great. Well, it was in pretty bad shape. It tried to turn on but the lenses wouldn’t extend, and I just threw it in a box and eventually got another Coolpix a few months later.

One day I pulled it out of that box, and messed w/ the lenses. I got them to work, and the camera still managed to take photos most of the time. As long as the lenses were lined up right and it could fully turn on. I decided I’d use this camera for times I didnt’ want to take the good camera along. I figured if something happened to it, no big loss. Its already got one foot in the grave.
Yesterday we went tubing in the Boulder River. I figured on a lazy float down the river, I’d take it along, get some shots, and if it got wet, oh well.Â Yeah, it wasn’t a lazy river, and it got wet. I got three shots off before I got in my tube, and hit the very first rapids which totally put me under. The camera was soaked and that was that. No more pix for the rest of the three mile ride. Along the way the camera was underwater countless times. It was clear it was not going to survive this one.

I took the batteries out when I got home and let it dry out over night. Threw in some fresh batteries this morning. Guess what? It powered up! Here are the only shots I took before the camera spent the day underwater. Amazing.