From compact to mirrorles (beginner)

Hi guys,

I am looking into upgrading my compact setup into a mirrorles system. I have been reading the forums for the last few days looking for advice and pros/cons of each system but I am now more confused than I was a few days ago.

I am a novice shooter, started with a Sony Rx100 mk2 in a meikon housing (which flooded), then invested into a Nauticam housing (which I love) with a Sony Rx100 Mk4 + wet lenses, WWL-1 and CMC-1.

My plan is to upgrade to a travel friendly not too big mirrorles system and use my wet lenses at the beginning, then gradually buy more lenses and ports and grow the system.

The point is, I want to buy something that will last for a few years and be able to re-use the lenses and ports I buy now with a new body/housing in the future - assuming this is possible? 

Based on what I read around here I have 3 main systems (Mainly interested in stills but I do like to shoot video too)

Sony a6500 or a6400 - Pros: Big sensor, metabones + tokina fish eye, good video, quite portable, price and value for money Cons: Autofocus issues with sony e lenses? 1/160 flash sync speed, white balance

Panasonic GX9 - Pros Good selection of lenses from panasonic and olympus, small size, cheap great value for money compared to other options, decent video. Some people here recommended this system.

Olympus EM1- Mk2 - Good selection of lenses from panasonic and olympus, best MFT system?  Cons: A bit pricey, too big perhaps compare to the other two?

Any advice would be much appreciated. 

Thanks 

48 minutes ago, Blenny84 said:

Hi guys,

I am looking into upgrading my compact setup into a mirrorles system. I have been reading the forums for the last few days looking for advice and pros/cons of each system but I am now more confused than I was a few days ago.

I am a novice shooter, started with a Sony Rx100 mk2 in a meikon housing (which flooded), then invested into a Nauticam housing (which I love) with a Sony Rx100 Mk4 + wet lenses, WWL-1 and CMC-1.

My plan is to upgrade to a travel friendly not too big mirrorles system and use my wet lenses at the beginning, then gradually buy more lenses and ports and grow the system.

The point is, I want to buy something that will last for a few years and be able to re-use the lenses and ports I buy now with a new body/housing in the future - assuming this is possible? 

 

Based on what I read around here I have 3 main systems (Mainly interested in stills but I do like to shoot video too)

Sony a6500 or a6400 - Pros: Big sensor, metabones + tokina fish eye, good video, quite portable, price and value for money Cons: Autofocus issues with sony e lenses? 1/160 flash sync speed, white balance

Panasonic GX9 - Pros Good selection of lenses from panasonic and olympus, small size, cheap great value for money compared to other options, decent video. Some people here recommended this system.

Olympus EM1- Mk2 - Good selection of lenses from panasonic and olympus, best MFT system?  Cons: A bit pricey, too big perhaps compare to the other two?

Any advice would be much appreciated. 

Thanks 

 

I am not a Sony fan having been a Sony user there are many limitations to that system from a port and lens point of view

In the MFT universe if you are solely focus on still images I would get the EM1 MKII there are good deals on the camera and the housing is a reasonable size considering the handles. Video quality and exposure tools are shockingly bad

GX9 is a great little one that will cost you less and more interesting if you want to do some video housing is compact and you can use the same trays and arms of the RX100

I would have to agree with @Interceptor121, I'm not a huge Sony fan either, the bodies may be small but the ports not necessarily, depending on what you want to shoot.  The fisheye ports are all the same size, rectilinears need bigger ports on bigger sensors.  I Use the EM- Mkii, great little camera, AF is good, great for still images and currently some really good deals on the body.    If you have the WWL already, less of an issue and you could use the right 14-42 lens with flat port on either the Olympus or Panasonic body.  I think it boils down to how much video you plan to do, the Panasonic being favoured for video.

Thanks for the comments. I can find lots of pictures taken with the Oly EM1 Mk2 on FB, Instagram and Flickr but really struggling to see what the GX9 is capable of? Not sure if I am searching it the wrong way but cannot find almost any underwater pictures taken with this camera. 

I would expect the GX9 to perform very similarly to the GH5 in image quality, both have a 20.2 MP sensor, though the GX9 was released a year later so the images are going to be very similar.  After that the difference swill be thing like AF, handling, battery life etc.  I would expect the main downside of the GX9 to be shorter battery life than the GH5 (and the EM-1 MkII).   Here's a comparison of the GX9 to a GH5 : https://www.apotelyt.com/compare-camera/panasonic-gh5-vs-panasonic-gx9  

Another camera to consider might be the G9 - it's closer to the EM-1 II in stills performance and Nauticam make a housing for it.  Beyond that I have not heard of many using it either.  Unfortunately Nauticam chose to make it a seperate back style housing rather than the swing open door style of the Olympus housing so it is a similar price to the GH% and $700 more than an EM-1 MkII housing.

The housing for the GX-9 is a compact style housing and does not include a tray/handles which you will want to buy if you are using strobes.  It will approach the EM-1 MkII housing in size when the tray is added apart from the bulge for the mini flash unit. 

To me the biggest downside for the GX-9 is the small battery and fewer shots compared to the EM-1 mkII/G9/GH5 cameras.  The GX9 AF also doesn't seem to be as good based on surface reviews, it is probably fine for wide angle work but may present some difficulty with macro lenses.

Thanks, I am leaning towards the EM1-Mk2 some of the pictures from this camera are stunning. I also think it would keep me busy for a few years as I am still learning so I should have a big room for growth with this system. 

Would also recommend the Pani 14-42 II for this camera as a start with wet lenses? I dont think I can afford to buy lenses + ports at the same time. 

Cheers

Just now, Blenny84 said:

Thanks, I am leaning towards the EM1-Mk2 some of the pictures from this camera are stunning. I also think it would keep me busy for a few years as I am still learning so I should have a big room for growth with this system. 

Would also recommend the Pani 14-42 II for this camera as a start with wet lenses? I dont think I can afford to buy lenses + ports at the same time. 

Cheers

The 14-42 is a good choice on panasonic bodies for Dual IS and video and is the best of the small lenses but for photos on Olympus body it does not really make a difference which lens you go for in terms of autofocus or stabilisation as the body handles those. As far as I remember the panasonic lens is also the sharpest of the 14-42 lot

8 hours ago, Blenny84 said:

Thanks, I am leaning towards the EM1-Mk2 some of the pictures from this camera are stunning. I also think it would keep me busy for a few years as I am still learning so I should have a big room for growth with this system. 

Would also recommend the Pani 14-42 II for this camera as a start with wet lenses? I dont think I can afford to buy lenses + ports at the same time. 

Cheers

I assume you are talking about using the 14-42 with your existing WWL?  There are quite a few different 14-42 lenses available and you would need to select the right flat port to go with whichever 14-42 you choose,  This is the WWL-1 port chart :  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Cyk7BxeB8sVcmnoG03Up4yilm0i62xFg/view  

If you were to choose the Pany 14-42 II lens it uses the macro port 35 - you can use that port and a 30m extension ring to house the olympus 60mm macro lens, in the future.

Thank you, that is exactly what I was looking for.

Quote

If you were to choose the Pany 14-42 II lens it uses the macro port 35 - you can use that port and a 30m extension ring to house the olympus 60mm macro lens, in the future.

Looking at the second hand market I can find more Oly Em5 Mk3 than Em1 Mk2s. I understand I would be loosing a bit of image quality but getting a camera which is slightly lighter for travelling. Is the EM5 MK3 still a good option?

You're not losing any image quality with the EM5 Mk3. Apart from ergonomics and the smaller battery it is nearly the same camera.

very similar image quality, the difference in battery life is noticeable though- I used the EM-5 MkII prior to the EM-1 mkII and you get quite a few less photos.  I have not used the 5 mkIII but the AF is almost night and day between the 1 mkII and 5 mkII.

The Em5 mk3 is the first in the series with PDAF. I think it should be on a very similar level to the Em1 and certainly much better than the previous Em5. Above water reviews will probably tell you what you need to know.

Just saw the AOI UH-EPL10 set up and it looks very compact but I don't know if it will be a real upgrade for you

Hi,

Just did a similar movement last year, I came from an Sony RX100III with wet lenses and moved to Oly OMD EM1 mkII and I'm very happy with it.

At the moment my lenses are Oly 8mm FE and 60mm Macro plus macro wet lenses for super-macro. It is certainly true that you loss versatility and have to focus in just the kind of photo you are able to do but for me it is OK ... I would like to have something in between but not sure about yet.

In your case having the WWL1 and CMC1 I would do the 14-42 route but on the other hand 8mm and 60mm are absolutely killer lenses!!!

1 hour ago, DSR_Diving said:

Hi,

Just did a similar movement last year, I came from an Sony RX100III with wet lenses and moved to Oly OMD EM1 mkII and I'm very happy with it.

At the moment my lenses are Oly 8mm FE and 60mm Macro plus macro wet lenses for super-macro. It is certainly true that you loss versatility and have to focus in just the kind of photo you are able to do but for me it is OK ... I would like to have something in between but not sure about yet.

In your case having the WWL1 and CMC1 I would do the 14-42 route but on the other hand 8mm and 60mm are absolutely killer lenses!!!

 

Thanks, yeah I think going Oly EM1-2 or EM5-3 is plenty of gear for my basic skills. I also like the fact that I can start with a 14-42 II and my wetlenses and then upgrade to a dedicated macro and fisheye setup. 

Just trying to find a Nauticam housing on the second hand market, hopefully they will start appearing soon.