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Your favorite compact

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Shelby Lewis

Guest
Afternoon all!

I'm in the midst of picking up Josh's DL28 system (afdiii, aptus ii-6, and 80/2.8D) and will be selling off the majority of my 35mm gear. After picking up some odds and ends (monopod, few old lenses) I think I'm going to need a compact camera for family use.

... a camera my non-photographer wife could feel comfortable using :eek:

In the midst of all this high-res mumbo jumbo we all love, what compact do you find yourself using? No interchangeable lens (m4/3 or nex) and doesn't have to even have lots of bells and whistles... just good IQ and ease of use.

I'm very familiar with the canon G-series and may go that way, but if there is something out their more elegant (for me) while being usable (for her)... then I'd be interested in hearing about it.

Thanks,
Shelby
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
A lot of MF folks use 4/3rds system since it is the same format size as MF. Most are using Pana G1,G2,GF1 and such.

BTW Congrats on the new MF.
 

arashm

Member
Hi
My current little guy is the Canon S95, I even have the underwater case for it and have taken it scuba diving with me.
Over all very happy with it, but I'm in line to buy the just released Olympus XZ-1
I think the XZ-1 is going to be the best rounded out small compact camera.

BTW I bought my fiance an S90 which she finally uses because it's small enough that she can always carry with her in her purse.
am
 

Jeffg53

Member
Despite my dislike of 3x2 ratios, I am waiting for the Fuji X100 to arrive. If the hype comes even close to the reality, it should be a winner.
 

TRSmith

Subscriber Member
I bought a GF-1 with the kit 14-40 for my wife. And just yesterday received a new 20mm to fit on it. She loves it but I'm fascinated by it. With the 20mm mounted, it's very sweet and I think it easily qualifies as elegant.
 
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Shelby Lewis

Guest
I'd vote for the M9 and X1 in that order...
Holy Cow, Don... I just bought an MF set-up and you suggest spending more for my compact. I Love this place! :ROTFL:

I hadn't though about the format of the 4/3 being a good match with our 645 gear. Hmmm, gives me pause. Maybe a gf1 or similar might be a good direction to go. I'll look into it
 
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Shelby Lewis

Guest
I bought a GF-1 with the kit 14-40 for my wife. And just yesterday received a new 20mm to fit on it. She loves it but I'm fascinated by it. With the 20mm mounted, it's very sweet and I think it easily qualifies as elegant.
Thanks for this... I'm thinking similarly. I do have to admit that the lens adaptability of the m4/3 system is intriguing.
 

Terry

New member
One of the smaller sized m4/3 cameras is good.

The E-PL1 is being replaced by the E-PL2 so right now you can find good deals on the first model.
GF1 has been discontinued so the prices seem to be rising a bit
The GF2 should be hitting the stores shortly

If you want to go smaller
S95 or LX5 but I really do like the G12 with the articulating screen and knobs on top but a stop slower at the wide end.

You can get big sensor E-PL1 for not much difference in price than the compacts.
 

baxter

New member
I've got a GF1 with the 20mm and 14mm prime lenses. I'm struggling to click with it having had it since the summer. I bought the cheaper and smaller LX5 for my parents for xmas and loved it. I was going to buy an LX5 for my children (and me), but went for the even cheaper and smaller TZ10. It doesn't do RAW, but the jpegs are good and plenty of control in camera to change their look.

Slightly puzzled why I'm not getting on with the GF1, but am persisting. The files aren't a patch on my Leica M8 with zeiss lenses. I wanted to sell the M8 and have the lower bulk of the GF1, especially for a summer visit to Hawaii. The 645DF/P45 is not being considered for the holiday.

Just read a book about Joe Cornish who is using the LX3 (LX5's predecessor) alongside a P45+ set-up and had some double page pictures from it in the book. Obviously not to same standard as the P45, but good nevertheless.
 

kdphotography

Well-known member
Shelby,

I really really like the M4/3 cameras. I have a GF1 as my P&S which I find much easier to use (and more fun) than my Canon G9 (too many menus and submenus). I've committed to only using Panasonic lenses (20mm, 14-45mm so far), to protect my wallet from further incursions. :D

I also converted a GF1 to IR----and that's been great as well.

ken

p.s. Following along with Don, howabout an M9 and then you can convert a second M9 to IR.... :D
 

jdbfreeheel

Member
Since Shelby is picking up my mfd kit, I figure I can offer a few suggestions:
1) I love my Leica X1 but as your only small compact, especially sharing it with another person who might be expecting zoom, etc, it's probably not the best option.
2) For some reason, despite a few quirks, I tend to reach for my Ricoh GX200. It's not new anymore, isn't flashy, and the zoom is limited. But there's something about it, the pictures that come out, and the fact that it has raw format, that makes me grab it more often than I expect.
3) M4/3 is another good option. I currently have the Oly EP-1 and I really like it despite the limitations (no onboard flash, no e-viewfinder). I'm actually thinking of selling mine too just because I don't use it very often. Shelby...if you go this direction, let me know and we can make another deal...
4) Lastly, and this is out there, maybe...I really enjoy the Epson RD-1. Rangefinder, only 6mp, simple, solid, and good iq. It won't compete with the M9 but I think it gives the m8 a run for its money. They're old now, but I've never had a problem with the two different ones I've owned. (I sold my original and missed it enough to buy another).

-Josh
 

TRSmith

Subscriber Member
One addendum to my earlier post. My choice of the GF-1 was determined primarily by what I thought my wife would be most comfortable with. I actually ordered and received an EP-1 but returned it once I realized how difficult it would be to explain to my wife that there's no onboard flash.

My goal was to make it easy for her to make pictures but still allow some room for "development" of her interest. The GF-1 seems like a perfect fit and the fact that I like it too is strictly icing.
 
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Shelby Lewis

Guest
You guys are funny... spending other people's money (ken!).

Josh and I must be cut from similar cloth... I have always wanted to try the ricoh gx series cameras. There are a few on ebay at a decent price. I'm still not completely jazzed about m4/3 as they still seem a bit too "photographer-oriented". I know, sounds pretty stupid, but I really think I want a simple box that takes great photos and maybe has a bit of the gestalt of the old film compacts.

Still... gf-1/-2 could be a nice direction to go as far as me having fun later on with alt lenses.

Thanks for the discussions, everyone. Keep 'em coming!
 

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
My wife has a Panasonic FZ something (28? 80?) for when she wants to bother taking 'real' pictures, and a pocket sized Canon P&S for everything else. She uses her iPhone 4 a lot too. She takes a LOT more pictures than me, in fact she usually runs a P&S into the ground in just 3-4 years. Her use is purely documentary.
 

pflower

Member
I'll add one more voice for the GF1 with 20mm. I bought one to replace my lost Canon G9 - dramatic improvement in quality. Can stick it on A priority and use it as a point and shoot or easy to adjust manually. Fits comfortably in an overcoat pocket and also in my larger jackets.
 

Paratom

Well-known member
I bought my wife a gh1 some time ago. Overall its great specially with the flexibility of shooting video. However today I would buy her something with less buttons. She isnt interested in all the functions and ends up sometimes with motion blurr/shake etc. even though I tell her using i.a. (they call it intelligent automatic, we call it idi... automatic.
Personally I like the x1 a lot.
 
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