Entry in mirrorless - choosing basics?

[jay moussy]

I am thinking of entering into the world of mirrorless, looking for a basic system, possibly used.
Casual use, nothing exotic. Only digital camera I have is my Lumix LX, which is fine and pocketable for some tasks and venues.

Not sure how to start sorting things out. What would be my options?

I certainly would want to adapt a few film-era lenses I have around Nikon, Canon, and M42, nothing fancy.

 

[Austintatious]

If you want to adapt classic film camera lenses, then it is hard to beat the Sony Alpha system. Full frame or APSC. There are lots of adapters for Alpha for not much $$$. I am still using a NEX 6 with all my MF film camera glass.
Lots of options out there. Even FSU rangefinder lenses can be used.

Sony NEX6 and Industar 61LD adapted for E mount by Carlos Yashinon, on Flickr

 

[runswithsizzers]

Fujis are good. Adapters are available, and native glass is very good, too.

 

[4season]

Are you familiar with the concept of digital sensor "crop factors"? You'll want at least a cursory understanding of that because while it's easy to adapt your legacy lenses to fit a mirrorless camera body, they'll typically produce a narrower field of view than they do on a 35mm film camera.

Sony A6000 is an easy recommendation which can be had factory refurbished w/lens for $400 (sometimes considerably less) from sellers like Secondipidy. Heck of a value in a lightweight and compact outfit with big APS-C (1.5x crop factor) sensor. I am particularly fond of the 16-50 power zoom (24-75mm equivalent): It's not a stellar lens, but it's small and it's very handy. Can be squeezed into baggy cargo pants pocket or jacket pocket.

Olympus America sells refurbished items directly from their online store and via dealers like Adorama. Micro 4/3rds system (2x crop factor) makes for more compact native lenses while still delivering great results. Olympus also has a compact kit zoom lens in the 14-42EZ (28-82 equivalent) and it's surprisingly good.

 

[jay moussy]

E-M10 Mark III perhaps.
Sony A6100, a fresher take on the 6000?

Lots to choose form. Too much!

 

[Paul Howell]

I have a bottom feeder Sony 3000 which I bought for macro, it is of course a cropped sensor body, 20MP sensor, will shot fast but the EVF does not keep up. I have M42, Miranda, and Minolta MD adapters. I usually shoot with a Miranda adaptor and extension tubes also have a M42 bellows. For walk around Miranda 50 1.4 or Minolta 2.0. I think I paid a $100 for the body don't have any E lens.

 

[4season]

Good as the Panasonic LX was, any one of these newer cameras will be a big upgrade.

 

[Mainecoonmaniac]

If you're like an old dog like me and you're used to using film cameras with f stop rings and shutter speed dials, I suggest buying a Fuji XT-1. The mage quality is quite nice. I've struggled with the interface with other brands and got tired of it. There are some on Ebay for about $300 used.
https://www.amazon.com/Fujifilm-Mirrorless-Digital-3-0-Inch-Resistant/dp/B00HYAL88W

 

[runswithsizzers]

I second the Fuji XT-1. Good all arounder with above average EVF.

 

[etn]

I second the Fuji XT-1. Good all arounder with above average EVF.

My girlfriend has one of those (I have an X100s). Great cameras with wonderful glass, in particular the 56 1.2 and the 23 1.4.
As much as I find Fuji's recent medium format mirrorless cameras big, ugly and clunky, I think they hit a home run with the design of their X series.

The color array of the X series is different from the Bayer array used on pretty much every other digital camera. This can cause problems with some RAW converters. I found Capture One provides excellent results here.

 

[MattKing]

This has been referenced earlier, but if you are interested in making use of adapted film camera lenses, smaller sensors mean that it can be challenging if you like wider angles of view like I do.
On my Micro 4/3 camera, I need a 17mm lens to approximate the results from the 35mm lenses that are my favourite for 35mm film.
Unless you start experimenting with 16mm movie lenses (or something similar) a preference for wide angles leads to using lenses designed for the format.

 

[etn]

I certainly would want to adapt a few film-era lenses I have around Nikon, Canon, and M42, nothing fancy.

Obviously if your goal is to adapt lenses, it is advisable to go for a full frame as Matt mentioned above. Many Leica M / Zeiss ZM / Voigtlander lenses owners use Sony cameras indeed.

To me, to best way to use Nikon lenses with digital is with ... a Nikon (who would have thought of this ) Under those I am partial to the Df - larger than a mirrorless but still one of the smallest DSLR on the market. Works great with older Nikon glass! image quality is excellent. They fetch around $1000 - $1500 on the used market. There are cheaper options (D800 go well under $1000 nowadays) Obviously, this rules out Canon and M42 lenses. Decisions, decisions...

 

[jay moussy]

In thinking it over, one of my unfulfilled interests is macro work (at hobby level).

I need to explore which digital path gets me there at a reasonable cost.

Not that I can afford to splurge a bit, but I was born frugal... and I am not that good a setting a firm budget!

 

[4season]

Funny you should mention macro because that's where I particularly favor my Olympus Pen-F w/50mm Canon FD macro lens. Mine is a later FD lens which focuses down to 1:1, and the combo acts as a 100mm macro lens - almost! Versus using my FF camera with 90mm macro to fill the frame same as before, I get a bit more depth of field with the Olympus when working at close range, like 1 meter or thereabouts.

BTW, if you are photographing subjects that don't move using a tripod-mounted camera, you might consider a camera body which offer a pixel/sensor-shift feature which can quadruple resolution. My Olympus Pen-F outputs 80 mp raw files in this mode.

 

[Mainecoonmaniac]

In thinking it over, one of my unfulfilled interests is macro work (at hobby level).

I need to explore which digital path gets me there at a reasonable cost.

Not that I can afford to splurge a bit, but I was born frugal... and I am not that good a setting a firm budget!

I'm frugal too. That's why I bought my XT-1 used. The seller was upgrading to an XT-2 and he sold it to me on Ebay for 1/3 of the original cost when it was new. It looks new also. Lots of photographers need to update their cameras and they're selling their gear to pay for it.

 

[jay moussy]

Well, after a recent medical scare, I sort of threw away the "frugal" and "reasonable" aspect, here, and am actively looking at Olympus (what I would call) mid-range offerings including the 60mm macro lens.

Update: also Panasonic seasonal prices with online sellers... hmm.

 

[Ariston]

I've never used it, but at this price it is very tempting to give this Pen a go:

https://www.adorama.com/iomepl8bk.html

 

[blockend]

Unless you start experimenting with 16mm movie lenses (or something similar) a preference for wide angles leads to using lenses designed for the format.

Agreed. Adapting lenses gives interesting results if you adopt a slow, considered approach. It's not for spontaneous shooting, DoF is shallower so f8 and be there may mean f11 or even f16, and you'll need see-saw time to focus the old lens, especially at smaller apertures. For general work you'll soon want a dedicated kit zoom, and keep your old glass for static photography. The good news is kit zooms are generally very sharp nowadays, and cheap on the used market.

 

[MurrayMinchin]

If you're like an old dog like me and you're used to using film cameras with f stop rings and shutter speed dials, I suggest buying a Fuji XT-1. The mage quality is quite nice. I've struggled with the interface with other brands and got tired of it...

Love my X-T2.

It has an ISO dial, an aperture ring, and a shutter speed dial just like real cameras. I use mine in manual most of the time. The killer app as far as I’m concerned is the video viewfinder...it shows how ISO, shutter speed, and aperture adjustments will affect the image in real time unlike a normal SLR or rangefinder.

Ironically, with the lenses I have it weighs about the same as my 4x5 gear!

 

[Ariston]

Love my X-T2.

It has an ISO dial, an aperture ring, and a shutter speed dial just like real cameras. I use mine in manual most of the time. The killer app as far as I’m concerned is the video viewfinder...it shows how ISO, shutter speed, and aperture adjustments will affect the image in real time unlike a normal SLR or rangefinder.

Ironically, with the lenses I have it weighs about the same as my 4x5 gear!

How does it show in real time what the shutter speed will do? Does it show motion blur? I've wondered about this...

 

[MurrayMinchin]

How does it show in real time what the shutter speed will do? Does it show motion blur? I've wondered about this...

Well, no, it can’t do that, but the image in the viewfinder will darken and lighten as you adjust the ISO and shutter speed dials, as well as the aperture dial.

 

[jtk]

I shoot 3 Samsung NX..the ultimate being nx500 ...
All work beautifully with Samsung zooms but for bokeh I use a $20 adapter and Pentax manual focus...50/1.4 and 85/2...& No, brilliant view brightness doesn't darken when stopped down. If Samsung hadn't quit Canonikon would be in big trouble...

 

[mshchem]

I got this today, bought a couple nice Fuji lenses 23,35,50 f2 used in mint shape. The optical finder is fun.

 

[one90guy]

I use Olympus 4/3, have a bunch of adapters and shoot Nikon, M-39, Konica lens. Have almost given up on medium format using the Olympus. Did have a EPL-5 to start with, then got the new Pen, gave the 5 to grandson. You can still get great deals on the older EPL models, try it you will like it.


David

 

[jay moussy]

I went with a new Lumix G85 and kit lens.

I also just realized I had some legacy prime lenses sitting around, some forgotten.
So, if I want to have fun with legacy, I need to sort out through Canon FD, Nikons, M42 Takumars, and a very nice Contax Planar 50 1.7, all subject to a future separate thread, as I cannot see buying a boxload of adapters or reverse rings... maybe.

One thing that may make me use some of these is being near the shore. I may want to take some legacy manual lenses there, and not worry too much about salt mist, etc.