Whitewater Forum: watershed vs. otterbox?

watershed vs. otterbox?

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Forum Name: Whitewater Forum
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URL: http://www.professorpaddle.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=13313
Printed Date: 06 Oct 2025 at 11:52pm

Topic: watershed vs. otterbox?

Posted By: ENDO
Subject: watershed vs. otterbox?
Date Posted: 11 Jul 2013 at 5:37pm

Opinions? Everyone seems to be toting around the watershed, but the closures seem really annoying.... Trying to decide what to get. I am carrying a nikon d200 and two lenses. Thanks!

Replies:

Posted By: water wacko
Date Posted: 11 Jul 2013 at 7:04pm

I've never had a problem with the Watersheds, but I've never carried a camera in an Otter either.

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"Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive." ~Howard Thurman

Posted By: JayN
Date Posted: 11 Jul 2013 at 8:25pm

The new watersheds are great, not hard to close at all... My buddy had one from a few years back and it was ridiculous... I custom rigged my ocoee with a grip of foam and it holds my 60d w/ 2 lenses just fine.

Posted By: Ellingferd
Date Posted: 11 Jul 2013 at 9:16pm

Otterbox will leak eventually. Get a watershed. Do not get the camera liner made by watershed. Make a foam liner out of a closed cell foam mat (like 10 bucks). The watershed liner will absorb water and need to be dried if any water gets on it, which will happen when you are getting in and out of the bag on the river. Here is a link to Darin McQuoid's homemade liner: http://www.kayakphoto.com/darinmcquoid/watershedliner.html. Made mine pretty much exactly like this and it works great. Way cheaper.

Posted By: UpNOver
Date Posted: 11 Jul 2013 at 10:09pm

I think it comes down to a personal preference as much as anything. I am comparing a Pelican case vs a watershed because I have used both shooting video on the East Coast. I have never used an Otterbox

Duability - Pelican. my dog even tried to chew on it. I still have the original one I purchased. I did wear out a watershed. The handle pulled lose from the bag the outer ends where it sealed eventually turned white and wore out. I also liked pulling into an eddy with the pelican between my legs and pop my skirt and literally toss it up on rocks on the shore then climb out of my boat. My Watershed I would have to carefully set it up on the rocks then get out of my boat. Also, in the Pelican I have dropped it from high heights straight into the water to a raft or kayak below then jumped in. I would never do that with my watershed bag.

Quick open - Pelican, here comes the circus, flip, flip camera out. Watershed takes longer to unbuckle and unroll then unzip. Same for putting it away to sprint back in front of the circus for the next shooting spot.

Waterproofness - equal. You have to watch with the Pelican that you do not get a strap or something similar in the lid when closing it. Watershed, make sure it is sealed and you have to periodically grease the seal.

I started out with a Peclian then went to a watershed then went back to a Pelican. A lot of it depended on what boat I was taking and where the camera was going. If the Peclian could fit behind me, I would take it. If the camera had to ride between my legs, I usually took the watershed. If I was steep creeking, Pelican.

Posted By: tiziak
Date Posted: 12 Jul 2013 at 7:17am

I swear by the Watershed bags. Those things are bomber.

Theres a video online of Fred's camera running Fear Canyon by itself and being fine after they find it swirling in an eddy near the end of the run.

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If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there.

Daniel Patrinellis
360.434.4616

Posted By: fiddleyak
Date Posted: 12 Jul 2013 at 10:00am

Slickhorn's got it right. When I used the Otterbox, eventually in a moment of haste I caught something in the closure which soaked my camera. There's a reason why most paddlers with a nice camera choos a watershed bag. Careful when you shove it in the back of your boat, though, make sure the camera is well padded.

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