Compact for day to day carrying around

drdoak

I've got my 40D and an iR converted XT that I use when I actually carry around my camera bag, but I've been kind of hankering for something a bit more pocket sized. I have a hard time getting into P&S cameras with the huge DoF that just isn't any fun. So... I've been focusing my attention as of late on a few particular models:

DMC-GF1 is pricey, but gets close to letting me play with DoF like my other cameras and such, though for portability, I'd likely be limited to the pancake 20mm lens. Do those that use prime lenses in the 50mm equivalent range find that no zoom makes them more creative or generally a better photographer over time? Or is it just an annoyance over the long haul?

Lumix LX3 catches my eye as being relatively well featured and still having some ability to defocus the background. Always like having some zoom capability built in too.

The G11 is also interesting (I had a G6 or 7 back when), but it's as big as the GF-1 and much as I really like my Canons, they seem to have a block against P&S cameras with 720p video. I do rather like the various settings dials on it.

I have toyed with the Sigma DP2 idea a little bit. Certainly user comments on it are interesting. Lots of comments along the line of "both my favorite and the worst camera I own." Still, I'm intrigued by the sensor.


I've read the reviews and such, so some personal thoughts on these four, or any other suggestion would be great. I'd like to have the 720p video feature, but I can live without if need be. The other thing you should know is that there's a VERY good chance that either the LX3 or GF1 (or any other non-dp2 suggestion) will get iR converted next spring. Those two DSLRs are too much space on a rafting trip, but I still want an iR camera with me in Grand Canyon.

Thanks a bunch!

skysailor

My G9 absolutely lives with me. Motorcycle tank bag, flight bag or glove box in the pick up. It goes in the canoe in a Pelican case. I never go anywhere without it. There are smaller choices though.

frewhl

I like the G7 a lot.

I am about ready to get an SLR, but I have carried a little(smaller) canon PS for years, and got aplenty of images because I happen to always have a camera on me.

swintonphoto

How about the Olympus EP-1 or EP-2. The standard zoom lens on those is much more compact than the Panasonic.

Tee Why

I thought about the micro 4/3 system, mainly Oly Pen or the Panny GF 1, both with the pancake lens. But three things stops me, first the price, second the lack of viewfinder (I don't like live view composition), and the lack of flash in the Oly.

So I put a 25mm f2.8 pancake lens on my old Olympus E 420 and while it's not as compact an an Olympus Pen, it is small enough to work for me and the with the f2.8 lens, I have fair control of dof.

If price wasn't an issue, I'd probably go with Panny GF1 with the 20mm f1.7 lens, but I can't justify a $900 toy to play around with.

I have an ongoing thread about my shots with the Oly.
http://lashooters.org/showthread.php?t=774

rutt

I've been loving my GF1+20mm f/1.7. I have used it almost exclusively (except for ballet) since I got it. Three out of seven of my favorite shots from this year were taken with it, including one I think might be my best ever:



This is really saying a lot because I also have a 5D2 with a bunch of very nice lenses, both primes and zooms.

I thought I'd hate not having a viewfinder, but in fact, not.

Great great autofocus and face recognition. AE on selected focus points. This combination makes for a pretty high batting average in candid people shots.

BradfordBenn

One of the things I considered and I went the other way P&S to DSLR, was that by staying with the same brand the images had the same tonality/color across the models. That statement is overly broad but not sure how else to put it. So if you are used to Nikon and the look of its images, perhaps a Nikon little brother would be a nice compliment. I know that for me and my Canons it has worked well.

drdoak

rutt wrote:

I've been loving my GF1+20mm f/1.7. I have used it almost exclusively (except for ballet) since I got it. Three out of seven of my favorite shots from this year were taken with it, including one I think might be my best ever:

---

This is really saying a lot because I also have a 5D2 with a bunch of very nice lenses, both primes and zooms.

I thought I'd hate not having a viewfinder, but in fact, not.

Great great autofocus and face recognition. AE on selected focus points. This combination makes for a pretty high batting average in candid people shots.

Well, that did it for me, I decided to go GF1 w/ pancake. That said, I'd sooo still take a 5D Mk2 if given the option for the GF1's $900 . Heck with the size! Wish I wasn't obsessed with having at least the ability to go shallow with DoF or I'd have gone with the S90 or somesuch. I do love me my Canons.

So, now that I've got the GF1 on order, what do you guys use to carry it around? A sleeve of some kind in a jacket pocket (at least in the Winter), or just your average, small LowePro type pouch? Something much more interesting and inventive?

That E420 w/ pancake does look like it'd nice and compact. I particularly liked the faux iR job you did on the Griffith Obs. grounds. And most of the others... How big does it actually end up with the lens on it?

Thanks for the input all!

rutt

The GF1 + 20mm f/1.7 is smaller than a 35mm rangefinder but larger than a real P&S, even a slightly large one like the LX3. It easily fits in a coat pocket, but not in pants or shirt pockets. I hang it around my neck a lot, and because it's not big and heavy, don't really notice it. That keeps it ready to hand.

Some sort of pouch might be nice to protect it from scratches if you are OCD about this. I don't think you'll need anything very special. Look around, you might even have something. I would get some sort of clear plastic LCD protector which would let you not worry too much about the one thing that really matters.

drdoak

D'oh! Amazon has put an UN estimated delivery date on my order! And they don't offer it for sale from themselves anymore... And the other retailers are all significantly more expensive...

Guess I'll be waiting for awhile... Can't even find a local retailer that sells them, at least not the GF1C (20mm = C). I'm guessing there's a bit of a shortage?

dmmattix

drdoak wrote:

D'oh! Amazon has put an UN estimated delivery date on my order! And they don't offer it for sale from themselves anymore... And the other retailers are all significantly more expensive...

Guess I'll be waiting for awhile... Can't even find a local retailer that sells them, at least not the GF1C (20mm = C). I'm guessing there's a bit of a shortage?

Seems to be. I could not find one online but a local Tulsa Dealer had one each of the 20 and Zoom kits for $899. I jumped on the zoom for my wife for Christmas (I suspect I will use it a bit also...). They said they had just gotten those two in.

Mike

drdoak

dmmattix wrote:

Seems to be. I could not find one online but a local Tulsa Dealer had one each of the 20 and Zoom kits for $899. I jumped on the zoom for my wife for Christmas (I suspect I will use it a bit also...). They said they had just gotten those two in.

Mike

Unfortunately, my local/regional retailer doesn't carry Panasonic in general so I guess I'm stuck with what I'm stuck with for sources. Good news for you though! If anyone happens to see one of these in Central Ohio, kindly send me a message.

drdoak

I just had a stroke of luck! I stopped by Microcenter to see an S90 in action (which I did actually like). I was standing there talking to an associate about the GF1, when the store's purchaser walkes up and basically hands me one to look at right off the truck. Seems he was pretty much the only one that knew a couple had just arrived and I had the dumb luck to stand there at the right time. I gather Panasonic is a frustrating company to deal with insofar as getting them to ship products in a timely fasion, so he was pretty happy about having gotten any of them at all for the store.

Only played with it a couple minutes so far (charging batt now), but here's my first impressions:

The box is surprisingly heavy, but most of the weight is the massive set of manuals (bigger than my 40D's) in four languages. The camera, however, feels light but not cheap in my hands. Kinda feels a lot like the G11 to me.

I doubt I'll have a chance to see the screen in sunlight for awhile, but it did look extremely sharp and well color balanced in the store.

The menu system seems pretty intuitive, but I think I prefer the S90's a little. The thumb scroll wheel on the back is a little hard to turn. Some of this is because it's recessed enough that it is difficult to tell that your thumb is actually on the wheel.

With the 14-45mm lens (pancakes are apparently only available in a VERY limited quantity now) it isn't going to fit well on your belt. It's gonna bulge a bit and won't fit in my fairly large jacket pockets. That said, it fits beautifully in a LowePro Rezo TLZ 10. It's like a kiddie sized proper SLR bag .

Panasonic needs to build the plugs into the charger and not use a seperate cable. Just like I've gotten with most every camera I've ever bought (including a Pano DMC-TS1).

I'll definately be looking for a 20mm pancake eventually for portability, but this is going to be lots of fun in the meantime.

Woot!

ziggy53

Congratulations on the new Panasonic Lumix GF1.

dmmattix

ziggy53 wrote:

Congratulations on the new Panasonic Lumix GF1.

Absolutely. Sounds similar to my experience. I think the cameras had been in the store about 1 day.

I have taken some test shots (inside with flash) and the overall quality seems to be very good. I plan on taking it out with me tomorrow at lunch to try some outside tests.

Mike

RovingEyePhoto

rutt wrote:

The GF1 + 20mm f/1.7 is smaller than a 35mm rangefinder but larger than a real P&S, even a slightly large one like the LX3. It easily fits in a coat pocket, but not in pants or shirt pockets. I hang it around my neck a lot, and because it's not big and heavy, don't really notice it. That keeps it ready to hand.

Some sort of pouch might be nice to protect it from scratches if you are OCD about this. I don't think you'll need anything very special. Look around, you might even have something. I would get some sort of clear plastic LCD protector which would let you not worry too much about the one thing that really matters.

One solution for easy toting whole kit is a Neoprene fitted camera cover, approximately matches camera/lens countour and snaps closed. For remaining gear, I carry only a small non-photo messanger bag (10"x12"x5", purchased at an REI-type outdoors store) holds batteries, cards, polarizer filters, filter wrenches, cloth, blower, flash, 2nd lens in pouch (haven't hurt one yet that way), manual, maps, train schedule, Under Armour T for cold, lens caps, mod releases, pen, mints, etc. The whole thing's much easier and less conspicuous than a full-depth camera bag. When shooting, I remove Neoprene cover and tightly wrap it around messenger bag strap and secure with 10"x1" valcro strip, becomes a soft 4" diameter bump on the strap, totally forgotten. The neoprene covers are made by a couple manufacturers, available for a pittance from B&H, Adorama, etc. All very chummy and easy and out of the way. I shoot hand-held on-the-fly with an Oly E-3, either 12-60 f/2.8-4 zoom or 50 f/2 macro prime (crop factor 2.0 on each), works out very well, although best when zoom is mounted and diminutive 50 is in the bag, which is 90% of the time. When rains, just slip camera and sometimes even bag under rain shell if was smart enough to bring along.