If you are going for a snorkeling tour, a camera is a great thing to have.
It allows you to take pictures of your underwater adventures.
Needless to say, you will need a waterproof camera so that you can keep it with you when you go underwater.
In this buyer’s guide, I have gathered the best underwater cameras available in the market. I ranked them based on features, quality, and price.
First Look
Best Overall:Nikon COOLPIX AW130 Waterproof Digital Camera at Amazon
“Best waterproof camera.”
Best Budget: GoPro HERO7 Black at Amazon
“Takes amazing underwater pictures.”
Best for Professional: Olympus TG-4 16 MP Waterproof Digital Camera at Amazon
“Excellent camera for underwater photography.”
Related: Best Snorkel Gear
Best Underwater Camera To Buy In 2022
#1 Nikon COOLPIX AW130 Waterproof Digital Camera
Nikon Coolpix aw130 is a great looking camera with a lot of features.
It is also shockproof and freezeproof. Nikon is a very well reputed company in the camera industry.
This is why people can trust their products. This model from Nikon is also a great product. Photos taken by this camera are very clear and very easy to use. Even in the night, you will see surprisingly detailed pictures.
This camera can go anywhere and can capture your moments without having any problem. You can shoot FHD videos. It has built-in WiFi, and that means you can transfer your photos or videos on your devices over WiFi.
You can take up to 5 photos every second with this camera. There is no chance of missing your perfect shot. With panoramic features, you can shoot stunning views.
It also has built-in other features like waterproof, GPS, Electronic compass, and mapping. These cool features can be handy on your next snorkeling trip. You can go underwater up to- 100ft and take stunning pictures using this camera. Underwater photo quality is outstanding.
If you want to take pictures with geotagging on a photo, this camera can be a right choice.
#2 Olympus TG-4 16 MP Waterproof Digital Camera
The Olympus TG-4 model camera is much greater than the Olympus TG-6.
You will get more features and camera performance than TG-6. It has a 16mp high-performance camera. That means you will get high-quality images.
If you go underwater with this camera, you can capture the best photos. You can go snorkeling and take pictures whenever you want. It is waterproof to a depth of 15m. It is a shockproof, freeze-proof, and crush-proof camera. You can go on any adventure in any condition. At least you will not face any problem to capture your best moments.
It has GPS, E-compass, WiFi features. These features are advantageous on a snorkel trip to an unknown place.
You will find an underwater mode to take photos in the water. Using this feature, you will get images as you see. We found very colorful and detailed pictures every-time we took a photo.
With the powerful macro mode feature, you can take a closer photo of anything. It is a very useful feature. Slow-motion video and time wrap video features also available in this addition.
For snorkelers, this camera can be a great thing to have for capturing the best moments of your trip.
#3 GoPro Hero 7 Black
You will get freakishly smooth pictures with GoPro Hero 7 Black camera. It is also a waterproof camera.
The waterproof feature allows you to capture your epic moments while snorkeling.
You can go live on Facebook with this camera. They’ve added HyperSmooth Stabilization, and with this, you will get gimbal-like video without the gimbal.
You can capture your epic or funny moments from up to 10 meters underwater. You can capture photos automatically with the SuperPhoto feature. This feature auto applies HDR, noise reduction, and tone mapping. For this reason, you will get more stunning photos.
You can shoot stabilized time wrap videos with this and share your long snorkeling adventure in shareable moments.
With its 12mp camera, you can shoot Great 4k videos at 60fps. You can also capture 8* slo-mo video, which allows you to share your super adventurous moments in their full glory.
Though It has a voice command feature, we didn’t like that very much. It wasn’t working properly. You can turn that off from the settings whenever you want. You need to keep in mind that you cannot use all features of Hero7 in all resolutions.
You can choose this camera for your next snorkel trip to capture your beautiful moments.
#4 DJI Osmo Action – Digital Camera
DJI Osmo Action camera has a double screen.
For this, you can easily record videos from the back lens, and also sometimes, you can record yourself and see how good you are looking.
It’s best for vloggers. Double 11m screen allows you to record videos effortlessly.
If you are planning for your next snorkel trip and vlog at the same time, you can consider this one. You can record 4h video with its 12mp high-quality camera. You can go up to 11m under the water with this camera and take pictures and videos. You can also make Slow motion and timelapse videos very quickly.
This camera is also very lightweight. This is why you can carry it with you without facing any problem.
Its waterproof feature allows you to shoot video and take pictures while you snorkel in the sea. With the HDR feature, you can enhance the dynamic range of your image. If you take photos in low light, you will be amazed after you see the picture.
The bad thing about this camera is that you have to install a mandatory app on your phone and activate it. Without it, you can not use this camera, but after that, you are good to go.
#5 Olympus Tough TG-6 Waterproof Camera
Olympus Tough TG-6 is 12 megapixels waterproof, frost-proof, shock & break-proof, and last but not least, It is dustproof.
You can capture 4k video, and it also offers up to 120fps video capturing.
It doesn’t matter where you are snorkeling, in an extreme condition or calm water, you can easily capture your greatest moments with this TG-6 action camera. In terms of photo quality, It is one of the best cameras out there.
It is a tough built, robust action camera. For travelers, this camera can be a great thing to have.
You can go up to 15m deep in the water with this. For this reason, you can use this camera to capture your beautiful snorkeling moments.
Wifi and O.I. Features available in this new TG-6 camera. You can also control it with your smartphone. GPS and compass features are available, and they are very accurate.
Its focus capability will blow your mind. This camera can focus on up to 1m. You will get sharp images and videos, even in extreme conditions.
We didn’t like one thing about this camera, and that is, you can not control it 100% manually, which is not a big issue.
#6 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FT30EB-A FT30/TS30 Waterproof Action Camera
Panasonic Lumix is another great camera for travelers.
This camera can be used for casual shooting. It is dustproof, waterproof, shockproof, and also freeze-proof.
You can shoot your videos in HD in 1280 * 720.
For snorkelers, It can be a great choice. You can take high-quality pictures from 26ft under the water. No need to worry about losing and damaging your camera while shooting as they are waterproof and very tough. If you drop this camera on the hard surface from your standing height, It will be pretty okay.
220mb built-in memory will help you to take photos and capture videos if you don’t insert any extra memory card.
Underwater pictures look more natural because It has an advanced mode to take underwater photos. It has other modes for surf, sports, and beach. You can select these modes from the menu.
This camera has other features like- optical image stabilizer, Creative control function, and creative panorama function.
The only downside we found in this camera is that It disappoints us to take pictures in low light. Images weren’t that good in the dark. Apart from this, every feature of this camera looked great to us.
#7 Fujifilm FinePix XP80 Waterproof Digital Came
The Finepix xp80 model from Fujifilm is a rugged camera.
You can also choose this camera for your next snorkel adventure. It is a dust-proof, waterproof, shockproof, and shockproof camera.
You can capture beautiful photos with this camera, even in low light. You will also get clear images when your camera is zoomed in because of optical image stabilization.
It can also capture good quality underwater images. You can capture images as you see underwater by this camera. Color reproduction helps you get the perfect photo for you.
You can shoot videos by pressing the one-touch movie button. You can shoot videos and take pictures remotely from your phone. You can make videos in FHD in 1080p/60fps.
The LCD screen is bright and very clear. On a brighter day, you will not face any problem operating it. This camera also has built-in WiFi, and you can transfer your files by clicking just one button.
Using the burst mode option, you can take ten photos per second, which is very useful when you want to take a perfect picture of your stunt.
The downside side of this camera is that The LCD screen is small, and you can do only 5* optical zoom.
#8 Canon PowerShot D30 Waterproof Digital Camera
If you want to stay for a long time in the water, do shooting at the same time, then my recommendation will be this Canon Powershot D30 camera.
It is a waterproof, rugged camera. You will know how good this camera is when you use it. Canon is best at making cameras.
You can go up to 25m below sea level and capture your moments. Like other cameras I’ve reviewed in this post, It is shockproof and temperature resistant. It also has built-in WiFi. So, you can use it to transfer your captured photos and recorded videos.
You can record stunning HD videos with Its super cool 12mp camera. You can also record slow-motion and time wraps video If you want. It has GPS built-in. So, you will also get geotag on your images if you want.
It has a 3’’ fixed LCD screen. Which is not big, but It is enough to see everything you captured. You can see everything, even on the brightest day.
To take photos while you snorkel, This camera is almost perfect. It is specially made to take underwater photos. When it comes to performance, It is one of the best in the market.