Need Some Advice for My First Mirrorless

[jogedkahyangan]

Hello. I'm new here and need some advice. To provide some background, I used to shoot with my dad's DSLR a long time ago (a Nikon D40 or D40x, can't remember exactly). When smartphone's cameras became better and better, I started to use that Nikon less and less. Now I want to start over and buy my first mirrorless camera. I intend to use it for travel & street photography, plus recording some music cover for tiktok/youtube. For that, I'd like my camera to be lightweight and compact, less prone to overheating (bcs I live in tropical climate), preferably have IBIS (bcs my shaky hands, but it's not a deal breaker), have either a flip-up or vari-angle screen, and still have a viewfinder. I have a list of cameras that caught my eye, but as I practically have never used any mirrorless, my understanding of these cameras only come from watching & reading online reviews. Unfortunately, camera shops in my city mostly only sell DSLR and old mirrorless, so I can't try them in store either.

These are cameras on my list:
1. Panasonic Lumix G100D (The cheapest and smallest camera here. Need some opinions about the lack of IBIS, contrast af, small sensor, the rumour of G100 ii, and the future of MFT in general.)
2. Sony a6400 (I heard that it can still compete with newer cameras eventhough it's getting old rn, but do you think it's still good enough for the next 4-5 years?)
3. Nikon Z50 ii (Should be the most familiar camera for me as I used Nikon DSLR before, but it's the chunkiest on my list and I feel like Nikon doesn't really care about their APSC line.)
4. Fujifilm XS20 (A premium option, but people say Fuji's af is worse than others. How bad is it?)
5. Sony a6700 (I think spec wise is comparable to XS20 with similar price in my country, but I heard the a6700 has better af. Some people say it's more fun using Fuji than Sony though, but wdyt?)

With a budget of USD1500, I feel like XS20 or a6700 should be the obvious choice. But, going with a cheaper body (like a6400) would allow me to have some room to add prime lenses and maybe some accecories like a camera bag & a decent tripod. What would you recommend? Is it better to go with the best body on my budget with a kit lens, or buy a cheaper body with 1 or 2 fast prime lenses and some accesories? Thanks in advance.

 

[DVF Photography]

Hello. I'm new here and need some advice. To provide some background, I used to shoot with my dad's DSLR a long time ago (a Nikon D40 or D40x, can't remember exactly). When smartphone's cameras became better and better, I started to use that Nikon less and less. Now I want to start over and buy my first mirrorless camera. I intend to use it for travel & street photography, plus recording some music cover for tiktok/youtube. For that, I'd like my camera to be lightweight and compact, less prone to overheating (bcs I live in tropical climate), preferably have IBIS (bcs my shaky hands, but it's not a deal breaker), have either a flip-up or vari-angle screen, and still have a viewfinder. I have a list of cameras that caught my eye, but as I practically have never used any mirrorless, my understanding of these cameras only come from watching & reading online reviews. Unfortunately, camera shops in my city mostly only sell DSLR and old mirrorless, so I can't try them in store either.

These are cameras on my list:
1. Panasonic Lumix G100D (The cheapest and smallest camera here. Need some opinions about the lack of IBIS, contrast af, small sensor, the rumour of G100 ii, and the future of MFT in general.)

I think you need not worry about MFT in general - it's here to stay, because it has a specific market. A lot of people like the MFT sensor, and with reason.
As for the lack of IBIS, you shouldn't worry about that either, since there's a whole shebang of lenses that have their own stabilisation.

2. Sony a6400 (I heard that it can still compete with newer cameras eventhough it's getting old rn, but do you think it's still good enough for the next 4-5 years?)

You heard right. There are people that for some reason think that just because a newer camera is on the market, the old one suddenly stops producing stunning photos. Those people suffer from a disease called GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome).
If you opt for this camera, you should be fine for the next 4-5 years - and, if you treat it with TLC, some 10 years or longer after that as well.

3. Nikon Z50 ii (Should be the most familiar camera for me as I used Nikon DSLR before, but it's the chunkiest on my list and I feel like Nikon doesn't really care about their APSC line.)

While Z50II might be slightly bigger than your other options, 'chunky' might be an overstatement. Z50II still counts as one of the smaller cameras - it doesn't fit my whole hand, and I don't have hands that big. I felt the need to mount an L-bracket so my whole hand rests on the body (I have a Z50, which size is almost exactly the same).
With Z50II you'll get yourself a highly capable camera. Nikon does care about its APS-C line, and there are plenty quality 3rd party APS-C lenses out there like Tamron, Viltrox, Sirui and 7Artisans.
Familiarity might be a plus as well, since Nikon's ergonomics and menu structure hasn't changed very much, even compared to that ol' D40.

4. Fujifilm XS20 (A premium option, but people say Fuji's af is worse than others. How bad is it?)

Couldn't help you there, I have no experience with Fujifilm.

5. Sony a6700 (I think spec wise is comparable to XS20 with similar price in my country, but I heard the a6700 has better af. Some people say it's more fun using Fuji than Sony though, but wdyt?)

Again, I can't say anything about the Fujifilm, but Sony a6700 is in all aspects a very good camera. But then again, nowadays there are no bad cameras anymore. They are all capable of making that NatGeo-worthy photo. The differences mostly lie in personal preferences about ergonomics, menu structure and button layout.
To say it in Harry Potter terms: "It's not about the wand, it's about the wizard that wields it." The magic has to come from you

With a budget of USD1500, I feel like XS20 or a6700 should be the obvious choice. But, going with a cheaper body (like a6400) would allow me to have some room to add prime lenses and maybe some accecories like a camera bag & a decent tripod. What would you recommend? Is it better to go with the best body on my budget with a kit lens, or buy a cheaper body with 1 or 2 fast prime lenses and some accesories? Thanks in advance.

The best advice I can give you, also considering what I already said, is to go to a camera store and check your preferred camera models out in the real world. Hold them, check how they look and feel, let yourself be advised by the vendor.
I can give you my 2 cents, which I'd most probably put on Nikon Z50II. But that would solely be because I personally like Nikon's environment - and specifically don't like Sony's or Panasonics's. And there will be plenty people here that will renounce the Nikon and recommend you Panasonic, Sony or Fujifilm. Which exactly proves my point.

Another option worthy of mentioning is to buy used. There are plenty second-hand camera stores like KEH, B&H and MPB, where you can buy decent used camera gear. That would save up some serious funds for lenses (again, used!) and additional gear.

 

[ahaslett]

Hello. I'm new here and need some advice. To provide some background, I used to shoot with my dad's DSLR a long time ago (a Nikon D40 or D40x, can't remember exactly). When smartphone's cameras became better and better, I started to use that Nikon less and less. Now I want to start over and buy my first mirrorless camera. I intend to use it for travel & street photography, plus recording some music cover for tiktok/youtube. For that, I'd like my camera to be lightweight and compact, less prone to overheating (bcs I live in tropical climate), preferably have IBIS (bcs my shaky hands, but it's not a deal breaker), have either a flip-up or vari-angle screen, and still have a viewfinder. I have a list of cameras that caught my eye, but as I practically have never used any mirrorless, my understanding of these cameras only come from watching & reading online reviews. Unfortunately, camera shops in my city mostly only sell DSLR and old mirrorless, so I can't try them in store either.

These are cameras on my list:
1. Panasonic Lumix G100D (The cheapest and smallest camera here. Need some opinions about the lack of IBIS, contrast af, small sensor, the rumour of G100 ii, and the future of MFT in general.)

I have a lot of MFT kit. This camera can produce decent IQ at a budget price. It was launched as a vlogger camera but the CDAF can apparently create a pulsing effect. I have had 2 copies of the kit 12-32mm lens, one better than the other. It’s a good lens for the price, but still a kit lens. It’s wonderfully tiny. Lens OIS works OK but then you need to buy other lenses with OIS. The selection of MFT primes with OIS is limited.

I went for an OM5 mk i as a kit with the 12-45/4. PDAF, good IBIS, and a much better lens. Higher cost, but I got an excellent discount.

2. Sony a6400 (I heard that it can still compete with newer cameras eventhough it's getting old rn, but do you think it's still good enough for the next 4-5 years?)

This was the first A6xxx model with good tracking and excellent FaceEyeAF. The A6700 is on another level. IMHO, the benefits of a 24Mpix APSC sensor over a 20Mpix MFT one are modest. No IBIS in the A6400 - a dealbreaker for me. The APSC E mount lens list is getting better, but not as attractive to me as the MFT one. I thought about getting an A6700 recently, but the cost of adding decent lenses was off-putting.

3. Nikon Z50 ii (Should be the most familiar camera for me as I used Nikon DSLR before, but it's the chunkiest on my list and I feel like Nikon doesn't really care about their APSC line.)

No idea. Nikon are good camera makers. I’d say this is about Z mount APSC lens options and cost.

4. Fujifilm XS20 (A premium option, but people say Fuji's af is worse than others. How bad is it?)

X-trans worries me because I shoot landscape and I’ve seen some poor recent results from foliage. The debate about whether this is the RAW processor seems endless. You may be more limited in your choice of software with a Fuji X.

No idea about the AF, never used one.

5. Sony a6700 (I think spec wise is comparable to XS20 with similar price in my country, but I heard the a6700 has better af. Some people say it's more fun using Fuji than Sony though, but wdyt?)

I think the A6700 is a nice camera, especially the AF system but actually an OM3 is better IMHO. The OM3 is slightly more expensive here but there are a lot of used MFT lenses on the market where I live. I imagine the A6700 is a better video camera, but I don’t shoot video.

Personally, fun comes from having tools that work and are easy to use. I guess having a Rolex is more fun that my much cheaper Seiko but both tell the time equally well, my Seiko works off light, and it’s light because it’s titanium.

With a budget of USD1500, I feel like XS20 or a6700 should be the obvious choice. But, going with a cheaper body (like a6400) would allow me to have some room to add prime lenses and maybe some accecories like a camera bag & a decent tripod. What would you recommend? Is it better to go with the best body on my budget with a kit lens, or buy a cheaper body with 1 or 2 fast prime lenses and some accesories? Thanks in advance.

The right bag is essential. I have two tripods because I shoot landscape. I would have thought that travel and street don’t really fit a tripod and I’d go for IBIS instead.


The 12-32mm on my GM1 (smallest ILC made long discontinued )




OM5 mk I with 12-45/4

My other travel camera is an A7CR but that’s way outside your budget.

I don’t know what your local camera market is like, but I buy everything either used from a reputable dealer or new when on deep discount.

For example, my GM1 plus lens was £250 open-box and the OM5 plus lens was £950 new from an authorised dealer. The discount on the A7CR was really good after I’d been market watching for months.

Andrew

--
Infinite are the arguments of mages. Truth is a jewel with many facets. Ursula K LeGuin
Please feel free to edit any images that I post

 

[Ruedon]

...

With a budget of USD1500, I feel like XS20 or a6700 should be the obvious choice. But, going with a cheaper body (like a6400) would allow me to have some room to add prime lenses and maybe some accecories like a camera bag & a decent tripod. What would you recommend? Is it better to go with the best body on my budget with a kit lens, or buy a cheaper body with 1 or 2 fast prime lenses and some accesories? Thanks in advance.

You narrowed your list down to crop sensor cameras. I think that with mirrorless it has become possible to build small full frame cameras -- Leica has always been demonstrating this with their M series. The cost for full frame sensors has come down significantly. To me it appears that full frame is becoming ever more main stream every year -- see e.g. the Panasonic S series complementing or eventually replacing their MFT offer. Also most other manufacturers are treating crop sensor cameras with lower priority nowadays, e.g. regarding offered lenses. Last but not least: everyone is converting focal lengths to full frame equivalent -- smartphones and compact cameras even in their official spec sheets.

With a budget of USD1500, it is worthwhile to also have a look at full frame options. They are not necessarily larger; they are primarily making better use of space at the front of the camera -- thus gathering more light.

Sony a7C II vs Sony a6700: Specifications Comparison

photographylife.com

The latest models, like a7CII, exceed your budget. Its predecessor A7C is still available and would fit. Similarly in Nikon land the older Z5 vs the new Z5II. They are larger than the Z50II mostly due to a larger battery, IBIS, second card slot and a better viewfinder.

Nikon Z5 vs Nikon Z50 II: Specifications Comparison

photographylife.com

Pair a small full frame camera with lenses like the Nikon 24-70mm f/4, 24-200/4-6.3 or the 40mm f/2 to get a decently small AND very competent, future-proof package.

This sets you further apart from what the next smartphone generation might offer to potentially outperform your camera again, like you already experienced with your D40 (I had the same experience with a D90 a couple of years ago).

 

[Martin_99]

Is it your total budget for camera and lenses? So far I spent roughly the same amount for camera and lenses (usually about 3). But of course depends on your usage. Maybe just camera body and longer zoom will be OK for you.

I liked Sony A6400 with 18-135 and 1 prime about 24mm for interior/low light shooting. I can recommend this or similar setup from other brands.

 

[number_5]

Nikon USA is having a refurbished sales - the Z50 II with 2-lens kit is $974.96 . It has the same processor as the Z9. Does it utilizes the full potential? Don't know.

 

[jogedkahyangan]

I thank all of you for your suggestions. After some thoughts, I've decided to get Sony a6700. I managed to find one brand new at around USD1200, bundled with 16-50mm kit lens. I also ordered a Viltrox 35mm f/1.7 and a Nextorage V60 SD card. All of that for just under USD1500. Now I just need to wait for them to arrive in 2-3 days.

Again, thankyou for your suggestions. Have a good day!

 

[ahaslett]

I thank all of you for your suggestions. After some thoughts, I've decided to get Sony a6700. I managed to find one brand new at around USD1200, bundled with 16-50mm kit lens. I also ordered a Viltrox 35mm f/1.7 and a Nextorage V60 SD card. All of that for just under USD1500. Now I just need to wait for them to arrive in 2-3 days.

Again, thankyou for your suggestions. Have a good day!

Good place to start in terms of a modern body. Enjoy using it.

Andrew