Mirrorless recommendations?

Greg K.

Happy DVC Member, DIS Vet, and Catholic Deacon
Joined
Aug 18, 1999
After years of using a Canon DSLR, I'd like to move to something easier for traveling, and am ready to make the jump to mirrorless.

Thoughts? Recommendations? Favorites?

I'm a little leery of Canon (mixed reviews, limited lens choice) and am looking to see what the experts here think.

?? TIA!
 
Maximum budget? Looking for full frame or aps-c?
What is your shooting style when you travel? Ultra wide landscapes? Wildlife? Low light? Willing to change lenses or want single-lens solutions?

The Sony A7iii is a remarkable camera for "only" $2000 (in that it competes well with $3000+ cameras) but that may already be much more expensive than you were considering. (And that doesn't even include lenses).
 
Maximum budget? Looking for full frame or aps-c?
What is your shooting style when you travel? Ultra wide landscapes? Wildlife? Low light? Willing to change lenses or want single-lens solutions?

The Sony A7iii is a remarkable camera for "only" $2000 (in that it competes well with $3000+ cameras) but that may already be much more expensive than you were considering. (And that doesn't even include lenses).

Yeah, I'm definitely looking at less than $1,000, with lenses. I actually have a very nice Canon G1X Mark II, which has a sensationally large sensor and bright lens, but very limited reach (5x). I'd like to find something more versatile -- the kind of thing I can use for nice portraits AND on the AK Safari.
 
Yeah, I'm definitely looking at less than $1,000, with lenses. I actually have a very nice Canon G1X Mark II, which has a sensationally large sensor and bright lens, but very limited reach (5x). I'd like to find something more versatile -- the kind of thing I can use for nice portraits AND on the AK Safari.

All in 1 option: The Sony RX10iv:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1361560-REG/sony_sony_rx10iv_digital_camera.html

Definitely versatile with lots of reach.

You have a very nice $800 camera -- So it's going to be hard to do *better* for under $1,000.

You can get the basic A6000 started combo kit for $750:
https://www.amazon.com/Sony-Mirrorl...=1522957261&sr=8-5&keywords=Sony+A6000+55-210

It's a 5-year-old camera but still performs well. The quality of those lenses is very "blah" but it goes give you an effective range while keeping the total package small.
 


After years of using a Canon DSLR, I'd like to move to something easier for traveling, and am ready to make the jump to mirrorless.

Thoughts? Recommendations? Favorites?
I'm a little leery of Canon (mixed reviews, limited lens choice) and am looking to see what the experts here think.

?? TIA!

the good thing about mirrorless cameras you can use any lens. The current Canon mirrorless is the M50, I use the older Canon M5 for travel and sports and portraits
www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless
 
All in 1 option: The Sony RX10iv:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1361560-REG/sony_sony_rx10iv_digital_camera.html

Definitely versatile with lots of reach.

You have a very nice $800 camera -- So it's going to be hard to do *better* for under $1,000.

You can get the basic A6000 started combo kit for $750:
https://www.amazon.com/Sony-Mirrorl...=1522957261&sr=8-5&keywords=Sony+A6000+55-210

It's a 5-year-old camera but still performs well. The quality of those lenses is very "blah" but it goes give you an effective range while keeping the total package small.

I agree with Havoc here - for the money, you won't really get much to 'beat' what you have - but if your idea is to start out with a mirrorless kit - maybe body plus one or two lenses, for around $1000 and then have the ability to buy other lenses down the road to expand capabilities...then something like the Sony A6300 with the two cheap starter lenses - 16-50mm and 55-210mm, will run you around $1100 and give you an excellent APS-C sensor and good capabilities in the body...with lenses good enough to get going and then you could work on adding better lenses as you want. I'd probably recommend the A6300 over the A6000, just because it did have some nice improvements in build, some features, and tweaks to the sensor...the A6500 adds some nice stuff too, but will run you over the $1K barrier just for the body.

I find the A6300 plus 18-135mm to be a nice, handy, all-around travel package to travel reasonably light and small...but over the years I've built up a fairly sizeable lens collection for all different specific purposes. That could be a decent 'aspirational' upgrade kit lens to replace the 16-50mm lens down the road.
 
I'm in the process of funding a Panasonic Lumix G85. It's been around a while, but is still available on Panasonic's website. With the 12-60 kit lens, it's $899. Like the OP, I'm coming from a long run of Canon DSLRs, and I just want something smaller/lighter for travel.
 


I’ve been shooting with an SLR since before there was a D. I tried out a mirrorless that I really wanted to take on a trip a couple of years ago and hated it. Maybe I’m spoiled by my SLR, maybe my expectations were too high, but I was not happy with the image quality. I did give it the full month I had to return it. I shoot in full manual, studied Photography in college, and I’ve been shooting professionally for years so I don’t think there was much user error there. It was a Sony A7 that I tried (maybe ii? I can’t remember.)
I really wanted to like it but I couldn’t get the images I wanted from it.

I shoot Nikon so I’m waiting to see what they come out with in the next few years before I try again.
 
I’ve been shooting with an SLR since before there was a D. I tried out a mirrorless that I really wanted to take on a trip a couple of years ago and hated it. Maybe I’m spoiled by my SLR, maybe my expectations were too high, but I was not happy with the image quality. I did give it the full month I had to return it. I shoot in full manual, studied Photography in college, and I’ve been shooting professionally for years so I don’t think there was much user error there. It was a Sony A7 that I tried (maybe ii? I can’t remember.)
I really wanted to like it but I couldn’t get the images I wanted from it.

I shoot Nikon so I’m waiting to see what they come out with in the next few years before I try again.

I hear what you're saying. The idea of buying something other than a DSLR was unnerving at first, but after seeing images from the Lumix series, even the G85, have been more than adequate for vacation and family pictures. For professional work, sure, I'd go with a DSLR. But I totally understand the OP's desire to have something smaller and lighter for travel.
 
I’ve been shooting with an SLR since before there was a D. I tried out a mirrorless that I really wanted to take on a trip a couple of years ago and hated it. Maybe I’m spoiled by my SLR, maybe my expectations were too high, but I was not happy with the image quality. I did give it the full month I had to return it. I shoot in full manual, studied Photography in college, and I’ve been shooting professionally for years so I don’t think there was much user error there. It was a Sony A7 that I tried (maybe ii? I can’t remember.)
I really wanted to like it but I couldn’t get the images I wanted from it.

I shoot Nikon so I’m waiting to see what they come out with in the next few years before I try again.

OK, maybe newer or future mirrorless cameras will have better 'image quality'
www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless
 
We switched from Canon dSLR to Lumix mirrorless in late 2011 and never looked back. Image quality was never an issue although there was a learning curve with viewfinder and focus techniques. A number of generations later the Lumix lineup keeps getting better, faster focus, more lenses, improved image quality. I held some Canons at a store today and it is amazing they can still sell something so large and heavy.
 
UPDATE: I decided to go in another direction, and grabbed the Lumix ZS200: eminently portable, 15x zoom, 1" sensor, enthusiastic reviews from early users. We'll see. I had a Lumix P&S a few years ago and loved it. I think this should do the job when I need a little "oomph" in the zoom department.
 

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