[dobbin]

Well, I have gone and broken my much loved Panasonic LX3. I took it to the sheffield photog shop on eccy toad who sent it to panasonic, who said uneconomical to repair. So, i need a new camera.

Used to have a Canon 350d, and would have thought they'd be reasonable second hand these days. I sold all my lenses, so not restricted to canon if someones got an older smaller nikon they would like to sell me.

Would consider anything reasonable. Quite like an SLR again, but not desperate for one.

[dave]

Whats your budget? You can get mint second hand LX3s for under 300 sheets.

[cofe]

The LX5 will be out pretty soon and looks excellent. Alternatively maybe one of the Micro 4/3rds cameras would be more appropriate/compact than an SLR? Panasonic GF1 or the Olympus Pen.

[dobbin]

Money is the primary thing I suppose. Also, consider the foley factor - whilst I think I want an SLR, I wont get the best out of it, dont really know what I'm doing/cant be bothered to set up shots/lug it around so second hand Lx3 looks good, but those links to the GF1 or pen thing look ace. Probably big dollar though.

[dave]

GF1s or pens are not really any cheaper than a bottom end DSLR (and why should they be?) If cost is the factor then look at a second hand LX3 or even cheaper a Ricoh GX100/200, which sounds like it would suit you better. Forget about the LX5 cos its brand new, so you'd pay a premium for it at the minute.

[dontfollowme]

The Talk Photography forum has a good classifieds section - worth keeping an eye on.

[slackline]

The Talk Photography forum has a good classifieds section - worth keeping an eye on.

Clickety-click (took a whole 15 seconds )

[Johnny Brown]

I would say get another LX3. Unless there was something specific you didn't like about it - in which case, explain.

Having played with all the Micro 4/3rds bodies, most are more like big compacts than small SLRs. I much preferred the G1/ G2 for that reason.

[dave]

The form factor is more like big compacts, but that's a good thing if you want a more compact camera.

[Johnny Brown]

You get the GF-1 in the end then?

[dave]

Yeah, although I've just noticed a fault so it'll be going back for fixing. Otherwise pretty happy with it so far. Couple of minor things you'd wish were better but nothing that the small size doesn't more than make up for.

[Johnny Brown]

I didn't think it was small to be honest. Lenses etc? Gone for the 3rd-party finder?

[dobbin]

I liked my Lx3 and would be happy with another one. Just should've kept it in a case is all.

[dave]

I didn't think it was small to be honest.

[noembed]That's because you're an oopma loompa. If it was any smaller and I'd feel like a . If I left it on the floor I would not be able to see it properly from my lofty Shaq-esue vantage point. Bearing in mind it will fit into the accessory pocket of the smallest bag I had for the D70. [/noembed]

Got the 20mm lens and kept my fiddy and hunnerd mils. Might try and find a more compact 50 though. Haven't got a viewfinder as yet. Might not bother either, can't say I've needed one yet, and hard to bring myself to pay even 50 bananas second hand for the olympus finder which would be put to shame by most christmas cracker novelties in terms of build quality. Since you'd always have to use the screen to focus anyway i'm not convinced that an external finder wouldn't cause more problems than it would solve.

[Johnny Brown]

The only way I'd see me really using one would be with the 20mm + finder combo. Surely on a 20mm you can range just range focus at, say, 5.6 and fuggedabaatit?

Dobbin -  unless you can come up with a decent reason not to, buy another LX3.

[cofe]

stop being a fanny haddock doblog, and just get an LX5, then I can have a play with it.

[dave]

The only way I'd see me really using one would be with the 20mm + finder combo. Surely on a 20mm you can range just range focus at, say, 5.6 and fuggedabaatit?

yeah that would probably be fine for distant shit. To be fair I've mostly been using for upclose wide open people shit, for which it'd be a ballache cos of not only the focus but also the parralax - plus its nice to maintain eye contact with a subject at times. I might get a finder if I see one cheap, but it really would have to be cheap.

Dobbin, get a D3.

[Johnny Brown]

Stick your 20mm at f4, focus 2m and you'd be looking at dof from summat like 1m to 3m, no? It'd work for me. How do you get eye contact when composing on a screen? Are you a chameleon? Better with a finder and both eyes open - dealing with different scales in each eye has got to be easier than different directions.

Dobbin, what Cofe said.

[dobbin]

They're £500 though! if I get one will i be on the front cover of the guide?

[dave]

Stick your 20mm at f4

versus

wide open

and:

focus 2m

versus

upclose

Clearly what you say would work fine for cases when zone focus shooting stopped down is appropriate. But that's not all the time.

[cofe]

They're £500 though! if I get one will i be on the front cover of the guide?

Grow a pair.

And yes, you can be cover boy*.

[Johnny Brown]

dof from summat like 1m

upclose

Sure Dave - the principle would still stand though - do the maths on closer and wider. Just how close are you getting?
You haven't explained the chameleon bit either.

[dave]

Alright I've just spent half a kubrick on a camera with a great AF system, a sharp fast lens and a great LCD, buy what I should really do is ignore all that and shoot zone focus stopped down with an overpriced non-coupled viewfinder and hope that shit is in focus? Are you guys the crew? Am I in the middle of something here?

[Adam Lincoln]

They're £500 though! if I get one will i be on the front cover of the guide?

Grow a pair.

That's cheaper than i thought. Just bought an LX3 last month, and it's great. Bar the zoom. Will be bunging mine on Ebay and buying an LX5 on the 23rd August.

[Baron]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Panasonic-DMCLX3-Digital-Camera-Optical/dp/B001D2NHE0/ref=sr_1_1/280-2684613-2260825?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1280917224&sr=1-1

Brand new. Get a waterproof case for next week Bodie.