Camera Armor

I recently bought a camera armor for my Nikon D90 camera from B&H Photo in the USA.

My first impressions of the camera armor was ok.....it did not amaze me per se.

Things that bothered me were.....

1) Added bulk and weight to camera.
2) Cannot use a battery grip with camera armor bottom cover attached.
3) Cannot use standard size tripod heads directly on the camera body because hole provided on the bottom cover too small. I will have to personally modify the bottom cover to allow the screw plate of my Manfrotto head to properly attach to camera body.
4) Buttons became harder to push even if they matched 100% on the camera armor because camera armor rubber is thick. This is especially bothersome for me since I am now used to using thumb focus button to focus instead of the shutter release button to focus.

Is the camera armor worth it? YES it is!

A small incident happened that convinced me beyond any doubt that the camera armor protection on my D90 was worth every US$ I spent on it.

I was taking photos of our equipment installation on a customer's project site on October 5, 2009 at SM Megamall, Manila, Philippines. I kept on taking photos of our equipment unmindful of what was happening until something from the ceiling dropped on my camera armor close to main command dial. It was moisture with grease from some of the old airconditioning piping system above the open ceiling.

I tried to wipe it off with a clean tissue. I got it off when I used tissue with a bit of alcohol.

Imagine if that moisture with grease fell on the main command dial and it seeped in?

I was thankful that I was using my camera armor that day. You see; I remove the camera armor sometimes when I think my camera won't need protection from the elements.

Is the D90 camera armor worth it? You bet your a** it is! :)