Sony A6500 vs Sony RX10 Mark IV vs Panasonic G85 vs Other Options??

[Ziffster]

Finally time to move up into something beyond a 'point an shoot' I had all but decided to order a Sony A6500 with a Sigma 18-300mm F3.5-6.3 along with a 50 mm f1.8 prime lens when the RX10 Mark IV was announced.

My criteria for selecting the A6500 was:-

• Good low light performance (that has been my biggest disappointment with my current Sony HX90)
• Raw Support (as I have started to get in post processing)
• Weather Sealed (will be headed to the Amazon in rainy season and don't want to worry about the camera)
• Touch Screen (easy focus point selection)
• Size and weight suitable for travel (had a full frame in the past and was simply too large to carry with me)
• Approximately 30 to 200 mm equivalent (primarily shoot landscapes and wildlife and looking at old photos and 95% of the time this has been my range)
• Good Stabilization - especially when working with higher power telephoto lens (with nature shots most of the time shots are hand held and often in less than ideal lighting conditions)
• Support for Filters (I have really missed being able to use a Polarizing Filter)
• Macro Capability (wildlife includes insects)
• Good Bokeh
• Under $2,000 for Complete System

But with the release of the RX10 Mark IV, all the boxes would appear to now be checked by the bridge camera at a lower price than going with the A6500 plus with arguably better glass.

I also considered the Panasonic G85, Panasonic GX8, Canon PowerShot G3 X and Olympus OM-D E-M5 II... but from the reviews I have seen the Sony Sensor (and focusing) is head and shoulders above the competition especially in low light.

Any comments regarding pros and cons would be greatly appreciated.

 

[caterpillar]

Finally time to move up into something beyond a 'point an shoot' I had all but decided to order a Sony A6500 with a Sigma 18-300mm F3.5-6.3 along with a 50 mm f1.8 prime lens when the RX10 Mark IV was announced.

My criteria for selecting the A6500 was:-

• Good low light performance (that has been my biggest disappointment with my current Sony HX90)
• Raw Support (as I have started to get in post processing)
• Weather Sealed (will be headed to the Amazon in rainy season and don't want to worry about the camera)
• Touch Screen (easy focus point selection)
• Size and weight suitable for travel (had a full frame in the past and was simply too large to carry with me)
• Approximately 30 to 200 mm equivalent (primarily shoot landscapes and wildlife and looking at old photos and 95% of the time this has been my range)
• Good Stabilization - especially when working with higher power telephoto lens (with nature shots most of the time shots are hand held and often in less than ideal lighting conditions)
• Support for Filters (I have really missed being able to use a Polarizing Filter)
• Macro Capability (wildlife includes insects)
• Good Bokeh
• Under $2,000 for Complete System

But with the release of the RX10 Mark IV, all the boxes would appear to now be checked by the bridge camera at a lower price than going with the A6500 plus with arguably better glass.

I also considered the Panasonic G85, Panasonic GX8, Canon PowerShot G3 X and Olympus OM-D E-M5 II... but from the reviews I have seen the Sony Sensor (and focusing) is head and shoulders above the competition especially in low light.

Any comments regarding pros and cons would be greatly appreciated.

For photos, the g85 can go toe-to-toe with dlsrs or the a6500. It is in continuous AF such as in video where it is weak. That's where the a6500's PDAF is a big advantage.

If the g85 was an aps-c sensor using Sony's a6500 sensor, that would be the 98% perfect camera for me. That would not happen 98% of the time too. But if Sony can build the next a6700 with a full articulating side lcd, a fully functioning AF (focusing and menus, etc), then it can get pretty close.

The RX10-4 is a very good 1" sensor camera. A good all arounder. It can do a lot without changing lenses. If you don't need a shallow DOF or the need to use fast primes or f2.8 long zooms, then that's an all-in-1 solution. It will be cheaper too as you don't have to fill in all the lenses to make the a6500 cover the same zoom range. MILCs/DSLRs are there for this ability to change lenses.

 

[golfhov]

faster lens, smaller, less expensive

 

[Ziffster]

I have heard many people who have complained about the poor focusing capability with the RX10 Mark 3, hence why I had dropped it as an option and had been leaning toward the a6500. I know two people who had Mark 3's and both have sold them and have Mark 4's on order. Overall they liked the camera - but found the user interface to be cumbersome (without touch) plus weren't happy with the focusing.

Was the Mk 2 a better camera with regards to focusing? Was the menu system as cluttered as the Mk 3?

 

[splashy]

Don't expect the camera to be watersealed in Amazon rain.

Invest in a cameracover, or just take some plastic bags with you.

Be aware that it might be VERY humid and your lens(es) might fog up.

 

[golfhov]

I have heard many people who have complained about the poor focusing capability with the RX10 Mark 3,

Poor is relative compared to subject and light levels

hence why I had dropped it as an option and had been leaning toward the a6500. I know two people who had Mark 3's and both have sold them and have Mark 4's on order.

Could they explain why?

Overall they liked the camera - but found the user interface to be cumbersome (without touch) plus weren't happy with the focusing.

Oops there it is. My mistake I forgot the touchscreen was a requirement

Was the Mk 2 a better camera with regards to focusing?

No. The mark ii had a faster lens that almost exactly matched your requirements in a slightly smaller package. That is why I brought it up. I missed the touch requirement and didn't know AF was a big priority

Was the menu system as cluttered as the Mk 3?

Yup. Sony has not been best in class in menu systems. Once you learn them they are not so bad for MOST people

 

[Ziffster]

It has been years since last in the Jungle, and last time was in Film Days with an Nikon F5 with 400mm F2.8 which although I had a 'rain coat' for it got caught more than once. It is not as much a case of wanting to be able to use the camera standing out in the rain, but accepting the fact that things happen... especially with how fast storms come up and that you may be caught without rain gear handy.

 

[caterpillar]

Don't expect the camera to be watersealed in Amazon rain.

Invest in a cameracover, or just take some plastic bags with you.

Be aware that it might be VERY humid and your lens(es) might fog up.

You may not even get a pouring rain to get some problems later. Once I took my 20d, a 10-22 ef-s, 24-105L and a 50 f1.8 mk2 to a hike to a volcano in our province. When I came back, I cleaned my stuff as usual. About a week or 2 later, as I was checking my gear, I fund some beginnings of fungus at the rear of the filter of the 24-105L!

The 24-105L is supposed to be weather sealed AFAIK. We didn't catch any rain on that hike, and it was hot Not overly humid either. But you never know. It was a dense forest. Maybe that fungus infestation was already there before the climb. but I don't remember having opened that lens filter before the climb for months on end! Funny thing too, the ef-s 10-22 and 50 f1.8 mk2 didn't get infected! And these were not weather sealed lenses. Granting I didn't use the 50 f1.8 mk2, but the ef-s 10-22 surely did get a lot of use!

I did bring some trashbags in case of rain. There were no dry bags yet in those years. In the later years, we were going to beaches, water falls, ,rivers, etc on treks. It's a bit hard to enjoy those treks when the body and lenses is not weather sealed. Beaches also have sand and that can be an annoyance too. In the boat, island hopping, spray and splashes are almost hard to keep away from our cameras and lenses. And you worry constantly about gear. It does rob your fun a bit because of that.

Bottom line, if you can get weather sealed gears, the better. And to a degree this is why I was able to complete my MFT lens lineup vs my sony, which now takes a back seat (for now).