trinity
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Post by trinity on Feb 10, 2021 13:21:33 GMT -8
Another vote for the Sony RX100. There is very widespread consensus, particularly among backpackers, that the RX100 is the best compact point and shoot available. The biggest drawbacks are price (even the III model is around $750) and the lack of a very powerful zoom (the VII has a 200mm zoom, but comes in at around $1,300). Here is the camera I carry for $400: link. I think just about anyone would agree the Sony is a better camera. The question that only you can answer is whether or not that increase in quality is worth the significant increase in cost.
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franco
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Post by franco on Feb 10, 2021 13:31:59 GMT -8
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trinity
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Post by trinity on Feb 10, 2021 14:07:46 GMT -8
That's a great article, franco , thanks. Wish I'd had that when I was shopping for cameras last year....
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texasbb
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Post by texasbb on Feb 10, 2021 14:09:19 GMT -8
Another vote for the Sony RX100. There is very widespread consensus, particularly among backpackers, that the RX100 is the best compact point and shoot available. The biggest drawbacks are price (even the III model is around $750) and the lack of a very powerful zoom (the VII has a 200mm zoom, but comes in at around $1,300). Here is the camera I carry for $400: link. I think just about anyone would agree the Sony is a better camera. The question that only you can answer is whether or not that increase in quality is worth the significant increase in cost. "Best" might need some context. Everything I've read suggests the Sony has phenomenal picture quality, but its ergonomics is roundly criticized, especially by folks who've used Panasonics. I personally put very high value on being able to use a camera without glasses and with gloves.
My 2015ish Panasonic LX100 has noticeably poorer picture quality than my 2010ish (now dead) Canon G10, but when the LX100 dies, I might just buy another one (if they still sell them) instead of finding something that makes better pictures because it is soooo easy handling.
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Post by bradmacmt on Feb 10, 2021 14:50:56 GMT -8
the lack of a very powerful zoom A "powerful" zoom on a P&S is going to be a compromise. Heck, on any camera a zoom, and especially a "powerful" zoom, is a compromise. Personally I prefer the 24mm-70mm max of the RX100 Mk III. Picture quality trumps all. Perfect for landscapes and portraiture. Beyond this, quality falls off. For years all I used was a Nikon FM with fixed 35mm lens, following the Henri Cartier-Bresson school of less being more. As I always tell my clients, "good things happen within limitations." It's true in all areas of life including photography...
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Post by Coolkat on Feb 10, 2021 15:08:41 GMT -8
I guess it all depends on what you're looking to do and what you need the camera to do. A few years ago I almost ruined my cheap samsung pointnshoot by trying to take pictures in the rain. So the next year I got the older model of this... www.dpreview.com/reviews/olympus-tg-6-reviewI loved it. Waterproof meant that I didn't have to stop and put it away when the rain showed up. It has a crazy good macro mode with built in focus stacking (just need steady hands) and the livecomp mode is nice at catching night scenes. Last fall I started carrying a mirrorless camera that is much heavier but more versatile still in the olympus family that is waterproof also. However, what I wasn't expecting was my lens fogging up in the wet mornings. I'm gonna have to find a solution for that this year.
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Post by cheaptentguy on Feb 11, 2021 18:10:18 GMT -8
Thread back from the dead!
BTW... I ended up getting the Sony A6300 last year and just got a pancake 16mm lens as my main lens for hiking, especially if i'm trying to go light. I still have much learning to do, but have so far been quite impressed with the image quality.
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Post by tomqvaxy on Jun 25, 2021 9:08:56 GMT -8
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texasbb
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Post by texasbb on Jun 25, 2021 10:54:56 GMT -8
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Post by High Sierra Fan on Jun 25, 2021 12:40:11 GMT -8
What do you want to do with it? Price wise it’s the same as B&H (you might find their 183 reviews helpful). For myself I’m not familiar as for small point and shoots I’ve recently been using Canons. One thing to note: it doesn’t come with an external battery charger.
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reuben
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Post by reuben on Jun 25, 2021 13:27:16 GMT -8
A "powerful" zoom on a P&S is going to be a compromise. More or less this. Many are digital zooms, rather than optical zooms, at least in a certain range. So they basically crop and resample, which works up to a point, depending on various factors.
The compromise is weight and size. I have never considered taking my 400mm f/2.8 lens on a backpacking/hiking trip. Not even a day hike. It weighs 7 or 8 pounds, and that doesn't count the camera or tripod/monopod to hold the darn thing up. And it's big.
Even a 200mm lens on so-called full frame or 35mm equivalent is big and heavy for someone who's hiking. The good news is that longer focal lengths are use more for wildlife, whereas shorter focal lengths are more often used for landscapes, which is what a typical hiker would photograph. Then there's macrophotography...
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franco
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Post by franco on Jun 25, 2021 14:12:39 GMT -8
In that price range and for weight and size I think that it is a good one. The EVF (Electronic View Finder) is not the best BUT many camera like that don't have one at all so it does have a big advantage over others in the sun. The 25-250 range is also pretty good, again for that size and price point.
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reuben
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Post by reuben on Jun 25, 2021 14:52:15 GMT -8
FYI, and I'm sure that franco knows this, the greater the zoom range, the more the image will suffer, as optical compromises are made in lens construction. If you're trying to capture great images this is an issue. If you're trying to capture decent images of great times, it doesn't really matter.
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rebeccad
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Post by rebeccad on Jun 25, 2021 15:01:37 GMT -8
I didn’t review all of the posts above, but it occurs to me, thinking about my Sony RX100 vs its predecessor (a Panasonix Lumix), that battery size and weight is also worth thinking about as a backpacker. I usually take about 4 spare batteries for a week-long trip, 5 if I think photography might be really good or I might want to play with special stuff that burns batteries. The Sony batteries are small and light. The Panasonic batteries were roughly twice the size and weight, with no better life.
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Post by tomqvaxy on Jun 25, 2021 15:41:11 GMT -8
it was in a better position to be delivered (6/30) at amazon than a vague 2-4 weeks at the camera emporium. if i had developed any customer loyalty over the years i could hold on, but lacking that i couldn't see any reason. if amazon stuff breaks, they take it back.
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