OK --you have to decide. MFT or DSLR

[dko22]

Lots of interesting threads comparing both DSLR and :43: sytems. Most folk quite reasonably who own both would like to keep both. But if you really had to choose one or the other? (This is really designed more for enthusiasts rather than full time pros who may specifically need FF DSLR's). I'm afraid curiously has simply got the better of me!

 

[Herman]

I don't have any choice cause I'm using the G1, which actually belongs to my wife.
I got no DSLR. Pan moves into 3D, I will go with them.
Therefore i will stick with MFT from Pan.
They offer best of 2 worlds: 2D and 3D, one system: MFT.

 

[Hunter5117]

I guess I made that decision a couple of years ago when I started carrying my Canon G9 instead of dslr almost all the time. When m4/3 came along and had been around for a while I jumped in. Now I have sold the G9 and all the dslr kit and am very happy with my EP-2, 2 native lenses (14-42 and 17) and my collection of old manual focus Canon lenses. It is much more capable than was the G9 and is always with me unlike the dslr kit.

 

[photoSmart42]

Lots of interesting threads comparing both DSLR and :43: sytems. Most folk quite reasonably who own both would like to keep both. But if you really had to choose one or the other? (This is really designed more for enthusiasts rather than full time pros who may specifically need FF DSLR's). I'm afraid curiously has simply got the better of me!

Different tools for different purposes. That's why a lot of people have both, although they end up using the MFT systems predominantly. The choice is definitely easier when considering a pro-level FF DSLR against MFT - like you said, in that case people opt to keep both. I think the choice is less clear for APS-H cameras, but more clear for APS-C cameras. MFT IQ, for the most part, is comparable to APS-C camera IQ, so the portability and flexibility of the MFT system becomes the differentiating factor. APS-C cameras still offer advantages for sports/action photography and low-light photography, so that's a valid reason to keep both.

 

[DDG]

I got no DSLR

Me neither.

 

[daimos]

Micro 4-3

My background is : interested in photography, has nothing, has reviewed a lot
of pictures in the net, will not print large.
i belong to a small group of people who does not have to justify the equipment
they currently have.

 

[Vidar]

I decided to sell my 450D to buy the E-P1. Couldn´t afford to have to systems.. I have not regretted my choice, the Pen sees much more use than the 450D ever did...

But that doesn´t mean that I am not dreaming of a 5D Mark 2 as well.. Still will keep the E-P1. Brilliant to to take everywhere (for example when mountain climbing etc.)

So I can´t afford to have both, so I decided on :43:

 

[Streetshooter]

I got no DSLR

Me neither.

I ain't go no dslr's either!

 

[Keliza]

Making that decision right now

Hi all: I am currently selling all my Canon gear and sticking with Oly EP2. After 8 months of having both (and I try to shoot daily), the EP2 won out.
Will put cash in the bank and wait for a better sensor in the smaller body, but I won't be able to carry the heavy gear anymore.

 

[Carol Stee]

This year I decided to replace my big, heavy Nikon 35mm SLR with a more compact digital camera with a viewfinder. I looked at Nikon DSLRs first, to go with my Nikon lenses, but I was disappointed that the Nikon DSLR bodies were even more cumbersome than my SLR, so I decided against getting one. Then I considered getting a high end P&S, the Canon G11, but its small sensor and fixed lens made me decide against it. MILCs, mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras, seemed just about right because they're small and lightweight, have a good sized sensor, and enable me to use my Nikon lenses, or most any lens, with an adapter.

Ultimately I decided on the Panasonic G2. Its 4/3rds sensor is smaller than the APS-C sensor on many DSLRs so the image quality and low light capability is slightly less, but its portability more than makes up for those disadvantages. If a well-designed MILC appears with an APS sensor I may get one but I'll never go back to a SLR.

 

[pxpaulx]

I would have to say that if you can afford both it is worth it - I would say if the choice was one or the other, I would go m4/3 - of course, I would keep the lenses which I love from my pentax gear and use them adapted to m4/3.

I love using my pentax macro adapted, and just got a k-m4/3 adapter that controls aperture on my k-mount lenses which don't have an aperture ring, cheap on ebay for $55 (dedicated post to come on that one later!). Personally, I got some money through selling stuff I bought at ritz when they were going out of business; I now have a policy to buy something only if I have something I am willing to part with to cover the costs.

Otherwise like I said, M4/3 it would be! Now, if Pentax got in this game (possibly coming up at photokina), I might reconsider the oly/panny gear I have, but it would then be a whole other decision to make!

 

[dko22]

Hi all: I am currently selling all my Canon gear and sticking with Oly EP2. After 8 months of having both (and I try to shoot daily), the EP2 won out.
Will put cash in the bank and wait for a better sensor in the smaller body, but I won't be able to carry the heavy gear anymore.

Thanks to everyone who has posted so far. I guess you, Keliza, are closest to my thinking at the moment. The current sensor is pretty well good enough but some improvement wouldn't go amiss. And besides, I really want the G3 in red... Apart from that, the only thing I might miss for a wee while would be a fast telephoto but I do have for instance the Nikon 105 2.5 AIS. But of course it's not stabilised on the G's. If I do finally decide for building up my :43: then I'll probably need to pester about whether these £12 ebay Nikon adaptors are safe as in will not become glued to your lens or camera or scratch the paint off it etc. At that price i'm willing to take a chance about whether they actually work properly or not

 

[everythingsablur]

Hi all: I am currently selling all my Canon gear and sticking with Oly EP2. After 8 months of having both (and I try to shoot daily), the EP2 won out.

Similar story hear. I sold my Canon 1000D (XS) and a used 30D I bought used after enjoying the move to an SLR. A couple years later and several long trips lugging SLR kit later, and I'm ready for something else. It's a fairly telling story when my wife and I argue and end up leaving the SLR in the trunk of the rental car because no one wants to carry it.

I find the IQ in my shooting to be every bit as good if not better, with the SLRs obviously doing better at higher ISOs. In moving to m43, I'm also gaining HD video capabilities I never had outside fo P&S cameras.

Will put cash in the bank and wait for a better sensor in the smaller body, but I won't be able to carry the heavy gear anymore.

So long as "better sensor" doesn't solely mean "more megapixels". I'm fine with them staying at 12 MP if they increase other performance aspects of the sensor. More MP without other fixes might actually make some things worse (increased pixel density = more noise, lower light performance, etc.)

 

[Jonkobeck]

Ok I started a similar discussion on another thread. I did some test shots on the street with my Panny G1 this weekend, to help me decide.

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[Streetshooter]

Jon,
I gotta tell ya...I had the G1 and sold it. I didn't like the form. Now after getting the Pen 2 with the finder...I'm hunting for the G2. John, a member on this forum is a great natural shooter. We chat sometimes and he's having some great images from the G2....
I'm a looking and hard at that....
I think it's time for me to change my way of thinking...you all here on the forum are teaching me some good stuff about the G1 & 2 cameras...
Thanks...
shooter the professional learner....

 

[Marco]

I have and use them all, Nikon F4s for analog, D700 for serious work, E-PL1 + 14-42 and 17mm and VF-2 for fun and travelling light.

It's just a matter what you except from your system, small, light and handy or the highest quality. It all has a price too.

 

[oceans]

I've never owned a DSLR, and the day I'll stop keeping 1/4 of an eye on them is probably around when GFx is 1,5-2 stops cleaner. IBIS may not be on the map for GFx, but I'll triple the GF1 money and take the 2 stops, weak AA filter and a nice EVF.

 

[BillN]

you do not need to choose

I like my D300 with Nikor VR lenses, plus all my old Ai(s) and NAI lenses

The G1 is very good with the Pany glass and adapted lenses, (Canon FD(n), Pentax SLR and RF Leica etc.etc)
My EP 1 is great with Oly glass, the Oly Jpeg engine and RAW - always with me

I am also thinking about an S90 ....... or another quality small P & S

There is no reason to make a choice unless you need to sell your old stuff at (give away), prices.

In a weak moment, (when I have some really spare cash?), I will buy a used M8, if one of my investments goes crazy I would even consider an M9

We are so lucky these days in that there are some great "image machines" around

I have just started to scan all my old film stuff and with Light Room I can create "wonders" (for me), that were never possible in the past.

"use all the tools that are around and have fun"

I think that I will always have both or all three or four - I am just a keen enthusiast and I enjoy photography and GAS

(now we have settled into our "new house" maybe I can get back to posting a few more images)

Thanks to Mu-43.com and its members for all the encouragement

 

[dko22]

you do not need to choose

Hi BillN -I guess the point of this thread was to be a bit provocative. I know that many of us would like to have two or indeed several systems but I was here trying to force the issue and ask which one would you keep if it could only be one. And for those of us that can't afford multiple systems, then it is a real choice. Perhaps you might argue that you an simply buy an MFT body and use existing legacy glass and this I would class as legitimate on condition that it is genuinely matched to the system in size and weight, otherwise what's the point!

thanks, David

 

[mav]

I have both a 400D and a GF1. I'm seriously considering selling my 400D, its weight has never been an issue really, I rock a 50mm prime on it at all times so its not even that bulky, but in comparison to an m43 its huge, which stops me from taking it almost anywhere.

Also if I sold my 400D and wanted an SLR again, it'd be awesome because I'd get to buy another camera!