The Olympus Tough TG-6 is the latest waterproof camera from Olympus, updating the TG-5. The TG-6 features a 12-megapixel sensor, along with high-speed shooting for both stills and video, and 4K video recording. The camera features built-in Wi-Fi, GPS, a bright 4x optical zoom lens, with an f/2.0 aperture, and a number of advanced features. New to the TG-6 is a higher resolution screen, new underwater modes, improved macro photo options, and a new range of accessories.

Olympus Tough TG-6 Features

The Olympus Tough TG-6 uses the same 12 megapixel BSI CMOS sensor as the TG-5, this means that the sensor has larger pixels compared to other waterproof cameras, giving better sensitivity to light, and the camera has an extended ISO range from ISO100 to ISO12800. The camera also offers 4K video recording, 4K timelapse, and high-speed continuous shooting at up to 20fps. High-speed video is possible, with FullHD video recording at up to 120fps. 

Also new to the TG-6 is a new digital teleconverter, that doubles the zoom factor of the 4x optical zoom for a maximum of 8x zoom. An Anti-reflective (AR) coating on the image sensor glass now reduces ghosts and flares while the TruePic VIII image processor from the OM-D E-M1X helps to reduce noise levels and improves the resolution in low contrast areas.

There are only a small handful of waterproof cameras to choose from currently available, so let's quickly have a look at the options available:

The 4x optical zoom lens offers a bright aperture of f/2.0, at the wide-angle end of the lens, which is equivalent to 25mm-100mm (in 35mm equivalent terms). The lens features an anti-fog dual-pane protective glass, as well as an impressive macro focus distance of 1cm even when using the full 4x optical zoom, meaning you can get impressively close macro photos. To take full advantage of this, focus stacking (and bracketing) will help you get more of the photo in focus, with the camera automatically merging numerous shots taken at slightly different focus distances into one. 

The TG-6 is waterproof to 15 metres, shockproof from 2.1 metres, crushproof up to 100kg, freezeproof to -10C, and dustproof meaning it should survive under water, in extreme conditions or from mistreatment.

Pro capture mode can shoot photos before you've pressed the shutter release button and is a feature that was first introduced in the top of the range Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II. High-speed continuous shooting lets you choose between 20fps and 10fps, at the full 12-megapixel resolution.

Olympus Tough TG-6 Underwater

All of the scene modes feature an example photo, giving you an idea of when it's best to use the mode, and there is a built-in help to explain the modes and options on the camera. There are a number of underwater modes available: underwater snapshot, underwater wide, underwater macro, underwater microscope, and underwater HDR. Art filters are available, with a number of different versions of each.

Wi-Fi is built-in, and using Olympus' Image Share app on your smartphone you can remotely control the camera, import photos, edit photos, and more. The camera has built-in GPS so that you can log your travels, as well as add location information to your photos. There's a small switch on top so you can easily switch logging on and off. 

If you hold the INFO button on the back of the camera, when it is switched off, then it will display a compass, the time, temperature, atmospheric pressure, depth, and GPS coordinates. Olympus calls this the Field Sensor System / or the Action Track Sensor System. The camera is also compatible with Olympus' Image Track (OI.Track) app.

A number of accessories are available, with a new fisheye converter, a new underwater case, and a new lens cap. Many of the accessories can attach to the front bayonet on the camera, which is behind the removable front ring. These new accessories are in addition to the existing fisheye converter, tele converter, flash diffuser, light guide, plus floating straps, and silicone cases.

Key Features

• 12 megapixel BSI CMOS sensor
• 4x optical zoom lens, 25-100mm equivalent, f/2.0-4.9
• In-camera sensor-shift image stabilisation
• 3inch screen, 1040K dots
• 20fps continuous shooting 
• Waterproof to 15m, shockproof (2.1m), dustproof, freezeproof, crushproof (100kg)
• GPS, Wi-Fi built-in 
• 4K UHD video recording
• High-speed video, FullHD at 120fps
• ISO100 to ISO12800, raw shooting
• Aperture priority mode
• 1cm macro, macro focus stacking/bracketing
• Underwater scene modes
• Available in black or red

Olympus Tough TG-6 Handling

The design of the TG-6 remains the same as the TG-5, but with some subtle updates to the colouring making it look a little more serious. There is a large grip on the front of the camera made of plastic. The camera feels solidly built, as you'd expect from a Tough camera, and the camera has a decent weight to it for its size, making it feel substantial. There's a control wheel on top, which helps to quickly change settings, and the zoom control surrounds the shutter release button. 

A LOG switch can be found on top (for GPS logging), and the front accessory ring has a locking/release button next to it. The battery and memory compartment features a dual-lock system so that you can't accidentally open it, and the same for the side USB connection. The mode dial features a dedicated video setting, which makes it easier to access video settings and modes. There are two custom modes on the dial. 

The camera has an aperture priority mode that lets you set the aperture, with f/2.0, f/2.8 and f/8,0 available at the wide end of the lens, and f/4.9, f/6.3, and f/18 available when fully zoomed. The screen resolution has been improved with 1040K dots, and viewing angles are good. You can change the display, and show a dual-axis electronic level on the screen if you want. 

The buttons can feel a little small at times, and this could be particularly worrying if you're wearing gloves. The video button was a little difficult to press at times, however this has the added benefit of meaning you don't accidentally start and stop recording. 

Menus – Pressing the middle OK button brings up an on-screen set of controls and options so that you can quickly change settings, without having to go into the menus. The menus are split into logical sections, however, there is an advanced options area, where it can take some time to find the options you want. There is built-in help so that the camera will tell you what the options do. The scene modes have good looking example images that make it easier to find what you're looking for. 

Wi-Fi features - Built-in Wi-Fi gives the ability to use a smartphone for remote shutter release and setting up the connection is very easy as you simply need to scan a QR code on the camera screen using the O.I.Share app. You can download and share images, apply Art filters and other effects, as well as use the app to Geotag images (in case you want to switch off GPS on the camera to save battery life). 

Battery life - Battery life is rated at 340 shots according to Olympus / CIPA test results, which is good, although we'd recommend a spare battery if you want to shoot more. The battery can be charged in-camera, with the provided MicroUSB cable.

Olympus Tough TG-6 Performance

The performance section is where we look at the image quality performance of the camera. Additional sample photos and product shots are available in the Equipment Database, where you can add your own review, photos and product ratings.

Olympus Tough TG-6 Sample Photos

Sample Photos - The camera gives good colour straight from the camera, although colour can be a little subdued on "Natural" settings, with the Vivid colour setting giving images a more saturated look. The flash performs well with almost no sign of red-eye, and skin tones were good. Exposure is reliable, and the camera records good levels of dynamic range on default settings. For additional dynamic range, the Backlight HDR mode does a good job to recover bright areas, which would normally be overexposed.

There are underwater modes of:

• Underwater snapshot
• Underwater wide
• Underwater macro (standard macro/close-up)
• Underwater microscope (super macro mode) - new
• Underwater HDR

The underwater microscope mode makes it easy to get great underwater macros, and the camera does an excellent job of balancing the flash without over-exposing the image.

Olympus Tough TG-6 Lens test images

Lens Performance - Detail is good for a waterproof camera, although there is some chromatic aberration and purple fringing is visible in areas with high levels of contrast. Focus was reliable, and the camera's built-in image stabilisation helps keep shots steady and sharp when shooting in low-light at slower shutter speeds. Some vignetting was visible when shooting at the wide-angle end of the lens. Distortion is minimal, with barrel and pincushion distortion automatically corrected in camera.

Macro modes include:

• Microscope (super macro mode)
• Focus Stacking
• Focus bracketing
• Microscope control (you can use digital zoom if wanted)

The last option uses digital zoom. You can zoom into the subject, using the full 4x optical zoom, and still focus on subjects just 1cm away from the front of the camera. This gives excellent photos, but you'll also need to be aware that the area in focus can be quite narrow, and here focus stacking helps, producing a 12-megapixel image in-camera with more of the subject in focus.

Here's an example of how close the camera can focus on a subject, using the 4x optical zoom, and macro focus (microscope) selected:

Olympus Tough TG-6 How Big - Small Fly | 1/160 sec | f/2.7 | 6.8 mm | ISO 125

Olympus Tough TG-6 Small Fly Macro | 1/50 sec | f/4.9 | 18.0 mm | ISO 1600

Olympus Tough TG-6 ISO test images

ISO Noise Performance - Noise is at its lowest when shooting at ISO100, with good levels of detail. Detail remains good as the ISO speed is increased to ISO200 and ISO400. There's a slight drop in detail at ISO800, as noise increases. Noise increases again at ISO1600, but colour remains good. ISO3200 may still provide useful results if you resize the image. Colour saturation drops off noticeably at ISO6400 and above, and it's at this setting that you probably want to avoid. Some purple fringing is visible around the white text and squares in the images at the lower ISO speeds, and a "hot spot" can be seen in the centre of the image in these shots.

Noise compared to the competition...

There is a slight, but mostly insignificant difference between the TG-6 and TG-5 in terms of noise, with a slight but minimal improvement to be found in the TG-6 images, however, colour saturation is slightly lower. The Nikon Coolpix W300, with a 16mp sensor, is another waterproof compact camera with relatively good noise performance, offering ISO speeds up to ISO6400, compared to the TG-6 offering ISO12800 as the highest ISO speed available.

Olympus Tough TG-6 White-balance test images

White Balance Performance - Under normal conditions, you get a warm result under Tungsten lighting, with the tungsten preset giving a more neutral result. The camera's AWB (Auto White Balance) performs very well under mixed light, as well as under fluorescent light. The fluorescent presets give a magenta colour cast. Hidden away in the advanced options, you'll find AWB options to "Keep Warm Colour" On or Off, and when this is switched to off, you get excellent white balance results, which is great for product shots.

Olympus Tough TG-6 Digital filters

Digital Filters - There are numerous scene modes, plus a number of Art Filters, which can be applied in most modes. Art Filters include Pop Art, Soft Focus, Pale & Light Colour, Light Tone, Grainy Film, Pin Hole, Diorama, Cross Process, Gentle Sepia, Dramatic Tone, Key Line, Watercolour, Vintage, Partial Colour, Bleach Bypass and Instant Film.

Almost all of these have additional options, for example, Dramatic Tone is labelled I and II, with the second one being black and white. When shooting in JPEG+raw, the camera will also save the original raw file, so that you have an original image to go back to if you don't like the effect (or if you've accidentally left an Art filter switched on). 

The panoramic mode remains the same as the previous model, and takes 3 shots and stitches them together, producing a fairly low-resolution image.

Live composite mode is another feature first found in Olympus OM-D cameras, and lets you see the image developing on the screen, and is particularly useful for light-painting or night photography.

Video - 4K (UHD) 3840x2160 video is recorded with a frame rate of 30fps, or 25fps, and a compression data rate of 102Mbps. Video compression options are Super Fine, Fine and Normal for FullHD video recording (excluding high-speed video). High-speed video available includes: 120fps at FullHD, 240fps at 720p, and 480fps at 640x360. Video quality is good, with image stabilisation helping keep video more stable, although lens noise can be an issue if you use zoom while recording. Additional videos can be found on the ePHOTOzine YouTube Channel.

Value For Money

The Olympus Tough TG-6 is / will be available for £449, making it one of the more expensive waterproof cameras available. Some of the alternatives to look at can be found below: 

Olympus Tough TG-5, 12mp, 4x zoom, f/2.0, 4K video, 15m WP, £349
Nikon Coolpix W300, 16mp, 5x zoom, f/2.8, 4K video, 30m WP, £369
Panasonic Lumix FT7, 20mp sensor, 4.6x zoom, f/3.3, 4K video, 31m WP, £399 (£199 while stocks last)
Ricoh WG-6, 20mp sensor, 5x zoom, f3.5, 4K video, 20m WP, £349

Have a look at more waterproof cameras in our Top 10 Waterproof Cameras. You'll also need to buy a memory card and a case or bag to keep your camera safe and protected - have a look at our complete guide to camera bags.

 

Olympus Tough TG-6 Verdict

The Olympus Tough TG-6 may be a fairly subtle update to the TG-5 but improves it in a number of ways, making it easier to get better results under water, and makes the most of the impressive macro capabilities of the lens. The price remains the same as the RRP of the TG-5, so it makes sense to go for this model. The introduction of new accessories improves the appeal of this camera, and the previous model. 

Using a 12mp sensor, noise performance is good, and the camera offers high-speed shooting, 4K video, and high-speed video, with FullHD video recording at 120fps possible. The camera offers a bright f/2.0 lens, making it more suited to underwater photography compared to other waterproof cameras, as there is less light underwater.

If you're in the market for a tough waterproof camera, then the Olympus Tough TG-6 offers the best "bang for your buck", with the brightest lens of all waterproof compact cameras, high-speed continuous shooting, 4K video, and particularly impressive macro performance. 

The camera is set up to help you get the best in underwater conditions, and there's a range of appealing accessories available. For those travelling the built-in GPS logging, and action tracking will be particularly useful. Wi-Fi also lets you quickly transfer images, or remotely control the camera, although it's worth noting that Wi-Fi often doesn't work underwater.

The Olympus Tough TG-6 offers great image quality, impressive macro performance, as well as 4K video and high-speed shooting features.

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Alternatives

Here are some of the best alternatives to the waterproof Olympus Tough TG-6:

Olympus Tough TG-5 

 

The Olympus Tough TG-5 may be the older version of the TG-6, but offers a lot of what makes the TG-6 so good, including the same 4x optical zoom lens, with a bright f/2.0 lens, a 12mp sensor, and 4K video recording. The camera is waterproof to 15m, and is compatible with a range of accessories. The camera has built-in Wi-Fi and GPS. 

Buy On Amazon UK    Buy On Amazon USA

 

Nikon Coolpix W300

 

The Nikon Coolpix W300 offers a 16mp sensor, a 5x optical zoom lens, and 4K video recording. The lens is a little brighter than most, with an f/2.8 aperture, and the camera is also waterproof down to 30m. As expected Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth is built-in. 

Buy On Amazon UK   Buy On Amazon USA

 

Panasonic Lumix FT7

 

The Panasonic Lumix FT7, also known as the TS7, offers a 20mp sensor, and rather unique for a waterproof camera, a built-in electronic viewfinder (EVF). Whilst it's quite small, it could be useful when shooting in sunny conditions, when the screen is more difficult to see. The camera offers 4K video recording, and is waterproof down to 31m. As expected Wi-Fi is built-in. 

Buy On Amazon UK   Buy On Amazon USA

 

Ricoh WG-6

 

The Ricoh WG-6 is the latest waterproof compact camera from Ricoh, and offers a 5x optical zoom lens, a 20mp sensor, 4K video recording, and a ring of LED lights around the lens, to help light closeup objects. The camera has built-in GPS, but does not offer built-in Wi-Fi. 

Buy on Amazon UK   Buy on Amazon USA

 

Fujifilm FinePix XP130

 

As a budget option, you could look at the Fujifilm FinePix XP130. The Fujifilm FinePix XP130 adds Bluetooth and improved battery life to the features on offer in the XP series. It also sports a 5x optical zoom lens, and 16 megapixel sensor. The camera is waterproof down to 20m and has Full HD video recording. 

Buy On Amazon UK   Buy On Amazon USA

If you're still looking for more alternatives to the Olympus Tough TG-6, have a look at the Top 10 Best Waterproof cameras.