Originally posted by Rondec Eventually you reach the point where you just need two devices.
Originally posted by Rondec there will be some who move from cell phone cameras to purchasing an ILC because they want more than what their cell phone camera offers.
Right now among my active cameras by sensor size:
Original Q - 1/2.3 sensor
Panasonic ZS50 - 1/2.3 sensor
Canon S95 - 1/1.7 sensor
Q-S1 - 1/1.7 - sensor
Olympus OM-D E-M10 - m43
Pentax K5 - APS-C
I realize over the years, since moving to digital, that I don't think of one format giving me "more" than the other - just different with their own strengths and weakness.
The two Q's are very specialized and are used only on the back end of the 560mm scope for bird shots. I don't own any conventional Q lens' at all. I bought them only for the crop factor - the original Q gives me a magnification of 72x magnification at 560mm for instance.
The Panasonic is a special case. I originally bought it as a sort of super PS - shots RAW, huge zoom range, EVF etc. I was wrong. It's biggest failing is it's just too slow and unresponsive when shooting RAW and the EVF is only adequate in a pinch. But - I have a ancient dearly beloved 98 year old Aunt. Very traditional and is offended by photography and especially any attempt to get a portrait shot that would identify her. That would be a vanity. Anyway we were at her place and there she sat in the dining room by the window reading her beloved Luther bible as she has done for the last 90 years. Photographically the scene was perfect for what I wanted. So I sent my wife in to distract her by talking to her and who she happens to love beyond all understanding. After ten minutes or so I quietly slipped in and sat back in the shadows with the Panny set to full auto. Zoomed in on her face with that powerful zoom, pulled the trigger and the camera correctly selected the back light mode, took a 3 bracketed shoot silently, merged them and was done within a few seconds. Got the file home and with a bit of PP it produces very good 8x10 prints which is fine with me. If 8x10s were good enough for Ansel and Weston they are good enough for me. BTW the 5 axis SR is easily the best of all my cameras. All that in a camera hardly bigger than a pack of cigarettes. Simple - just set it to full auto and fire away and concentrate on the scene in front of you instead of the damn gear.
S95 is good when you need unobtrusive and low light performance which for me is often. At f/2 with that small sensor and RAW you have both good low light performance and good DOF at the same time. Took it into a bar New Years eve and I got shots I would never have with anything else. It always goes with me where there is a public gathering and where the lighting may be low which is often. It's a bit smaller than the Panny and noticeably better quality than the Panny especially because I can shot in RAW with a slightly bigger sensor.
Just got the Olympus a few weeks ago so I can't say much yet. It does have a huge advantage over the others for a ETTR RAW shooter - you can see the hgram
before you take the picture in EVF and you have a dedicated wheel (Ev) at your fingertips to push the hgram around then take the picture . Fast simple and accurate so far as I can tell. Tentatively it might make a great little street shooter but time will tell.
So far as the K5 is concerned we all know what the k5 is and is not so I'll leave it at that.
So what's the point of all this verbiage? Speaking only for myself I'm beginning to question the wisdom of thinking in terms of which ILC
SYSTEM camera to use? It seems rather old school and dated to me. Back in the day it made some sense when technology was slow, stable, conservative and predictable. Back then one size did, more or less, fit all because, for most practical uses there really was only one size. Now I'm not so sure. Maybe in a few years when I can pick up a used K1 for 700 bucks I might try one out but otherwise no - both figuratively and literally FF just isn't a good fit for the way I use a camera.
Any further thoughts folks?
A very low light shot from Canon S95