That’s right, you read the headline is correct. Over the weekend a diver, Markus Thompson, found a camera at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, just off the coast of British Colubmia. He salvaged the camera, poked around a little bit (determining that the camera had been dropped into the water in August 2010), recovered the data off the card and, using Google+, found the owner.
Markus’ original post and updates here. The social web doing some good, a photographer getting back some property along with some thought-to-be-long-lost images… But… I’m guessing that all you really want to know is the brand of the card, right?
Funny, although I don’t blame you. Apparently this was a SanDisk Extreme III but, not that it overly matters…regardless what type of card you use, it’s true that many cards/types/brands can survive total submersion in water… now we just know that at least some of them can hang out in salt water for year(s)
I can vouch for this story…a good buddy of mine had his (almost) brand new Canon 7D take a swim last July, only he dove in to retrieve it immediately. Card worked like a charm afterwards, too bad his camera was immediately toasted.
Chase,
A great story indeed! I can vouch for this as I sent a card through the washing machine with wedding images on it! When I found the card, I simply let it dry overnight and Voila! the images were there in the morning!
Interesting find! I had a similar experience in 2005: we upset our canoe in freezing water on a small river far in the back country of a Canadian national park. The camera (along with other stuff) was lost and under fresh water for two years. Camera destroyed but SanDisk card still had the photos. It was kind of eerie to see the photos taken just before we tipped. Here’s one website that reported the find:
http://www.fareastgizmos.com/digital_cameras/this_digital_camera_works_even_after_lying_under_ice_and_snow_for_two_years.php
Chase, I’m so glad you picked the right sponsor and client.