Beginner Need help choosing a mirrorless for travel photography

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tabbyj

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I've been using a Nikon D5200 for a while now but am still basically a beginner. I want to get a mirrorless camera to take travelling since the D5200 is bulky and expensive, but my budget is real low since I'm a student. Right now I'm choosing between the Canon EOS M100 and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ80 or DC-GX800. Originally I was drawn to the M100 because of the interchangeable lenses but honestly its going to be a while until I can afford to buy any new ones, so I'll be stuck with the 15-44mm for the foreseeable future. Aside from lenses I don't see any huge differences between these cameras, so can anyone point me to which one is better? I'm also open to other suggestions.

The only thing I'm really bothered about is battery life - I know mirrorless cameras don't last very long so I would ideally want to go for an option with the longest battery life. I'm not planning on shooting video so I don't really care about 4K, and I'll probably be sticking to landscape or closer up city photography, not portraits.

Thanks in advance for any advice :)
 
Panasonic have been making cracking little travel cameras for a while now. If you are on a budget, why not consider picking up a year or two old one for not much money - they all had decent-ish IS for years now and you'd struggle to tell a more recent model apart from an older one. Add on an aftermarket battery for not much (ExPro do a good range) and you're sorted.
 
A TZ80 plus a spare battery would be excellent. I use a TZ70 myself and previously used a TZ7 and a TZ40...

TZ7:

Panasonic TZ7 1020328.JPG

TZ40:

Panasonic TZ40 1000441.JPG

TZ70:

Panasonic TZ70 8GB H05 P1030119.JPG
 
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IIRC the Panasonic TZ cameras are compacts with a tiny 1/2.3" sensor offering good image quality for a compact but nothing like what you'd get from the Canon or GX800. We have a TZ70, and the image quality is only snapshot-tolerable, and not really ideal as a serious photographic tool.

Might be worth having a quick look here: https://www.dxomark.com/panasonic-lumix-dc-gx800-mini-gh4/ and here https://www.dxomark.com/canon-eos-m100-small-size-big-punch/

Consider also something like a used Olympus E-M10 + pancake 14-42 EZ lens. Good for about 400 shots on a single battery charge, and with image stabilisation built into the body.
 
tabbyj said:
The only thing I'm really bothered about is battery life - I know mirrorless cameras don't last very long so I would ideally want to go for an option with the longest battery life. I'm not planning on shooting video so I don't really care about 4K, and I'll probably be sticking to landscape or closer up city photography, not portraits.

Thanks in advance for any advice :)
Click to expand...

FWIW I’ve shot with 3 Olympus bodies and not had any cause to change battery during a day. Busiest probably 250 shots. I turn the camera on, take the shot and turn off. I don’t wander around with the camera switched on though it’s set to standby after a minute.
I recharge at the end of each day when I’m travelling and have never had a problem.
I do carry the battery from my e-pl5 as it fits my e-m10ii but it’s never come out.
I’m not saying everyone has my experience or shoots hoe I do but it’s an overstated “problem” for me.
If you go for an Olympus the em10ii is for me the best fit for 5 axis stabilisation and evf over the marki at the same size.
The non pancake II R kit lens is as good but much cheaper if you don’t mind the small increase in bulk.
You should be able to pick them up pretty cheap used.
 
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