The Best Camera For Overlanding

[AngryRedBird]

I've went from having some of the most expensive (Nikon) camera equipment down to a pocket camera.. Reasoning.. I was a photographer for the SCCA when I was hit by a reckless driver (not related to any race event) while attempting to cross at a designated cross walk.. Although the pain etc didn't happen over night.. carrying all that camera equipment started to become too much of a bare.

Several months past without a camera in my hand.. and I had to do something.. I didn't want to give up this hobby.. I started combing the web for smaller, light weight cameras like the Kodak or the Fuji Film.. Intentionally I wanted the small Nikon water proof camera.. but wasn't able to purchase it. I was forced to settle for the Fuji Film.

At first I was skeptical and many of the images looks synthetic.. and the software that came with the camera was even worse.. But I kept trying to use it.. Because the digital age.. I took pictures with a 35 mm.. and felt limited or hindered because film development was expensive. Having this new Fuji Film XP60 all digital.. I started and even forced myself to take pictures.. Just so I could better myself and my images..

Overtime.. and I didn't mean to draw this comment out.. But this is relevant.. because of the small camera's design.. I found it hard to hold with four fingers.. Most of these new smaller cameras are the same way.. I needed a better way to hold the camera without having to buy extra equipment. I had this idea, Using a ski pole, and a few hardware screws etc.. I created a camera handle.. and with the ski pole wrist strap.. I'd never drop the camera again.

 

[kojackJKU]

Yep, have a bucket full of lenses and 2 or 3 bodies is not a great way to travel. My complete kit fits in a small sling bag, and my pocket. I get great zoom range out of the x-s1, and light carrying with the x10. No add on lenses needed. They batteries are small enough to fit in any pocket and not know they are there! I have 2 32 gig cards in them and can take hrs of video at once or 1000s of photos. I get back to the campsite and edit on the asus MS tablet. Works great, light weight and I get amazing photos from my 3 setups.

 

[freshlikesushi]

FUji xt1

 

[DeskToGlory]

Since I initially wrote the blog post we picked up a Sony A6000 for Ashley (which I have borrowed on occasion) and have been really impressed. Small size, APS-C sensor, and full manual capability all for about $700 depending on where you buy it. Everything has it's purpose, but this is a pretty good bang for the buck. I keep looking at the Sigma 19mm lens for it (super sharp prime and only $200!). I sold my spare 5D Mark II to pay for this and had money to spare. It'll work just fine as a backup in case something happens to my Mark III on the road. The A6000 doesn't really touch my Canon 5D Mark III and 35mm f1.4 for image quality, but the little mirrorless Sony is a great option for a quarter of the price.

 

[NevilleOlivares]

Best mirroless camera

Very informative thread.

 

[NevilleOlivares]

Best mirrorless camera

Very informative thread for vlogging cameras and mirrorless cameras.

 

[zoom17]

I’ve been a professional photographer for most of my life. I hear this questions asked all the time.

I say the same thing. Pretty much any camera body made in the last few years will produce amazing image is the image is properly exposed. The best advice I can give is to invest in good lenses, lenses are one of the key things in making good images. I actually have a friend who’s a professianal photographer and doesn’t even own a camera body but has invested lots of money lenses and just rents camera bodies when needed.

They other thing to remember is when getting sucked into the large megapixel camera bodies is that you need to have the computer power to handle these images and the hard drives to store the images.

The other thing to spend money on is a good tripod. Nothing frustrates me to see a person with a huge DSLR and lens sitting on a flimsy tripod.

Personally I sold all my Canon gear and went to Fuji. After 25+ years photographing my back has taken it’s toll from lugging camera bags around. I have not regretted the decision one bit.

 

[Kcdude]

Fuji xt-2 a couple of primes and a zoom. Swapped my from my Canon 5D3/70-200/24-70 setup and do not miss lugging it around. Find myself shooting a lot more with a light, compact setup.

 

[Matthew Turner]

I just grabbed a Sony A5100 mirrorless for stills. The A5100 is still very highly regarded as an entry level mirrorless. The lens options are more than adequate for my needs and probable 96.865% of the population. The kit lens is pretty legit as far as kit lenses go. The weight and size make it great for adventurers and urban street photography but has simple enough features that your grandmother could use it at family gatherings. According to the interwebz, the video is much more than acceptable but that wasn't a selling point for me. My GoPro gets most of the video action. The best part, the price tag: $449.

 

[CSG]

It's amazing how good a good cellphone camera can be but the biggest problem with cellphone cameras (at least on the iPhone 5S and the SE I currently use) is getting DoF effects. Can't really do the things we can do with a fully adjustable camera.

I have been enjoying both a Lumix superzoom (I've got a couple) and my Fuji X-Pro 1 with the 18-55 Fuji lens in recent years. The X-Pro 1 with that lens is amazing:

 

[spikemd]

I agree, call phones take amazing pics now.

I am thinking of retiring my Nikon1 gear (V1, J4) with 10-100PD, 18.5mm, 10-30, 32mm and am eyeing the Fuji system. I broke my 10-100PD and the 32 mm (most expensive) has the common aperture stuck issue. The zoom is too expensive to fix and the 32mm is too delicate in the field.

I really liked the small form factor of the N1 system, but Nikon is discontinuing it and they have no other mirrorless system on the market. I have had Nikon gear for 30 years, but I don't want to go back to a DSLR hunk.

The Fuji X-E3 and XT20 look like great cameras. While not fully weathersealed, they are relatively small with APSC sensor and many of the Fuji lenses are weather resistant and appear much more durable. I will give up a little weight for durability. I played with an XT20 last week but the X E3 appears a little smaller.

I have never been a serious photographer but now need a camera that can take better pics for a new small business. I have also not been taking the time for photos with 3 small children running around. I need to take a step back and snap more pics...

 

[spikemd]

On the flipside, I have been using my GoPro Hero5 more and with the Karma grip and drone, have captured some great video.

 

[yoggie]

I currently use a D750 with the 28-300 for most of my adventuring and hiking, however, I think a good superzoom, especially the newer ones with the 1 inch sensors in them would be perfect for most people's needs. Heck, even one of the superzooms with the small sensors but a lot of zoom would be good enough for most as it would allow you to take pictures of some very distant objects.

My second camera that I bring almost everywhere is a 360 camera, the Theta S. It is amazing how easy it is to add the pictures to google maps for easy viewing for a lot of people of places that 99% of them will never be able to go. The pictures are not great when seen from a decent monitor and I doubt you would ever frame them, but they are cool for sharing that street view like experience.

 

[zelseman]

...The one that you have with you. When traveling in a vehicle I normally have a Canon 5d Mark 2 with 24-105L but when I am backpacking, bike packing, or paddling it is a GoPro or cell phone.