[dms]

Hey,
not sure I will go that route, seems too much fiddling and learning curve, but anything you would advise to take a look at?

Looking at options *ist may be good: cheap, very small, has AF, and works w/ most contemporary lenses (apparently not w/ aperture ring).
My film cameras are not likely candidates (MZ-S, K1000 and Spotmatics)--although MZ-S (if you decide you like film) is AF and quite nice and different.

[Kerrowdown]

Secondary travel camera

How about the K1 with this little beauty on the front?

Not heavy (110g) and should you want to save even more space... just leave the hood off, as in this case it's twice the depth of the lens.

[zjacreman]

I picked up an Oly E-M1 Mark II for traveling (and fast-paced event situations that the K-1's buffer couldn't keep up with) and it is a glorious little camera. I also have a K-1, and the Oly is not a downgrade when it comes to ergonomics or build quality.

The Oly 1.8 primes range from good (17mm) to terrific (45mm) and they're so tiny that it astonishes me a little every time I pick them up. The 12-100 F4 is also noteworthy. Not particularly cheap but it is an extremely competent do-it-all travel lens. It is mounted to my Oly most of the time. The E-M1 II and 12-100 combined stabilization can be hand-held for, no joke, a full second at full extension, so you barely even need a tripod.

I liked it so much I picked up a PEN E-PL10 for even more lightweight/casual travel (replacing a GR I that is starting to have control wheel issues) and it has also been great. It isn't a tank like the E-M1 but I don't see the battery door falling off any time soon. I've even been impressed with the lower end plastic kit zooms, like the 14-42 EZ and the $100 40-150, which weigh next to nothing. I wouldn't reach for them first for professional work, but the results are better than they have any right to be for the size, weight, and price. Can fit the whole E-PL10 setup - camera, two zooms, low light prime, extra batteries - in a couple of jacket pockets.

[AlexanderS]

If you'd consider used, get an Olympus XZ-1 on eBay for ~$125, or an XZ-2 on eBay for ~$200. Both are small, capable point-and-shoot cameras with bright ƒ/1.8 lenses and full manual controls. If you like the ergonomics of the XZ-2, you will be able transfer nearly all of that muscle memory to an Olympus PEN camera. However, the zoom range is the 35mm equivalent of 28mm–115mm, so photographing animals/wildlife is out of the question.

I own both the XZ-1 (completely pocketable) and the XZ-2 (coat pocket no problem). They are delightful. Add an optional EVF for a fully-capable camera, but the EVF might actually cost as much as the camera itself.

Sounded interesting, started looking for them, but couldnt find them (at least on ebay for Europe), will maybe set an alert

[Jonathan Mac]

Hey guys,
I need your help in identifying a secondary camera, mostly for longer hiking trips (so, like twice a year, small, light,etc).

At the moment, I have a K 1, which I use extensively, and am actually very happy with for well planned out photography but, it takes too much joy away after a week of hiking, also, space.

So far, I looked at Olympus, to change the whole system to the plenty able mft, but I feel that I do not save too much on bulk, after all.

My second idea is to repurchase a sony rx 100, they are lovely for what they are, but, maybe one of you has a better suggestion?

I shoot mainly landscape, night cityscapes, a little creative shapes and architecture. Used to do animals, but Pentax really has different strengths imo, so it kinda died down (also a reason, why I started looking at Olympus, they do this great).

Any ideas welcome, and no, Leica Q is too expensive

If you want something smaller and lighter then a mirrorless camera with a micro 4/3 or APS-C sensor is probably the best bet. APS-C makes more sense as the cameras are no bigger than m4/3 and offer better IQ, though of course the system needs to have the lenses you want. I'd say Fujifilm is the best but m4/3 has a very good lens selection too.

[bdery]

just leave the hood off, as in this case it's twice the depth of the lens.

That's why I never use the hood on the FA43 also. Defeats the purpose.

[Kerrowdown]

That's why I never use the hood on the FA43 also. Defeats the purpose.

I use mine all the time... for me it certainly improves contrast.

[normhead]

Like my Lumix ZS100 for hiking.

It's diffraction limited in the long end






Wide angle is to die for.




It's a little lacking in Dynamic range.


But many shots are great.









And it fits in my coat pocket.

There are some compromises in almost every image if you're used to a K-1, but that goes with the territory with pocketable zooms.

The long end, 250mm equivalent, will give you images, but they will suffer more from diffraction. The trade off is it takes almost no room in your pack.

Some straight up comparisons.

ZS100


K-3 and DA 18-135


K-1 and DFA 28-105


The ZS 1000 solves the diffraction issue with a wider lens, but it's also much bigger, and feels fragile.

[am1wayfarer]

Those are nice shots Norm. The quality of photos from these small cameras is really amazing. I have a sony rx100 iii that I can definitely recommend it if you don't need longer focal length. It is very compact, quite sharp and has a number of useful features. It is also good in low light, which is not true of all small cameras. Whatever you choose, I would suggest making sure it has a build in viewfinder. Here's a photo from the sony of the Sydney opera house taken in the morning before sunrise from a moving boat.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/131290837@N06/49604717758/in/album-72157713317981751/

[PocketPixels]

Like my Lumix ZS100 for hiking.

It's diffraction limited in the long end


The ZS 1000 solves the diffraction issue with a wider lens, but it's also much bigger, and feels fragile.

Way to go, Norm. That's about as thorough an answer to a question as I've ever seen on the Internet.

[Shaneuk]

I have a K5 iis which I love with various lenses and a Sony A6000, but more often than not if I want one camera to cover anything on that day most times I'd pick my Panasonic Fz1000, for a 1 inch sensor camera that goes from 24 to 400mm and still gets perfectly respectable images up to 800 mm with a bit of in camera wizardry.
It amazes me how well it holds up to the other 2 cameras very sharp.

[normhead]

I have a K5 iis which I love with various lenses and a Sony A6000, but more often than not if I want one camera to cover anything on that day most times I'd pick my Panasonic Fz1000, for a 1 inch sensor camera that goes from 24 to 400mm and still gets perfectly respectable images up to 800 mm with a bit of in camera wizardry.
It amazes me how well it holds up to the other 2 cameras very sharp.

The trick being the nice wide aperture. ƒ4 is close enough to the diffraction limit to keep diffraction at bay. The minimum aperture n my ZS100 is around 6, and at that aperture , the diffraction is impossible to ignore. But, the wide end 24-30mm equivalent is excellent. Once I couldn't use my heavier gear (shoulder operation) I was sorry I didn't have the ZS1000 as it would have let me do almost everything I do with my k-5 and K-3, but who buys a camera for 2 months? I'm back shooting my K-3 now.

---------- Post added 02-16-21 at 09:08 PM ----------

Way to go, Norm. That's about as thorough an answer to a question as I've ever seen on the Internet.

Thanks.... for some reason I think it helps keep me sharp, explaining these things. When you get to my age staying engaged is really important.

[AlexanderS]

I picked up an Oly E-M1 Mark II for traveling (and fast-paced event situations that the K-1's buffer couldn't keep up with) and it is a glorious little camera. I also have a K-1, and the Oly is not a downgrade when it comes to ergonomics or build quality.

The Oly 1.8 primes range from good (17mm) to terrific (45mm) and they're so tiny that it astonishes me a little every time I pick them up. The 12-100 F4 is also noteworthy. Not particularly cheap but it is an extremely competent do-it-all travel lens. It is mounted to my Oly most of the time. The E-M1 II and 12-100 combined stabilization can be hand-held for, no joke, a full second at full extension, so you barely even need a tripod.

I liked it so much I picked up a PEN E-PL10 for even more lightweight/casual travel (replacing a GR I that is starting to have control wheel issues) and it has also been great. It isn't a tank like the E-M1 but I don't see the battery door falling off any time soon. I've even been impressed with the lower end plastic kit zooms, like the 14-42 EZ and the $100 40-150, which weigh next to nothing. I wouldn't reach for them first for professional work, but the results are better than they have any right to be for the size, weight, and price. Can fit the whole E-PL10 setup - camera, two zooms, low light prime, extra batteries - in a couple of jacket pockets.

Do you still use the K1 as much? This is why I am so far looking at 1 inch cameras, they are tiny enough, but dont question the professional equipment. With MFT, I am not sure that I would keep the K1 long term, convenience, size, lenses, and UI tech are great, even on the em10 I saw.

---------- Post added 02-17-21 at 04:56 AM ----------

Like my Lumix ZS100 for hiking.

It's diffraction limited in the long end






Wide angle is to die for.




It's a little lacking in Dynamic range.


But many shots are great.









And it fits in my coat pocket.

There are some compromises in almost every image if you're used to a K-1, but that goes with the territory with pocketable zooms.

The long end, 250mm equivalent, will give you images, but they will suffer more from diffraction. The trade off is it takes almost no room in your pack.

Some straight up comparisons.

ZS100


K-3 and DA 18-135


K-1 and DFA 28-105


The ZS 1000 solves the diffraction issue with a wider lens, but it's also much bigger, and feels fragile.

Although I can see the difference, who cares, the images are gorgeous Thank you for sharing them

---------- Post added 02-17-21 at 04:58 AM ----------

Those are nice shots Norm. The quality of photos from these small cameras is really amazing. I have a sony rx100 iii that I can definitely recommend it if you don't need longer focal length. It is very compact, quite sharp and has a number of useful features. It is also good in low light, which is not true of all small cameras. Whatever you choose, I would suggest making sure it has a build in viewfinder. Here's a photo from the sony of the Sydney opera house taken in the morning before sunrise from a moving boat.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/131290837@N06/49604717758/in/album-72157713317981751/

Looking at precisely that camera right now, I used to have the mk2, the lens gave me stunning results. Still annoyed, that I sold it at some point. mk3 right now seems to be the perfect choice between affordable, and I personally like the ND filter available

[normhead]

Although I can see the difference, who cares, the images are gorgeous Thank you for sharing them

Thanks. This has always been the issue in photography. An image can be artistically excellent while being technically inferior. The goal for most of us is carry the gear that meets your standards with the least possible weight and inconvenience. If a small sensor camera fulfills your needs, you'd be fool to carry heavier. There are many days when small sensor cameras fulfill my needs better than large sensor cameras. And part of that is, I just don't need max. dynamic range or maximum resolution for every image.

To be even more cynical, I just can't afford max. everything for every image. I have to live within my budget.

[zjacreman]

Do you still use the K1 as much?

I haven't used it in more than a year. It got stranded in storage in a country I haven't been back to since the pandemic started.

They're very different cameras. The K-1 is slow, high-res, high-dynamic-range, high-high-ISO-performance. The E-M1 II, on the other hand, is fast (so fast! so fast I had to turn the frames per second down in the menus) with the autofocus benefits of mirrorless like face/eye detect. But 20MP seems to be the physical limit for the sensor size, there haven't been improvements since 2016 with the sensor in the E-M1 II. DR is about on par with Canon full frame, so I think criticisms in that arena are often overblown, but it can't be denied that it is a few stops less than the K-1. ISO 6400 is barely usable, 8000+ is quite poor - but this is mitigated somewhat by mirrorless autofocus, the fact that your depth of field isn't razor thin at f1.8, and that the Oly primes perform well at their maximum apertures. On the K-1 I would need to shoot at F4 just to have a prayer of getting focus close enough on, say, a dancer at a poorly-lit event. The Oly will hit at F1.8, letting me keep the same shutter speed with lower ISO and similar DOF.

If I had to pick just one camera system, it would probably be M4/3. It's a better do-everything system if you ever shoot moving subjects or need video. The stabilization is the best of any system. I can fit most of my kit in a backpack in the space where a FF 70-200 would have gone, and with less weight. You can even print surprisingly large with some assistance from tools like Gigapixel AI and appropriate viewing distance considerations. Which apply to the K-1, too.

I also just picked up a 645Z to be my slow, high-res, big-printing camera. So I'm not sure what the K-1's role will be when I finally get my hands on it again. I will probably keep it, just because I love the thing, and it shares batteries and flash accessories with the 645Z. But I expect I will get rid of all of my lenses except for the limiteds and vintage/soviet glass.

They say you should keep at least a sensor size between your systems - so APS-C is too close to FF to make a lot of sense, but M4/3 to FF is a big enough jump. I don't think it will encroach too much on the K-1's territory, while still providing a substantial image quality improvement over 1". Something like an E-M10 or Pany G95 aren't even much bigger than a 1" camera. And if you do find it replaces the K-1 in the long run... well, just means you found a better tool for your job, right?