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D300 owner wants a high quality more portable travel camera, any suggestions?

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ARB1

ARB1

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I have a D300 (my first love) and a LX3 (my little baby) but it's time for a new camera that will fit in between the two in size. I'll be heading to Peru soon and don't want to lug my D300 around the way I did while in Greece and Turkey a few years ago, so I want a nice high quality smaller camera that is well suited for travel without compromising too much in quality and flexibility when compared to my D300.

I’ve been looking at the Fujifilm Pro1 (need to see the final reviews first) , the X100 (nice camera but the AF makes me wonder), also the Sony NEX7 and Panasonic GX1, but I was just wondering what most Nikon folks have in their bags, or would like to have in their bags, for travel when they don’t want to carry their large SLRs.

Thanks in advance for the help guys.

--
Allen
http://www.pbase.com/capturestudio
 
If you are invested in nikor lenses, you might want to consider the Nikon 1 cameras. With the adapter, you can use most of the slr lenses. But you really do not have to take them if you want to travel light.
ARB1 said:
I have a D300 (my first love) and a LX3 (my little baby) but it's time for a new camera that will fit in between the two in size. I'll be heading to Peru soon and don't want to lug my D300 around the way I did while in Greece and Turkey a few years ago, so I want a nice high quality smaller camera that is well suited for travel without compromising too much in quality and flexibility when compared to my D300.

I’ve been looking at the Fujifilm Pro1 (need to see the final reviews first) , the X100 (nice camera but the AF makes me wonder), also the Sony NEX7 and Panasonic GX1, but I was just wondering what most Nikon folks have in their bags, or would like to have in their bags, for travel when they don’t want to carry their large SLRs.

Thanks in advance for the help guys.

--
Allen
http://www.pbase.com/capturestudio
Click to expand...
--
Have Fun!
Steve

 
There are only 2 types that fit in between: micro 4/3 and nikon 1

I'd say they are all very close and if you get some, you will have filled the gap tightly. Do you really want that many cameras with so close abilities?

Personally I do own D300 and G11 and believe I have enough gap to satisfy to use the two cameras only - nothing in between is needed! But this is just me.

Nik
 
Thanks nkarasev, I should have mentioned that the LX3 will be passed on to my wife when I get my new camera, her Canon P&S will then move to our 10 year old son who is dying to start taking photos of his own when we travel.

I'm liking the Panasonic GX1 a lot and also the Fuji Pro-1.
nkarasev said:
There are only 2 types that fit in between: micro 4/3 and nikon 1

I'd say they are all very close and if you get some, you will have filled the gap tightly. Do you really want that many cameras with so close abilities?

Personally I do own D300 and G11 and believe I have enough gap to satisfy to use the two cameras only - nothing in between is needed! But this is just me.

Nik
Click to expand...
--
Allen
http://www.pbase.com/capturestudio
 
Went through the same recently. I own a D300 and LX5. After researching all of the new Olympus PEN models, the Nikon 1 system, Sony NEX and Panasonic mirrorless cameras, I settled on the Sony NEX-5N.

Lightweight portability, great high ISO performance, IQ and the ability to mount (with an adapter) pretty much any SLR lens ever made were the deciding factors. Granted the lenses would be manual focus if they're not E-mount but the options are limitless.

With the NEX, the built-in Focus Peaking, Manual Focus Assist, Auto HDR, Anti-Motion Blur, Panorama Sweep & Hand-held Twilight modes have been quite useful.

Only issues I have is the AF in low light. It's unreliable and I have to switch to manual focus at times. Hoping that Sony will release a firmware update to address that issue.

Here's my NEX gallery: http://dezsantana.com/nex
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Dez

http://dezsantana.com

 
Nice gallery Dez, and thanks for the post. So your Nikon lenses work with the Sony NEX; now that's pretty cool. I have a few Nikon lenses and it would be nice to be able to use them while traveling, especially my 18-200 and my Sigma 10-20mm.
DezM said:
Went through the same recently. I own a D300 and LX5. After researching all of the new Olympus PEN models, the Nikon 1 system, Sony NEX and Panasonic mirrorless cameras, I settled on the Sony NEX-5N.

Lightweight portability, great high ISO performance, IQ and the ability to mount (with an adapter) pretty much any SLR lens ever made were the deciding factors. Granted the lenses would be manual focus if they're not E-mount but the options are limitless.

With the NEX, the built-in Focus Peaking, Manual Focus Assist, Auto HDR, Anti-Motion Blur, Panorama Sweep & Hand-held Twilight modes have been quite useful.

Only issues I have is the AF in low light. It's unreliable and I have to switch to manual focus at times. Hoping that Sony will release a firmware update to address that issue.

Here's my NEX gallery: http://dezsantana.com/nex
--
Dez

http://dezsantana.com

Click to expand...
--
Allen
http://www.pbase.com/capturestudio
 
--
Oscar
 
ARB1 said:
I have a D300 (my first love) and a LX3 (my little baby) but it's time for a new camera that will fit in between the two in size.
Click to expand...
I've been looking for something more portable than my trusty old D200 and will almost certainly go with the NEX5N also.

It's not perfect (what a shocker!) but it's pretty darn good. The ability to use my nice Nikkor's (with an adapter) is clearly a big plus. Overall, a very attractive proposition for a Nikon DSLR user I think.
 
My take is that if it's too big to fit in my pocket then it's on a strap around my neck so any difference in size/weight is negligible. My D5100 and D300 aren't really very different fatigue-wise. My "small" camera is an s90.
 
I went this route too . I was able to get a Panasonic G10 with the 14-42 kit lens cheap. I am blown away by the picture quality that I got from this little camera (shooting in Raw), that I have not picked up my D300 since. I was also impressed with the video , and after reading up on the Panasonic line, I sold the G10, and purchased a GH1 with the 14-42mm and a 45-200mm, which I have not received as yet. Apart form the tunnel vision that you get from the EVF , I am truly considering if I need my Nikon system any longer. Its light , great picture quality, and great video all in one, and most of all, is not intimdating.
 
Hi all, I did the same although I still have the Nikon gear it is rarely used now.

I went the Panasonic route, GH2 and the Olympus E-PL3 with the tilting screen and I bought the wife the E-PM1 and the 14mm 2.5 makes the E-PM1 very compact. We have no IBIS issues at all.

Very pleased with the image output on all three cameras.

Loads of images on my blog with both Panasonic and Olympus cameras.

http://michaelgoodes.blogspot.com/
--
Best Regards Mike.

pbase supporter. http://www.pbase.com/ekim
http://ekim.zenfolio.com

'Live every day as if it was your last, one day it will be'.
 
I went for the GH1 as I was able to get it much cheaper than the GH2 . It would have been nice to get the higher pixels, but 12 million is what I am used to on the Nikon D300 anyway. I do not think that I will part with my D300 anytime soon as I love that camera, and I have too many high end lenses , but as I do not profit from photography , I will not be using the D300 too often. I did buy the Panasonic 45-200mm while I had the G10, and used it a few times. It is hard to believe that I can get all the way to 400mm without any strain on my body , and no tripod.

When, and if they all decide to go this route (which is quite possible in the near future) I will be on that train.
 
squeamish said:
My take is that if it's too big to fit in my pocket then it's on a strap around my neck so any difference in size/weight is negligible. My D5100 and D300 aren't really very different fatigue-wise. My "small" camera is an s90.
Click to expand...
Some want lightweight with SLR quality. That is why I went with the APS-C sized sensor in the NEX.
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Dez

http://dezsantana.com

 
DezM said:
Some want lightweight with SLR quality. That is why I went with the APS-C sized sensor in the NEX.
Click to expand...
When it comes to sensors, size does matter ;-)

This is one of the major reasons I'm planning for the NEX5N. Unless someone brings out a similar sized body with a FX sensor. But I can't really see that happening any time soon, or within my budget!
 
I went with the Nikon V1 and I am extremely happy with it. Image quality, ISO performance, metering, color, and AF performance are really good. It has exceeded my expectations and that seems to be the case with most other V1 owners as well.

The FT1 adapter allows autofocus with AF-S lenses. When I carry my DSLR gear I can include the V1 with the adapter and it dramatically expands the reach and flexibility I can get with the DX/FX lenses in my bag.

If I don't want to carry a DSLR then the V1 with two CX lenses will give me 300mm reach in a very compact package. I don't know of any other mirrorless lens that will give you 300mm in such a small package.

I've used both NEX and m 4/3 and they are fine systems but I prefer the V1 as a Nikon DSLR supplement.
 
Do'nt know much about the Nikon V1 or J1, but I am not impressed with very small cameras. Lighter, yes , and this is why I choosed the Pana . I like the Sony line as well , but their lenses are very expensive , and I do not want to use my Nikon lenses on any of these cameras. do'nt not need the bulk anymore. When I put the Pana 45-200mm on the the camera, it is still a very light camera to use, and I do not need a tripod. My AF-S 300mm lens alone weighs almost (not quite sure) about 3 times as much. Now if I could have the Sony OLED on the Pana, I would not need another camera, but again that would entail a mirrow. They are going to get better, and better , and I am sure that both Nikon, and Canon are going to look seriously into this market
 
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