A1 and water and humudity!
 

I'm taking my new A1 down to the san blas islands in panama this june with a misisons team to shoot a doc. I've been told it is very humid down there. Also, our main mode of transportation will be by boat. The leader of the team that went last year said that it rained a lot and everyone usually got pretty wet on the boat rides.

YIKES!!!

What do I need to do to prepare for this kind of trip? What are things I need to be looking out for for the camera's safety? ...aside from buying an underwater housing unit. I pretty much need to keep the camera out and rolling most of the time. I'm looking into getting a rain cover, but can't seem to find one I like. Most of the ones I find are to bulky. ...and what about that sennheiser shotgun mic sticking off my camera? will that be protected by a rain cover?

For the trip I will be carrying all my equipment in a camera backpack...and some unlucky team member will be carrying my sticks :o)
thanks for the advice!

There's no easy way to do that shoot! All rain covers are going to be bulky. Ewa Marine makes a nice device, sort of a pillow case shape that slips over the top of the camera.

For the Florida shooting, in the rain, I've done, I just use a kitchen garbage bag, slipped over the top of the camera with a slit for the lens and viewfinder. Your hands go up under the bag. You cut the slits right they'll fit around the lens and VF with no need for a rubber band. I carry a roll of these bags in my gafferbag.

You might want to get some of that dessicant stuff to keep in your bag to help dry things out.

Air Conditioning
 

At the risk of stating the obvious-
Watch out for air conditioning- At very high humidity levels, if the camera is a fraction of a degree cooler than the air, you can get condensation inside the camera. I have found, with several cameras, it can take more than an hour for the camera to warm up inside a plastic bag. The bigger the camera the longer the time. I have tried putting the camera in the sun in a bag, but this is obviously risky.

If you are staying in an air conditioned place, either find a way to store the camera outside or allow lots of time in a sealed plastic bag before you need to shoot.

Rick