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For the smaller variants like oly or panasonic I mean.
Or did you still leave a foot in the dslr camp ?

How's that working out or ya and what, if anything, do you miss ?

I'm using both, but finding that for non-critical stuff, the benefits of the smaller size and lesser weight offered by MILCs are very helpful.

I'm thinking that my next trip OS will only be with a MILC of some sort.

Yep - now use an EP1 and EP2. Unfortunately arthritis does not lend itself to a bulky and heavy DSLR.

As I have said many many times, it is not the gear, but the person, who takes a classic pic.

Interestingly, I am going another way - I am going to focus on analogue process of film, development and then perhaps even wet printing. In the interim, I am going to look at a scanner (V700) so will continue with a semi-digital workflow.

I bought a good p&s. I find it offers images of a suitable quality for printing, and due to it's small size, I'm likely to carry it with me. That being said, I still have 4 DSLR bodies also...

I am going duo! Which, I might add, is different from sitting on the fence.

I am retaining FF DSLR for when bulk is not an issue.

The Fuji X10 is for walk-around and travel when I don't want to be burdened with a heavy camera and a bunch of lenses.

I think it will be a great match.

Forgot to mention my Nikon F4

Trev, I think I'm going along the same route but would prefer a larger sensor than the x10 and not quite the same physical size.

Something like the gf3 or ep3 mini is what I'd like to get into. But none of the milc's tick all boxes for me unfortunately.

Am at currarong beach at the moment and the bulk of dslr with 3 kids in tow is proving to be both cumbersome and frustrating.

Rooz wrote:Trev, I think I'm going along the same route but would prefer a larger sensor than the x10 and not quite the same physical size.

Something like the gf3 or ep3 mini is what I'd like to get into. But none of the milc's tick all boxes for me unfortunately.

Am at currarong beach at the moment and the bulk of dslr with 3 kids in tow is proving to be both cumbersome and frustrating.

Chris, i think you definitely need to ditch the DSLR completely and then sell your 300 and 85 to me

I think the best compromise, particularly with kids and beaches is to have some form of P&S (whether it be milc or not) so that the size and potential loss is not too great.

I assume your 5100 and say 35mm (which you may not have yet) would not cut it???

Rooz wrote:Trev, I think I'm going along the same route but would prefer a larger sensor than the x10 and not quite the same physical size.

Fuji are rumoured to be bringing out a mirrorless with an APS size sensor early next year. May not meet your size criterion though.

A mate just bought a Panny G3. Has had good reviews, but size is an issue -it's a mini-DSLR.

Photography is about photographs and NOT equipment. You can have the best (or most expensive) equipment and still be a sh*t photographer.

I really don’t give a flying f*ck anymore about this spec and that spec - I leave all of that to the boys and their toys as my only interest is the final product - the photograph

Chris, while the photograph is indeed the most important thing, you still need equipment to take the photograph and that equipment needs to be appropriate.

If I want a photograph of one of the little red-browed finches in my backyard, the Tokina 10-17mm fish-eye lens on my D300 just isn't going to cut it. I need to use a 200mm lens or longer to get a decent photo and even then there's no guarantee. i.e. equipment has some bearing on taking a photograph.

It is the same within this thread but perhaps the other way. It's no good having a Nikon D4 with a tonne of lenses if you don't have the gear with you (because it is too heavy or bulky) when you see a great photo opportunity.

ATJ wrote:If I want a photograph of one of the little red-browed finches in my backyard, the Tokina 10-17mm fish-eye lens on my D300 just isn't going to cut it. I need to use a 200mm lens or longer to get a decent photo and even then there's no guarantee. i.e. equipment has some bearing on taking a photograph.

So, Andrew, if I want to convert my kitchen into a giant camera obcura with some photographic paper on the far wall, I won't be able to take good birding shots?

Reschsmooth wrote:

ATJ wrote:If I want a photograph of one of the little red-browed finches in my backyard, the Tokina 10-17mm fish-eye lens on my D300 just isn't going to cut it. I need to use a 200mm lens or longer to get a decent photo and even then there's no guarantee. i.e. equipment has some bearing on taking a photograph.

So, Andrew, if I want to convert my kitchen into a giant camera obcura with some photographic paper on the far wall, I won't be able to take good birding shots?

Not if it is attached to my D300. Oh and your kitchen will be too far away from my backyard, anyway.

biggerry wrote:

Rooz wrote:Trev, I think I'm going along the same route but would prefer a larger sensor than the x10 and not quite the same physical size.

Something like the gf3 or ep3 mini is what I'd like to get into. But none of the milc's tick all boxes for me unfortunately.

Am at currarong beach at the moment and the bulk of dslr with 3 kids in tow is proving to be both cumbersome and frustrating.

Chris, i think you definitely need to ditch the DSLR completely and then sell your 300 and 85 to me

I think the best compromise, particularly with kids and beaches is to have some form of P&S (whether it be milc or not) so that the size and potential loss is not too great.

I assume your 5100 and say 35mm (which you may not have yet) would not cut it???

35mm is too long on apsc and it's still a tad too big. The j1, gf3 is a perfect size for my purposes. I don't like the p&s iq. I've tried loads and they don't cut it for me. It's not just the extreme of the beach, it's the walk, the park etc.

I also mostly agree with Andrew. Sure the equipment isn't the only thing. But it's a key ingredient on many levels. It also doesn't need to be either-or. They are not mutually exclusive. I'm not after better iq than what I have right now with dslr. I want something else to fit my needs and regardless of what people say about the equipment not mattering. I can't use an lx3 and get the quality of image I want, (that's quantitative quality - not the artistic merit of the image).

Vettel aint gonna win a gp in a ford falcon and similarly, I don't care if your ansel adams, you ain't pulling high quality images out of the lx3 at iso800' nor can you get the isolation from it that you can from a larger sensor.

I reckon non-DSLRs only make sense with pancake lenses. As soon as a bulky zoom is attached the portability advantage is gone and you're left with a funny looking contraption that's difficult/uncomfortable to hold.

Cheers
Steffen.

Steffen wrote: bulky zoom is attached the portability advantage is gone

ATJ wrote:Chris, while the photograph is indeed the most important thing, you still need equipment to take the photograph and that equipment needs to be appropriate.

If I want a photograph of one of the little red-browed finches in my backyard, the Tokina 10-17mm fish-eye lens on my D300 just isn't going to cut it. I need to use a 200mm lens or longer to get a decent photo and even then there's no guarantee. i.e. equipment has some bearing on taking a photograph.

It is the same within this thread but perhaps the other way. It's no good having a Nikon D4 with a tonne of lenses if you don't have the gear with you (because it is too heavy or bulky) when you see a great photo opportunity.

True, but I can put any number of long focal length lenses on my EP1 and EP2 and I do use my Nikon lenses on said cameras

Steffen wrote:I reckon non-DSLRs only make sense with pancake lenses. As soon as a bulky zoom is attached the portability advantage is gone and you're left with a funny looking contraption that's difficult/uncomfortable to hold.

Cheers
Steffen.

Agreed. Although the collapsible style zooms are quite small. Much smaller than I thought they would be.

Now let me think - hmmmmmmm, what did Man Ray use for his amazing pics. Was it a DSLR?, was it a P&S, did it have all the bells and whistles. The answer is NO - the camera had Man Ray

Back to the original question....

NO...I am currently playing with a SLT, am loving my compact (Samsung EX1) but the Nikon's still get a good workout. There will be a J1 joining the fray *fingers crossed* but that may only serve to displace the Samsung.

I am also shooting film and Instax (both mini and wide)

sirhc55 wrote:True, but I can put any number of long focal length lenses on my EP1 and EP2 and I do use my Nikon lenses on said cameras

But you still need a camera that can take those long lenses (and Nikon lenses), so it is the equipment.

Everything matters – the camera, the lens, the lighting, the photographer's vision, the photographer's skills, the tripod, the underwater housing, etc. Some things more than others, depending on the shot one is trying to get. If one has all day to set up a picture in a studio and plenty of lighting options to play with then camera features probably won't matter much. However, if Man Ray had tried to get that decisive cricket shot he would have been caught out by a P&S with horrible shutter lag just like the rest of us.

It takes both a good photographer and suitable/capable equipment to get a good photograph, IMO.

Cheers
Steffen.

You might remember that I was one of the early adopters for mirrorless/evil/whatever, and had several sparring matches with Gary and others over the benefits or otherwise of smaller/lighter camera systems.

Sorry to disappoint, but I still have and use my FF DSLR Mind you, I never expected it to be displaced completely.

My mirrorless system is great, but there are areas where it does not match my DSLR, mainly sweetness of pixels and high iso / low noise. I guess they will never match the narrow DOF of a fast lens on FF. Where it does shine is in portability and unobtrusiveness.

Horses for courses.

I remain hopeful that the high iso / low noise challenge will be resolved as new tech hits the road. At that point, the FF may spend more time on the shelf. That point may come next year if the hype from Fuji is matched by reality with it's new MILC LX. Certainly the X100 shows a lot of promise. We also have yet to see anything from Canon, it will be interesting to see if they enter the segment, and if so, if they enter it with something as guarded as the Nikon offering is to protect existing market segments, or if they attempt to lead the MILC quality stakes (or stay out of it altogether)

Michael

I would never ditch my DSLR for serious work but my newly acquired Fuji X10 is a beautiful walk around camera that is both discreet and quite capable of serious street photography. It's a liberating thing for me to get the weight of my back and get stepping out.