Thinking of a change - DPChallenge Forums

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM

07/04/2016 08:24:13 PM · #1

Hello All

So I've had my Olympus EM1 for a while now and got some nice shots with it, I ended up buying the 60mm and still have the 12-40mm Pro but to be honest I get a little frustrated not being able to travel (bad panic attacks) so I just seem to be taking the same pictures over and over again and I am finding I am using the camera less and less so I was thinking of getting the old Fuji X100 and trying some street photography which would be new, my question, is the X100 just a little too old now or could someone recommend an alternative.

I make no money from photography and have no idea how much I would get for my current gear, as long as I could sell everything and make enough to transition over to a new setup without having to spend more money that would be great.

The other thing I am worried about is I love macro and lightning photography so If I went to a fixed lens I may be limiting myself even more.

Lydia

Canon EOS-6D

07/04/2016 10:25:40 PM · #2

I can't help you, Chris... but even your question is stressing me.

Ha!

I hope others will chime in.

Bear_Music

Samsung Galaxy S21, S21+, S21 Ultra

Sony 24-70mm F4 Vario-Tessar T* FE OSS

07/04/2016 10:53:22 PM · #3

It's hard to see how you can reconcile the desire to "go street" with the desire to "stay macro", frankly. But the X 100 is a really, really fine small camera.

MichaelC

DJI Mini 3 Pro

07/05/2016 06:30:50 AM · #4

I've had my X100s for 3 years now. I had a break from DSLRs for a while and, unlike you, now do a LOT of travelling. I even went back to DSLRs and purchased a Nikon D750 which I absolutely love but, in my case, does not make an ideal travelling companion. At first travelling with the Fuji while leaving the 'big gun' at home felt weird but now having done it a while I can't imagine being without it when out and about. Not great for macros or typical zoom scenarios but perfect for travel, street, and just about anything else.

Mike

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

Tamron SP 24-70mm f/2.8 Di VC USD Canon Mount

07/05/2016 07:44:24 AM · #5

why cant you use the EM1 for street? you can get a 20mm/1.7 pancake that will make a nice street lens.

pixelpig

Sony Alpha a55

Sony DT 1.8/50mm SAM

07/05/2016 07:50:57 AM · #6

A photographer can get to know & make the most of any camera/lens. A new camera for a new subject (street photography), could add to your stress or free you from old habits that cause stress. Either way, you are your own perfect self no matter which camera is in your hand. Best wishes!

tanguera

Nikon D750

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 17-35mm f/2.8D IF-ED

07/05/2016 11:21:53 AM · #7

Originally posted by pixelpig:

+ a bizillion!

MAK

Leica M Monochrom

Voigtlander Ultron 21mm f1.8

07/05/2016 11:22:21 AM · #8

Greetings Chris. As Mike said, the 20mm pancake on your Olympus will give you a very good insight into Street Photography and as to whether or not you like it. It would be compact enough and small enough for travel too.

I have had many cameras as anyone on here that knows me could tell you, & I firmly believe that most photography can be achieved with a small compact kit like you have already. However, if you are tired of the same old kit same old shots blah blah need a new toy syndrome then might I recommend a fresh start with a clean slate. Limiting yourself to a fixed lens camera such as the excellent Fuji X100 will broaden your mind a lot and how you 'see' Photography. It is certainly not the 1 Camera does it all kind of thing. For street the best 1 camera does it all (arguably) is a Leica X-Vario.

markwiley

Fujifilm X-Pro2

Fujifilm XF 10-24mm f/4 R IOS

07/05/2016 11:26:15 AM · #9

I have had the X100s for two and a half years. It is a generation after the X100 you mention and before the current X100t. I am not sure of the exact differences. I have loved my X100s. It is especially good for candids and street photography. When I point the lens of my dSLR at someone for a quick candid shot, much of the time they seem to sense it. The X100s is small and unobtrusive and so very quiet, it makes catching unguarded moments much easier. When I bought it I thought it would be probably my secondary camera -- when I wanted to travel lighter. But, it became my go-to camera for most occasions. I kept my big camera, and definitely pull it out for certain tasks. As

MAK mentioned, it's not much good for macros or when you need much reach, but much of the time I don't mind the fixed length lens. I also invested in the screw on wide angle converter. It is 28mm equivalent focal length, and I use it a lot.

Canon 12x IS USM (S3 IS built-in Lens) -- 36-432mm (35mm EQ)

07/05/2016 05:15:50 PM · #10

Originally posted by Lydia:

I can't help you, Chris... but even your question is stressing me.

Ha!

I hope others will chime in.

It's stressing me out too. Ha! :)

Thanks for the replies everyone.

I should of mentioned in my original post that I am wondering if I can justify having a top of the line Olympus and thought maybe another slightly cheaper alternative might be better considering It's a hobby not a money maker. I do have a smugmug website but it was more to show family overseas my pictures (not sure my photography could sell) as I liked their web designs.

The reason I sold my D7000 gear and bought the Oly was because I was starting to accumulate a mass of lenses, while it was great to have a choice it was just getting too expensive so I said to myself buy the Oly and have one lens (12-40mm) but it seems I can't help myself and the lenses seem to be increasing in size again.

That's the reason I thought a fixed lens might be the way to go, it would challenge me again spark my interest but maybe I would miss certain things like macro etc, maybe I just need to save for longer and buy a X series camera and keep the Oly as well.

Dicisions Dicisions.

GeneralE

Canon PowerShot S3 IS

07/05/2016 08:07:25 PM · #11

When I got my camera I opted for flexibility over "image quality" ... it has a fixed lens but a long optical zoom (36-432mm in 35mmm EQ), but also has a "SuperMacro" mode which will focus on something as close as touching the lens surface, rotating LCD lets me shoot at odd angles, one-button movie mode, etc. It has an optional adapter/lens hood which allows attachment of filters and some optional close-up, wide-angle, and telephoto-extender lenses

I think these are now known as "bridge cameras" ...

Sacrifices (in my model) are low-light performance (even ISO 400 is very noisy) and limited enlargement options (up to 16x20 is OK) caused by the small (6MP) sensor, and JPEG-only capture (RAW supposedly available with a common hack). I do gain a benefit from the small file size in needing a lot less storage and smaller memory cards.

My camera's about 8 years old ... the newer versions (Canon SX line, I think) and equivalents in other brands should have improved these deficiencies, but I haven't read any reviews lately ...

PPS: In checking this review I see my camera is actually ten years old ... but you get the idea ...

PS: Another "good" feature is built-in intervalometer for time-lapse; another "bad" is no bulb-exposure -- longest is 15 seconds.

Message edited by author 2016-07-05 22:33:53.

Tiberius

Samsung Galaxy S22, S22+, S22 Ultra

Panasonic Lumix G 14mm F2.5 ASPH

07/05/2016 10:25:07 PM · #12

I am quite happy with my 2 years old LX100 you get a bit of a zoom as well and many other goodies like 4K video, 4K jpeg form video, wifi etc. Handles great and it even has Leica on it :)

I rarely take out my 6D.

Fujifilm XF 16mm f/1.4 R WR

07/05/2016 11:25:59 PM · #13

I think a lot of my problem is that I get bored quickly which is probably why I start a lot of new hobbies, a good example is recently thinking it would be a good idea to reminisce my childhood so I went out and spent nearly $600 on a 27Mhz CB radio home base setup only to find hardly anyone uses it these days and haven't heard a thing. lol

Maybe with my photography I need to find new challenges.

insteps

Ricoh GR III

07/06/2016 09:29:28 AM · #14

Olympus Micro 43 cameras are excellent for street photography. Face detection, fast focus, IS, ... , and a large selection of lenses to choose from. Is it the best? Like any camera it depends on who you ask. I wouldn't hastily change cameras because I'm in a funk. When shooting in the streets it takes time to be comfortable with a camera. Things happen so quickly you often don't have time to fiddle around. Using a prime lens, or using a zoom like a prime, will teach where to stand and point. Treat you zoom like a prime and see what you like. Set it to 17mm and then 25mm to see what focal length works best for you.

Try shooting at different time of the day to get your groove back. Morning and evening, when the sun is low, is an ideal time to hit the streets. Find some places where the light, shadows, geometry... are appealing and revisit.

vawendy

Sony Alpha 1

Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS

07/06/2016 10:38:21 AM · #15

Originally posted by AussieChris:

There's 5 new challenges on the home page. ;)

I bought a lumix point and shoot thinking that maybe I'd carry it everywhere and expand the type of things I shoot. But it's quite hard to change your style. I wish I had bought the olympus that we bought my son. It's just a point and shoot, but it's good for up to 50' underwater. It takes excellent photos! My lumix doesn't stand up to it.

kirbic

Canon EOS R5

Canon RF 24-70 f2.8 L IS

07/06/2016 10:44:02 AM · #16

Originally posted by AussieChris:

...Maybe with my photography I need to find new challenges.

I think you hit the nail on the head here. Having one or more specific projects in mind that will require you to learn new techniques or to refine existing ones will help dramatically. Given your desire to keep doing macro, I'd say that keeping the Oly body and one or two lenses might be the way to go. Sell off what you think can be covered by a fixed-lens camera.

Fujifilm XF 10-24mm f/4 R IOS

08/17/2016 07:09:59 AM · #17

Just to update everyone on what I decided, I purchased a Panasonic LX100 and will keep my Olympus as well, I figured the LX100 will be a great compact to use when I don't feel like carrying around a pile of lenses.

The camera arrived yesterday and it looks just as confusing as my EM1 when I first got it so fingers crossed after reading all the great reviews on the Panny that I made the right choice over the X100.

A plus is the 4K video and time lapse which should be interesting to try.

markwiley

Fujifilm X-Pro2

08/17/2016 09:57:35 AM · #18

Looks like a fine choice. Tiberius certainly gets some excellent images from it. The 4K video would be nice, and the time lapse sounds like an interesting feature.

Tiberius

Samsung Galaxy S22, S22+, S22 Ultra

Panasonic Lumix G 14mm F2.5 ASPH

08/17/2016 07:19:10 PM · #19

Awesome choice! :) Welcome to the club.

Samsung Galaxy S22, S22+, S22 Ultra

08/17/2016 08:26:17 PM · #20

Thanks guys, looking forward to trying out all the features especially the time lapse.

I see you have some ribbons with the Panny Tiberius, looks like I will have to finally enter a challenge and see how I go with it. :)

Tiberius

Panasonic Lumix G 14mm F2.5 ASPH

08/17/2016 09:30:04 PM · #21

LX100 time lapse
4K in low light
some close up in 4K

Message edited by author 2016-08-18 03:55:47.

Phocal

Olympus OM-1

Olympus 300mm f/4.0 IS PRO M.Zuiko Digital ED

08/18/2016 04:45:16 PM · #22

Originally posted by AussieChris:

But when the zombie apocalypse happens you will glad you have the base station and the EM1 to photograph it.