They Come Out At Night. Estes Park, Colorado, 2011…made with a near “obsolete” DSLR!
This is such a great time to be a photographer! There are so many great tools out there to choose from it just makes your shutter finger quiver with anticip…ation (a bit of Tim Curry here, start at 3:30). And it doesn’t matter what brand–most every major manufacturer has excellent quality products, a result of stiff marketplace competition.
The one huge trend behind our great choices of today is this: technological advances are allowing more and more capability to be stuffed into smaller and smaller boxes. You can now get near-medium format quality in a DSLR and you can now get what used to be considered DSLR quality in a compact camera. Even the shirt-pocketable point-and-shoots pack a pretty potent picture punch these days.
Probably the hardest part is to nail down exactly what kind of a tool (camera) will fit your needs. It is easy to spend too much for capability you really don’t need…or, with so many choices, it’s easy to get so hypnotized by all the slick knobs, buttons and bling you can’t decide what you really should buy. So, the first very important step is to analyze what kind of photography you do and then look at what might meet those needs. Remember, it’s just a tool, not an end in itself!
This post isn’t really about helping you select a camera, though–I’ll let you do your own freudian self-analysis on your own time about which camera would be your perfect soul-mate. Instead, today I thought I’d briefly highlight three specific cameras, introduced this year, that I and many others consider ground-breaking machines. All three show quite clearly the new generation of digital technology and why 2012 is a great year to be a photog.
First, the smallest and the cheapest of the three: the Canon S95/S100/S110. Oh, wait, I guess that would be three separate cameras–but they are all very close relatives, so I’ll call it one. Of the three, I think the S100 (released in 2011) is the current best buy. It currently goes for about $250, but what you get for that is a 12mp, shirt-pocket-sized camera with near pro image potential. It can shoot in RAW, has good manual capability and GPS marking. The optical zoom is a 24-120 equivalent (better than the S95, same as S110), which gives a good range even if it is a bit slow at full extension (f/5.9). Only go for the S110 if you think touch screen controls and Wi-Fi are worth the additional $150. In sum: a tremendously capable camera in a very, very small package–easy to carry everywhere.
The second camera, the Sony RX-1, is just being delivered to retailers this month. With the RX-1, for the first time, you can get a full-frame, 24mp sensor in a range-finder-sized package that weighs in at just one ounce over one pound. No, you can’t put it in your small shirt pocket, but it may fit in that cargo pocket of your hiking shorts. This is an ideal, high image quality, light-weight, street photography, vacation, or backpacking set-up (as long as you don’t mind a fixed lens, albeit among the best–a 35mm f/2.0 Zeiss). If you have the cash to spring for this one ($2800) you might as well pitch in and get the attachable electronic viewfinder (EVF) for an extra $450. Add a lightweight carbon fiber tripod, and you have a really super [expensive!] package for long distance hiking or backpacking.
Finally, the camera that caused everyone a conniption fit when it came out earlier this year, the 36mp Nikon D800/800e. There are plenty of videos and reviews online that cover the details of this machine, so I’ll get to the point. In my opinion, it’s a camera that blurs the line between DSLR and medium format. It does have its drawbacks…for example, it’s not something you need unless you are willing to refine your technique and use top-quality (read: expensive) glass…you’ll likely need to upgrade your computer to handle the large files…and it probably isn’t something you’d want to carry on a backpacking trip. But, it is exactly what you need if you make huge prints, or you need very high resolution, or you need a lot of crop capability.
For many landscape and studio photographers, the D800e is the perfect camera–but you would probably want to keep it in the studio, work out of a vehicle, or carry it only on shorter day hikes. Consider this: the D800/800e body, with the “holy trinity” of Nikkor lenses (12-24, 24-70 and 70-200, all f/2.8), and a few minor peripherals and tripod, could easily approach 20 pounds. How far do you want to carry that! (A lighter option would be the same body matched with just one good lens–the Nikkor 24-120 f/4). Furthermore, purchase of the body and that holy trinity of professional lenses along with a top-quality tripod will easily set you back over $10,000! Hmmm…better be sure that’s what you really need before you write the check.
Despite the hefty price, the D800/800e was a 2012 game changer in its own way, just as the Canon S/95/100/110 and the new Sony RX-1 were in their market niches.
So, with these and myriad other new high-tech tools, the way I see it you can really go two, maybe three, ways:
1) Travel light and get excellent image quality with a point-and-shoot or a compact.
2) Pay more and pack heavier–and get exceptional image quality with a better DSLR.
Or…
3) Do both…Pick up something like the Canon S100 for carrying with you all the time…and spring for a heavier and more expensive camera system for your more serious and dedicated shoots.
Obviously, these three cameras are not your only choices on the market–there are many other models of all sizes, weights and capabilities that are much cheaper (and, yes, others that are even more expensive!). I only tell you about these three because they were important in resetting the paradigm of what we have come to expect in resolution, low-light capability and dynamic range out of these glittering little techno-boxes. For you, the key is to decide what your specific photography needs are, do some extensive research on-line (try Digital Photography Review), then go handle the cameras in a shop (support local, independent businesses!)…press the buttons…feel out the ergonomics. Your camera soul-mate is out there, no doubt!
Yes, indeed, it’s a great time to be a photog. And the future looks bright!
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