Lost Canadian
Expedition Leader
Heated mud sligging ain't even worth it. I didn't dog Oly, I simply stated my opinion, and as for being ignorant, that I certainly am not.
Stepping away from P/S and going DSLR, what do I need?
- Thread starter xcmountain80
- Start date
Heated mud sligging ain't even worth it. I didn't dog Oly, I simply stated my opinion, and as for being ignorant, that I certainly am not.
photoman
Explorer
Suggestion to the Original poster.
Do not determine your purchase based on an online forum where people are biased or think they know more than they do.
Best advice that can be offered:
1. Determine your price point
2. Research what is available in that price point. Camera- lenses-etc.
3. Determine what you are wanting to shoot 'primarily'
Landscapes = wide angle lens- tripod- ballhead
Nature/Sports= long prime or long zoom- tripod - ballhead- possibly a flash
People= wide angle zoom- medium zoom or medium prime- flash
4. Re-evaluate price point
5. Do more research
6. Visit a camera shop so you can hold the cameras you are interested in and use the menu functions. How does each feel - weight and ergonomics
7. Do not let the camera shop sell you some thing out of your price point. If the heavily push one particular brand as the best- leave.
You don't need a Ferrari to go to the grocery store or a fully equipped expedition vehicle to travel maintained forest roads.
Buy what works for you not what people on this forum think is best.
Do not determine your purchase based on an online forum where people are biased or think they know more than they do.
Best advice that can be offered:
1. Determine your price point
2. Research what is available in that price point. Camera- lenses-etc.
3. Determine what you are wanting to shoot 'primarily'
Landscapes = wide angle lens- tripod- ballhead
Nature/Sports= long prime or long zoom- tripod - ballhead- possibly a flash
People= wide angle zoom- medium zoom or medium prime- flash
4. Re-evaluate price point
5. Do more research
6. Visit a camera shop so you can hold the cameras you are interested in and use the menu functions. How does each feel - weight and ergonomics
7. Do not let the camera shop sell you some thing out of your price point. If the heavily push one particular brand as the best- leave.
You don't need a Ferrari to go to the grocery store or a fully equipped expedition vehicle to travel maintained forest roads.
Buy what works for you not what people on this forum think is best.
Michael Slade
Untitled
xcmountain80
Expedition Leader
Gentelmen and Ladies alike,
Opinions are a good thing (for the most part), I'm not unfamiliar with cameras per say, and realize everyone will like what they like. Just as the Toyota crowd love there Toyota's not that we haven't considered owning something else and most of us do, we prefer the Toyota.
Since there are no bad choices so to speak I was trying to establish a base line from which I could pick. Think of it like selecting a mild travel/ offroad vehicle, a dozen choices and some offer different things which means something entirely to different people. I've learned allot and take everything into consideration, this isn't politics so there really are no bad choices. Photoman mentioned feeling the cameras and holding them, much like firearms they don't all fit. I found the Olympus to have the most user friendly menu (have had Olympus cameras forever, many of the new PS Digitals). the full size DSLR seemed somewhat bulky but manageable. Keep opinions coming and slap each other around if you have to but we are all different and thats what makes us so great*.
*for the most part
A
Opinions are a good thing (for the most part), I'm not unfamiliar with cameras per say, and realize everyone will like what they like. Just as the Toyota crowd love there Toyota's not that we haven't considered owning something else and most of us do, we prefer the Toyota.
Since there are no bad choices so to speak I was trying to establish a base line from which I could pick. Think of it like selecting a mild travel/ offroad vehicle, a dozen choices and some offer different things which means something entirely to different people. I've learned allot and take everything into consideration, this isn't politics so there really are no bad choices. Photoman mentioned feeling the cameras and holding them, much like firearms they don't all fit. I found the Olympus to have the most user friendly menu (have had Olympus cameras forever, many of the new PS Digitals). the full size DSLR seemed somewhat bulky but manageable. Keep opinions coming and slap each other around if you have to but we are all different and thats what makes us so great*.
*for the most part
A
Lost Canadian
Expedition Leader
Aaron, here's a translated interview with Toshiyuki Terada, Olympus's Product Manager of SLR Planning. If a DSLR is what you're seeking this is a revealing look at where Olympus is heading and it may or may not influence your decision. Either way, I read it and thought of this thread.
UK4X4
Expedition Leader
I bought a Nikon D70 about 6 years ago with the kit lens
added a longer Nikon lens last year...............
To date the camera is still better than me at taking photographs........
Go with a one of the favorite manufacturers listed here, pick a half decent midrange zoom lens as your primary.
My original kit lens was fine, it just got scratched
Go take photographs.....................you will be happy with the results !
added a longer Nikon lens last year...............
To date the camera is still better than me at taking photographs........
Go with a one of the favorite manufacturers listed here, pick a half decent midrange zoom lens as your primary.
My original kit lens was fine, it just got scratched
Go take photographs.....................you will be happy with the results !
I think it's funny that we talk of slr as if its the cream of the crop. Let's face it. Slr is legacy technology. At the time if its invention, the prism box was the best way for the user to look thru the lens and still have that light go to the film box during exposure. With greater sensor and evf technology, soon an evf will become a superior alternative to optical vf (pana gh1 is very close) . I'm sure all the manufactures realize this future and perhaps is behind the statements by olympus. Its simply cost prohibitive to try to compete further against the big boys in a segment with a finite life line.
Mirrorless is the future whether we like it or not
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
Mirrorless is the future whether we like it or not
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
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Lost Canadian
Expedition Leader
I agree, mirrorless may be the future but it's not even close at this point. Oly's VF-2 is much much better than the panasonic version, it's actually what sold me on an EP-2 over the GF1, but even it, the VF-2 that is, doesn't remotely come close to matching what I see when I look through my D700's viewfinder. I also believe that the tools the professionals require and use will always influence a certain segment of the advanced consumer group. That's not to say that smaller cameras are not a part of the future, it's simply a point that if a company removes itself from that top tier they will find it hard to be a market leader in terms of sales. Sales of course are driven by one thing, demand. The three biggest things pros and consumers demand right now are high quality video integration, high quality high ISO performance, and high quality still/video integration with respects to mobile devices. In spite of the efforts put forth by others the fact that both Nikon and Canon best meet those demands, at least with #1 and #2, is why we constantly see them at the top in terms of market share. It's simple economics. It can't be assumed that pros and consumers are ignorant because for the most part they are not. They simply know what they want regardless of what someone markets as "better."
Niche market products are fine, and certain segments of those markets may influence bulk market product but at the end of the day those who lead in terms of market share are typically doing so because they best meet the demands of both pro and consumer. So that is why I say if you are just starting out Canon and Nikon are a safer bet as they will most like have the product, at least at this point, which will best match what the majority and most likely a budding photographer will want.
Niche market products are fine, and certain segments of those markets may influence bulk market product but at the end of the day those who lead in terms of market share are typically doing so because they best meet the demands of both pro and consumer. So that is why I say if you are just starting out Canon and Nikon are a safer bet as they will most like have the product, at least at this point, which will best match what the majority and most likely a budding photographer will want.
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Lost Canadian
Expedition Leader
That's a good point ywen. Another way to look at things is to evaluate the needs of each photographic discipline and then look at the product offered by each respective manufacturer.
For landscape shooters there are generally two overwhelming considerations, resolution, so pixels, and dynamic range. Sony, Canon, and Nikon are all tops in this category by a fair margin as illustrated by the DxO Mark sensor evaluations and to which those three are bested only by some of the medium format backs.
For sports/action, in addition to what ywen mentioned about professional support, speed and low light performance is the name of the game. All one has to do is have a look around the sidelines of any sporting event to best measure who are the leaders in this arena.
For commercial work resolution and colour accuracy are key. There's nothing in the DSLR market place at this point in time that meets that criteria better than the Nikon D3x, however many professionals will choose and be using medium format here for the absolute best in image quality.
Reportage runs the gamut with respects to what is required but things like reliabilty, durability, shutters rated to 300,000 cycles for instance, high ISO performance for low light shots, wide reaching support, and now video intigration, are all critical considerations when it's your job and your gear is your lifeline. Canon and Nikon don't have much competition when all these things combined are considered.
Now speaking from personal experiance, as someone who just three short years ago got bitten by the photographic bug, I can tell you that while gear doesn't define ones shots, choosing the right tools for what you want to do is important. I started out with a little Nikon D40. At that point I had no idea what I wanted to shoot, had no idea where photography would take me, but as I began to figure out what I liked I am happy I got into a system that offered a wide range of product options for me to grow into and choose something best matched my needs and wants.
For landscape shooters there are generally two overwhelming considerations, resolution, so pixels, and dynamic range. Sony, Canon, and Nikon are all tops in this category by a fair margin as illustrated by the DxO Mark sensor evaluations and to which those three are bested only by some of the medium format backs.
For sports/action, in addition to what ywen mentioned about professional support, speed and low light performance is the name of the game. All one has to do is have a look around the sidelines of any sporting event to best measure who are the leaders in this arena.
For commercial work resolution and colour accuracy are key. There's nothing in the DSLR market place at this point in time that meets that criteria better than the Nikon D3x, however many professionals will choose and be using medium format here for the absolute best in image quality.
Reportage runs the gamut with respects to what is required but things like reliabilty, durability, shutters rated to 300,000 cycles for instance, high ISO performance for low light shots, wide reaching support, and now video intigration, are all critical considerations when it's your job and your gear is your lifeline. Canon and Nikon don't have much competition when all these things combined are considered.
Now speaking from personal experiance, as someone who just three short years ago got bitten by the photographic bug, I can tell you that while gear doesn't define ones shots, choosing the right tools for what you want to do is important. I started out with a little Nikon D40. At that point I had no idea what I wanted to shoot, had no idea where photography would take me, but as I began to figure out what I liked I am happy I got into a system that offered a wide range of product options for me to grow into and choose something best matched my needs and wants.
Michael Slade
Untitled
There is an option that hasn't been mentioned...Mamiya. I am playing with a 645 with a Leaf back on it. 55mb RAW files look pretty good. I"m working on a five-panel stitch...this might take all night to render. 
Lost Canadian
Expedition Leader
:drool:There is an option that hasn't been mentioned...Mamiya. I am playing with a 645 with a Leaf back on it. 55mb RAW files look pretty good. I"m working on a five-panel stitch...this might take all night to render.
Michael Slade
Untitled
nwoods
Expedition Leader
Leo, what kind of photos do you take? I don't think I've seen enough of yours to get a feel for your style of photography. I think it would be helpful to see what kind of stuff you shoot and in what envirionments. I think the others that have chimed in here on this thread have posted enough photos over the past year or two to provide us s good sense if what their results are with the equipment they are using... Except for Yvewn. We need more of your awesome landscapes!
I have no opinion on the PEN topic. They look facinating, but my current budget limitations preclude experimental buying, and these 4/3 units dont really seem to do anything my Canon G10 or 20D and a few nice lenses can do. Same for Oly. I have too much in Canon glass to even consider changing platforms now, though I will admit the compact size and weatherability are attractive for MY type of photography.
I haven't had my m4/3 cameras for too long but I can refer to this site. This guy has taken some amazing landscapes with his GF1 + various 4/3 mount lenses.
http://starvingphotographer.com/blog/tag/panasonic-gf-1/
http://starvingphotographer.com/blog/tag/panasonic-gf-1/