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Contemplating a new toy

Started 2 months ago | Discussions thread
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Mark Sloe Contributing Member • Posts: 728
Contemplating a new toy

after 4 years with my a7riii i am itching for a new toy. just to make it clear, there is no objective need driving the change. the problem is that the a7riii is such an accomplished camera even by today's standards and such a good value for money, i am finding it hard to think of an alternative. after i sell my sony gear my budget will be around £2500-2700 buying used or grey import.

considerations:

size is a part of decision making equation, but not a limiting factor.

af - shooting mostly landscape, af is low on my list of priorities. a solid eye af would be a bonus, but its absence would not be a dealbreaker.

resolution and dr - i got so spoiled by the 42mp and nigh 15 stops of dr that there would have to be a significant advantage in other aspects of a camera to consider downgrading. while om-1 in particular is an intriguing body due to its computational features, the m43 is too far down on resolution and dr to make the shortlist.

a7riii shortcomings i would like to address:

the longest exposure of 30s facilitated by the camera without a remote is just lame and this is a no-go for the next purchase. everything else is negotiable.

i would prefer 2-axis tilt screen.

sony's ibis is mediocre at best (except a7rv) but still very nice to have when i am out without a tripod. good ibis goes a long way.

now to options - the gfx 100s ticks all boxes and i would love one, but it is out of my budget at this point.

panasonic s1r with their 24-105/4 would be an excellent alternative to my a7riii - better evf, better screen, much much better ibis, reasonable af, nice colours. i like the way l-mount has developed and i believe they will bring some interesting bodies in the future. the downside is 60s longest exposure in camera.

gfx 50s would allow me to explore the medium format magic and provide ground for upgrade to gfx 100s. 45/2.8 would be within my budget, which i would later complement with 30/3.5 or 23/4. alternatively, i could stretch into 32-64/4 to have wide angle covered from the get-go leaving 23/4 optional at later date. absence of ibis is holding me back though.

x-t5 (or x-h2) with xf 16-55/2.8 + a prime (zeiss 12/2.8 or cv 23/1.2) or 23/1.4+zeiss 12/2.8 seems like an excellent option and on par with the s1r option. it eliminates the long exposure limit of the panasonic at the expense of sensor size, but for that matter it comes in a smaller, lighter package. my slight  concern is that the cameras are relatively new and doomed to depreciate steeply over the next year or two.

a left field option is to go minimalist and get a griii with gw4 and a pack of filters. griii has been on my mind for some time as a camera i could have always with me like i used to carry my old rx100. the compromise in iq compared to options above may eventually lead me to get an ilc at some point.

thoughts? did i miss anything?

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 Mark Sloe's gear list:Mark Sloe's gear list
Sony a7R III Sony FE 24-105mm F4
Panasonic S1 Pentax K-1 Pentax Optio E60 Ricoh GR II Ricoh GR III Sony a7 Sony a7R Sony RX1 Sony RX100
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