Mirrorless camera
I am an experienced amateur and I currently own a Nikon D810 with a 24 - 70 zoom. I recently took the camera with me on a long trip and I found the weight overwhelming. I love the camera, but walking for 4 hours with it is very tiring.
I am thinking of buying something light weight to use when the weight of the 810 is a problem. Anyone have some advice?
Thanks,
Eric
I am thinking of buying something light weight to use when the weight of the 810 is a problem. Anyone have some advice?
Thanks,
Eric
0
Comments
Many are opting for lighter weight gear when traveling. Check out the Sony mirrorless models, A7, A6000, etc. or Fuji
I use the Canon M for light weight travel but primarily because it's cheap and uses Canon lens. ( the 22mm f2 pancake is a favorite, camera and lens fits in a shirt pocket!)
some pics
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless/
I'm bringing this up because I was in a similar situation and the question I asked myself is what's the minimum image quality/zoom range that I'd be happy with mixed with the most portability*. If the "smaller system" was still too large for me to carry in a lot of situations it wouldn't be too helpful. Cost was a factor as well and I saw a killer deal on a factory refurbished Canon G1X for <300 bucks but if money was no object the LX100 would likely be on the top of my list and the people I know with them are extremely happy with that camera.
As far as mirrorless systems go I like Fuji an Olympus personally, but once you start adding in a few lenses, especially a 2.8 zoom that small kit grows pretty quickly. It'll be a lot smaller than the D810/24-70 but it's still a decent amount to carry.
*Also going this route at least with the G1X meant it has a nearly silent shutter which is important for certain aspects of my work. And whle lags behind my DSLR's I can do most of my work with it in case I need to travel light, additionally it frees up my second body for times when I've had to leave one on a tripod for area shots. So if you're a professional I'd also think about other uses for the camera beyond being one to carry with you more often.
Thanks, I will investigate
Heres some samples;
https://eph28.smugmug.com/Angie-/New-York-City/
https://eph28.smugmug.com/Angie-/Israel-2015-Angie/
For me, I sold the D800 and invested in the Fuji system. Loving it!
I bought an X-T1 in August and have been enjoying the camera so far. See my blog post at http://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com/2015/08/first-impressions-fuji-x-t1.html for my first impressions of the camera.
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
But the 5T is crop sensor 18mpx and I wanted super quality for printing large landscapes. I tried out a Sony a7markii with an adapter for my Canon lenses. I was really impressed. 24mpx with image quality similar to my Canon 5dii, at least for walking around town with a 24-70. And it has much better low light performance, yielding useable images shooting hand held at night. However, autofocus with my Canon lenses is not good, so it takes some deliberation to use the system and I like the look of the Canon images better for landscapes on a tripod. Then Sony came out with a7Rmarkii, which is supposedly awesome but way out of my price range since I already have perfectly good cameras. But it caused the price of the original a7R to plummet on the used market. I bought a "like new" a7R mark i for $1000. It's an awesome camera. 36mpx full frame and my expensive Canon lenses fit with a $100 adapter. It takes amazing photos and is about one third the size and weight of the 5d. Your Nikon glass will also work with an inexpensive adapter. You can rent one for cheap to see if it is right for you. I suggest you check it out. There is a now a reasonable assortment of Sony and Zeiss lenses available for the a7 line. The dedicated lenses are very compact compared to Canon or Nikon.
I love my Canon kit and am by no means giving it up. I chose Canon because many pictures I loved in magazines were shot on the 5DII and I still love the look. But for backpacking, casual travel and the camera I carry with me to work every day, the Sony system is great and just way easier to carry. As they say, the best camera for you is the one you have with you.
Good luck!
Bryan
Gallery: https://eldonshea.smugmug.com/
Or the Sony RX100III or IV
Nikon D300 with 16-85 f3.5-5.6 VR, 35 f/1.8, 70-300 VR; Nikon D800 with 24-70 f/2.8, 105 f/2.8 VR Micro, 70-200 f/2.8 VRII, Win 7 Ultimate 64-bit, Dell XPS 17 (8 GB RAM), LR5.3, Photoshop CC
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Cheers, Sara
lots of choices. And you don't have to give up your DSLR, a mirrorless can be an inexpensive gear supplement
For example, I have a Canon based FF kit, mostly for portraiture/formals, landscapes and cityscapes.
Then I have a Canon based APS-C/Crop 1.6x kit, mostly for candids, action, wildlife, etc., and when I need a bit smaller presence or a little less weight. ... But, I can also borrow from the FF kit as needed to make the sum of both kits greater than either separately.
Then I have a mirrorless kit, based on the Sony a6000, and a number of lenses with the NEX/E-mount, but I also have lens adapters:
Pentax M42/Screwmount to NEX (Fotasy), all-manual lenses and does not work as well with Mamiya, Yashica and some Vivitar M42/Screwmount lenses.
Pentax K mount to NEX (Fotasy), all-manual lenses (and I haven't really tested yet).
I'm also going to order a Nikon F mount to NEX adapter, to support a number of lenses I just acquired.
Possibly too a Leica Screw Mount/M39-LSM to NEX adapter.
Ostensibly, this makes the mirrorless kit the most versatile of the bunch for still life and some vista landscapes, especially stitched vistas and panoramas using a GigaPan Epic 100. (In particular using the a6000 plus lens adapter and a Pentax 200mm, f4 SMC I am very fond of.)
Of course nothing in life is perfect, and I find that the Sony a6000 user interface is less than desirable, slow to use and high-ISO images (including the RAW/ARW files) have heavy-handed noise reduction, limiting their use for large prints. Add in the fact that Sony doesn't really have a high-quality, large-aperture standard/normal zoom, and the third-party manufacturers haven't made one yet either (looking for a Sigma 17-50mm F2.8 EX DC OS HSM in Sony E mount). I am also rather unhappy with the available flash options.
(Ziggy note: I added the above paragraph to show that the a6000 has some downsides, as every camera does. That doesn't mean it is not a great travel body and you can build a very nice system with it for many general photography tasks.)
We live in a really wonderful time for photography.
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
I just shot a musical with the equivalent lens you seek. The camera and lens easily kept up with the non-stop action and unnatural/odd stage lighting. If you have a need/desire for quiet, Fuji makes a X100 series camera which is completely silent with its leaf shutter. But it is a fixed lens specialty camera.
The good thing about all mirrorless cameras is they all have adapters and will accommodate lenses from other camera/lens makers including older, non-electronic legacy glass. Typically, all mirrorless have electronic viewfinders which have special focus scenarios to facilitate manual focus.
Good Luck in your quest.
Unsharp at any Speed
everyone LOVES their mirrorless cameras
is the DSLR getting less love?
www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless
Possibly. I don't miss my mirror. Its to the point now where I wonder what it is that a mirror brings to the game.
A former sports shooter
Follow me at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bjurasz/
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right, I still use the DSLR for sports and action but it's easy to see that mirrors in cameras will eventually disappear - a gradual transition
www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless
I'd say current dSLRs are generally (obviously there's a great range of SLR bodies) better for stuff like continuous AF and CAF with tracking. An OVF also gives a continuous, uninterrupted view of action. And of course the Canon and Nikon systems offer a huge range of lenses, lighting, accessories, etc. And they are supported by lots of third parties. Beyond that I don't see that a mirror adds much. For most things I tend to prefer the information provided by current EVFs but for some things an OVF is still a better option. I used film SLRs, even shot a couple of weddings (gratis for classmates who said it was either me or no photos because they couldn't afford a professional photographer). Then life got in my way and I kind let the photography hobby slide into oblivion. Picked up a P&S for a trip 10-12 years ago and eventually decided I wanted to pick up my old hobby. I was looking at cameras like the 7D, 60D, D7000 but when I really thought about what I wanted a camera for, I kept thinking these cameras are too big, and too heavy. I wanted a camera for travel, I take it hiking, throw it in a backpack biking, just waling around town, and so on. When the Olympus E-M5 hit the market I thought it provided a really good compromise and I jumped in. At the time, the Fuji system was very immature. If I were buying in today I'd compare the m43 and Fuji systems pretty closely. I think I'd still go m43 but the Fuji system looks very appealing. I can stick an E-M10 with one of the small primes or even a zoom like the Panasonic 12-32 in a ski jacket pocket and I don't think about it till I want to take a picture. I'd like to have a FF system but in conjunction with and not as a replacement for my m43 stuff. I know I'd end up leaving a FF SLR and lenses at home or in the car trunk way too often. And my wife is a lot more tolerant of the smaller kit. All of the systems represent certain compromises and some tools are clearly better than others for certain tasks. But folks can stunning pictures with all kinds of cameras. And folks can make technically excellent and boring pictures with all kinds of cameras. I feel like I'm far and away the biggest liability in my photography.
D700 with 24-70 f2.8 and Black Rapids RS-5 shoulder strap.
Get a shoulder strap. It makes all the difference in the world. From breaking your neck, or falling off of your shoulder, to almost weightless...hanging out of the way...ready in a moments notice. It also doesn't fall forward when you bend over...maybe a little, but not in the way.
I shoot multi-day outdoor events...and love it. I vacation and walk around with the above combo on the shoulder strap for 8 hours at a time...no issues. Love it.
But, know that there are other manufactures making similar.
No, it won't take the place of a point and shoot size camera...but otherwise...it's the bomb-diggity.
Even if you decide on a mirror-less camera...I'd advise getting a shoulder strap for your D810...you just won't believe the difference.
Hope this helps.
Educate yourself like you'll live forever and live like you'll die tomorrow.
Ed
hi, just a heads upon k mount pentaxes,im ussing pentax primes on my x pro1,{da 21ltd,fa43 ltd and da70ltd} with a novoflex adapter and im getting quality equal to and posibly better than the fuji primes. highly recomended..cheers mark
I was able to spend some time with the A6300 at Photo Con in LA last weekend. It feels great and has super fast focus with Sony lenses. Of course I was inside the convention hall, but it worked very well indoors and I expect it will be better in good light. Sony says it has the best autofocus of any Sony camera. I saw no reason to disbelieve them. Live view has no lag at all. Sony claims 11 fps. Combined with the fast focus, this camera could actually work well for sports, something I would not say about most other Sony cameras.
I spoke with Jason Lanier (a Sony "Artisan" or whatever they call their sponsored photographers) at the show. He is very high on the camera. You can see his YouTube videos showing the camera and shooting an entire wedding with it. I also spoke with Brian Smith (also a Sony Artisan), who likes it as well. The best thing is that this camera and the a7Rii finally deliver on the promise of working well with Canon lenses. I traded in my a7ii for the a7Rii for that reason. Even with the cheap Fotodiox adapter my Cannon lenses work perfectly, at least in good light. I will try the updated Metabones, which Brian Smith told me works extremely well with Canon lenses on the new Sonys. Good luck.
Bryan
Gallery: https://eldonshea.smugmug.com/
Respectfully, Live View always has some lag. It sounds like the 120fps EVF, combined with a rapid imager readout and fast image processor are giving a combined minimal lag, and that's a good thing.
Do remember that in Continuous mode the Sony a6300 "Hi+" mode displays the "previous" processed frame, inducing more viewfinder lag too. The Imaging Resource review says of this mode, "... which can make tracking a moving object difficult during a burst." http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/sony-a6300/sony-a6300A6.HTM
Still, it sounds like this is a splendid little ILCE and a rightful replacement for the a6000, which I have.
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
I should have said "no noticeable lag." Keep in mind that I was shooting in a convention hall where the subjects were not moving rapidly. Trying to keep up with a bird in flight might yield different results.
Gallery: https://eldonshea.smugmug.com/
I'm curious if people are finding they have to clean their sensors more with mirrorless? I have the a7r2 and it has that extreme cleaning shake - I use it a lot however I am noticing way more distracting dust spots than I ever did with the dslr models
p.s. I apologize if I'm highjacking the OP, seemed it was an old enough thread to do so
YES. Without a mirror, the sensor is hanging out there ready to collect dust every time you change lenses. A bulb blower is essential equipment for any mirrorless kit.
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