Best mirrorless to compliment nikon dslr

E

Englischdude

Senior Member
Hi all.

The wife and kids will be disappearing to the in-laws in bulgaria this summer and it has been commented that the d7k will be going with them, leaving me for over a month without a serious camera (monthly challenge suggestion for july, best cellphone pics ;)

I have therefore thought about getting a system camera for them to take for the holiday but not sure what. It should have the same shooting mode options as the d7k and good image quality. Does not necessarily need to be a nikon but if it would be possible to use my nikon f lenses with adapter would be an advantage. Hotshoe would be good and a sensible and usable lens in the package suitable for both landscape and portraiture work (an egg laying wool and milk producing pig of the lens world)

Any suggestions?
 
R

Rick M

Senior Member
I'm currently debating between the Nikon V3 and Olympus E-M10, might want to check those out. Also we have a few threads in the new non-nikon mirrorless forum.
 
P

PapaST

Senior Member
If traveling light is paramount then I would check out Nikon v3 and all the others that everyone will mention. But if traveling with a DSLR isn't that difficult for your family then your description best fits another DSLR. I would look at upgrading yourself to a D7100 and let your family take the D7000.

Take my mirrorless setup as an example. NEX6 with Metabones Nikon adapter, spare batteries, 19mm, 16-50mm, 50mm and 55-210mm lenses. That's roughly about $1,700. You could buy a D7100 easily and possibly even a D610 for that much. Not only would every lens you buy be 100% compatible but now you could actually concentrate on buying better/faster glass rather than hemming and hawing over mirrorless glass that doesn't have the IQ or might be even more expensive. For example a could buy a Sony 70-200mm f4 lens for my mirrorless at $1,500 Or I could buy a faster Tamron 70-200mm f2.8 with likely better IQ for $100 less for a DSLR system. The kicker for me is those two lenses are about the same size so if you go that route you throw compactness out the window.

I'm not down on mirrorless. I will continue to use mine and I realize it has a unique place in my shooting. I also believe mirrorless has the potential to do some pretty innovative stuff in the future, but whenever I hear someone ask about mirrorless and they're hoping for functionality like a DSLR, sharing lenses with their current DSLR, etc. then I usually ask them to run the numbers on mirrorless. Because sometimes people are just better off with another DSLR.
 
E

Englischdude

Senior Member
PapaST said:
If traveling light is paramount then I would check out Nikon v3 and all the others that everyone will mention. But if traveling with a DSLR isn't that difficult for your family then your description best fits another DSLR. I would look at upgrading yourself to a D7100 and let your family take the D7000.

Take my mirrorless setup as an example. NEX6 with Metabones Nikon adapter, spare batteries, 19mm, 16-50mm, 50mm and 55-210mm lenses. That's roughly about $1,700. You could buy a D7100 easily and possibly even a D610 for that much. Not only would every lens you buy be 100% compatible but now you could actually concentrate on buying better/faster glass rather than hemming and hawing over mirrorless glass that doesn't have the IQ or might be even more expensive. For example a could buy a Sony 70-200mm f4 lens for my mirrorless at $1,500 Or I could buy a faster Tamron 70-200mm f2.8 with likely better IQ for $100 less for a DSLR system. The kicker for me is those two lenses are about the same size so if you go that route you throw compactness out the window.

I'm not down on mirrorless. I will continue to use mine and I realize it has a unique place in my shooting. I also believe mirrorless has the potential to do some pretty innovative stuff in the future, but whenever I hear someone ask about mirrorless and they're hoping for functionality like a DSLR, sharing lenses with their current DSLR, etc. then I usually ask them to run the numbers on mirrorless. Because sometimes people are just better off with another DSLR.
Click to expand...

Those are really interesting points. I am however happy with my d7k and see no advantage for me to upgrade to 7100 or even fx. Better would therefore be to buy a 3100 for wifey to take. Hhhmmmm...... decisions decisions
 
P

PapaST

Senior Member
Englischdude said:
Those are really interesting points. I am however happy with my d7k and see no advantage for me to upgrade to 7100 or even fx. Better would therefore be to buy a 3100 for wifey to take. Hhhmmmm...... decisions decisions
Click to expand...

I was going to suggest that as well. Wasn't sure which glass you owned that needed AF motor in body. And honestly, I don't want to steer you away from mirrorless. Your wife might appreciate the form factor of a mirrorless more than the ergonomics of a DSLR. It really is a tough decision. My only caution is to do Total Cost of Ownership analysis for a mirrorless system because that might be a factor.

That being said. The Nikon 1 V3 looks very interesting. The grip and viewfinder are two features that I really would want with that system.
 
Horoscope Fish

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
I really appreciate the mirrorless format but this doesn't sound like the best option to me. As PapaST points out, you're talking about adopting an entirely new format and the main advantage, on a practical level, seems to be the smaller form factor. The mirrorless format has some "neato" stuff going for it, like the higher continuous frame-rate, but the format really doesn't offer features I actually USE, so again I come back to the smaller form-factor which IS pretty attractive. Still, it's not justification in my mind for the increased cost, both initially and over the long haul. If I was in your position I think I'd be giving serious consideration something like a D5300 body and a 35mm f/1.8G. Right now, that's looking like a pretty powerful Nikon combo, possibly the "sweet spot". Not too far behind that combination would be a D3300 with the same lens.

...
 
E

Englischdude

Senior Member
amazon is offering at the moment the 3100 at 320 euro with the 18-55 lens, body only at only 270 euro here in Austria. I currently dont own the 18-55,and feel that sending the family away with the light and fine 3100 with a combo of 18-55 and my 35 1.8G would be a good fit. I know this is now deviating from the original mirrorless topic, but the points mentioned above have already steered me away from this option.
 
D

dragion

Senior Member
I just purchased the Sony Nex 5T to replace my D3100...I also have the D7000 for the main stuff.
Today I got the chance to test it out during my daughter's soccer game and find that the Nex 5T is just as competent as the D3100 or better.

Samples below:
All these were shot with the E55-210mm F4.5-6.3 OSS (very little post-processing...just a very slight crop on the 2nd & 3rd one)






 
E

Englischdude

Senior Member
dragion said:
I just purchased the Sony Nex 5T to replace my D3100...I also have the D7000 for the main stuff.
Today I got the chance to test it out during my daughter's soccer game and find that the Nex 5T is just as competent as the D3100 or better.

Samples below:
All these were shot with the E55-210mm F4.5-6.3 OSS (very little post-processing...just a very slight crop on the 2nd & 3rd one)






Click to expand...

Zdravo dragan.
Thanks for the feedback. What pushed you in the sony direction in the end instead of investing in another nikon?
 
D

dragion

Senior Member
Englischdude said:
Zdravo dragan.
Thanks for the feedback. What pushed you in the sony direction in the end instead of investing in another nikon?
Click to expand...

Sony makes the same 16.1 MP sensor that is shared by the Nikon D7000 and the Sony NEX-5T...the Sony NEX-5T is basically a mini D7000.
That was good enough for me to go with the Sony NEX-5T.
My past/present experiences with Sony products has been a very positive one, so going with the Sony over the Nikon wasn't a blind decision.
The Sony has more positive features & performance compared to Nikon...IMHO. :)

Comparison NEX-5T vs Nikon 1J3
Compare Cameras
 
R

Rick M

Senior Member
A huge advantage of mirrorless in wildlife shooting is complete silence. I've been doing some close range birding and my D600 spooks them after the first shot. The J3 is virtually silent, I don't even know the shutter is activated, and the FPS is amazing. Much more to mirrorless than size!
 
Marcel

Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
Rick M said:
A huge advantage of mirrorless in wildlife shooting is complete silence. I've been doing some close range birding and my D600 spooks them after the first shot. The J3 is virtually silent, I don't even know the shutter is activated, and the FPS is amazing. Much more to mirrorless than size!
Click to expand...

This is one major reason I'm waiting to see a Nikon APS mirrorless. I'd just love to be able to use my regular Nikon glass on it with all it's features but without the shutter noise and the mirror vibes. The frames per seconds would be way better and the camera could be used in classical concert's situation where the mirror noise is a huge issue wether or not I use the silent mode.
 
R

Rick M

Senior Member
I'm hoping the D9300 is a Dx mirroless. It's about time for Nikon to jump in. I've been debating on my next mirroless and will probably wait for one of two things:

-Find out what or "if" the D9300 is
-Olympus pricing on the soon to be released 40-150 2.8 (80-300 2.8). If I go with the Oly now there are no really good (pro) long lenses.
 
E

Englischdude

Senior Member
after thinking it over i think im going to go for the d3100 plus the lens setup mentioned. this will be the more cost effective option and will definitely provide all thats needed for the purpose. thanks to all for your feedback.
 
D

dragion

Senior Member
Englischdude said:
after thinking it over i think im going to go for the d3100 plus the lens setup mentioned. this will be the more cost effective option and will definitely provide all thats needed for the purpose. thanks to all for your feedback.
Click to expand...

Too bad you're not located in the USA.
I'm selling my D3100 & 18-105mm with extra battery & battery grip...mint condition with under 5000 shutter count. :(
 
D

dragion

Senior Member
Englischdude said:
after thinking it over i think im going to go for the d3100 plus the lens setup mentioned. this will be the more cost effective option and will definitely provide all thats needed for the purpose. thanks to all for your feedback.
Click to expand...

That's seems to be the most logical choice! :encouragement:


I actually returned the Sony NEX-5T and now own the Sony A6000.
I've sold my D3100 and now a bit confused regarding my D7000...I started this thread:

http://nikonites.com/d7000/23053-thoughts-keeping-my-d7000.html#axzz32hMbgZgr

Some advice would be helpful.
 
Top