CSC & M4/3 - advice please!

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ivandobski

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I'm considering changing from a dslr setup to a compact system because I'm not using the dslr as much as I should, mostly because of the bulk.

Can anyone clarify how the csc & m4/3 lenses compare in terms of crop factor to a non full frame dslr? Specifically what are the equivalent lenses to my 18-55 and 70-300?

Actually, if someone can clarify the difference between m4/3 and csc that'd be great as well!

Ideally I'm after something small, fairly robust, weatherproof ish, uses sd cards and has a wide range of lenses and accessories. I'm not bothered specifically about brand so anything considered if you've any pointers...

Cheers.
 
Hi Ivan,

I f you are looking for a fairly compact range of cameras with a good choice of lenses, you should be looking at Olympus and Panasonic. These are micro 4/3 cameras and their lenses are interchangeable between them. For something small the Olympus EPM-1 is good but if you want more control, something like teh E-P3. On teh Panasonic side, small points to GF3/5 or GX1. If you don't mind something bigger, then the Olympus OMD or Panasonic G3/5.

Outside of these but with significantly less lens choice there is teh SOny NEX system or Nikon J/V system.

The cameras I have mention cover a wide budget ranging from £250 to £1,150 for a body and one lens. Your ultimate choice will depend on budget and your own preferences.

I believe the only one out of the ones I mentioned that have weather proofing is the Olympus OMD although it is rumoured the pending Panasonic GH3 will have weather proofing.

Best thing to do is see which cameras fall into your budget and then go to your local photography store to try them out :thumbs:

As regards frame size, a m4/3 is the equivalent of approx. 1.6x that of a Canon non FF DSLR i.e. a 50mm m4/3 lens gives approx. the same field of view as the 80mm lens on the Canon
 
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ivandobski said:
I'm considering changing from a dslr setup to a compact system because I'm not using the dslr as much as I should, mostly because of the bulk.

Can anyone clarify how the csc & m4/3 lenses compare in terms of crop factor to a non full frame dslr? Specifically what are the equivalent lenses to my 18-55 and 70-300?

Actually, if someone can clarify the difference between m4/3 and csc that'd be great as well!

Ideally I'm after something small, fairly robust, weatherproof ish, uses sd cards and has a wide range of lenses and accessories. I'm not bothered specifically about brand so anything considered if you've any pointers...

Cheers.
Click to expand...

CSC stands for compact system camera and covers all the compacts with interchangable lenses. sony, samsung,fuji use aps-c sensors the same size as most dslr's with a crop factor of 1.5. where as the panasonic and Olympus use the smaller m3/4 sensor which is a 2.0 x crop.
 
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Spy said:
As regards frame size, a m4/3 is the equivalent of approx. 1.6x that of a Canon non FF DSLR i.e. a 50mm m4/3 lens gives approx. the same field of view as the 80mm lens on the Canon
Click to expand...

m4/3 is a 2.0 x crop.
 
rjbell said:
Sorry i didn't read your post properly.
Click to expand...

No problem.

To put it another way in terms of getting the same FOV on different lenses, roughly:

Full Frame/35mm - 100mm lens
APS-C - 80mm lens
m4/3 - 50mm lens
 
Spy said:
As regards frame size, a m4/3 is the equivalent of approx. 1.6x that of a Canon non FF DSLR i.e. a 50mm m4/3 lens gives approx. the same field of view as the 80mm lens on the Canon
Click to expand...
Nope. Crop between APS-C and m4/3 is 1.25. 2/1.6 = 1.25. 50mm on m4/3 = 62.5mm on APS-C and 100mm on FF.

To check: 62.5 x 1.6 = 100....

There really isn't much between m4/3 and APS-C - the APS-C is wider due to 3:2 aspect but has to have larger lenses accordingly.
 
Spy said:
No problem.

To put it another way in terms of getting the same FOV on different lenses, roughly:

Full Frame/35mm - 100mm lens
APS-C - 80mm lens
m4/3 - 50mm lens
Click to expand...

or 100, 75, 50 most aps-c's are 1.5 ;)
 
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Spy said:
No problem.

To put it another way in terms of getting the same FOV on different lenses, roughly:

Full Frame/35mm - 100mm lens
APS-C - 62.5mm lens
m4/3 - 50mm lens
Click to expand...

There, corrected that for you ;)
 
Cheers guys, just from a quick look around the E-PL3 seems to tick a few boxes. A none touchscreen, tilting screen is something I've wanted for a while...
 
arad85 said:
Nope. Crop between APS-C and m4/3 is 1.25. 2/1.6 = 1.25. 50mm on m4/3 = 62.5mm on APS-C and 100mm on FF.

To check: 62.5 x 1.6 = 100....

There really isn't much between m4/3 and APS-C - the APS-C is wider due to 3:2 aspect but has to have larger lenses accordingly.
Click to expand...

My bad!! Must take more care over my math ;)
 
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