Alternatives to an SLR?

[dmw16]

I love taking pictures and I'd like to take more, but I find myself not wanting to always carry my dSLR. So I am looking for alternatives. I know that point and shoots are a compromise, but I am willing to take a performance hit in order to have something I am more likely to have with me.

I have been looking a little bit but I'm not all that sure where to start. The Sony NEX-3 has caught my attention has being an interesting halfway point between SLR and P&S. Are there other options I should consider?

Sorry if this has been asked before, but I couldn't find anything in my searches.

Thanks.

 

[corkyg]

Very often I have a situation where it is impractical to carry my Canon 5D. My solution is the small Powershot SX series. For the past two years I have used the SX10 IS. The 20X zoom lens takes care of most situations. That is being replaced by a SX30 IS (supposed to arrive today) with a 35X zoom. (Got that on a Black Friday special.)

 

[ScorcherDarkly]

Here's a comparison of three P&S cameras that all have DSLR-like control and image quality in a smaller package. One of these should fit the bill pretty well.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/Q42010highendcompactgroup/

 

[sixone]

Very often I have a situation where it is impractical to carry my Canon 5D. My solution is the small Powershot SX series. For the past two years I have used the SX10 IS. The 20X zoom lens takes care of most situations. That is being replaced by a SX30 IS (supposed to arrive today) with a 35X zoom. (Got that on a Black Friday special.)

I recently upgraded from the SX10 to the SX30. I highly recommend it.

 

[ElFenix]

I love taking pictures and I'd like to take more, but I find myself not wanting to always carry my dSLR. So I am looking for alternatives. I know that point and shoots are a compromise, but I am willing to take a performance hit in order to have something I am more likely to have with me.

I have been looking a little bit but I'm not all that sure where to start. The Sony NEX-3 has caught my attention has being an interesting halfway point between SLR and P&S. Are there other options I should consider?

Sorry if this has been asked before, but I couldn't find anything in my searches.

Thanks.

sony nex seems to have the best IQ, but the u4/3 offerings have the better lens lineup. the panasonic G2 and GH2 have incredible electronic viewfinders built in. those cameras are smaller than SLRs but, due to the finder, are larger than the nex, the panny GF1/2, and oly EP series.

either the sony setup or the u4/3 will offer greatly improved IQ over any compact. they're not quite as portable (though the new panny GF2 with small lens is barely larger than a panny LX5).

 

[GenRN45]

Hi - i'm new here, but have a similar question... looking to upgrade my P&S without spending the $$ for a DSLR. (New baby on the way and need to stick to a budget.)

A lot of people have been recommending the Canon SX line, but reviews on CNet report a slow shot-shot time with significant shutter lag. Can anyone report on their experiences with that?

I'm currently using a Canon Powershot SD 800 IS, which is almost 4 years old. The shot-shot time and shutter lag are starting to kill me.

I also like with the SX line that there is a hot shoe for adding an external flash - something I wish I could do now.

 

[randomlinh]

Another vote for m43. The lens selection, in particular pancakes, makes it a huge win over the Sony NEX or Samsung NX line. Of course, if you don't like primes, that hurts some, but olympus has a very creative collapsable 14-42 zoom as well.

I basically carry a gf1+20 kit, and will strongly consider the new 14 pancake if oly doesn't announce a 12 soon.

Otherwise, the LX5 or S95/G12 would be my next bet, and to an extent, the Nikon P7000 (I don't think I would like the nikon controls, but IQ wise, it's fairly on par). Not going to really go wrong w/ any of them unless you talk to fanboys.

If you don't carry a DSLR because you don't want to carry a bag or don't want to carry something over the shoulder.... then the S95 is really your only choice IMO. Sure, the LX5 "fits" in a pocket, but so does a dell streak. Does not mean I want to carry it that way.

 

[sixone]

Hi - i'm new here, but have a similar question... looking to upgrade my P&S without spending the $$ for a DSLR. (New baby on the way and need to stick to a budget.)

A lot of people have been recommending the Canon SX line, but reviews on CNet report a slow shot-shot time with significant shutter lag. Can anyone report on their experiences with that?

I'm currently using a Canon Powershot SD 800 IS, which is almost 4 years old. The shot-shot time and shutter lag are starting to kill me.

I also like with the SX line that there is a hot shoe for adding an external flash - something I wish I could do now.

I noticed the speed problem right away, with my SX30, using an older SD card. Had already ordered a higher-speed memory card, and it's a not a problem.

 

[corkyg]

Got the SX30 IS yesterday, and have had a chance to play with it a bit. The hot shoe is very nice, and has a cover as well as a strap pouch to put it in. I tried it with a Canon external flash - very good result. The 35X megazoom lens is awesome. Here are three quickies. I shot 1 and 2 from the same place using a monopod. Then I moved in for a macro shot. First the wideangle view. Note the small barrel cactus in the center

From the same exact spot, max zoom to the barrel cactus . . .

Lastly, I walked to the cactus and took this macro from 2 inches away:

Yep! This is going to be a useful tool especially when flying overseas.

It was a ganga deal with the Black Friday price.

 

[Zorba]

The best thing about the Canon point and shoot line is the Canon Hack, found here. This little program unleashes tons of features and options not found in any other P&S, and there are some options that aren't even in pro-SLRs, such as high speed motion detection.

I personally use the SX10 and love it.

Hi - i'm new here, but have a similar question... looking to upgrade my P&S without spending the $$ for a DSLR. (New baby on the way and need to stick to a budget.)

A lot of people have been recommending the Canon SX line, but reviews on CNet report a slow shot-shot time with significant shutter lag. Can anyone report on their experiences with that?

I'm currently using a Canon Powershot SD 800 IS, which is almost 4 years old. The shot-shot time and shutter lag are starting to kill me.

I also like with the SX line that there is a hot shoe for adding an external flash - something I wish I could do now.

I don't notice any shot to shot lag on my SX10 using a cheap/old SD card, using the superfine and largest image size. If I am shooting raw with the hack, then there is noticeable lag. In continuous mode I get around 2 shots per second.

The flash recycle time is awful. My camera is about 12 seconds on fresh batteries.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Wouldn't the point of having something other than an dSLR be to have something small that can fit in a pocket as you sit down? I do't see the point of having an SLR then something that is bascially just as bulky in terms of carrying it around.

 

[corkyg]

Wouldn't the point of having something other than an dSLR be to have something small that can fit in a pocket as you sit down? I do't see the point of having an SLR then something that is bascially just as bulky in terms of carrying it around.

Not at all. My 5D requires about three bulky lenses and a separate case. The SX pops into my laptop bag quite easily. On a long air trip, i.e., LAX to Cape Town, S.A. via Frankfurt, it makes a huge difference.

Here is a side by side comparison, and this does not include the 3 other lenses I would have to carry with the 5D. Further, there is no pocket camera that could do the job.

 

[yhelothar]

In the advent of compact DSLRs, IMO, the choice seems clear if you want DSLR quality but don't want the DSLR bulk. There no longer has to be a compromise between image quality and compactness.
The Sony and the Olympus are excellent choices.
If you want to save a little money, the Samsung NX10 is also an excellent choice for $350. It also comes with a much larger APS sensor compared to the other two.
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/samsungnx10/
I think the Samsung lenses might be designed by Pentax, so they'd be up there in quality. But the most important thing above any P&S is that you have a wicked good sensor.

 

[shortylickens]

I would take a compact SLR over any full size power zoom. Its almost the same price and the improvement to image quality and versatility cant be beat.
Also, I still recommend fast compacts for day-to-day carrying or if you just dont feel like lugging around something heavy.
Any P&S with fast power on and autofocus would be fine. Image quality is not your first priority with them anyway.

 

[tdawg]

Got the SX30 IS yesterday, and have had a chance to play with it a bit. The hot shoe is very nice, and has a cover as well as a strap pouch to put it in. I tried it with a Canon external flash - very good result. The 35X megazoom lens is awesome. Here are three quickies. I shot 1 and 2 from the same place using a monopod. Then I moved in for a macro shot. First the wideangle view. Note the small barrel cactus in the center

From the same exact spot, max zoom to the barrel cactus . . .

Lastly, I walked to the cactus and took this macro from 2 inches away:

Yep! This is going to be a useful tool especially when flying overseas.

It was a ganga deal with the Black Friday price.

Wow, sharpness looks good at both extremes (from what I can tell here)! Color me impressed!

 

[pinktank]

sony nex5 would be leaps and bound better than any of the compact options. Other good ones are some micro four thirds cameras such as the panasonic gf1/2 and the olympus ep but sony is exceptional in image quality and the kit lenses are fabulous as well.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Jeebus. I thought "superzooms" were like 10-15x. 30x?? LOL. Wow. 840mm equivalent. Yeah I think I'm jealous.

As nice as the S95 is, the SX30 is actually a decent DSLR replacement in the sense that I don't have to think about changing lenses. The S95 may deliver excellent IQ with manual control, but it's like having a 5D2 with only a 24-105. The SX30 gives you such crazy zooms. LOL.

 

[tommo123]

forgive my noobishness, but aren't there midway cams that have sensors that are the same (or almost the same) size as those from slrs?

i dont want an slr (couldnt deal with lens swapping), but a 30x optical zoom and good night shots capability would be great!

 

[alkemyst]

Jeebus. I thought "superzooms" were like 10-15x. 30x?? LOL. Wow. 840mm equivalent. Yeah I think I'm jealous.

As nice as the S95 is, the SX30 is actually a decent DSLR replacement in the sense that I don't have to think about changing lenses. The S95 may deliver excellent IQ with manual control, but it's like having a 5D2 with only a 24-105. The SX30 gives you such crazy zooms. LOL.

Superzooms you are refering to are in the ultra compact format.

The thing about the SX30 and the like is you are pretty much in the dSLR world as far as size.

 

[ElFenix]

forgive my noobishness, but aren't there midway cams that have sensors that are the same (or almost the same) size as those from slrs?

i dont want an slr (couldnt deal with lens swapping), but a 30x optical zoom and good night shots capability would be great!

the only reason they're able to put a 30x zoom on the camera is because the sensor is the size of a tack. the 10x zooms for crop SLRs are as large as a whole SX30 camera. and that's without a camera to mount the zoom lens on.

 

[corkyg]

the only reason they're able to put a 30x zoom on the camera is because the sensor is the size of a tack. the 10x zooms for crop SLRs are as large as a whole SX30 camera. and that's without a camera to mount the zoom lens on.

Correct! The sensor CCD is 11 millimeters. But, that does not take away from its usefulness.

http://www.digital-photography-school.com/canon-powershot-sx30-is-review

 

[Munky]

My thinking is if the camera is too big to fit in your pocket, then you might as well use a DSLR. I find it humorous how some people put up with a superzoom hanging around their neck, which offers no advantage over a pocketable compact in terms of speed and image quality.

Not all DSLR's are heavy and bulky, and you don't have to drag around your entire lens collection. For most users, I would say the kit 18-55mm lens is plenty, and if I'm bringing a second lens, it's usually the compact and brilliant 35mm f1.8 prime, not a telephoto zoom. Unless you know you'll need an extreme telephoto zoom ability, I would not prioritize that feature when choosing a camera.

 

[Metron]

You could go with the Canon G9/G10, much smaller in terms of size. The G9 has more zoom, HD video at 15 fps, and time lapse (absent on the G10), the G10 has 14.7 megapixel CCD, a better grip/easier to handle and more wide angle. Both are great "compromise" cameras for hiking/portability IMHO...

 

[yhelothar]

My thinking is if the camera is too big to fit in your pocket, then you might as well use a DSLR. I find it humorous how some people put up with a superzoom hanging around their neck, which offers no advantage over a pocketable compact in terms of speed and image quality.

Not all DSLR's are heavy and bulky, and you don't have to drag around your entire lens collection. For most users, I would say the kit 18-55mm lens is plenty, and if I'm bringing a second lens, it's usually the compact and brilliant 35mm f1.8 prime, not a telephoto zoom. Unless you know you'll need an extreme telephoto zoom ability, I would not prioritize that feature when choosing a camera.

I concur. Also if you want superzoom, a budget 18-200mm can be had for less than $200 new, and they're much smaller than your average telephoto too.

 

[speedy2]

Exactly. I have an S95 now. I had an XT and then a 40D previously. I see no reason to get anything bigger than the S95 unless I go back to a DSLR. If you already have a DSLR and you're looking for something as a compact alternative, I don't see how you can choose any P&S larger than the S95.