Best value budget action/sports/wildlife still camera?

[EcoPics]

Looking for a cheapy

Im thinking

Nikon J5

Sony A6000

Panasonic GX85

And whilst a bit more pricey Im looking at the xt20 and a6300.

Video is of no interest to me. Id prefer APSc, but the nikon j5 is a pocket rocket taking nikon lenses and shooting 10million FPS! lol

 

[Acrill]

Depends entirely on what lenses you plan to use with it.

 

[Gray Skies]

Looking for a cheapy

Im thinking

Nikon J5

Sony A6000

Panasonic GX85

And whilst a bit more pricey Im looking at the xt20 and a6300.

Video is of no interest to me. Id prefer APSc, but the nikon j5 is a pocket rocket taking nikon lenses and shooting 10million FPS! lol

I'm not sure what all your criteria are but if it's only price and sports capability you are after, you won't beat the original 7D. Can be had in good used condition for $400 or less and you have access to the best sports lenses out there, even budget stuff like the 55-250 STM is pretty amazing.

 

[PenPix]

I own the J5, and the features just blow my mind! However... it has a very small sensor and it performs quite poor at high ISO when compared to the other cameras. But it is a FUN camera to use when you got the sun behind your back! I like the J5 as something "better than a cell phone" camera, but still small enough to take with me regularly.

As for the Sony vs. Panasonic, my main concern would be the long lenses you will want for sports and wildlife photography. Have you looked at what's available and at what prices? I think you will find Panasonic a lot more friendlier to your needs and budget.

 

[EcoPics]

Sorry I should have said small mirrorless system, preferably APSc.

So Im thinking the Xe-2, due to the much higher quality lenses like the xf 50-200 vs the pretty average sony 55-210. But the sony is 4 fps faster. but meh

When i ave the money Ill then sell that for a used 100-400mm XF, and use primes all the way down to the 12mm F2 which is $350. i enjoy fast primes as I have no issue using my feet to zoom, but for birds, telephoto is the option unless you run canikon. the panasonic whilst better than a cellphone clearly, i just find lacks the sensor size, i enjoy the fuji and sony colours straight out of the cam.

 

[Chris R-UK]

Do you want to shoot indoors or night time sports/action? If you do you need to think very carefully about lenses.

I am not sure why you aren't looking at DSLRs since this is an area where DSLRs still excel. The suggestion of a used Canon 7D is excellent IMHO.

--
Chris R

 

[Labe]

Looking for a cheapy

Im thinking

Nikon J5

Sony A6000

Panasonic GX85

And whilst a bit more pricey Im looking at the xt20 and a6300.

Video is of no interest to me. Id prefer APSc, but the nikon j5 is a pocket rocket taking nikon lenses and shooting 10million FPS! lol

you already have the xt20 ( which you keep crying about not having long primes for wildlife). You have a Sony A6000 but say the 55-210 not enough for wildlife and you've owned/ used the GX85 but was concerned about image quality been m4/3.

Pits time to suck it up and increase your budget and buy a system that has the fast long len's you seek .

 

[EcoPics]

I dont have an x-t20 yet. that was my first choice to replace the gx85.

the MRS has an a6000, which I like but dont like the lens selection.

im thinking a used x-e2 with XF lenses now. very hard to find a6000 used here in NZ, but X-e2 no problem, and half the current retail. older sensor, but with good glass should do the job. doesnt have the 11fps though.

I use to carry around the Mrs full frame nikons from her work, honestly for some of the hikes we get to its cumbersome. i dont do much sports, and all outdoor amateur if I do (rugby).

The main want is to shoot slower moving wildlife and get tack sharp results. her 55-210 is ok, but just a bit soft at the long end. the 50-200mm xf sounds VERY sharp

 

[AwesomeIan]

Looking for a cheapy

Im thinking

Nikon J5

Sony A6000

Panasonic GX85

And whilst a bit more pricey Im looking at the xt20 and a6300.

Video is of no interest to me. Id prefer APSc, but the nikon j5 is a pocket rocket taking nikon lenses and shooting 10million FPS! lol

What is your budget?

 

[Labe]

I dont have an x-t20 yet. that was my first choice to replace the gx85.

the MRS has an a6000, which I like but dont like the lens selection.

im thinking a used x-e2 with XF lenses now. very hard to find a6000 used here in NZ, but X-e2 no problem, and half the current retail. older sensor, but with good glass should do the job. doesnt have the 11fps though.

I use to carry around the Mrs full frame nikons from her work, honestly for some of the hikes we get to its cumbersome. i dont do much sports, and all outdoor amateur if I do (rugby).

The main want is to shoot slower moving wildlife and get tack sharp results. her 55-210 is ok, but just a bit soft at the long end. the 50-200mm xf sounds VERY sharp

Eco for replying , had to ask . Word of warning the XE2 isn`t the faster at focusing , not compared to the xt20 or even my bottom of the pile D3300 .

I`m using the D3300 with a tamron SP 70-300 F4-5.6 VC DI USD instead of the A6000 these days . cheap sharp enough for me with a great battery life.

Hope you finally get what you need.

 

[EcoPics]

Hey Labe. Yeah I know. The XT20 processor was a huge step up in AF and tracking, nearly competing with the a6300/500.

I do like the nikons, we have access to a d5500, d810 and a D5, its just the wanting to remain small and light as we hike long distance thing. The d5500 was the best for this clearly, but the lenses were the bulky issue, not the camera. I think the d5500 is the best value entry DSLR on the market.

 

[Labe]

my Nikon and tamron weigh in at about 1195gr giving 450mm equiv reach with 24mp . So that's what I`m playing with now .

.















--

Paul Laybourne’s albums | Flickr

www.flickr.com

 

[EcoPics]

my Nikon and tamron weigh in at about 1195gr

yeah I love Nikons IQ and sharpness, especially that new sony sensor in the d5500 (not sure if its the same in the d3300).

love that otter photo . which 300mm lens were you using?

 

[TN Args]

Maybe a D3400 twin lens kit, and use the long lens. Approx $650 street price.

The big sensor and 24MP allow for more cropping of distant sport/action/wildlife than most other budget kits, and more boosting of shadows in bright sunlight due to its unusually good dynamic range.

The 5 fps burst rate and continuous focusing with PDAF round out what I would call the best value action/sports/wildlife combination at a budget price.

 

[drj3]

Hey Labe. Yeah I know. The XT20 processor was a huge step up in AF and tracking, nearly competing with the a6300/500.

I do like the nikons, we have access to a d5500, d810 and a D5, its just the wanting to remain small and light as we hike long distance thing. The d5500 was the best for this clearly, but the lenses were the bulky issue, not the camera.

You indicated that you preferred APS cameras. The lenses are not going to be very different for the Nikon D5500 vs Fuji vs Sony. For Sports/Wildlife, you need long, fast, telephoto lenses. You have to decide between smaller sensors and smaller lenses vs larger sensors and larger lenses.

I think the d5500 is the best value entry DSLR on the market.

 

[Abrak]

I know you have a preference for APSC but I would have thought the RX10iii is worth a look.

Yes the sensor is a little small but it is the excellent 1 inch 20mp Sony sensor. And the smaller sensor is complemented by a 24-600 which is fast (f4) at the long end. So in all probability at least at the long end you are picking up a stop or more of light from the lens.

You wont need to change lenses, it has a decent viewfinder and shoots fast, has a very sharp lens and good optical stabilisation.

 

[Labe]

my Nikon and tamron weigh in at about 1195gr

yeah I love Nikons IQ and sharpness, especially that new sony sensor in the d5500 (not sure if its the same in the d3300).

love that otter photo . which 300mm lens were you using?

I use the tamron SP 70-300 F4-5,6 VC DI USD (think that's right lol) cost me £299

 

[EcoPics]

I use the tamron SP 70-300 F4-5,6 VC DI USD (think that's right lol) cost me £299

 

[mmartel]

If you're a JPEG shooter and if you value high image quality in lower light, you should probably take the J5 off your list.

I own one and like mind quite a bit, though.

I have shot in some compromised light situations (eg, indoor sports stadium like here: https://goo.gl/photos/TJPhRzjLP77MNAwn9) and the J5 is surprisingly capable ... If it is in af-c and you're willing to process RAW!

I think it is great for hiking and travel because it's so light and versatile and had reasonable manual controls. That said, if I had to buy all over again, I'd definitely consider a Panasonic GX85 or Olympus EM5 instead for weather sealing, IBIS, and wider lens selection.

 

[whakapu]

I've been contemplating the same question recently. It's hard to check all the boxes and not every option is readily available here in NZ at a decent price. I identified that the task requires:

lens options,

responsiveness (no lag, short shutter blackout)

decent ISO performance because shutter speeds will be high.

either subject tracking ability or high resolution (which allows framing with the crop tool)

Good continuous AF or lightning fast single AF

fast handling.

It's hard to find all that in a mirrorless system other than the latest generation of high end bodies and lenses but any DSLR, and I think I mean any DSLR, can kind of do the job. I went out and experimented last weekend shooting soccer with an SL1 and Tamron 18-270. I had zero problem getting some shots with that. Sure, without subject tracking it's hard to compose shots off centre but the pace of play makes that hard anyway. I'm sure with a Tamron 70-300 VC I'd have got better shots, better still with a 70-200 2.8 with or without my Kenko TC and with any latest generation Rebel I'm sure that would have been a breeze. An 80D or 7D11 would just make it too easy. Frame rate doesn't interest me at all. Low shutter lag means being able to anticipate the moment.

There are some very appealing bodies out there but after searching around in pricespy it becomes clear that to have lens options, OEM and 3P, budget to premium, old and new, fast and slow, short fat and wide I'm stuck with Canon. Nikon comes close thanks to 3rd parties and M4/3 is showing promise but having a complete system for any other brand is a very expensive proposition.

Final thought. If you have the Nikon J5 on your list maybe a Panasonic FZ2500 and not spending anything more on lenses would do? The way that handled the bicycle test here on DPR was impressive (although the image quality wasn't).