Anyone thinking about going-DSLR again?

my last purchase was a Nikon D7100 as an upgrade to my D300

probably still prefer the D300 for general stuff but want to put more mega pixels onto the cropped centre images that I take of small birds

Cannot see me ever giving up my DSLR kit
 
I still have an Oly E510 gathering dust.

I'm thinking about trying my hand on video making, and the Canon 70D looks pretty appealing right now with the dual-pixel AF capabilities. The only mirrorless alternative would be the Nikon 1 with a smaller sensor.
 
I don't know. I keep thinking I need a professional kit to supplement my 'serious compacts'.

But then, I get results like this:

RX1
9646363040_956001556c_b_d.jpg


or this:

DP2M
9556767046_bfd8fd1fe6_b_d.jpg


or even this:
GH-2, 100-300
9675479074_7801c56f53_b_d.jpg


and it proves that it is the camera you have with you that takes the shot, and I am more likely to carry a compact or CSC than a D800 or 5DMkIII.

Just my two cents

LouisB
 
I have a DSLR (Fuji S5 Pro) and an SLR (Nikon FM3a). They fill a niche. Do I carry them often? No. Do they do the job when required? Yes.

Horses for courses, I think.
 
I have thought about getting a DSLR (again) for action shots... But got the tiny Nikon V1 instead. And it focuses and tracks action as good as any DSLR, if not better. So for me personally DSLRs are dead.
 
I'm sometimes tempted when I briefly use a friend's camera and remember how nice a big DSLR came feel in your hands. Of course, It's always nice when you can do the fondling and someone else does the carrying. In truth, I'd first go to the GH3 if I was leaning bigger.

I would agree to this. Having gone compact/mirrorless the last few years, I was surprised to being happy when I felt/heard that clack-clack-clack handling a DSLR. I think I even ended up almost filling my brother-in-law's SD card when he asked me to use his Nikon to take photos of my niece's party. Turned me into a trigger-happy monster. Having realized that, I am now very much open to having one if funds permit.
 
I sold the DSLR a year ago. Sometimes I get npstalgic about it but that's more because it was my first 'serious' camera and the one that I learned much about photography on. That said, I wouldn't go back to a DSLR.
 
I would agree to this. Having gone compact/mirrorless the last few years, I was surprised to being happy when I felt/heard that clack-clack-clack handling a DSLR. I think I even ended up almost filling my brother-in-law's SD card when he asked me to use his Nikon to take photos of my niece's party. Turned me into a trigger-happy monster. Having realized that, I am now very much open to having one if funds permit.

I think they are just different shooting experiences. Sometimes I like the big body (and the fact that it handles a proper flash gun), the controls, the grip, the speed of shooting. Other times I don't want that. Horses for courses, as was mentioned above, and sometimes fun to just mix it up.
 
I have a DSLR (Fuji S5 Pro) and an SLR (Nikon FM3a). They fill a niche. Do I carry them often? No. Do they do the job when required? Yes.

Horses for courses, I think.

I also have two SLRs - a Nikon FM2 and a Nikon D7000, which I never managed to like as much as my former Nikon D200, which I replaced for not having video - and two "serious" (whatever that means) compacts - a Panasonic LX7 and a Panasonic GX1, which share the same external EVF. Have I been using the FM2? not once in the last few years. The D7000? probably not once in the last six months. Do I want to carry SLRs? not anymore. Still, I am keeping them for now. Although I think that I shall eventually give up the SLRs, I see no reason why a lot of people make it an either/or thing. Having a Leica M did not mean that you could not use a medium format Hasselblad, and vice-versa. Each one had its advantages and disadvantages.
 
I noticed in the last week or so that I do miss my DSLR more than expected, especially for close-up and macro. I wonder if I made the wrong choice with the x-pro1. Don't get me wrong, I love the weight, size, etc. I love the buttons even more but it just doesn't feel right. I seem to take a different type of photos than I used to (which is not necessarily bad) but I am not sure if I like the results. My wife compared travel photos and told me she preferred the photos taken with the Nikon D200. I understand what she's saying because I have the same feeling. I am pretty sure that has less to do with IQ in a technical sense (sharpness, DR, etc) but more with the emotions triggered.

So I am starting to wonder if it makes sense to trade/sell my x-pro and buy the Nikon D800E and add a small fixed-lens 35mmeq camera to the collection for city trips and bike rides.

Does anyone of you have similar thoughts? Or am I just getting crazy? What's your opinion?

Peter


Kept my little XSi but also have the X100S. You know if it doesn't feel right it just doesn't feel right IMHO. The GR was great but didn't feel right. The Fuji does. It feels right alongside my little DSLR but not in replacement of it. So if it were me.. I would get the D800 and whatever you want as your carry around be it a Fuji [seems the natural choice here for you given the Xpro] or otherwise. They each have their own purpose-- you aren't crazy at all.
 
Never gave up using dslr. There are times that it makes more sense to use it from long tele work to macro to situations where faster af is needed.

I still have an ancient nikon dslr, the Olympus omd (dslr like) and sigma ds1m.

I may use cameras like the gr or xp1 or dp2m more, but I can't c not having a dslr around.

Gary
 
Sure you want to get a D800? Plenty of problems with that model: dust, oil, lubricant issues as well as AF problems.
I'd say you need to see what it is that the Fuji isn't delivering to your satisfaction - colour rendition, contrast, sharpness in the final images or is the camera itself, as you said, "doesn't feel right"?
 
Thanks! Do you mean D600 or D800? There were AF issues with the D800 but these are solved (to my knowledge at least). The version I used for testing didn't have issues. It only needed some minor calibration for close-up shots (which is very easy to do by a reputable dealer). The D600 had dust issues but I'm not sure if the newest version still have those.
BTW: I am not sure yet which DSLR to buy. I'll wait until early next year anyway. So that gives me some time to make up my mind (also about the smaller camera). Money is another factor of course. If I have to write-off a considerable amount of money, I may decide to stick a little longer to the x-pro1 anyway!


Sure you want to get a D800? Plenty of problems with that model: dust, oil, lubricant issues as well as AF problems.
I'd say you need to see what it is that the Fuji isn't delivering to your satisfaction - colour rendition, contrast, sharpness in the final images or is the camera itself, as you said, "doesn't feel right"?
 
I have to admit, that I miss DSLRs from time to time, but I don't miss the weight and the technique, I miss the image quality of full frame. Before buying my Olympus E-M5, I considered buying the Canon 6D. But at the end of the day I added the weight of the lenses I would need to do what I was doing with my E-PL1 and bought the E-M5. At least that were my thoughts about half a year ago.

The Olympus E-M5 is a fine camera and it delivers good results, but only with my best lenses. However, the difference to my E-PL1 is not as big as I thought in most conditions apart from high ISO. I like having more dynamic range and less noise at high ISO, but I can also see relatively much noise at ISO 200, even in good light on sunny days. Generally, with lenses like the 12-50mm or 14-150mm the difference to my Canon G12 is astonishingly small, too small.

I am not sure, if I have bought the right camera. I like its size and I like its image quality with my best lenses, but my bag would not be that much smaller with a Canon 6D, the Canon 2.8/40mm and the Canon 1.8/85mm, which would be sufficient for most of what I do with my E-M5. For my hiking trips I could have continued using my E-PL1 or my G12.

However, there is one more point: Olympus has risen the prices of their lenses significantly. The price of the 75mm has been risen by about 20% and that's just one example. The rumored E-M1 will cost most probably significantly more than the E-M5 at its launch and I am afraid that it might cost about the same as the Canon 6D. I would not buy it anyway, because I bought my E-M5 only half a year ago, but had I foreseen Olympus' ridiculous new prices, I hadn't bought an E-M5, I would have bought the 6D instead. I am afraid, that µ4/3 could fail because it's much too expensive. Both companies, Olympus and Panasonic, have significant losses concerning their photo business for some time now and I am not wondering why.

That's why I understand people who want to go back quite well.
 
I still use my D700 for architectural photos. I was looking at the D600 or D800 for an upgrade and read about some of the QC issues. The rumor is that Nikon may replace the D600 with a D610 in part due many problems with oil spots on the sensor. I would not buy a D600.
The D800 had some left side focus issues when it first came out. I think that has all been resolved.
I have used Nikon since my first Nikkormat at age 16. And I still have a old AI 55mm f1.2 that works great on the D700 and OMD with adaptor. I see a D800 or D800E in my future.
All that said, I still will use a serious compact for most of my daily photos.
But when I have time to set up the tripod and take photos, I use the DSLR.
 
Nope...not me.

I get just as good IQ from my X-pro1+35mm as i did from my Canon 5DIII + L lenses, and at 1/10 the weight...I'm happy. I also love carrying around the X100S everywhere I go and not getting stared at because I have a massive DSLR brick around my neck.

If necessary I can do whatever macro"ish" shots I need with it also.


I'm happy as I am.
 
I use both. I carry my Nikon D40 and its 2 kit zooms in a Lowe Pro waist pack for "serious" shooting, if only for the polarizing filter! I keep the Minolta. Dimage Z3 in a small shoulder bag with an extra set of batteries and around town I slip my driver's liscense & a few bucks in one of its pockets and don't carry a purse.
 
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