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Calling all Camera Wads. (Read 10126 times)

Moo

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Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 09:50:00 am
Ok I know nothing really of and have very little interest in photography or the taking of pictures. However my lass would like a new camera, she travels a lot so we've geen advised to get a micro 4 3rds. Paul B has already recommended the Sony rx100 and the Fuji x100, any further knowledge or help in making this most pressing of decisions would be most appreciated.

It would be good if it was suitable for an amateur enthusiast and could take decent HD video.

cheers.

slackline

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#1 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 09:55:34 am
Don't have many suggestions as I know fuck all about micro 4/3rds (or photography in general as its just a hobby and I'm not a kit junky), but a budget range would be useful.

Moo

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#2 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 09:58:38 am
yeah sorry,

not really bothered about the cost to be honest just want something good and adaptable which isn't massive whilst at the same time being quite solid and well made.

Durbs

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#3 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 10:52:04 am
If there's no upper limit, there's some really good CSC/Bridge cameras around.

Partly depends if you want the ability to change lenses or not.

The Sony's a good shout, and comes with an 18-200 (I think) lens which is a handy walkabout range.

The Fujifilm X-E1 is getting good reviews too but is quite a few Fuckalls.

For travelling, it's a wee bit tricky as you tend to want both wide-angle (for claustrophic narrow cities and sweeping landscapes) and tele for wildlife and the like. 4/3's don't do great for wide-angle as they have a 2x crop on the focal length.
Also you want it to be robust, at least drizzle-proof and fairly light.

Only other slight down-side of CSC is lack of optical viewfinder - mostly from the battery-drain aspect.

I'm not sure if the above has actually helped...

Johnny Brown

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#4 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 10:58:45 am
Paul B has already recommended the Sony rx100 and the Fuji x100,

I wouldn't recommend either of these unless you're the kind of person who always chooses stuff based on 'just give me the most expensive - that'll be the best'. The Sony RX100 is probably the best small camera on the market but also one of the dearest. The Fuji is more of a Photographer's camera - no zoom, manual controls, retro design, and you don't sound like a Photographer with a capital 'P'.

They don't really make poor cameras any more, most are beyond the wildest fantasies of ten years ago, and all are more capable than those that took most of the great photos of history. Micro 4/3rds is a good choice - like a compact in style, but with interchangeable lenses meaning the camera can grow into a system to suit you. Again, there are no poor ones on the market, but your main choice is whether to have a built-in viewfinder or not, and whether to spend nearer £300, £1000 or somewhere in between.

My personal choice would be an OM-D, but that's top end. Your best option is to set a budget, then visit a decent camera shop and see which you like. Don't neglect the second-hand market - the main advantage of the most recent models is better video.

andyd

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#5 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 11:04:57 am
Photography is quite adictive in terms of 'kit'.  The lens you use is more important than the body. I'd go for a mid range dslr (maybe second hand) and spend as much as possible on a lens. That way, you can upgrade the body and keep the lens.

dave

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#6 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 11:06:06 am
4/3's don't do great for wide-angle as they have a 2x crop on the focal length.

Thats nonsense, 4/3 and micro4/3 is its own system and hence the lenses are built to the sensor size. Its not a "crop" system, unless you consider 35mm a "crop" on 645.

Tom Its hard to recommend something without more of an idea on specifics. I'll assume you want something reasonably lightweight for travel which should rule out DSLRs. Are you arsed about interchangeable lenses, zoom/prime, is fast autofocus crucial etc?

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#7 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 11:26:06 am
panasonic gh3 is probably a more appropriate


Paul B

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#8 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 12:05:03 pm
Paul B has already recommended the Sony rx100 and the Fuji x100,

I wouldn't recommend either of these unless you're the kind of person who always chooses stuff based on 'just give me the most expensive - that'll be the best'. The Sony RX100 is probably the best small camera on the market but also one of the dearest. The Fuji is more of a Photographer's camera - no zoom, manual controls, retro design, and you don't sound like a Photographer with a capital 'P'.

They don't really make poor cameras any more, most are beyond the wildest fantasies of ten years ago, and all are more capable than those that took most of the great photos of history. Micro 4/3rds is a good choice - like a compact in style, but with interchangeable lenses meaning the camera can grow into a system to suit you. Again, there are no poor ones on the market, but your main choice is whether to have a built-in viewfinder or not, and whether to spend nearer £300, £1000 or somewhere in between.

My personal choice would be an OM-D, but that's top end. Your best option is to set a budget, then visit a decent camera shop and see which you like. Don't neglect the second-hand market - the main advantage of the most recent models is better video.

This is pretty much what I said before being wildly paraphrased following the comment "money isn't an issue" (hence suggesting Sony).

The reasonable suggestion was the panasonic G-series (3?), one sold with the kit zoom and 25mm 1.7 prime for £400 on Talkphotography, this gives you a viewfinder. If you don't care about that then look at the GH-series or even the GX-series.

The OM-D seems stupidly expensive for such a small sensor.

Johnny Brown

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#9 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 12:20:07 pm
Shit if money isn't an issue get a Hasselblad Lunar. END OF DISCUSSION.

Durbs

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#10 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 02:41:35 pm
4/3's don't do great for wide-angle as they have a 2x crop on the focal length.

Thats nonsense, 4/3 and micro4/3 is its own system and hence the lenses are built to the sensor size. Its not a "crop" system, unless you consider 35mm a "crop" on 645.

It's not complete nonsense. The 2x crop effect is valid, so a 18mm lens isn't very wide on a 4/3 body. Which was the point I was trying to make :)

dave

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#11 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 02:50:51 pm
As I said, its not a crop system, its not a system giving you a cropped sensor within the body of a traditionally larger format using the lenses of said larger format (like DX or canon 1.6 is).

What you mean is the focal lengths are numerically smaller then you're used to from 35mm, because its a smaller format. I don't really see how thats related to this thread, or availability of wideangles for m4/3 cameras though. I've got a wide and a fisheye for mine, no problems there.

cofe

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#12 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 04:04:07 pm
Tom, this site is good for checking new prices, though it doesn't list all brands with all shops: http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk

Panasonic GX1 is a decent m4/3 camera, and you can get the new mini powerzoom which keeps the size down. (What's the point in a little camera with a big/uncompact lens?)

Along similar lines there's the G3 and more recently the G5.

Olympus do the various PEN cameras, and the Oly and Panasonic all share lenses. Olympus also do the OM-D which I was keen on getting but I've gone off it as the kit zoom is big, and the viewfinder hump offends me. Cheapest place to get one 'new' (i.e. not new but with Oly warranty) is here: http://shop.olympus.co.uk/e_commerce/refurbished.cfm

Having spent a bit of time researching all the various mirrorless cameras I've been recently impressed with the Sony Nex-6, esp now Sony also have a compact powerzoom. Much easier to handle than e.g. OM-D. I might get one of these. Less lenses, but Sigma also do third party prime lenses. I don't plan on getting loads of lenses.

Hope that helps.


Paul B

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#13 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 04:10:52 pm
Panasonic GX1 is a decent m4/3 camera, and you can get the new mini powerzoom which keeps the size down. (What's the point in a little camera with a big/uncompact lens?)

They've had issues with these lenses.

dave

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#14 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 04:29:44 pm
Olympus do the various PEN cameras, and the Oly and Panasonic all share lenses. Olympus also do the OM-D which I was keen on getting but I've gone off it as the kit zoom is big, and the viewfinder hump offends me. Cheapest place to get one 'new' (i.e. not new but with Oly warranty) is here: http://shop.olympus.co.uk/e_commerce/refurbished.cfm

Good spot that refurb site. Similarly I got my panasonic from a shop in Scotland who seemed to have swung some deal with panasonic to handle all their refurbs - my GF1 was indistinguishable from new bar some sellotape on the box.

What we need now is an EP4 - the guts and sensor from the OMD but in a sensible shaped package for half the price.



Johnny Brown

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#15 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 05:37:49 pm
Keep up Dave:



£479

dave

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#16 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 06:02:04 pm
WHY WASN'T I FUCKING INFORMED OF THIS?

Johnny Brown

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#17 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 06:13:47 pm
£449 and in stock in Bristol... you could have one by Friday.

dave

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#18 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 06:27:40 pm
Hmm, seems its lacking a thumbwheel, best wait till that sensor hits a serious body in the EP line.

Johnny Brown

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#19 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 08:50:36 pm
That won't be half the price though... I'm still waiting for the EPL-OM-oononastick.

tomtom

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#20 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 08:59:55 pm
More of a general comment, but this micro 4/3 range is really confusing to me... I get the general idea (big sensor in small body with good lens) but somehow the mass of model names, acronyms and other gubbins seems far more complex than the DSLR market - where there seems to be a greater stratification between beginner, medium and high end...

I'm kind of looking at one of these things (especially for the video), but find it really hard to know where to start!

dave

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#21 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 06, 2013, 09:54:19 pm
With Olympus i think their naming convention is like this:
Ex - their original non-micro 4/3 DSLR cameras
EPx - the original "Pen" (hence the P) m4/3 cameras, fully featured.
EPLx - L for "light" - generally a bit smaller, fewer hard controls.
EPMx - M for "mini" - smaller still, even fewer controls, more like a punter compact with a lensmount.

Obviously in the above I've using the letter "x" in the algebraic sense.

But then they tore up any convention with the OM-D, which is officially called "OM-D EM-5". Basically the styling and name is anachronistic nod to the OM line, presumably to trick OM users into thinking Olympus is giving them the camera they've always wanted but will never get.

For video you wanna look at the panasonics, I think their models with H in the name are the ones geared to video to which there isn't really an Olympus equivalent. Other than that Panasonic's naming convention is all arse over tit. The GF1 and GX1 are equivalent to the EPx line, the GF2 and onwards are kinda like EPLx line. I think their Gx (non-H) are I suppose like a GF1/EP but souped up to look like an SLR with a grip and built-in EVF.

Moo

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#22 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 12, 2013, 03:50:52 pm
Pen pl5 looks good cheers guys.

gingerninja

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#23 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 14, 2013, 09:43:11 am
sony do some good mirror less cameras and you can get a converter to use the full frame lenses that keeps the focal length and reduces the f stop too. so a 50mm 1.8 would be a 50mm 1.4!!! or something like that hahaha.
avoid the cannon eos m, the quality of image and build is good the the focusing is shocking.

cofe

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#24 Re: Calling all Camera Wads.
March 14, 2013, 12:59:50 pm
you can get a converter to use the full frame lenses that keeps the focal length and reduces the f stop too. so a 50mm 1.8 would be a 50mm 1.4!!! or something like that hahaha.

One of these bad boys innit.

 

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