Noob camera suggestions

it's all subjective, isn't it? you can always shoot with manual flashes. the GH3 and the EM-5 take grips, so you can get a bigger looking camera. but the glass will always be smaller on them.

i guess you COULD have people that will judge your professional abilities by showing up with anything less than a full SLR. but, i honestly wouldn't worry about it. it's the pictures that matter - not how you took them. besides, you aren't finding your own clients, right? these are jobs for which you are already employed? i wouldn't worry about it...
 
nick said:
But I have some hang ups...

The question is, can I do all that with great results with an m4/3 setup?
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My $.02- No.
But maybe! I would need a larger sensor.
I could give a rats ass how big the body is.
 
Well you are going to LOVE the form factor of the one that I just unboxed. I am impressed at how much smaller and lighter than a DSLR it is. I will bring it this weekend so you can drool.... For me light makes right! and small too.
newCamera_1.jpg
 
nick said:
Well that didn't take long. Trigger pulled. I'm now in the m4/3 club. :D
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Glad to see you thought about it seriously for three whole minutes.....:facepalm: Merry Xmas ! Welcome to the club. What a great price...
 
Dan said:
GX1 today on Robert's Camera on Ebay for $199. Just picked one up, it's a fine little camera, and unreal value at that price.
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Dan, your post made me sit up and take notice due to the size, form factor and price of this M4/3 body. But this is probably not the answer for me since it is only 3 oz less than my G3.

Maybe you can help me with my conundrum ObiWon Kenobi. After more than a decade of backpacking a point and shoot across the landscape and shooting JPG I recently bought a Loomy G3.You and Nick and others led by example, here at BCP, and showed me the benefits of the M4/3 revolution and shooting RAW. My photography skills and my photo quality have been revolutionized and my interests have been rejuvenated.

Trouble is, I have an 85 mile trip planned this August across the Windies and I have resigned myself to carrying my point and shoot instead of my G3. The two reasons are: 1) Battery Life - I currently consume one proprietary battery per day so I will have to carry 8 batteries. 8! The cost is not the main issue - the weight is - I will need a trailer to carry my batteries (solar panel field chargers have never worked - even a little - for me) and 2) bulk - I now carry a large chest pack (compared to my point and shoot) with my Loomy and the kit 14-42 or other lens. I have a nice kit lens and the much better 14mm/F2 Loomy pancake lens. I like the size and weight of the other Loomy 14-42 power zoom (literally the same size as my pancake). Unfortunately it is not that good at focus quality, apparently, per the reviews. Maybe I can fit IT on my Loomy into a MUCH smaller chest pack.

Any advice? I want to shoot RAW with a manual camera and a bright lens! ( I feel like I am writing to Ann Landers...):facepalm:
 
Interesting thread. :twothumbs:

I know about the pain, to carry DSLR stuff while backpacking.
My stuff has a weight up to 5 kilograms. :(

A good light weight camera is a nice thing.
The prices of these systems are similar to a mid grad DSLR system.
Charging of batteries in the middle of nowhere is mostly impossible, on both systems. That's pain too.

But what's about the picture quality and the individuality of settings?
Dust and moisture protection, when you are playing in the fields of the Southwest? I'm thinking about the sand, dirt, etc.

I know, my DSLR isn't a burner, but I can handle this cam ''like a blacksmith his hammer''.

@Art, 8 batteries - you can shoot up to 1000 pictures w/ your new cam. :)
 
Camera that your missing talking about is the Sony Nex line. I have the older Nex 5N and will use that until the Nex Line comes out here soon with a full frame. Nex has alot newer cameras out but this one does a great job and I dont have to baby it.

Pros:

Mirrorless.
Comes with a very strong Sensor for its size and price. Same as the Nikon D7000 . Nice low light capabilities.
Very Small and inexpensive. You lose it, crush it or destroy it your only out a few hundred.
With a $20 you can use any brands lens that you like, just have to buy the specific adapter. I like the old Pentax Takumar lenses. F2.8 of lower for under $100 usually. You cant AF with the old lenses but its very easy to focus if your shooting landscapes or people. Also is fun to shop around for the old lenses that have been neglected for years and are razor sharp still.
All around nice camera for pics and video.

Cons:

Sony lenses are meh, but with some Photoshop you do ok. Good if you want to bring just one lenses that can AF and do it all.
Slower to use the functions than a full DSLR.
Manual focus with the older lenses is slow and takes practice. So fast shots are a problem. Not an issue though as the quality of the older glass more than makes up for it for me. If I was going to shoot wildlife or sports id get a full DSLR.


There is alot of nice cameras out there but the ability to use any lense is what makes this such a nice camera for me. Sensor and price point is very hard to beat.
 
I'm going to reboot this old thread because I'm thinking of getting a new camera. I was going to be on the lookout as there would likely be some deals coming up for the holiday season, but even sooner than that... Amazon's deal of Day is the Panasonic Lumix G5KK for $299. This seems like a really good deal. @Nick - did you get this one?

For me, I want something better than the 'fancy' point-n-shoot that I use now (Panasonix FZ150.) I love its light weight, mega zoom and good video, but I'm continuously disappointed by image quality -- especially in twilight. It's also starting to have lens errors more and more frequently requiring a turn off/on.

I'm never going to invest in a really nice camera because A) I'm cheap and B) I don't want to baby it (I'm really hard on my cameras and break one about every 3-4 years!)

So... what do you guys think?

Thanks,
- JG
 
I actually share this thread with non-BCP folk frequently when they ask me about cameras. It's become a good resource so thanks for the reboot.

I did get that exact camera and that is a killer price. I added a link to it in your post for others.

I didn't keep it for long but it was a great little camera. The biggest reason I got rid of it was because of my career change. I was shifting my bag to entirely m4/3 and then I identified a way to go self-employed that required a serious camera (full frame) so I had to abruptly change that plan and sell off all of my gear (m4/3 and 60D) in order to afford my 6D and the glass I needed.

There are a lot of obvious benefits of the G5 which I probably don't need to mention so I'll just mention the not so obvious things and quirks that I didn't particularly like about it.

First off, I LOVED the lenses I bought. I got an ultrawide and a prime and the sharpness and quality was fantastic. I didn't play with the kit lens much so no opinion there.

I did not love how quick video smoked the batteries. Get lots of extras. The good thing is they are cheap. When I was just shooting photos it wasn't as bad but still worse than most cameras I've used. Makes sense though with all the screens in action.

It felt like the tint of the photos was not as accurate as they are with my Canon cameras.

Night time/low light sucked but it's still better than most P&S, just don't plan on taking any nice, artsy night shots. If you get a good prime with a fast aperture, that will help for slots and stuff.
 
Jammer said:
I'm going to reboot this old thread because I'm thinking of getting a new camera. I was going to be on the lookout as there would likely be some deals coming up for the holiday season, but even sooner than that... Amazon's deal of Day is the Panasonic Lumix G5KK for $299. This seems like a really good deal. @Nick - did you get this one?- JG
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I have the G3 and I am now back into photography due to this camera. I love it, not like it. Reinvigorated my shooting as you may have noticed. It is backpackable, shoots in RAW and I now have about 4 lenses for it. I come from a point and shoot background though so take my opinion with a grain of salt. I hang with a bunch of SLR toting backpackers but they are stronger and tougher than I am. I aspire to a full SLR but am unwilling to carry the bloody thing on a multi-day.

I have had my Loomy G3 for about a year now and I have shot about 7,000 pictures and videos with it. This is a great price in your link BTW. At that price, why not?
 
I love the G5, it replaced my big Nikon D7000 on backpacking trips.
And I agree on everything Nick already mentioned, it's a great little camera with a lot of potential.
I really fell in love with it when I took it on all my Uintas trips this summer.
The only feature I really miss is the lack of good quality night shots
 
A couple of weeks ago I beat the crap out of my DSLR going down a technical slot canyon. I even packed a tripod in. I got some shots that I like but I know I would have taken many more shots if I had a good point-n-shoot just handy in my pocket. It was such a pain getting the camera out and I only used the tripod a couple of times because it was an ordeal to stop and set up. It is ironic because at the end of the canyon I was annoyed that I had taken so few shots. But, had I used a Canon G12 or similar I would have taken plenty of shots but would not have had the shooting options and would have been mad I did not have my DSLR. My decision was that when I want spectacular, mount on the wall shots I need to make a trip just for that and bring the SLR. For documenting more hard core trips like rapping and hiking through a 20 inch wide canyon and hiking/swiming/rapping down 3 more miles of such I need to have a great point-n-shoot. I'll save the DSLR for walk in canyons like moonshine wash or Spring Canyon with one, simple, small rap. So now I am stuck wanting to save up for a 70-200mm f2.8 but have also decided I need another camera. And.....remember the part about beating my camera up? Who knows, perhaps it will give up the ghost before its time because of that and I will just need another DSLR.

I just need to start buying lotto tickets.
 
Duke said:
A couple of weeks ago I beat the crap out of my DSLR going down a technical slot canyon. I even packed a tripod in. I got some shots that I like but I know I would have taken many more shots if I had a good point-n-shoot just handy in my pocket.
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Pictures or it never happened! :cool:
 
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