Wanting to get a camera for my 17 year old daughter who has shown some interest in learning a bit more about photography. She's headed to Spain this summer for 2 weeks, and wants to have a new camera in hand soon so she can practice with it. For those with experience on both systems, which would you recommend? Or, is there another option I've missed altogether. One aspect of the NEX I know she would like is the viewfinder....no add-ons needed. Not too worried about the price differential right now.
Thanks for the help.
I would recommend the NEX 6 as it has an APS-C size sensor which would work really pretty well for low light, high ISO shots, I own several Micro 4/3's and love their adaptability with alt glass but the NEX is just as adaptable (albeit it a little bigger) and noise becomes an issue with the smaller sensor of the m 4/3's. I don't own the NEX 6 but have pondered it, have you also given thought to the XE-1 and 35mm f/1.4? It's a really nice combination. Anyway, good luck!
Overall probably the E-PL5. It's the better everyday camera (Better AF, better selection of consumer zooms). Paired with the kit zoom and the 40-150 m.Zuiko and it's a great everyday camera which can also be a great enthusiast camera if paired with some of the higher-end glass. Snag the 14/2.5, 20/1.7 or 45/1.8 lenses for a good low-cost intro to high-quality primes.
The NEX-6 is the better enthusiast camera, especially if adapting lenses. But you pay for that with the weaker AF and less robust selection of lenses, particularly the fact that there's only one real telezoom option, the 55-210 OSS and it's both rather large and merely decent optically, no match for the gem that is the 40-150 from Oly, although I'd take the 55-210 over the Panasonic 45-150 OIS. The NEX-6 kit I recommend would likely end up the 16-50 OIS, the 55-210 OIS and the 35/1.8 OSS (or if you can find it, the older versions of the Sigma 19 and 30, which are cheap gems). That kit will be larger, heavier and the zooms optically weaker than the E-PL6 kit.
There is essentially no noise issue with the 16MP Oly's, they're a little noisier than the current crop of Sony's, but better than the APS-C Canon's, the 12MP bodies are notably weaker here (and the non-12MP Panasonic's are in between the 12MP m43 bodies and the 16MP Oly's aside from the GH3 which matches the Oly's).
i think it really depends on what lenses you will end up shooting with,
if something like then Oly 9-18mm, then i would go for the epl5
if you are going to use the kit lens, the 16-50 has a much nicer range, then the epl5 kit
kahren wrote:
i think it really depends on what lenses you will end up shooting with,
if something like then Oly 9-18mm, then i would go for the epl5
if you are going to use the kit lens, the 16-50 has a much nicer range, then the epl5 kit
The 16-50 is wider (24mm-e vs 28mm-e) but shorter (75mm-e vs 84mm-e) than the 14-42 kit. It's also weaker optically.
Since it's primarily for my daughter, I expect her to make most use out of a zoom, maybe the 16-50 range is fine. She needs a lens that gives her the flexibility of shooting street stuff, shots of a couple of friends (or small group), and the occasional landscape. I think she would get frustrated with a prime, so a zoom is required at this point. Again, she's just getting into this...so AF. I think it really comes down to ease of use for a beginner, but something she can grow with (and I can grab when I need something small).
I probably would have jumped all over the Oly if it had a built in viewfinder, but maybe that's not as big a deal as I think it is. I do not see her dealing with the VF2 finder, just something else to get lost. So maybe I just need to quiz her on whether she can use the rear screen exclusively; if so, I'd lean to the Oly at this point.
Frankly if you want just one lens, the Oly 12-50 is available reasonably easily on the used market (as the kit for the OM-D) and is significantly better than the kit lenses for either the NEX-6 or E-PL5. Downside is it is not compact, being about the same size as the NEX 18-55, but it's got a great range (24-100mm-e) and is a remarkably good near-macro when in macro mode.
Unless she's going to use some good native mount lens, I'd suggest NEX-6. (I have invested in both M43 and NEX6/7 as 2nd camera but still using DSLR as my main). M43 do have the advantage of having good selection of lens, but honestly most people use 1 zoom only.. either a kit zoom or those 10X super zoom. Among M43 kit lens, I like the Panasonic 14-45.
Actually both Oly and Sony kit lens are equally weak. The Sony is not sharp at the corners, while the Oly is not sharp at the corners as well plus quite strong purple fringing and CA (blue and yellow), so strong that it's difficult to remove in ACR (I have to apply selective brush). The Sony has more distortion at the wide end and requires more heavy handed correction(done automatically).
I think 16-50 isn't really a 24-75 FOV range after distortion correction applied. It is fairly sharp when well stopped down. distortion and vignetting is automatically correct, in jpg or in ACR.
Sony probably has better video, not sure if that matters. NEX also has some modes, like Sweep pano and Handheld twilight, that can be useful at times (for casual shooting, JPG only).
I just can't trust the IBIS on EPL series... sometimes it works but sometimes it seems to make blurry pictures at shutter speed that I did not expect any problems. On the other hand, NEX 's OSS isn't very effective... I 'd consider it give me 1-stop shutter speed advantage only.
NEX-6 VF is good, the add-on one on EPL-5 means bigger, one more accessory to get lost, more troublesome when slipping in and out of the bag.
Overall, I'd recommend the Nex-6. It's a great little camera with an excellent EVF and the AF is actually pretty good. Maybe not quite up to the E-PL5, but close - I certainly wouldn't base my decision on that. Image quality is also very close between the two and shouldn't be a consideration.
I love the built-in stabilization in the Olympus but I expect your daughter has steadier hands than I do at age 63. The grip on the Nex-6 makes it a dream to carry around.
Regarding the posts about distortion and vignetting … if she shoots jpg images it won't really be a problem and these cameras both put out excellent jpg files. I know, raw is better, but not by much these days.
Generally, the Oly is slightly smaller and the m43 lenses tend to be smaller than lenses for the Sony, so that could be a consideration for travel. As mentioned earlier, I agree with the recommendation for the Oly 12-50. It's a very versatile lens. Another very versatile Oly lens is the 14-150 (28-300 equivalent). It's a small lens, yet covers a very wide focal range.
If she decides on the Nex-6, go to www.FriedmanArchives.com and take a look at my ebook about that camera.
k0mit wrote:
Overall, I'd recommend the Nex-6. It's a great little camera with an excellent EVF and the AF is actually pretty good. Maybe not quite up to the E-PL5, but close - I certainly wouldn't base my decision on that. Image quality is also very close between the two and shouldn't be a consideration.
Having used both AF systems (NEX-7, which is comparable in general performance to the NEX-6, currently on the OM-D which is essentially the same as the E-PL5) it's not close in AF performance. The NEX is acceptable, but struggles in difficult situations, the Oly is outstanding and frankly better in single-shot than any APS-C DSLR I've used (including the D300, which arguably has the best AF of all APS-C DSLR's). Both suck in AF-C. In low light the Oly's are incredible. I went from essentially ignoring the AF on my NEX to relying on it with the Oly.
I love the built-in stabilization in the Olympus but I expect your daughter has steadier hands than I do at age 63. The grip on the Nex-6 makes it a dream to carry around.
This is most certainly true, the grips on the NEX bodies are very nice, particularly the 6 & 7 and the Oly's generally are weak in this regard, very P&S in terms of grip.
Regarding the posts about distortion and vignetting … if she shoots jpg images it won't really be a problem and these cameras both put out excellent jpg files. I know, raw is better, but not by much these days.
Generally, the Oly is slightly smaller and the m43 lenses tend to be smaller than lenses for the Sony, so that could be a consideration for travel. As mentioned earlier, I agree with the recommendation for the Oly 12-50. It's a very versatile lens. Another very versatile Oly lens is the 14-150 (28-300 equivalent). It's a small lens, yet covers a very wide focal range.
If she decides on the Nex-6, go to www.FriedmanArchives.com and take a look at my ebook about that camera....Show more →
The JPEG's from the NEX are mediocre to lousy, Sony's JPEG engine is pretty weak. The JPEG's from the Oly are excellent. All the NEX cameras are essentially RAW-only if you care about IQ, while the Oly's do very well with JPEG, a traditional strength of all the Oly 4/3 and m4/3 cameras.
+1. If you want a zoom lens that is a little smaller, consider the Olympus 14-42 IIr.
mawz wrote:
Frankly if you want just one lens, the Oly 12-50 is available reasonably easily on the used market (as the kit for the OM-D) and is significantly better than the kit lenses for either the NEX-6 or E-PL5. Downside is it is not compact, being about the same size as the NEX 18-55, but it's got a great range (24-100mm-e) and is a remarkably good near-macro when in macro mode.
mawz wrote:
Having used both AF systems (NEX-7, which is comparable in general performance to the NEX-6, currently on the OM-D which is essentially the same as the E-PL5) it's not close in AF performance.
The NEX-7 is not the same AF system as the NEX-6, which has on-sensor PDAF for supported lenses. I believe the E-PL5 will still be faster than the NEX-6, but it will be closer.
If you're only going to buy the kit or kit equiv lens, the NEX is the way to go.
If you're planning to eventually add on, MFT is more compact, has more excellent options at cheaper prices. There are very good NEX lenses but they're usually much more dollars than MFT.
I'd go with the NEX-6 for the EVF and larger sensor (wifi and GPS are nice features too, if she finds a use for them).
For lenses, I'd go with the standard kit zoom and a Minolta MD 28/2 with a solid adapter. Then she can decide if AF and OIS or adapted MF is right for her. You never know. You might have an MF freak on your hands.
