Product Description
Ricoh Imaging is pleased to announce the new PENTAX WG-90 all-weather adventure compact camera. The WG series all-weather adventure cameras – known for their rugged chassis, plus waterproof and shock-resistant features – will now be offered under the PENTAX brand which is regarded industry-wide for developing dustproof, waterproof and weather-resistant products.
The WG-90’s waterproof, shockproof, freezeproof and crushproof construction assures outstanding reliability and operability, even under harsh conditions where ordinary compact cameras and smartphones may be unusable. It’s equipped with a 16 effective megapixel back-illuminated CMOS image sensor, high-performance imaging engine, 5X optical zoom lens providing coverage equivalent to approximately 28mm to 140mm in the 35mm format and a large, outdoor-friendly wide-frame LCD monitor. Its enhanced underwater modes for still photography and video deliver sharp, true-to-life imagery by optimizing colour and contrast that are usually lost in underwater photography. It also features a built-in ring light with adjustable illumination levels that powers the PENTAX-original Digital Microscope mode, allowing the user to capture clear, vivid images of a microscopic world normally undetectable to the naked eye.
The WG-90 can be used for a wide range of scenes and subjects, ranging from casual snapshots to outdoor and underwater photography, and even in specialized worksite applications.
Tough Body Construction
The solid, airtight body of the WG-90 is not only waterproof down to a depth of 14 meters (46 feet) for up to two hours of continuous operation (equivalent to IPX 8 or JIS Class 8), but is also shockproof against falls from a height of 1.6 meters (5 feet)*, dustproof (equivalent to IPX 6 or JIS Class 6), freeze-proof to temperatures as low as -10°C (14°F), and crushproof against weights up to 100kgf (kilogram force)**. Thanks to this heavy-duty construction, the camera performs superbly and dependably even in harsh, demanding outdoor conditions.
Exceptional image quality
The WG-90 comes equipped with a back-illuminated CMOS image sensor, which assures excellent high-sensitivity and low-noise characteristics and high-speed readout of image data signals. Coupled with a high-performance imaging engine, this image sensor delivers a top sensitivity of ISO 6400 and super-high-resolution images with approximately 16.0 effective megapixels. It also provides advanced image processing functions, made possible by superresolution technology, to assure sharp, clear, high-resolution images. It even offers such innovative features as Handheld Night Snap mode, which automatically produces a single, blurfree composite image using several images of the same nighttime scene.
Six Macro Lights to assist close-up shooting, with various functions
Ideally positioned around the circumference of the lens barrel for macro shooting, six LED Macro Lights provide bright, uniform illumination on a subject when the Digital Microscope mode is selected to magnify a given subject
on the LCD monitor, closely observe the microscopic world undetectable with the naked eye and capture the subject in a high-resolution macro image. In the Macro Lighting mode,*** adjust the illumination intensity in five levels and optimize the close-range flash photography based on the subject or the photographer’s creative intention. To minimize the effects of camera shake and subject movement, the Instant Illumination Enhance function allows the use of a higher shutter speed by automatically raising the discharge level of the Macro Lights at the moment of shutter release. The Self-Portrait Assist mode uses the blink of an LED lamp to check if the subject’s face has been safely captured within the picture frame, while the LED Lighting mode makes the Macro Lights function as a lighting device in the dark
*** The Macro Lights can be used in Program, Movie and Report modes.
2.7-inch LCD monitor with the Outdoor View Setting mode
The WG-90 comes equipped with a 2.7-inch LCD monitor with horizontally extended 16:9 proportions and approximately 230,000 dots. The monitor’s AR (Anti-Reflection) coating minimizes annoying glare and reflections to assure a sharp, clear on-screen image even in the harsh sunshine often encountered during outdoor shooting. The Outdoor View Setting mode automatically optimizes the monitor’s brightness level for a given lighting condition to improve the visibility of the on-screen image.
* Image of the monitor in sunny conditions. Monitor display is artist’s conception.
Underwater shooting mode
Specifically designed for underwater photography, the Underwater and Underwater Movie shooting modes are programmed to optimize colour and contrast, based on the data of images captured under the water. These modes deliver sharp, true-to-life images by enhancing shades of red which are lost in underwater photography, while effectively compensating for the loss of contrast caused by the diffusion of light in water. In the Underwater mode, the Flash Off + Flash On option allows the user to consecutively capture two images with a single shutter release — one without flash and another with flash.
5X optical zoom lens with a 28mm wide-angle coverage
The WG-90 features a high-performance, five-times optical zoom lens with a focal-length coverage from 5mm to 25mm (equivalent to approx. 28mm to 140mm in the 35mm format) to accommodate a wide range of scenes and subjects, including sweeping landscapes. It also provides other convenient shooting functions, such as a macro mode to capture dramatic closeup images from a minimum focusing distance of a mere one centimeter; an Intelligent Zoom function to extend the zoom range to approximately 36 times (equivalent to 1008mm in the 35mm format)**** for super-high-magnification telephotography without compromising image quality; and an interval shooting mode that comes in handy for fixed point photography.
**** This function is available when the recorded size of 640 is selected.
Triple anti-shake protection to prevent blurred images in all applications
(1) Pixel Track SR mechanism
When recording still images, this advanced shake-reduction mechanism effectively compensates
for camera shake by digitally processing affected images.
(2) Digital SR mode
When the camera detects low-lighting conditions in still-image shooting, this mode automatically
raises the sensitivity up to as high as ISO 6400, making it possible to use a higher shutter speed
and effectively minimize the adverse effect of camera shake and subject shake when dealing with
poor lighting conditions.
(3) Movie SR mode
During movie recording, this mode effectively compensates for the misalignment of images
caused by camera shake through the use of exclusive software to produce beautiful, blur-free
movie clips.
Full HD movie recording for extended shooting of high-quality movies
The WG-90 provides Full HD movie recording employing the H.264 recording format. Users can capture high-quality, extended movie clips (1920 x 1080 pixels, 16:9 proportions) at a frame rate of 30 frames per second. To add some creative touches to movie recording, they also feature a high-speed camera function***** for slow-motion playback of captured movie clips, and an interval movie function. A micro-HDMI terminal (Type D) is also provided on the camera body for simultaneous output of Full HD movie clips and sound to external audio-visual devices.
***** When this function is selected, the recorded size is fixed at 1280 x 720 pixels.
Other Features
• Macro stand (included) to maintain a minimum focusing distance of one centimeter to the subject
during extended observation and shooting of macro images
• Auto Picture mode to automatically select the most appropriate shooting mode from 16 different
scene modes
• High-speed Face Detection function to capture as many as 32 faces in focus in approximately
0.03 seconds (minimum); Smile Capture function to automatically release the shutter when the
subject’s smile is detected
• Outdoor-friendly Style Watch function to display the time on the LCD monitor, using an extended
push of the OK button when the camera’s power is turned off
• Delay-free, pushbutton start of the playback mode, using an extended push of the playback
button
• Auto Picture mode to automatically select the most appropriate shooting mode from 16 different
scene modes
