I saw someone's list of essentials on another thread, and it included a camera. So that got me thinking: what kind of camera do we need, and what do we expect to use it for?

For EDC I have a point & shoot camera in case I get into an accident or need to document something. Sometimes inspiration strikes at unexpected times, and I don't have my SLR with me. These are not survival uses obviously. What survival uses can we put the camera to?

What are the features we want in a "survival" camera? Do we want:

- Small & light?
- Waterproof/water-resistant?
- Shock-resistant?
- Macro capability? (If so, what do we envision taking pictures of?)
- Telephoto?
- Wide-angle capability?
- Works on commonly available batteries rather than propriety rechargeable batteries?
- Low-light capability? (I haven't seen a low-light capable camera that's not an SLR.)
- Video capability?
- I'm assuming we want digital.

It seems that connectivity would be very useful. So that would mean a cell phone camera. If the cell service is still up and you can get a signal, you can send images and videos to tell people where you are, to share information, etc. But then cell phone cameras tend not to be of good quality.