[Closed] Bridge Camera Advise

Smartphone camera sensor with a big lens on it. So you won't get better photos, but you will get a whacking great big zoom. Can't say I'd find a use for a super zoom in a city though.

I'd look at a Sony rx100.

That bad?

Just noticed my error in the title - bloody iPhone.

Not bad, no. Smartphones have good cameras these days. It's just got a zoom lens on it.

It will be fine if you just want to add zoom not IQ. To be honest phone IQ is fine most of the time.

But for me its an Rx100.

Better in low light
Better dynamic range (coping with differences in light and dark)
Better for making B&W conversions

Mate got one of these for a bit less than this :

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Panasonic-Lumix-FZ200-Bridge-Camera/dp/B008N8NXT6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1474191488&sr=8-2&keywords=Lumix+FZ200

Holds it's 2.8 through the whole zoom range, which is pretty good.

Fits in this case very snuggly :

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lowepro-Shoulder-Digital-Cameras-Camcorders/dp/B000KZD73W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1474191645&sr=8-1&keywords=Lowepro+Apex+100

4 years old with a smartphone sensor in it. All it offers is a zoom lens (an impressive one).

I've just been recommend a Canon M10 too. This is a minefield 😆

I've owned two Fuji bridge cameras and rate them highly.

Have a look at the Olympus Stylus 1s. Bigger sensor than most bridge cameras, but not as many zooms. I love mine.

Thanks, a bit too rich I think.

I've been comparing cameras all day, narrowed it down to these I think:
https://www.dpreview.com/products/compare/side-by-side?products=canon_sx540hs&products=canon_sx530hs&products=canon_sx60hs&products=sony_dschx400v&products=canon_sx420is

I am no expert but if you are going for a camera that expensive surely you must be able to get one that outputs .raw files like my acient Fuji HS10? It makes a hell of a difference.

My internet connection is a 3g phone only so I can't google things for you, will be here all day 😀

Okay I'll add .raw files to the filter

Thanks!

There is only one answer to this thread.

Panasonic LUMIX FZ200. You're welcome.

I'm not sure why you'd want a super zoom camera for a city trip. You might use the long end a few times, but all that extra lens will be to the detriment of the rest of the camera & makes the overall thing pretty bulky.

I'd look for something more compact with a typical optical zoom (3-5x)& a decent wide end to fit in as much of the city views as possible.
For your budget I'd probably give RAW a miss; the file sizes are so large it will significantly slow down the camera between images, while it saves.

I am not sure what the worth is of all the comments above about the sensor in these cameras being the same size as that found in smart phones?
The sensor in my Nikon P300 is only a tiny bit larger than that in my smart phone, but it takes much better images than the phone, is easier to operate, has a useful zoom on it and the battery will last for several hundred shots.

I'd be looking at this sort of thing....

http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/products/canon/ixus-285-hs-digital-camera-in-black-97622/show.html

http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/products/nikon/coolpix-s7000-digital-camera-in-black-95351/show.html

http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/products/sony/cyber-shot-dsc-wx350-digital-camera-90365/show.html

http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/products/panasonic/lumix-dmc-tz60-camera-in-black-90185/show.html

Cheers for that @stumpy

At the moment I'm swaying towards a Mirrorless - something like the Canon EOS M10

Then getting 18-55mm and 75-300mm for the zoomy shots?

nathb - Member

Cheers for that @stumpy

At the moment I'm swaying towards a Mirrorless - something like the Canon EOS M10

Then getting 18-55mm and 75-300mm for the zoomy shots?

For £200? The body with 15-45mm lens is about £300 I think.....and a half decent zoom is probably going to be the same again.

Ah I upped the budget a little to circa £300

The M10 comes with a 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM lens.

Then I was thinking of one of these too: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000HDZAUA/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2OAJ7377F756P

or

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000AM7CJ0/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

with an adapter https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00G34IQBW/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A1U95MPGIVSCJV

Total comes in at circa £350

Why do you want a long lens for NYC? Or is this for after?
I'd get the 22mm f2 and leave the kit lens at home.

I was thinking we could get some nice skyline pics when over the water?

Bloody list keeps getting bigger, with the bold ones being our favourites so far:

[b]Sony A5000 - £203
Sony A6000 - £363
Canon M3 - £378
Canon M10 - £203[/b]
Canon SX60 - £340
Canon SX540 - £260
Canon SX530 - £165
Sony H400 - £145
Lumix FZ330 - £327
Lumx FZ300 - £191

Think that's all 🙂

https://www.dpreview.com/products/compare/side-by-side?products=panasonic_dmcfz300&products=cybershot_dsch400&products=sony_a5000&products=sony_a5100&products=sony_a6000&products=canon_eosm10&products=canon_eosm3&products=canon_sx60hs&products=canon_sx540hs&products=canon_sx530hs&products=sony_dschx400v&sortDir=ascending

a5000 is great, recently sold mine and regretting it already!

@cp
Did you ever have issues with dirt on the sensor?

I'd get the a6000 out of that list, unless I was trying to do it on the cheap then the a5000 or Canon M10 would appeal.

@cp
Did you ever have issues with dirt on the sensor?

no, never. I didn't swap lenses though, just used it with the standard kit lens.

That said I mainly use full on DSLRs with prime lenses which get swapped regularly, and never really had a problem with dust with those either.

Just turn camera off then hold camera with lens pointing down when changing lens.

The range finder on the A6000 is really appealing, but the missus wants a 180 flip screen?! I need to talk her out of that.

But the budget has to stop somewhere, with the M10/A5000 we'd be able to get a wide range of lenses for under £400 in total.

Do you really need more lenses? I'd get the base camera and standard lens and see how you get on. If you're going big lens, unless it's a bright day, you're going to need a tripod.

If you're going big lens, unless it's a bright day, you're going to need a tripod.

Okay good points, do guys think the A6000 is worth the extra £173? That's the big question for me now.

The m3 has gone at that price, so that's an extra £50 to buy over the A6000.

Okay good points, do guys think the A6000 is worth the extra £173?

I'd recommend an RX100 too, gets taken places because it actually fits in a pocket, later models have a flippy screen, the flash articulates so can be bounced.

I've got a full frame SLR too, but when I take that on holiday it starts to take control of the whole holiday. A decent pocketable camera is a good compromise for holiday IMHO. Bigger stuff is for when you want to fiddle around with manual controls for creative shots and stuff.

If you're going big lens, unless it's a bright day, you're going to need a tripod.

Okay thanks all.

Ordered the A6000 as I'd quite like the viewfinder.

I think at the price I've got it at if we decide it isn't for us I don't think we'd lose anything selling it on.

good choice 🙂

Hope so, the missus isn't happy it doesn't have a flip screen though 😆

and because of the above a Canon M3 is also on it's way. 😳

Eh!? So the initial budget of £200 has crept up to around £750 and you've ended up with 2 cameras?!

What's the flip screen for? Selfies....? 😆

I bet she prefers the Sony 😉

Yep, it's the story of my life when buying joint things. Over research something get bored/confused end up buying one that I like the most, tell her I've bought it and it's the wrong thing so I end up buying what she wanted. 🙄

I'm quietly confident I can sell one on with minimal loss though.

Should have both by the weekend, so will do some weekend snaps with both and make a decision from there.

Anyone in the market for a camera? 😆

The Canon mirrorless cameras seem like a half-arsed effort. Deliberately crippled to encourage you to buy a DSLR. And hardly any lenses available.

CraigW - Member
The Canon mirrorless cameras seem like a half-arsed effort. Deliberately crippled to encourage you to buy a DSLR. And hardly any lenses available.

But with an adapter (which I've managed to get one included since I was spending a bit) it opens the whole canon range of lenses up to me.

But with an adapter (which I've managed to get one included since I was spending a bit) it opens the whole canon range of lenses up to me.

I wouldn't bother with adapted lenses. It only makes sense if you have a cupboard full as an interim measure before you buy native ones.

Oh it's not an unlimited budget by any stretch of the imagination - I've temporarily delved into my new bike fund 😐 All being well the new camera will have cost circa £350.

Ah that's a shame, my friend was recommending Canon 40mm 2.8 STM lens for this camera for out and about.

Should I potentially sell the Canon lens adapter then to recoup some money?

Why buy a small camera if you are going to attach big heavy lenses to it? It makes it rather unbalanced to hold.

Do some research (youtube etc), some combinations may work for you just fine. Putting big lenses on small cameras via an adapter is where the real problems appear. The ergonomics don't work. The 40mm may be OK.

This is the lens I've been recommended for indoors:

[img] [/img]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-40mm-2-8-STM-Lens/dp/B0089SWZDU

But I clearly need to do research on it.

First job is to decide which camera to keep.

Ergonomics will be fine. You'll need to check how it performs with an adapter, you may lose some functionality (which may not matter).

But that's a 64mm equivalent which is really quite zoomy for indoors (which usually imply you're tight for space and want a wide angle).

The highly rated 22mm f2 would be top of my list for interiors if it was me.

Thanks I'll check that out!

As you guys suggest I'll just stick with the standard lens for the time being.

IMO it's pointless using adaptors if you're just starting out into the system, you might as well use pukka ef-m mount lenses.

This is the lens I've been recommended for indoors:

that lens needs the adaptor, and I'd agree with above, it's quite long for use 'indoors'. What does that even mean anyway... could be all sorts!

I'd be looking at this as a general 'do-it-all' lens:-

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-EF-M-22mm-STM-Lens/dp/B008O0IDAC

my friend was recommending Canon 40mm 2.8 STM lens for this camera for out and about.

Why? The STM lenses' raison d'etre is for shooting video. I'd stick with the traditional USM lenses for still photos (probably cheaper too).

Cheers for that!

I feel I'll be asking for lens advice in a few weeks time 8)

On a general note how do Canon EF-M lenses compare to Sony E mount ones (again for future) to help decision making?

There's loads of Sony fit lenses ([url= http://www.dyxum.com/lenses/index.asp ]Dyxum suggests 88[/url]) and very few canon lenses (all of 7 of them).

The only canon lens anyone raves about is the 22mm. Plenty of people just buy a body to use that one lens.

Sony has lots from mediocre to excellent. The good ones tend to be expensive. It depends what type of lens you want really, it could be there are some good cheap options, or the only options might be eye wateringly expensive.

Ha sounds like another minefield!!

Figure out the camera first, it's now out of my hands and primarily up to the missus as after NYC she'll be the main user.

The Sony A6000 arrived today, it's a very nice looking camera - love the view finder on it.

[IMG] [/IMG]

Quick test shot in jpeg, subject not very happy about it:
[IMG] [/IMG]

So got them both now:

The canon's lens is much longer than the sony's, but the sony definitely feels a bit nicer to hold in my hands.

I whacked it into "auto" and headed into the garden to shoot some comparison shots of the cat. Initial thoughts were that it was taking AGES between shots, which was very frustrating. After connecting it to the computer I've realised that I put it in "Hybrid Auto" which essentially was recording video (with sound) and taking stills when I hit the button. 😳

Sample of the hybrid auto still:
[IMG] [/IMG]

I thought getting them both would ease the decision making process, but looks as though it's going to be tougher than I anticipated.

Thanks everyone for all of your advice!

Check out the continuous focus mode (or sport mode) and compare tracking on things (bikes, cars, people or whatever). That should be where you'll find a real difference.

Auto? Hmmmmm....

Yeah auto, the main user will be the other half. I'm going to read up on various settings and how to take an okay picture - but she'll more than likely just want it to do all of that for her. 😆

The intelligent auto on the sony is, err, very intelligent. It'll even do multiple frames and add them together for low light shots.

Wouldn't it be a fairer test to just use the same settings via manual, just tweak the shutter time to get the correct exposure? Shouldn't be too tricky to learn just a couple of settings using manual?

Or just muck around with it 😉

Great move getting the A6000. Splendid camera.

I've been given some digital camera wallet cards from a photographer friend which give you a scenario (landscapes/animals/kids/flowers etc etc) and the best settings for it (exposure mode/focus mode/shutter speed/aperture/iso/drive mode) these seem a good start to test them.

One thing I have noticed though is that raw wise they are both very similar. The Canon's Jpeg is identical to the raw (in terms of colours etc). The Sony's Jpeg's are amazing, perfect for uploading quickly without having to edit - VERY impressed with these.

If it was wholly down to me the Canon would be being sold on, just got to convince her now. 😆

I've been given some digital camera wallet cards from a photographer friend which give you a scenario (landscapes/animals/kids/flowers etc etc) and the best settings for it (exposure mode/focus mode/shutter speed/aperture/iso/drive mode) these seem a good start to test them.

Doing fully manual shots for doing side by side comparison shorts with several cameras in the same place at the same time, or as an exercise to be mindful of all the settings is fair enough.

Otherwise if you are using the cameras meter as a guide for setting the shot then it just slows down the whole process of taking photos vs apeture or shutter priority - can always just tweak the EV if you want to shoot above or below 0 on the metre.

When you announced you bought the two cameras I bit my toungue but now i am typing i will say that TBH IMHO it is bonkers buying two cameras that are so similar in all respects except their lens compatability. Would have been far more useful to buy either camera with a respective bigger brother that shared it's lenses, or either with a fit in the pocket point and shoot camera.

It has hopefully been a risk free venture, I know they're similar in specs but actually usage has been very different. Been out this afternoon taking lots and lots of pictures, uploaded a few.

Sony Pics: http://s143.photobucket.com/user/nathb89/library/camera%20test/Sony%20A6000

Canon Pics: http://s143.photobucket.com/user/nathb89/library/camera%20test/Canon%20M3

Decided to keep the Canon, well it was a joint decision. 😛

**The gardens weeding needs doing, I just finished the front 😆

Wee bit of an update to this.

Loving the Canon M3! A photographer friend gave me a 20 minute "how to take manual shots" lesson so I've been following the cat around all weekend (she's a moving target).

Couple of examples:

[img] [/img]

[img] [/img]

I've also bought a set of filters to try.

The next thing I need to figure out is the best way of getting decent pictures from a helicopter. 😆

[img] ?w=620&h=316&crop=1[/img]

Combine the two?

Haha.

This is a real helicopter so I need to combat the movement and the glare from the window.

Any tips greatly appreciated!

Polarising filters can reduce glare/reflections.

Yeah I've got one of them in the lens kit, thanks!

I guess I need to keep a fairly high shutter speed too?

I'm no pro, but yeah, faster shutter=less blur.

More noise, but less
[img] [/img]

You should investigate the image stabilisation options, play with them.