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Archive 2013 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!

  
 
pauljas
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


I currently shoot a Canon 40D and have been interested in upgrading my camera body and the more I read, the more I am intrigued by moving to a micro 4/3 option. I would appreciate your thoughts on staying with my 40D and getting better glass or having an eBay sale and going m4/3.

What I shoot:
I shoot a lot of family events, some events for a church newsletter. My passion is landscapes and occasionally will either side trip on a vacation for some landscapes or take a trip for that purpose.

What I currently shoot with:
Canon 40D, Tamron 17-50mm, Tokina 12-24mm Canon 50mm f1.4, Canon 85mm f1.8, Canon 70-210mm f3.5-4.5. I also do panos with an RRS single row Pano rig and a Olympus 35mm shift on a Gitzo CF tripod. I also have a Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 that I plan to sell.

Thoughts on upgrading:
I began by thinking I should upgrade to a 60D. For the most part, I see myself always shooting APS-C and while full frame as some advantages, I feel APS-C has served my needs very well and see little reason to spend really big on glass. As I considered some recent photos that turned out really badly (due to a church lit with only natural light in the morning) I realize that a 60D would not help me as much as either lenses with IS or IBIS. I was almost set to buy a Sigma 50-150mm OS to replace my 70-210 and then later upgrade my 17-50mm to something with IS/OS etc.

Now I am starting to wonder, after reading reviews of the new 70D, if I would be better off selling all of my Canon gear and moving to M4/3. Or, Do I have a bad case of Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS)? I have ready many posts from folks who “sold off all my canon/Nikon gear and haven’t looked back.”

I figure if I did a big sell off, I could get a decent body and the 12-35mm f2.8. If I get a lesser body, I could also get a lens to supplement like a 45mm prime. Thinking about spending around $2K. I am also thinking of selling some of my current gear and having a good 17-50mm, the Sigma mentioned above and a couple primes. Later I would pick up a UWA zoom or a Samyang 14mm

Reasons I feel reluctant to make the plunge
Lenses – as you can see, I usually buy decent “non-OEM” glass as I have found them to be a better value and so far, there is no Sigma 12-35. Also the whole 2x field of view has me hesitant. Right now, when I use my 35mm Olympus, it has a FOV like a 56mm and if I go this route, it would be more like 70mm. I also like the dual control dials/wheels of the 40D and it seems so few m4/3 bodies have them, especially at lower price points. I could go back to 1 dial if needed.

Another option I have considered is to start slowly, get the new lens for my Canon and get a GX1 and a 20mm and build from there. I am very intrigued by the new Panasonic GX7 but also realize that would eat up a huge percentage of my $2,000. Maybe I should ask what would be a good my-first-m4/3-camera would be?



Sep 08, 2013 at 01:20 PM
carstenw
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


The E-PL5 is a mid-range body with the newest sensor and decent IBIS. That plus the Panasonic 20/1.7 shouldn't cost all that much. I wouldn't jump without trying, but I am guessing that you would be happy with the image quality. I am less sure if you would miss the larger-sensor look, but looking at your lens list, I doubt it. The biggest unknown is probably the operational aspect. There is no way to know if you would like these cameras other than just trying them.


Sep 08, 2013 at 01:28 PM
pauljas
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


Is the newer generation of m4/3 gear getting to where the larger sensor looks is less of an issue?

Let me research the E-PL5... Thanks for the recommendation.



Sep 08, 2013 at 01:33 PM
mawz
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


I'd suggest waiting a few weeks before buying the Panasonic 12-35, Olympus will announce a 12-40/2.8 next week and it's expected to both be a little cheaper ($999 list) and better than the Panasonic.

As to the rest, the OM-D E-M5 would be my suggestion, it's getting discounted now due to the E-M1 announcement coming next week and overall it's the most capable body currently in the line. IQ is better than a 60D.

I was shooting with a basic kit of the E-M5, 12-50 kit lens, PanaLeica 25/1.4 and the Olympus m.Zuiko 40-150 for most of the summer and it was a good setup of lenses that can be put together for $2000. The PL25 and the 40-150 are excellent, the 12-50's merely good.

Otherwise an E-M5 bought body-only, the new 12-40 and the 45/1.8 will be just a bit above $2K, or right on if you are willing to buy the body & 45 used. There should be a decent amount of E-M5's cropping up in the near future as people upgrade to the E-M1.



Sep 08, 2013 at 01:39 PM
mawz
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


pauljas wrote:
Is the newer generation of m4/3 gear getting to where the larger sensor looks is less of an issue?

Let me research the E-PL5... Thanks for the recommendation.


The answer is it depends on the sensor. Canon's 18MP APS-C sensor is long obsolete and clearly outmatched by the Sony 16MP 4/rds sensor used by Olympus (and by Panasonic in the GH3), the Sony APS-C sensors remain better, but you aren't going to find the lens selection you want in any of the APS-C Mirrorless systems (the Fuji's probably closest with its excellent18-55 f2.8-4)



Sep 08, 2013 at 01:41 PM
FlyPenFly
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


I actually returned my E-PL5, I didn't like how Olympus fitted the wrong screen on it.

Build quality is nice though.



Sep 08, 2013 at 02:05 PM
pauljas
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


mawz wrote:
The answer is it depends on the sensor. Canon's 18MP APS-C sensor is long obsolete and clearly outmatched by the Sony 16MP 4/rds sensor used by Olympus (and by Panasonic in the GH3), the Sony APS-C sensors remain better, but you aren't going to find the lens selection you want in any of the APS-C Mirrorless systems (the Fuji's probably closest with its excellent18-55 f2.8-4)


If I stay with APS-C, it will mean holding on to my 40D in the short term and waiting and hoping for something better with either an EOS-M or 7D replacement. I have also considered other upgrades like a 7D or 50D



Sep 08, 2013 at 02:14 PM
carstenw
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


pauljas wrote:
Is the newer generation of m4/3 gear getting to where the larger sensor looks is less of an issue?

Let me research the E-PL5... Thanks for the recommendation.


I own an E-PL3, btw, a great little camera. I will move to an E-P5 at some point, with the new huge VF-4.

The "look" I am referring to is largely narrow depth of field. I think most other things will be handled at least as well by MFT. The lenses are generally very high quality, especially the primes and pro zooms. Since you have very few very fast lenses, I am guessing you don't rely much on this look in your photography, so it really should be minimal.

By the way, the OM-D E-M5 is a great little body with a very good built-in EVF, but it has quite small buttons. If you have large hands and fingers, try it before buying.



Sep 08, 2013 at 02:43 PM
pauljas
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


carstenw wrote:
I own an E-PL3, btw, a great little camera. I will move to an E-P5 at some point, with the new huge VF-4.

The "look" I am referring to is largely narrow depth of field. I think most other things will be handled at least as well by MFT. The lenses are generally very high quality, especially the primes and pro zooms. Since you have very few very fast lenses, I am guessing you don't rely much on this look in your photography, so it really should be minimal.

By the way, the OM-D E-M5 is a great little body with a
...Show more

My idea of fast glass is currently an f2.8 zoom and that is in part because I am moving more and more towards the image stabilization capability of these zooms. Also, because of their versatility, I have put a priority on getting good zooms and them primes to compliment.

I have found times where the lack of DOF control on my crop sensor and 70-210 has been a huge problem. I would see the 200 f2.8 prime as an option IF it had IS but it does not. My luck, Canon will introduce one but at a HUGE increase in price (kind of like what they did with the 24mm f2.8)



Sep 08, 2013 at 02:58 PM
mechx
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


I went from Nikon to nex to finally m43 and have no regrets. Read this, it may help you...

http://www.43rumors.com/from-canon-to-mft-the-truth-behind-the-migration-by-mohammad-shafik/



Sep 08, 2013 at 03:04 PM
pauljas
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


mechx wrote:
I went from Nikon to nex to finally m43 and have no regrets. Read this, it may help you...

http://www.43rumors.com/from-canon-to-mft-the-truth-behind-the-migration-by-mohammad-shafik/


very helpful. Here are the advantages I see if I were to get the OMD that should help me get better photographs:
much improved high ISO performance
much improved AF

Interesting that I find comparisons are to a 5DIII instead of a crop sensor camera.



Sep 08, 2013 at 03:43 PM
mechx
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


Yes, that article is very interesting as I thought he really broke it down to pros and cons of his transformation to m43.

I can see how he is happy going to m43, from where he was with the canon gear and for his particular usage...



Sep 08, 2013 at 03:47 PM
mechx
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


Also agreed...on the high ISO performance and the AF. The autofocus is better on my PL5 than my nex 5n...especially in low light. The PL5 really surprises me, then of course there is the oly jpeg colors...one of a kind.


Sep 08, 2013 at 03:51 PM
pauljas
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


And his usage seems pretty similar to me, the only thing he does not comment on is landscape use. To that end, I have found more than a few posts about m4/3 and landscapes and except for needing very exotic lenses (by my current standards a 7-14mm zoom is exotic and thinking a 12mm prime wont cut it is exotic), I don't see many downsides. Perhaps I will wish I had a glorious FF sensor with me but like I said before, I don't see me shooting FF.

I also failed to mention in my original post that I also wanted an improved AF system and was less than impressed with the 60D's AF system as it seemed way to similar to my current 40D. My impression is that Canon has put the emphasis in the new 70D AF system as optimized for video applications and less relevance for still shooters, but I could be mistaken



Sep 08, 2013 at 03:54 PM
mechx
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


pauljas wrote:
My impression is that Canon has put the emphasis in the new 70D AF system as optimized for video applications and less relevance for still shooters, but I could be mistaken



Yes, well said, this was exactly my impression as well...recent reviews seem to reflect this.



Sep 08, 2013 at 04:33 PM
redisburning
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


so you're going to sell all of your Canon gear to move to a sensor that is half the area of the sensor that is already half the area of the best currently available sensor from the manufacturer of your system?

look I own a 40D myself and it would be nice to have some more MPs sometimes, but I have personally been looking at the 5dIII and the upcoming FF NEX. But then, I put my money into manual focus FF lenses so maybe that's easier for me.

you already have a few lenses that work on FF, and you live in the states. Before you go lose a bunch of money on selling all of your stuff and migrating, spend 200 dollars to check out M4/3rds and FF. Im serious, Im looking on LensRentals.com and I see that you can get a 5dIII, OM-D AND the 25/1.4 for about 200 dollars for 5 days. Compare the files yourself.

occasionally I look through the m4/3rds threads around here and I'll be honest the cameras themselves do not impress me very much. that is to say nothing about the photos themselves, of course. but I would not part with a dime to move over to that, personally.

YMMV.

ps if NEX7 prices bottom out like the other bodies I will probably purchase one of those as an intermediary.



Sep 08, 2013 at 04:49 PM
kewlcanon
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


So what is a camera for ? .

redisburning wrote:
occasionally I look through the m4/3rds threads around here and I'll be honest the cameras themselves do not impress me very much. that is to say nothing about the photos themselves, of course. but I would not part with a dime to move over to that, personally.




Sep 08, 2013 at 05:23 PM
mawz
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


pauljas wrote:
And his usage seems pretty similar to me, the only thing he does not comment on is landscape use. To that end, I have found more than a few posts about m4/3 and landscapes and except for needing very exotic lenses (by my current standards a 7-14mm zoom is exotic and thinking a 12mm prime wont cut it is exotic), I don't see many downsides. Perhaps I will wish I had a glorious FF sensor with me but like I said before, I don't see me shooting FF.


The 7-14/4 isn't terribly exotic. It's wide and relatively fast, but costs right in the middle of its class of zoom. Note the very non-exotic 9-18mm wide zoom is quite reasonably priced and optically quite good.

That said, it's only a certain sort of landscape that requires an UWA lens. And it's one you clearly don't do, given your lens selection now. You will find any of the current normal zooms in m43 able to handle your wide needs, as they are all either 12-xx or 14-xx zooms and 17mm on 1.6x APS-C is only very slightly wider than 14mm on m43 (it's equivalent to 13.6mm on m43 to be exact).

Personally I shoot a fair bit of landscape & nature work, originally with the 12-50 and now with a 4/3rds 14-54 f2.8-3.5 II (a very good lens at a superb price, but not a solution I recommend for you due to poor AF on m43 bodies other than the upcoming OM-D E-M1). The 12-50 was actually quite good:


Fort George by Mawz, on Flickr


In the Field by Mawz, on Flickr


Curls by Mawz, on Flickr

And it's beat by the 12-35 and upcoming 12-40, both of which are fixed f2.8

-note that I do tend to shoot wide, the 12-50 was more of a 12mm + 43mm Macro for me, but that's a peculiarity of the way I work with zooms.



Sep 08, 2013 at 05:53 PM
pauljas
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


So far, it seems not much love for APS-C, perhaps especially Canon APS-C. I am seeing fewer and fewer reasons not to make this change.

Funny thing is, in reading reviews, I prefer the UI of the Panasonic bodies but the IS of the Olympus. Also it looks like 899 is what an OMD body only is going for these days.

Much to ponder



Sep 08, 2013 at 06:25 PM
carstenw
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · considering moving from Canon APS-C to M4/3 – Advise please!


Canon has neglected their APS-C line a bit in recent years. They were more desirable in the past. The avoidance of a fab upgrade to get their sensor tech back to the frontline has created an opportunity for smaller sensors to outperform the Canon APS-C cameras.


Sep 08, 2013 at 06:40 PM
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