June 16, 2008
www.otterbox.com
$28.49
Review by Steve Douglas
There is not a photographer or videographer who, when on a shoot, finds him/herself absentmindedly stuffing any number of assorted items into their pockets. Whether it be lens covers, extra or depleted batteries, cables, chargers, plugs or filters, these items can soon have you looking like a weirdly pregnant penguin.
Having a small and durable accessories box really can come in handy and, just as important, keep you organized. The Otterbox 3500 might be just the case. It is small enough to help in these situations and, at the same time, not too large to lug around or take up too much room in your luggage as you fly or drive from shoot to set.
With its' interior dimensions at 7.5"x3.6"x3.2" you should not expect to be able to store that new boom mic you purchased. However, it is an excellent size to hold extra batteries, your cell phone, a lens or two or even a small camcorder or camera. The Otterbox comes in black, yellow, blue and clear models and is waterproof, they say, to 100ft. While I haven't brought it down that deep, the o-ring in the case, which provides the seal, appears strong enough to live up to its promise. At the very least, it will assuredly provide protection of your valuables in the rain as well as to keep out unwanted dust and particulates. In addition, the interior bottom is cushioned with a 1/8th inch foam liner which can crush to half its thickness providing extra protection within.
You wouldn't expect a storage container such as the Otterbox 3500 to be as ruggedly made as it is for such an inexpensive price. My bottom line is that I will be packing it in two weeks for my next shoot in Alaska. It will be the perfect sized box for my small tools, extra o-rings, batteries and whatchamacallits.
Steve Douglas is a certified Apple Pro for Final Cut Pro 6 and underwater videographer. A winner of the 1999 Pacific Coast Underwater Film Competition, 2003 IVIE competition, 2004 Los Angeles Underwater Photographic competition, and the prestigious 2005 International Beneath the Sea Film Competition, where he also won the Stan Waterman Award for Excellence in Underwater Videography and 'Diver of the Year', Steve was a safety diver on the feature film "The Deep Blue Sea", contributed footage to the Seaworld Park's Atlantis production, the History channel's MegaDisaster show and other networks. Steve is one of the founding organizers of the San Diego UnderSea Film Exhibition and leads both underwater filming expeditions and African safaris with upcoming excursions to Indonesia and the Coco Islands, Costa Rica in 2008, Kenyan safari in Africa and the Red Sea for 2009, and Truk Lagoon in Micronesia for 2010. Feel free to contact him if you are interested in joining Steve on any of these exciting trips. www.worldfilmsandtravel.com
copyright © Steve Douglas 2008
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