best 3/4 camera?

evilonion

evilonion

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Dave Peacock
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ok im off to america in late june, my first big holiday in many years as im always working! :bonk:

Its a bit unpractical for me to walk around with a full sized dslr... i have a pocket samsung nv4 for taking some snapshots but i was thinking about buying a 3/4 camera like a gf-1 for out and about.

im going to Florida and will be doing all the major theme parks as well as the massive zoo, seaworld, visiting disney quick, and seeing any other major places i can fit in.

Im looking for the best at a budget, i cant afford £1000 so anything around the £500 mark? i know the gf-1 is a bit above this but i could probably stretch to that as well.

Was looking at the sony nex-5 or nex-3 and not really sure what other options there are or what anyone would recomend. Ive been reading the gf-1 suffers when shooting in jpg?
 
Yes any of the Panasonic cameras are a bit rough when shooting JPEG only. If you want a decent travel camera the Canon S90 may be a good option

If you do go down the Panasonic route a G1 is the best vfm
 
G1 = :D

Have a look through the G1 and GF1 threads for IQ.
I wouldn't say JPEG is 'rough', but it's not as good as the Oly Pen cameras. RAW is excellent though, and will show an entry level DSLR a thing or two in good light.
 
the g1 looks massive compared to the pen or gf-1 lol
i was thinking of something that could at least go in my pocket when im walking about.... ?

what would be the better one out of the pen or gf-1 with a small 20mm lens?
that would make the camera quite small and portable...
 
The GF1 with the 20mm is a bit smaller, you will probably have to get a viewfinder as well though if you are going the US as the screen is difficult to see in strong sunlight.

I would still consider the S90 if you want something in your pocket, it shoots RAW and does video as well
 
The panny G1 is my favourite camera and we have Canon 5D, 450d, G10 plus Nikon, D40, D3000, and a panasonic GF-1 so it's got some competition!

Thew is nothing apart fro four thirds cameras that will give you an "image feel" like a DSLR simply because with the smaller cameras just about everything is in focus and your subject gets swamped.

I mainly use The G1 when out and about with the 20mm lens from the GF-1, it then fits in the (baggy) pocket. You can grab a G1 with 14-45 for under £350 at the mo so you could flog the kit lens unused on fleabay and grab a 20mm!!

have a nice trip!

john
 
I'm not mad keen on the idea of cameras without an OVF but so far I've had no problems viewing the screen on my GF1 or LX2, but I do live up North so maybe the poor light up here is the reason :lol:

I love my LX2, but to be honest the GF1 takes much better pictures and I've been amazed how much processing the shots can take before falling apart.

Another to think about could be the LX3 if you fancy a small camera with a zoom lens which is capable of very good results.
 
phototuition said:
The panny G1 is my favourite camera and we have Canon 5D, 450d, G10 plus Nikon, D40, D3000, and a panasonic GF-1 so it's got some competition!
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blimey, I thought I had too many cameras :D

I mainly use Canon DSLRs and my wife uses a Fuji bridge camera, she doesn't like using the Canons as they are too big and fiddly. However she recently took the G1 out for an evening (not sure why she didn't take her camera) and she loved it... I fear she might try and adopt it!
 
phototuition said:
Thew is nothing apart fro four thirds cameras that will give you an "image feel" like a DSLR simply because with the smaller cameras just about everything is in focus and your subject gets swamped.
Click to expand...

You do know that there are four thirds DSLR too? ;)

Shot with a 4/3 DSLR (same size sensor as micro 4/3)
P5073424.jpg


Subject not swamped :)
 
I have a GF1 and a G1 - the GF1 is a superb 'take-everywhere' camera. Using the 20mm lens I don't often find the lack of viewfinder a problem.

The G1 is a bit more bulky but great value atm - £310 at Currys with the 5MAY discount code and cashback, plus you should be able to get quidco too.
 
I took my Canon s90 to Tenerife and was very happy how it performed especially in bright light. It's also good in low light too. OK It's not 4/3's but it is tiny and perfect to slip in the pocket. If it has to be 4/3 's then GF1 all day long...or the Oly E-P1 or E-PL1.
 
evilonion said:
the g1 looks massive compared to the pen or gf-1 lol
i was thinking of something that could at least go in my pocket when im walking about.... ?

what would be the better one out of the pen or gf-1 with a small 20mm lens?
that would make the camera quite small and portable...
Click to expand...

Once you have a lens on them, does the grip and viewfinder on the G1 make that much difference? ...and both seem like useful additions.
 
acs said:
Once you have a lens on them, does the grip and viewfinder on the G1 make that much difference? ...and both seem like useful additions.
Click to expand...

It kind of does - I can fit the GF1 in my jacket pocket fairly easily, with the 20mm or 14-45. The G1, not really.
 
grum said:
It kind of does - I can fit the GF1 in my jacket pocket fairly easily, with the 20mm or 14-45. The G1, not really.
Click to expand...

...and I thought I'd decided :bang: :lol:
 
I've just recently purchased a GF1 + 20mm lens, to use as a second/backup camera to my 40D DSLR and I must say I'm very impressed with the results. The lack of viewfinder is not ideal, but I treat the camera as a very good quality point and shoot with SLR functionality, and colours and IQ from the 20mm f/1.7 lens is awesome.

For your situation and needs, I'd say stay away from the G1 because to me even though it is smaller than a Canon DSLR body, it is still fairly big and I wouldn't call it compact. The GF1 + 20mm you can definitely fit inside a large jacket pocket but not so small that it feels cheap and flimsy. The new Sony 4/3 cameras look like they are smaller than the GF1 but the lenses are fairly bulky and people have reported bad distortion on them.

I got my GF1+20mm from Mathers in Bolton for £599.
 
the g1 iis too big for me, i have an a200 already and dont want anything big, id like it to go in my pocket so i can point and shoot when at the theme parks etc, plus put it into my pocket when going on the rides etc.... im tempted to ducttape it to my hand and video the rollercoaster rides haha.

how does the gf-1 compare to the pen?
 
I have a 5D and a GF1 + 20mm. Took them both to the US recently, and duplicated lots of photos. Whilst I have no doubt that the 5D produced the better photos (obviously), the GF1 put up a good fight. I would go so far as to say that should I ever have to travel and be unable to take my 5D and could only take the GF1, then I wouldn't be too upset.

And no problem without a viewfinder. I wouldn't waste that much money on something that would hardly get used, if ever. Get a wrist strap though.
 
evilonion said:
how does the gf-1 compare to the pen?
Click to expand...

With the latest firmware upgrade the E-P1 is closer to the Gf1 but when looking into the E-P1 I found many people who were comparing the two found that the Jpeg images were better from the E-P1. There is better on camera software (IMHO) in the pen but the GF1 with a 20mm f1.7 is bloomin hard to beat! I find the Gf1 was like a brick to hold and it's a bit fugly where as the E-P1/E-P2 is sexier than Gail Porter (When she had hair!) dipped in chocolate!!!

Saying that though I still think my images of Mount Teide in Tenerife taken with my Canon s90 are the best Image Quality pics I have ever taken!
 
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