Author Topic: Help me choose a mirrorless for microstock and travel (Read 6697 times)

S. · « **on:** October 26, 2012, 06:23 »

I'm a owner of a Sony A700 with some good lenses and a Sony NEX5 with the kit lens but I'm not happy.

The A700 is too big and heavy, and the lenses too, and I can't stand the lack of an OVF/EVF on the Nex 5 (plus the kit lens is not so good). SO I want to sell it all and buy a good mirrorless body with a couple of lenses (I'm considering also primes). (or a good apsc sized compact camera?)

Key factor I'm looking foor:
- small and lightweight
- built like a tank (it's gonna be a travel camera also)
- good image quality (at least to be able to submit to micro/macrostock websites)
- good manual controls

I need help choosing the right camera, so there are the pros and cons I've found so far on the cameras I like. What are your pros and cons of those camera? Do you have any other camera to suggest? Price is not really an issue (ok... maybe I can't afford a Leica )
I'm trying to stick to their lenses, because I don't want to use a converter (another piece of crap to carry around, and it adds weight and size)

Olympus OM-D EM-5 + 17mm f/2.8 + 45mm f/1.8
Pros:
- i like the design
- small and lightweight
- weather resistant (good while I'm traveling - big pro)
- best price of the three

Cons:
- image quality (?) due to a smaller sensor

Fujy X-Pro1 + 18mm f/2 + 35mm f/1.4 (how is the 18-55?)
Pros:
- i really like the design
- image quality

Cons:
- expensive
- slower autofocus (?)
- a little bit bigger

Sony Alpha Nex-7 + 15mm f/2.8 + 50mm f/1.8
Pros:
- image quality
- reasonable price

Cons:
-don't really like the design

Should I also consider the Sony Nex-6 and the Fuji X-E1?

Amos Struck · « **Reply #1 on:** October 27, 2012, 09:06 »

I have traveled for 3 months with the superb Olympus O-MD E-M5 and i must admit its the most enjoyable camera i ever used.

The quality as as good as a Canon 7D or quite as good as 5D Mark II.

The Lenses are cheaper and sharper.

IS is awesome and crazy good.

Send me a PM if you like to get more details.

S. · « **Reply #2 on:** October 27, 2012, 09:10 »

I'm really tempted by the Olympus E-M5! What lenses do you have? Are you able to submit to all major microstock website and Alamy?

"The quality as as good as a Canon 7D or quite as good as 5D Mark II." maybe this is a little bit too much, but anyway I love the body, and I was just concerned about picture quality for microstock.

Have you tried also shooting some videos?

Smithore · « **Reply #3 on:** October 27, 2012, 09:18 »

"The quality as as good as a Canon 7D or quite as good as 5D Mark II."
Yes, it's obvious!!!!

Amos Struck · « **Reply #4 on:** October 27, 2012, 09:52 »

Quote from: Stepunk on October 27, 2012, 09:10

I'm really tempted by the Olympus E-M5! What lenses do you have? Are you able to submit to all major microstock website and Alamy?

"The quality as as good as a Canon 7D or quite as good as 5D Mark II." maybe this is a little bit too much, but anyway I love the body, and I was just concerned about picture quality for microstock.

Have you tried also shooting some videos?

I have the 7D and i shoot sometimes Stock with it. And YES! the Olympus is as good as the 7D if not better in sharpness. But you better try yourself. This piece of technology is pretty awesome.

Lenses i have:

- Panasonic 20mm 1.7
- Olympus 45mm 1.8
- The Lense which comes with the Camera
- Walimex Fisheye

I usually shoot with the Panasonic Lense. The Olympus is pretty "long" but great if you want bokeh. I would say bokeh is the biggest issues of mirrorless cameras at the moment. You need a pretty long lense with 1.8 or higher to get some decent bokeh. In this case 7D is much better.

What do you want to shoot with it?

blackwaterimages · « **Reply #5 on:** October 27, 2012, 11:17 »

I've almost completely given up the 5D Mark II and use the Fuji X100 and X-Pro 1 now. I've got a friend who swears by the Olympus though, but she doesn't shoot stock. Her images look great though. Tough choice!

S. · « **Reply #6 on:** October 27, 2012, 11:26 »

I want to use as a travel camera and I really don't want to worry about rain and dust... so probably the Olympus will be the right choice, even if it's a little bit bigger and heavier than the others.. maybe I can save some weight and size with smaller lenses of the m43 system

Amos Struck · « **Reply #7 on:** October 28, 2012, 05:46 »

Quote from: Stepunk on October 27, 2012, 11:26

I want to use as a travel camera and I really don't want to worry about rain and dust... so probably the Olympus will be the right choice, even if it's a little bit bigger and heavier than the others.. maybe I can save some weight and size with smaller lenses of the m43 system

I would also go with the Olympus System, plus you have all the nice Panasonic lenses to use.

BTW: I found a shot which i recently sold at iStock which is shot with the Olympus:
http://www.istockphoto.com/stock-photo-20694341-ancient-vishnu-hindu-god-statue-in-angkor-wat-cambodia.php

As i said i shot about 20.000 photos within the last 3 months of south east asia trip and the Olympus never dissapointed me.

I recommend getting your hands on one and try yourself. If you like to ask a more professional shooter, ask Holgs (Holger) http://www.microstockgroup.com/profile/?u=567 he sometimes also shoot travel stock photos with his Olympus.

travelstock · « **Reply #8 on:** October 28, 2012, 15:18 »

Quote from: Stepunk on October 27, 2012, 09:10

I'm really tempted by the Olympus E-M5! What lenses do you have? Are you able to submit to all major microstock website and Alamy?

"The quality as as good as a Canon 7D or quite as good as 5D Mark II." maybe this is a little bit too much, but anyway I love the body, and I was just concerned about picture quality for microstock.

Have you tried also shooting some videos?

I have to agree with Amos. Image quality is a subjective term and will really depend much more on the lenses you're using. On a straight comparison of sensors, the OM-D holds up very well to the 5D mk2 (lets not forget that the 5D mk2 sensor is about 4 years older) and is a little ahead of the 7D http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Cameras/Compare-Camera-Sensors/Compare-cameras-side-by-side/(appareil1)/793%7C0/(brand)/Olympus/(appareil2)/619%7C0/(brand2)/Canon/(appareil3)/562%7C0/(brand3)/Sony.

Compared to other mirrorless systems, NEX is still a let-down for available lenses & the quality of what is there. X-Pro is a great fit for some, but its not really for everyone.

Micro 4/3 has by far the bigest range of lenses available & although theres still some gaps has compelling options in most focal lengths. I'd keep away from the Olympus 17mm f2.8 though - the Panasonic 20mm f1.7 is a much nicer lens - faster, sharper, better contrast & lower CA. The new Olympus 75mm 1.8 is a beautiful lens if you're after a top quality portrait lens, but its not cheap. The 45mm f1.8 is tiny, inexpensive & a gem.

My one big con with the system is the maximum resolution that's available at the moment - at 16MP it only gets XL file sizes on iStock, not the XXXL that most full frame or some of the APS-C cameras allow you to upload. Really its the one big factor thats stopping me from switching away from full-frame completely.

Megastock · « **Reply #9 on:** October 29, 2012, 15:21 »

Quote from: Stepunk on October 27, 2012, 09:10

I'm really tempted by the Olympus E-M5! What lenses do you have? Are you able to submit to all major microstock website and Alamy?

"The quality as as good as a Canon 7D or quite as good as 5D Mark II." maybe this is a little bit too much, but anyway I love the body, and I was just concerned about picture quality for microstock.

Have you tried also shooting some videos?

I've used my E-M5 to submit successfully to all the Top Tier and Middle Tier sites (except for Pond5 and Envato) plus Alamy. DT approval with the E-M5 is 97% this month (70-ish images). I've got an ISO1600 shot approved (and sold on all three) with this camera at SS, IS and DT. I don't think this camera would limit anyone from creating images that sell, and is greatly preferable to any compact I've had with me. The built in image stabilizer is a huge benefit for video with prime lenses (by comparison Canon and Nikon have few image stabilized primes), though I think the video is the weak part of the E-M5 compared to Panasonic's excellent video. I don't do stock video. I'm shooting with the Panasonic 14 and 25mm primes (20mm when I travel), and the Oly 45mm and 75mm primes. If I'm skiing or biking the 14mm or 20mm and the body slip into a pocket. A small Crumpler bag hold the 14mm plus two larger primes (25mm and 75mm).

In any situation I would never choose the OM-D over a full frame camera with a quality prime from an IQ standpoint, and I cannot honestly say that the E-M5 keeps up with a 5D MkIII or D800 - but it is a lot smaller, and cheaper. It is almost indistinguishable from a Canon 7D for IQ, for example, but with better dynamic range. It makes a lot of sense for someone who can't justify the more expensive cameras, and especially for someone wanting to travel light. If you sell a lot of large file size images then something with more megapixels may make more sense. My particular images seem to have more appeal to bloggers and other end uses that don't require larger than 16MP. Of course, for travel and landscape shots you can always stitch...

I find my images sell better when the concept is stronger, not when the IQ is better

Since buyers can't even see which camera the image was taken with on most sites I don't know how much it impacts sales to use a smaller camera. My old shots taken with a Canon G10 can still sell well.

All that said, I do think the OM-D is a little bit finicky compared to the Canon I'm used to. The dials work great and the super control panel is well done, but overall the dSLR with an LCD is just that much easier to get a quick idea of what your settings are. Since ISO, shutter and aperture are part of a larger electronic interface I just find they don't jump out at me as much. I'm used to it and appreciate the other benefits, but I'm not sure the OM-D ergonomics would appeal to everyone. Definitely something you want to handle before you buy. I often find that if I've left the camera on AutoISO it doesn't jump out at me the next time I grab the camera.