New Canon For Hiking With Optical Viewfinder

by Steven
(Northern California)

I like having a camera with me when I take off into the wilderness on hiking trips. I keep it attached to my pack, as I often have no more than 2-3 seconds to capture a photo. Because of that need to speed, I need an optical viewfinder. I have to be able to grab the camera, bring it up to my eye, and snap the image very quickly.

I have been using Canon cameras for years, most recently a Powershot A1400, but would love to upgrade to something with more optical zoom. Does such a camera exist? My other considerations are the camera has to be lightweight, and not too expensive. The latter is important as on more than one occasion, my camera will end up in a river, or falling over a cliff, dropping into a talus field, etc. Thanks for the help.

Hi Steven!

Great question. The Canon A1400 was released in 2013. In digital camera development terms, that's outdated.

New Canon Camera For Hiking

It sounds like you're going to want a camera with these 3 features:
1. COMPACT: Small and light enough to travel with on the trail in a ready-to-shoot position.
2. FOCAL LENGTH: Strong enough for photographing wildlife.
3. OPTICAL VIEWFINDER: A must have feature for locating, composing, and focusing on your subject.

-A Canon mirrorless would save you some space and weight, but to get an optical viewfinder and good zoom lens would likely push it out of your price range.
-One of the Canon Super-zoom Bridge camera might work, but they are bigger than your pocket-sized A1400.
-I use an Canon APS-C sized Canon 90D and carry it during my hikes in a belly bag for super quick access.

Canon camera chooser

Steven, you might want to visit a page I published on the Canon Geek website that will help me more precisely find a good match for you. There are a few specific questions that will provide more clarity on what you want. I'll be able to narrow down from the many possibilities that exist in the Canon lineup for a good hiking camera.

Canon Camera Finder

Also, I'm seriously hoping you and/or your camera don't end up falling in a river or over a cliff. Northern California is a great place to hike!

Bruce

Follow me on YouTube

WHERE I BUY USED CANON GEAR
"I've found that the condition of the used equipment from KEH is excellent and a whole lot cheaper than buying new" - Bruce, the Canon Camera Geek