I am planning a multi-week trip to SW France, and photography will be a big part of the trip. We will be doing a lot of point-to-point walking (6-12 miles per day) with everything on our backs. No car, no suitcase, only smallish backpacks - but no camping gear, either.
I have a 3-prime kit, built around my Pentax Kx which is small and light relative to some other APS-C bodies and primes - BUT - I'm beginning to think it's too much to carry. I'm trying to decide how much image quality I might be willing to sacrifice for convenience and comfort.
My 6 year old, 12 MP, APS-C camera is hardly state-of-the-art, but I am mostly satisfied with the images I'm getting from my 3 primes:
Pentax-DA 35mm F2.4 AL,
HD Pentax-DA 21mm F3.2, and
Pentax-DA 70mm F2.4)
Everything fits in a LowePro Event Messenger 100 which measures about 11" x 7.5" x 6", and weighs about 4.4 lbs (2kg), including spare batteries, filters, etc. Problem is, the camera bag won't fit in the loaded backpack, so I will need to have the camera bag on my shoulder every step of the way, even if I'm not in full-photo-mode.
A Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100, or a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 III, or equivalent, would greatly reduce my kit (and my bank account) - but how much image quality will I loose? (I am not even considering any sensor less than 1" - nor will I buy anything with a zoom which does not open up to at least F2.8.)
I don't expect the compacts and their zooms to match my APS-C plus a prime, but will they be at least as good as the kit zoom which came with my Kx (SMC Pentax DA L 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AL)? I'm guessing that higher pixel counts and modern sensors will partially offset the difference in size between a new micro 4/3 or 1" sensor and my old Kx?
And when comparing the weight of compacts to my Kx kit, about how much should I figure for a spare battery and charger. (My Kx takes AA batteries, so I don't have to carry a charger!)
The Kx is is the only digital camera I've owned, so I have no personal experience with other formats. I would hate to spend the price of a travel compact, and then decide I'm not happy with images.
Actually, I'd hate to spend the money, period; maybe I should should just stick with the the 3-prime kit?
Final use of the images will probably be limited to web viewing, slide shows on TVs and computer monitors, and a nice photo book no bigger than 13" x 11" - so I don't need uber quality, but I'd like to get as much as I can afford.
Last edited by runswithsizzers; 09-07-2016 at 12:59 PM.
Reason: added kit zoom specifics