Noob camera suggestions

Star trails are definitely one of the great strengths of a standard DSLR over the m4/3. To me I think it comes down to what I enjoy shooting. I got into night stuff for a while but over the last year I've barely done it at all. 51 nights so far this year and I've only gotten out the camera on 3 or 4 of them. I'm just never all that compelled to do so. I'd much rather have the size and weight savings so that I can shoot more of my journey and spend my evenings relaxing around the fire.

FWIW, I've really dug some of the star trails that FourisTheNewOne has done with his m4/3 setup.

Like this:

Trails in Idaho by Clint Ireland Huffman, on Flickr
 
Thanks Dan for your insight into the m 4/3 cameras. I decided to pull the trigger on the G3. Found it new with kit lens on Amazon for 399 (last week when I was looking at them they were 449). Looking forward to using it. Thanks again everyone for your input. Great site!
 
Pagosasube said:
Thanks Dan for your insight into the m 4/3 cameras. I decided to pull the trigger on the G3. Found it new with kit lens on Amazon for 399 (last week when I was looking at them they were 449). Looking forward to using it. Thanks again everyone for your input. Great site!
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Let us know how you like it.. I'm thinking about pulling the trigger on one too!
 
i'm definitely going to get one as well. Pagosasube, i swear the price went down while i was going back & forth between the forum & the camera webpage. i had one of those 'wait a minute, i thought it was just over $400 when i looked a few minutes ago' moments.
i'm going to have to put off my purchase for a little bit longer, so maybe i'll have even more luck with that.:)
definitely let us know how it works out for you! i can't wait to hear what you think.
 
So, it's decided. We are all going to follow Dan Ransom's lead, me included, and buy a Panasonic Lumix G3. That means my pictures will look as fine as Dan's, right? Dan, what G3 lenses are in your inventory and would you make recommendations for us? Also, do you have preferences for a remote? An intervalometer? Thanks ahead of time.
 
I'm trying to get back into photography and I recently purchased the G3. I'm happy enough with the camera and the M4/3 system that I'm ready to invest in a second lens (something that I can use for sports). The G3 is light weight, small enough that I don't mind carrying it for a while, and takes pretty good images—much better than my P&S. I know that this camera will exceed my ability for a long while to come.
 
Here's a quick rundown of the lenses I have for m4/3, if anyone is curious.

Lumix 7-14 - Expensive, but very sharp, and very lightweight for what it is. Only complaint is that it doesn't have threads for screw on filters. In slots, I love the wide angle, probably the lens I use the most. F4 though, so it's slightly slow.

Lumix 14 2.5 - Great lens, SUPER lightweight, relatively sharp, but not as sharp as the 20 1.7. Still great for on my GF1 when I want basically a P&S size setup, but with SLR quality.

Lumix 20 1.7 - Another pancake lens, super high quality image, great for low light, and a fairly "normal" focal length on the m43 sensor. Awesome lens.

Lumix 14-45 - Came with my kit. I think this has now been redone as a 14-42 that is less expensive and lighter. It's the ideal "all around" lens, but it's not particularly great at anything. It's a variable aperture zoom.

Lumix 45-200 - Lightweight telephoto option. Build quality is quite good for $300. Again, variable aperture, so it's not great in low light and you don't get great bokeh. But I own it, and it's nice for telephoto landscape work.

Olympus 45 1.8 - Absolutely beautiful lens. Very light, great build quality, and great bokeh for m43 cameras. Use it a lot in video for shooting interviews, etc...

Lenses I don't have, but wish I did -
Lumix 12-35 2.8 - Expensive, but is getting rave reviews.
Lumix 35-100 2.8 - Expensive, but great reviews as well.
Olympus 12 2.0 - Possibly the best lightweight fast wide angle lens in the m43 world. Could be a good fit with the new OM-D EM5 or GH3 if the high ISO is cleaned up.
Olympus 9-18 - Another super wide angle lens, has filter threads, is lighter than the 7-14, and gets great reviews.
Lumix 100-300 - be nice to have a long telephoto, though I get the feeling it's pretty standard in image quality and build, nothing outrageous.
 
Thanks Dan! That is what I needed. Ordered the G3 with the 14-45 kit lens from amazon for $399 and the Lumix 14 f2.5 for $280 and a bunch of other bits. Now I have to go out and find something to photograph....
 
I want a serious wide angle lens too but had to limit my $$$$ outlay. I haven't shot with an SLR since film in the 90's and getting back in at the M4/3 level is exciting but a bit of a price shock since I am basically starting over with lenses and accessories. I still have my Nikon FE film SLR and it should go up on a pedestal with honor as a historical piece. I hope the size growth from my point and shoot to this SLR-like form factor and weight doesn't slow me down in the backcountry. I am interested in everyone's experience with a chest pack for this particular size. I know you guys use a choice brand chest pack for your full SLR's - I will go see if they make one for this smaller camera. An intervalometer and remote control are on the shopping list next. Thanks again Dan and to all you photoheads playing and sharing here!
 
what lenses do you have for that FE nikon? some of them could very well adapt to the m43, but with an relative crop factor. still, those old manual lenses are awesome for m43s.
 
Dan Ransom said:
what lenses do you have for that FE nikon? some of them could very well adapt to the m43, but with an relative crop factor. still, those old manual lenses are awesome for m43s.
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Really??? I probably only have a couple of primes but I will go look - and investigate an adaptor solution. That would be a mechanical-only adaptor to get from the Nikon SLR bayonet to this new G3 lens mount, correct? Something like this adaptor is my guess - but not from this vendor - I won't buy from a vendor that can't write in English.
 
you have f mount lenses that i imagine have manual aperture control, yeah? focus will of course be manual as well, but you can set a custom function button to make manual focus super precise. they work great. i'd love to know what primes you have, might be some goodies in there. you just have to remember that a 24mm prime for your FE would be a 48mm on m43 sensor.
 
nick said:
I'm right behind ya, Art! As soon as I can offload my S95, I'm picking up a G3 and either the Olympus 9-18 or the Lumix 7-14. I can't live without a good ultrawide!
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The Oly Zuiko 7-14mm is a spectacular lens, I had it paired to my Panasonic DMC-L1. I wish I still had it (the lens).I would assume it would work on a micro 4/3 w/adaptor.
 
gnwatts said:
The Oly Zuiko 7-14mm is a spectacular lens, I had it paired to my Panasonic DMC-L1. I wish I still had it (the lens).I would assume it would work on a micro 4/3 w/adaptor.
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yep. it definitely works. the problem with the 4/3 lenses that aren't micro is that they aren't particularly light. that one is twice as heavy as the Lumix 7-14, and twice the expense.

Too bad oly and panasonic didn't figure out how to make micro and regular 4/3 the same mount right from the beginning, and keep the lenses lightweight. afterall, they are the same image circle. damn pentaprisms! makes me very unlikely to ever get the oly 4/3 lenses. but there are some awesome lenses for 4/3.
 
My G3 arrived yesterday. Nice size and weight. Have not had much of a chance to play with it yet. Dan, thanks for the info on available lens for it. According to the previous posts it appears that you can get an adapter to use older manual lenses - is that true? I have an old Pentax K1000 with various lenses for it - could they be used? What would be the limitations?
 
if truly a manual lens, the biggest limitation is the focal length will have a 2x multiplication on it. so a 24mm lens will have a 48mm effective focal length. i'm not very familiar with the pentax lenses though.
 
The more I think about the m4/3 system, the more I want to ditch all of my DSLR stuff and go for a little higher end m4/3 rig like the G5, GH3 or an Olympus OMD. But I have some hang ups...

So for my work, I do a ton of portrait work. I also do quite a bit of shooting company functions (parties, awards, etc.), often with off-camera flashes or at least an external on-camera flash. And after all that I do a lot of architectural photography for them. Now unlike the architectural stuff I did in Park City, most of this is in physical therapy clinics, not multi-million dollar homes so the ultrawide effect is not generally as flattering to the subject.

The question is, can I do all that with great results with an m4/3 setup? I assume that the same wireless triggers, flashes, etc would work with a G3 or similar. Perhaps the biggest question, is camera size a big enough factor in people's minds that I wouldn't be taken seriously when I show up to take their 'professional' photo with this tiny little camera?
 
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