Will the vibration of my mountain bike kill my camera?

[johannes_sigl_r]

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>I'm very passionate about mountain biking, not least because one can experience a unique scenery. Can I take along my Nikon D90 to capture that scenery - or will the vibration of my bike destroy it in the long run?</p>

 

[bob_trabucco]

<p>I wonder the same thing - except in my case it's a D300 and the bike is a Yamaha YZF-R1 motorcycle.<br>

I imagine the best place to carry it would be in a back pack - since in both kinds of bikes your body acts as a bit of a shock absorber.</p>

[Matthew Brennan]

<p>In a backpack which is actually on your back, I'd not hesitate to take either model camera on road going motorbike or mountain bike. If you want to pack it into a pannier bag / top box then use common sense and wrap them in some padding. I have seen SLR gear treated much more harshly on the floors of cars..... enjoy your photogear on two wheels!</p>

[bernie moore]

Strange that a man would worry bout the death of his camera while mountain biking. Just an old timer's thought:)

[Rene11664880918]

<p>The safest place would be on a camera back pack but access to the camera is more difficult. I think there are some kind of hardens that will aloud you to carry the camera hanging from your neck with a neck strap and also it will keep it tie to your body so it is not flying all over the place. In any case keep it cover. Cheers!</p>

[bms]

<p>No one has probably tested this, but it seems safe if well padded. No guarantees if you tumbling down the mountain, though.....</p>

[joe_a2]

<p>Johannes.... As others have said, your camera will be fine in a backpack, but I wouldn't put it in a pack on a bike itself. For general riding, you will be fine. For the harder stuff, your buddy should be taking your picture as you negotiate the crux! So it won't be in the bag anyway when you bite it. :) . . Point being: Even if you put it in a padded holster pack, wrap it in a sweatshirt, and tuck it in your backpack, it will <em>not</em> survive you landing on it. I know my natural reaction is to "tuck-and-roll" when I go down, so my limbs are protected and my back/torso takes the hit. Which puts a backpacked camera right in the middle of it all.</p>

<p>Consider your riding style when you decide. If you're out for a casual ride on easy to moderate singletrack or better, go for it. The vibrations of riding will have little affect in your backpack. But if you're pushing your technique on a very hard ride, you might want to leave the big camera home (and get a $50 used P&S).</p>

[ramon_v__california_]

<p>i used to ride my mountain bike in the trails, including grant park in mt. hamilton here in san jose; and my atv in hollister. my d70s has always been safe inside my camelback even after a fall. well, i have it in a thin neoprene skin then inside the camelback. of course the d70s is a little tougher than the d90, i think. with proper padding i think it will be okay in any backpack.</p>

<p>i just do leisure mountain bike rides now in easy trails and streets since i have gone older with weaker legs. and i have the d40 for these rides now. i mount the 18-70mm on it, the 55-200mm vr in a lens wrap, both in a now smaller, lighter camelback.......have fun in your rides, enjoy nature and take those pictures.</p>

[martin_howard1]

<p>I bought a Dakine rucksack, mainly for snowboarding, my cameras survived my 14 stone bod landing on my back several times (doesnt say much for my boarding skills I know), so yes with the right bag/padding your gear will be fine.</p>

[andrew_gale]

<p>On your back it will be fine in a solidly padded photo backpack....</p>

<p>...until<strong> you</strong> fall off the bike that is.</p>

[dansutton]

<p>did someone just give their weight in stone? wow. not every day seen there. fantastic.</p>

[johannes_sigl_r]

<p>Thank you for your feedback!</p>

<p>Maybe I'll become a more cautious driver with the camera on my back? ;-)</p>

[david-m]

<p>I have just returned from 2 months and 1500km cycling in Egypt and Sudan (we are talking every condition from smooth roads to sand to badly corrugated tracks to very rough stoney tracks) with my D700 (50 and 28mm lenses) in a well padded front handle-bar bag (Ortleib). No problems or issues at all. Before this I spent that last 10 trips (similar terrain/time) with 2 Leica M6s in the barbag, also with no ill affects. This is an easy way to carry a camera and the bag takes about 3kg of weight with ease.<br>

This includes a few dropped bikes (slipped off the kick stands), a few mad rushes to jump on the backs of trucks (windy/lazy days) and the worst dustiest weeks in Sudan (one dust spot on two images!).<br>

Have fun.</p>

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[detlev_behrens]

<p>Hi,<br>

I think you should be more concerned about your lenses than the camera because the lens-elements might come lose because of vibration. It happend to my AF-D Micro Nikkor 105mm. The whole front element group came out and it had to be repaired. For a few days I wondered why this lens is not sharp anymore until the whole lens group dropped out while i was taking some pictures.</p>

 

[mats nilson photography]

<p>I used to work as a wilderness ranger in the Scandinavian mountains, clocking some 7000kms on snowmobile each winter in rather rough terrain (try tracking lynx from a snowmobile and you'll know what I mean..). I never dared put my camera in a box or under the saddle for fear of it vibrating to pieces, so I kept it in a rucksack on my - relatively - vibration-damped self. However, a colleague of mine always just slung his in the compartment under the saddle, along with the odd wrench and spare spark-plug, and - astonishingly - never had a problem!</p>

<p>I don't do mountain biking, but like most before me I'd suggest you carry the camera on your body, rather than somehow attached to the bike. Your legs and arms will absorb much of the vibration and your camera will be safe.</p>

[sampson]

<p>Disclaimer - I don't have a D90 - my closest comparison would be an F80, otherwise I've also take my Fuji S5 (D200 body) with me while mountain biking.</p>

<p>In a bag with decent padding, and with the camera wrapped in some extra clothes or rain jacket I've never had problems. This is in the Canadian Rockies - single track - 30-50 km/hr - usually with a hard-tail. The cameras are built tough, and the vibration from just normal riding isn't rough enough to dislodge anything (not in my experience). Obviously you don't want to do any big 10ft + drops with it in the bag, but I've never had problems on normal rides. Obviously any spills capable of breaking bones can also do damage to your gear.</p>

<p>Caveat emptor - often I just bring a P&S anyway - lighter and more compact.</p>