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| p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · EM1x + 300mmpro/1.4xTC vs. Sony A6400 + 200-600mm | |
This post may or may not be of interest (cross posted in m43 and Sony forums). I am comparing the EM1x +300mm/1.4x TC to the Sony A6400 + 200-600. It all depends on (a) if you do any bird photograph (b) you are thinking of switching (from m43) (c) you may be interested in adding to your existing m43 equipment. I fall into categories (a) and (c). I am primarily shooting birds and wildlife right now and I am going to add some Sony equipment to the mix. Maybe someday I will switch, who knows. But for now I am happy to supplement with some Sony equipment for BIF, and perhaps Olympus will release some EM1x FW that will improve AF-C. The following observations were based off a 2 week period where I had a rented Sony 200-600 that I used with a purchased A6400. As always, everyone has different needs and concerns but here are a few personal thoughts that some might find useful:
(1) First and foremost, as has been stated here many times by others, the ergonomics of the A6400 are really bad. And by really bad I mean it might be more comfortable to hold onto a chunk of broken glass then the A6400. However, not all was lost. A trip to Amazon online yielded a grip which when added to the camera made it very workable for me. See photo below of camera plus grip. Not bad, I had room for my pinky whereas before it just sort of hung off in space. I would give this setup a B- for ergonomics, without the grip theA6400 gets an F, as far as I am concerned. Ergos for the EM1x are Canon 1D like, in other words really good and especially with long lenses. Ergos for EM1x I give and A+.
(2) Lens foot ergonomics. I shoot handheld most of the time. I always carry my cameras by the lens foot and I often hold the lens foot - supporting most of the weight there with the camera to my face. In many ways lens foot ergonomics are more important to me than the camera ergonomics. I give the Sony lens foot an A- and I give the Oly 300 a C. I need to add a longer plate to the Oly 300mm. The lens foot is just too short to hold and have a sure grip on the camera/lens combo. I have yet to find an aftermarket solution for the Oly lens foot and I don’t like adding a plate to the foot because inevitably that loosens up.
(3) Camera lens balance: Sony gets a C and the Oly setup gets an A. The Sony setup feels front heavy.
(4) The Sony 200-600 lens. I give this lens a solid A. It is heavier than some options in the m43 world but when combined with the A6400 I get 24 MP with a 900mm FOV. I don’t like to make too much out of internet weight arguments. Either the lens + camera are light enough to carry around for 3 to 4 hours comfortably, or it is not. For me it was fine so I don’t really care if there are lighter m43 options that someone wants to make a paper argument about. Functionally a lighter setup does nothing for me. I shot for years with a Canon 500L handheld so most things seem like a huge improvement over that. As I get older this may change.
I give the Olympus 300mm an A+ and the 300mm+1.4x TC an A. Sharpness clearly takes a hit with the TC but not so much that it is an issue.
(5) AF-C: I have to give the Sony setup an A. AF-C on the A6400 is really, really good. If you want to set up this camera go to YT and watch Mark Smith’s A9 setup, then adapt those settings to the A6400. The A6400 camera is a mini A9. At first I had it all messed up in terms of which buttons do what, but my advice is to forget about back button focus. For my hand there is not enough real estate on the back to set up a button for focus. Instead, set up the switch on the back for either static shots or BIF, then use the front shutter button for focus and tripping the shutter. That should handle 90% of your shots. I give the EM1x a B for AF-C. I find just too many out of focus shots in comparison to the A6400.
(6) Value…Sony gets an A+. The lens new is $2000 and the camera is $900 new. I got my A6400 copy off KEH for about $750. I like good value because when I travel I don’t like to have expensive gear. ~8 years ago, some of my gear was “confiscated” by the police in Ecuador. We were traveling in the Amazon basin, so miles away from civilization. Not much that I could do. At that time I was using a 1DMIII and a 400mm DO plus TC. That was quite the replacement cost. I like to limit the $$ in gear for these types of trips. In contrast my EM1x is going for about 2K now and the 300mm pro is still at about $2800. For value I give the EM1x and 300mm a B-.
(7) Image IQ. Here is where it gets tricky. For me image IQ has a lot of factors. For example, how sharp is the image out of the camera, how easy are the files managed in post, how many pixels per duck do I have? I am sure most of you could add a few more items to this list. Basically the final IQ for me is a compilation of #4 above plus what I can do in post. Below I have a shot of a dove that was taken by either the A6400/200-600 or by the EM1x +300/1.4xTC. Both handheld, taken seconds apart. There is very little difference in the details, what I see is more pixels from the A6400 and a FOV that gets me slightly closer. Also, in post I find the Sony files to be better. So I am going to give the Sony an A-, and the Oly a B+.
Overall impressions, the Sony and Oly kits are neck and neck on image IQ and one is going to excel in some situations vs the other. I find the Oly setup to be more nimble, I am more confident about Oly weather sealing and in low light situations the Oly IBIS/IS combo trounces the Sony kit for slow moving subjects. Overall quality in the hand is higher for the Oly gear, but as a value proposition I think Sony wins on this one. AF-C…Sony all the way but that could change with the rumored bird tracking on the EM1x. We will see. Future improvement and flexibility….Sony for sure. I can go out and buy an A9 or A7rIV and enjoy better ergos (vs. A6400), better sensor output and more MP. It is there if I need it. For Oly and Panasonic we are stuck with the same old sensor tech. I intend to buy a 200-600mm lens next. I will not be selling my Oly gear, but I also will not be buying anything new from Olympus either.
Adult watching juvenile antics above EM1x 300mm pro plus 1.4x TC, f5.6 ,1/125 s ISO=640
Juvenile testing wings EM1x 300mm pro plus 1.4x TC, f5.6 ,1/2000 s ISO=640
Juvenile testing wings EM1x 300mm pro plus 1.4x TC, f5.6 ,1/320 s ISO=320
Tired adult EM1x 300mm pro plus 1.4x TC, f5.6 ,1/50 s ISO=320
Adult EM1x 300mm pro plus 1.4x TC, f5.6 ,1/1600 s ISO=800
Juveniles Sony 6400 200-600G f6.3, 1/1000, ISO 320
Juveniles Sony 6400 200-600G f6.3, 1/1000, ISO 320
Adult flyby EM1x 300mm pro plus 1.4x TC, f5.6 ,1/1000 s ISO=640
Juvenile Sony 6400 200-600G f6.3, 1/1000, ISO 800
Juveniles Sony 6400 200-600G f6.3, 1/800, ISO 640
Sony crop 100+%
Oly crop 100 + %
Edited on Jul 18, 2020 at 11:04 PM · View previous versions
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. The TC is optional though. 
And that's why I am moving back to Canon and have pre-ordered the R5 and 100-500L. But the E-M1 II is not totally useless for BIF either. I took this shot with the MC-14 i.e. at 840mm.
