Changing direction as a hobby photographer

[rob-nikon]

During lockdown I’ve had time to reconsider what I want from photography as a hobby. I still like going out to take photos but I find the photography aspect has became less important compared to when I first started photograph. Having built up quite a collection of equipment over the years (which I cut down a year ago) I’m starting to reconsider my options. I‘d like to still enjoy my photography but maybe take a step back on the amount of kit I have invested in the hobby.

I‘m thinking of a change of direction from the normal stills only photography I currently do. I’d like to do some short videos/media with a mixture of stills and video. Subject wise it will likely be landscapes and wildlife. I’ve not yet got the plan 100% but it be a long the lines of youtube vlogs without the vlogging as there is no way I’d get in front of the camera! Part of the idea would be to reduce outlay of kit rather than add more kit. I‘m thinking of utilsing my phone with a gimbal where possible for short videos even stills (can I say that on a photography forum?), maybe a drone for some aerial video and stills for a different perspective and a camera and single short zoom lens for some landscape stills. I have a Nikon D700 in the cupboard that I could utilise with something like a Nikon 24-120 f4. Are there other options where the camera and short zoom would be circa £600? Something lightweight would be useful as I don’t like carrying heavy kit around. I’m currently thinking of a £1000 budget for everything (camera plus short zoom, drone and phone gimbal). I know it’s not much but I thought I’d ask for suggestions or if anyone else has taken a different route

So far I’m thinking:

DJi mobile 3 £79
mavic mini drone £459
nikon 24-120 f4 £350? (I may be a little out on current second hand prices)

 

[snerkler]

If you want to go lighter then a used Olympus EM1 or EM5-II with 12-40mm f2.8 would be a great option imo.

 

[rob-nikon]

If you want to go lighter then a used Olympus EM1 or EM5-II with 12-40mm f2.8 would be a great option imo.

Olympus isn’t something I know much about. My first camera was an olympus e410, I’d pretty much be going full circle! The 12-40 f2.8 seems to be well reviewed. If in the future I decided I wanted something longer again the 40-150 f2.8 would be a good fit. The recent new about Olympus would be bit of a concern though. It’s definitely one to consider.

 

[Box Brownie]

Olympus isn’t something I know much about. My first camera was an olympus e410, I’d pretty much be going full circle!

A sort of return to your roots

 

[rob-nikon]

A sort of return to your roots

Though I still remember why I changed to Nikon back then! Going from full frame to M4/3 sensor may be a come down but I do wonder how much of that would be in my head and marketing departments have got us wanting those minuscule gains that probably aren’t there (especially speaking from my skill level). Is it Olympus that has well renown JPEG output or am I thinking of Fuji?

 

[rob-nikon]

I’ve just noticed Olympus do a ‘try and wow’ option. That may be an idea to test the water before making an expensive jump (I’m not sure on the T&Cs if using it then buying second hand would be allowed).

 

[Jelster]

Is it Olympus that has well renown JPEG output or am I thinking of Fuji?

'Tis the Fuji... I dropped all my Canon gear for Fuji and haven't looked back. In fact, I shoot more now than I ever did with my Canon gear, I just find the Fuji's so tactile and fun to use. Sometimes we need to step back, take stock, and have a "revelation" to move forward.

 

[rob-nikon]

'Tis the Fuji... I dropped all my Canon gear for Fuji and haven't looked back. In fact, I shoot more now than I ever did with my Canon gear, I just find the Fuji's so tactile and fun to use. Sometimes we need to step back, take stock, and have a "revelation" to move forward.

I think I’m at that point. Photography has been my main hobby for 10 years and in that time I’ve probably gone through many of the same stages everyone has gone through buying the more expensive kit as I my interest increased. During lockdown I’ve been looking through my back catalog. I noticed I've not taken as many photos in recent years as the years before that. Part of the issue as Im not a bit fan of editing so great JPEG output would be beneficial. One thing I have found is having a camera gets me out to some fantastic places so I’d like to carry that on. Having something that costs less but is good enough for my skills would probably be better than having kit that costs thousands (and beyond my skill level) on kit that sits in the cupboard most of the time as it’s a hobby after all.

 

[Box Brownie]

Though I still remember why I changed to Nikon back then! Going from full frame to M4/3 sensor may be a come down but I do wonder how much of that would be in my head and marketing departments have got us wanting those minuscule gains that probably aren’t there (especially speaking from my skill level). Is it Olympus that has well renown JPEG output or am I thinking of Fuji?

Hi Rob

FWIW..............my journey in digital has been all Canon from crop bodied 350D, 40D, 7D to full frame 5D3......................to Olympus mFT. Yes, I have kept the 5D3 and one lens....sold the rest of what Canon gear I had but since getting the E-M1 mk2 have only added gear and have yet to pick up the 5D3 again.

The files from the Olympus need a slightly different approach to the Canon's but before I dived in I test PP'ed some raw files and found that DxO Photolab 2 handled noise as needed and just,for me, ticked the boxes.

There are as you may be aware some very fine photographers here at TP who use Olympus (I do not include myself in that category (well maybe on my best days.... ) so have gander here https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/olympus-om-d-e-m5-e-m1-e-m10-mark-2-owners-thread.395080/ for what has been going on

 

[snerkler]

Olympus isn’t something I know much about. My first camera was an olympus e410, I’d pretty much be going full circle! The 12-40 f2.8 seems to be well reviewed. If in the future I decided I wanted something longer again the 40-150 f2.8 would be a good fit. The recent new about Olympus would be bit of a concern though. It’s definitely one to consider.

I went around the houses a while ago trying to find for me what the best system was to balance weight vs IQ and for me it was the Olympus system. For a lot of scenarios m4/3 can certainly hold it's own, with landscapes being one of those scenarios. Of course, if scrutinising then FF will always win out, but if viewing normal size then the difference is minimal. In my office I have 3 75cm prints, 2 taken with the D750 and 1 taken with the EM10, you can't tell which is which.

I've posted these before, one taken with the D850 and 24-70mm f2.8 and one taken with the EM1 and 12-40mm. Not the best photo, but was just a comparison test that I did.

Screen Shot 2018-09-06 at 13.34.11 by TDG-77, on Flickr
Screen Shot 2018-09-06 at 13.34.51 by TDG-77, on Flickr

 

[rob-nikon]

I went around the houses a while ago trying to find for me what the best system was to balance weight vs IQ and for me it was the Olympus system. For a lot of scenarios m4/3 can certainly hold it's own, with landscapes being one of those scenarios. Of course, if scrutinising then FF will always win out, but if viewing normal size then the difference is minimal. In my office I have 3 75cm prints, 2 taken with the D750 and 1 taken with the EM10, you can't tell which is which.

I've posted these before, one taken with the D850 and 24-70mm f2.8 and one taken with the EM1 and 12-40mm. Not the best photo, but was just a comparison test that I did.

Screen Shot 2018-09-06 at 13.34.11 by TDG-77, on Flickr
Screen Shot 2018-09-06 at 13.34.51 by TDG-77, on Flickr

To me there isn’t much difference. I’m sure there is but I just don’t look for it in that way. Can I ask which as those photos are set to private.

 

[rob-nikon]

Hi Rob

FWIW..............my journey in digital has been all Canon from crop bodied 350D, 40D, 7D to full frame 5D3......................to Olympus mFT. Yes, I have kept the 5D3 and one lens....sold the rest of what Canon gear I had but since getting the E-M1 mk2 have only added gear and have yet to pick up the 5D3 again.

The files from the Olympus need a slightly different approach to the Canon's but before I dived in I test PP'ed some raw files and found that DxO Photolab 2 handled noise as needed and just,for me, ticked the boxes.

There are as you may be aware some very fine photographers here at TP who use Olympus (I do not include myself in that category (well maybe on my best days.... ) so have gander here https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/olympus-om-d-e-m5-e-m1-e-m10-mark-2-owners-thread.395080/ for what has been going on

Thanks, I was looking through that thread last night and the capabilities look good

 

[snerkler]

To me there isn’t much difference. I’m sure there is but I just don’t look for it in that way. Can I ask which as those photos are set to private.

Yeah that was my point, at normal viewing sizes there's not much difference. The tell tale sign (which I kicked myself about later) is that there's more of a 'silky' water effect in the Nikon as the base ISO is 64 vs 200 on the Olly and so shutter speed was slower on the Nikon. The Nikon is the top image.

 

[Jelster]

I think I’m at that point. Photography has been my main hobby for 10 years and in that time I’ve probably gone through many of the same stages everyone has gone through buying the more expensive kit as I my interest increased. During lockdown I’ve been looking through my back catalog. I noticed I've not taken as many photos in recent years as the years before that. Part of the issue as Im not a bit fan of editing so great JPEG output would be beneficial. One thing I have found is having a camera gets me out to some fantastic places so I’d like to carry that on. Having something that costs less but is good enough for my skills would probably be better than having kit that costs thousands (and beyond my skill level) on kit that sits in the cupboard most of the time as it’s a hobby after all.

I've had a camera of some description for around 50 years, and I understand your feeling about post production. I'm not too bothered as I have my workflow sorted, most images only take me a couple of minutes to deal with, unless I'm doing something like a multi shot pano or focus stacking.

If you're interested in a bit of video too, the X-T2 works very well, the T3 is better, and the new T4 is meant to be even better than that, but a good used T2 can be found for around £400. Add a couple of the very good primes and you have a lightweight versatile set up. Most of the stuff on my Flickr feed over the last 3 years has all been shot on Fuji kit, so it may be worth having a nose around there, or on the Fuji thread in the equipment section.

 

[rob-nikon]

I’ve been rethinking this idea. I’m currently more aimed towards wildlife with some time spent landscaping (probably a 80-20 split). Whilst I like landscapes I think I’d still like to be more wildlife orientated. This has made me think to put the drone and video idea on the back burner (I could revisit the idea at a later date) and concentrate on replacing my current setup with something that would be good enough for me to still do wildlife and landscapes but still be a lower cost than my current kit (Sony A9, 24-105 and 100/400). An option would be Olympus EM-5 mk2, 12-40 and 40-150. I’d expect this would be circa £1300-1500. I’m not sure how that would perform considering quite a bit of my wildlife photography is in low light at sunrise and sunset. AF performance would be a concern.

 

[Brentor]

This must be a difficult decision for you, it would be for me. Just one observation, is a max focal length of 150mm enough even given the crop factor?

 

[snerkler]

I’ve been rethinking this idea. I’m currently more aimed towards wildlife with some time spent landscaping (probably a 80-20 split). Whilst I like landscapes I think I’d still like to be more wildlife orientated. This has made me think to put the drone and video idea on the back burner (I could revisit the idea at a later date) and concentrate on replacing my current setup with something that would be good enough for me to still do wildlife and landscapes but still be a lower cost than my current kit (Sony A9, 24-105 and 100/400). An option would be Olympus EM-5 mk2, 12-40 and 40-150. I’d expect this would be circa £1300-1500. I’m not sure how that would perform considering quite a bit of my wildlife photography is in low light at sunrise and sunset. AF performance would be a concern.

Imo no Olympus option would be as good as the A9, also the 100-400mm is pretty hard to beat as a long tele zoom.

The EM5-II doesn’t really cut it as a wildlife camera, C-AF is sluggish, unreliable and frustrating. Olympus only really got C-AF sorted with the EM1-II and newer bodies.

The 40-150mm only gives you 300mm reach, and unless you’re incredibly stealthy I don’t think that’s long enough. The Panny 100-400mm is a great lens but requires good light of you want to keep shutter speed up. Your other option is the 300mm f4 but it ain’t cheap.

 

[twist]

If I were you I'd definitely go m43, it's lightweight, cheap decent lenses, crop factor for wildlife and incredible IBIS. Most have excellent 4k video capabilities.... Your payload is low, smaller gimbals, tripods, drones = overall cost is very low. Instead of being in front of the camera you could do a voice over blog thing.

You don't need the best afc in the world, you'll mostly shoot stopped down for video because your shutter speeds are so low.

 

[rob-nikon]

Imo no Olympus option would be as good as the A9, also the 100-400mm is pretty hard to beat as a long tele zoom.

The EM5-II doesn’t really cut it as a wildlife camera, C-AF is sluggish, unreliable and frustrating. Olympus only really got C-AF sorted with the EM1-II and newer bodies.

The 40-150mm only gives you 300mm reach, and unless you’re incredibly stealthy I don’t think that’s long enough. The Panny 100-400mm is a great lens but requires good light of you want to keep shutter speed up. Your other option is the 300mm f4 but it ain’t cheap.

I will have a look at the newer bodies to see what cost difference we are talking. I wouldn’t expect any camera to be as good as the A9, especially one that’s probably 1/5 of the cost of the A9. It’s really a question of being good enough for my limited use rather than being the best I can get. I probably take the camera out once a month. It feels a lot of money keeping something in the cupboard when I’m not using it that often.

I probably don’t do what everyone calls normal wildlife as I try to stay around what I can reach and not really worry about what I can’t. I’m not really one for close in portraits with long lenses. I’m happy getting something a little different like the wider view. It may be a case that I either rethink/adapt how I do wildlife or prioritise landscapes more than I do now. I’m starting to think I’m not all about the photography like I was 6-8 years ago. I find photography gets me out to some interesting places I probably wouldn’t go to normally.

 

[snerkler]

I will have a look at the newer bodies to see what cost difference we are talking. I wouldn’t expect any camera to be as good as the A9, especially one that’s probably 1/5 of the cost of the A9. It’s really a question of being good enough for my limited use rather than being the best I can get. I probably take the camera out once a month. It feels a lot of money keeping something in the cupboard when I’m not using it that often.

I probably don’t do what everyone calls normal wildlife as I try to stay around what I can reach and not really worry about what I can’t. I’m not really one for close in portraits with long lenses. I’m happy getting something a little different like the wider view. It may be a case that I either rethink/adapt how I do wildlife or prioritise landscapes more than I do now. I’m starting to think I’m not all about the photography like I was 6-8 years ago. I find photography gets me out to some interesting places I probably wouldn’t go to normally.

Obviously I have no idea what you find acceptable but C-AF on earlier Olympus really isn’t usable. You’re better off using S-AF and rattling half press on the shutter to ‘track’ focus

 

[rob-nikon]

Obviously I have no idea what you find acceptable but C-AF on earlier Olympus really isn’t usable. You’re better off using S-AF and rattling half press on the shutter to ‘track’ focus

Having thought about this I’d like continuous AF to be good. It doesn’t need to be A9 amazing just useable for my needs.

I’ve been having a look around at prices, it looks like I could pick up the E-M1 mk2, 12-40 and 40-150 for around £1600-1800 by buying used.

I’m going to look through lightroom to see what focal lengths I’ve used in the past. I guess there is the option to pick up a 1.4TC as that would get me to 420mm on the 40-150.

I will read up on some reviews to find out more about the Olympus system. The recent announcement is a little worrying. I’m not sure if it’s a right time to buy into the Olympus system.

 

[rob-nikon]

I’ve had a look through lightroom. In the last 5 years whilst using a zoom lens (Nikon 200-400 or Sony 100-400) I’ve shot at 300-400mm around two thirds of the time although around 30% of that was around 300-350mm. In the same period where I used a Nikon 300mm f2.8 prime I stayed at 300mm and only added a teleconverter 10% of the time.

I think this shows I’m more inclined to shoot towards the far end of the focal range of a lens as you use the focal range you have. Whether I’d miss the extra 100mm I’m not really sure. If I had it I’d probably use it but I didn’t seem to miss it when using the 300mm f2.8 as I rarely seemed to add a teleconverter.