Micro 4/3 vs. Sony A7ii

AUT1GER

Earning My Ears
Joined
Jun 20, 2017
This is my first post so be gentle on me.

We are going to Disney World in November. We went last fall as well, and I took my EM-1 with 9-18mm, 12-40mm 2.8, 35-100 2.8, and my 25mm 1.4. It worked out pretty well. It was relatively light, and I had two weather sealed lenses that I could use when it rained or in wet rides. I also had three large aperture lenses which was nice on darker areas. I like bokeh, but I am not a super shallow depth of field guy.. at least not all the time, which is why I like m4/3 system.

When we went last fall, I had a Nikon D610 as well. I didn't want to take it because it was too big - lenses and body. However, I sold off all my Nikon stuff, and I went Sony A7ii. I have the Samyang 14mm, Sony 28mm with 21mm adapter, 24-70mm 4.0, Sony 50mm and 85mm 1.8s, and Canon 17-40mm with Mc-11 adapter.

I don't know which camera system to take. I think I would get better overall image quality with the Sony, but I am giving up the faster lenses, weight, weather sealing, and convenience.

I think if I were to take the m4/3 stuff, I would keep the same kit. It weighs about 3.5 pounds. If I were to take the Sony stuff, I would probably go 24-70mm, 14mm, 28mm, and maybe the 85mm? I think that kit is about a pound to 1.5 pounds heavier and I lose some flexibility as well as light gathering. (I know the full frame gets more light, but I would like faster shutter speeds). The Olympus has much better IBIS than the Sony too. I also have an A6000 that I would bring as a backup and something I could take if I needed more reach.

What do you experts think?
 
I'd bring them both. They aren't big cameras, so it's not much different than carrying another lens.
Last Disney trip, I have my Sony A6300 with 10-18 lens, and my Nikon D750 with 45/1.8. It saved me a lot of lens swapping, one camera specialized for landscapes. 1 camera for "normal view" and dark rides.
There were days I carried only one of the cameras, and days I carried both. I'd just decide which job to give to which camera. Maybe the EM-1 with 35-100 for all your telephoto shots. The A7ii with 50mm for dark rides, 14mm for ultrawide landscapes, and 24-70mm for general walk-around.
 
I tend to agree - unless your packing is so tight that there's no way to wedge them both in there together, then bringing both systems is a nice solution. Each day you go to the parks, you can decide which camera and lenses to bring - so one day when you prize light & small, you can bring the M4:3 along with some choice lenses, and other days when you might want the better resolution of the full frame sensor for landscape/scenic, or maybe some low light indoor or ride shooting, you can bring the full-frame mirrorless and a few choice lenses.

I admit I have fallen back to bringing my A6300 alone, and leaving bigger bulkier DSLR bodies home for Disney - as the A6300 size is just right and with a good slate of lenses I can shoot all the same stuff, from the wildlife and animals to the night shots and rides. I typically get the most use from the kit lens, 10-18mm lens, 35mm F1.8 lens, and 70-300mm lens (at Animal Kingdom only)...but I do bring a few others along too if I get in a playful mood. That tends to be more in the cooler months - when it's summer, hot and crowded, I rarely feel all that creative enough to bring manual lenses, specialized primes, or tripods...summers are just my camera and one or two lenses each day. Winters, I bring the tripod, take long exposures, and bring more lenses along.
 
This is my first post so be gentle on me.

We are going to Disney World in November. We went last fall as well, and I took my EM-1 with 9-18mm, 12-40mm 2.8, 35-100 2.8, and my 25mm 1.4. It worked out pretty well. It was relatively light, and I had two weather sealed lenses that I could use when it rained or in wet rides. I also had three large aperture lenses which was nice on darker areas. I like bokeh, but I am not a super shallow depth of field guy.. at least not all the time, which is why I like m4/3 system.

When we went last fall, I had a Nikon D610 as well. I didn't want to take it because it was too big - lenses and body. However, I sold off all my Nikon stuff, and I went Sony A7ii. I have the Samyang 14mm, Sony 28mm with 21mm adapter, 24-70mm 4.0, Sony 50mm and 85mm 1.8s, and Canon 17-40mm with Mc-11 adapter.

I don't know which camera system to take. I think I would get better overall image quality with the Sony, but I am giving up the faster lenses, weight, weather sealing, and convenience.

I think if I were to take the m4/3 stuff, I would keep the same kit. It weighs about 3.5 pounds. If I were to take the Sony stuff, I would probably go 24-70mm, 14mm, 28mm, and maybe the 85mm? I think that kit is about a pound to 1.5 pounds heavier and I lose some flexibility as well as light gathering. (I know the full frame gets more light, but I would like faster shutter speeds). The Olympus has much better IBIS than the Sony too. I also have an A6000 that I would bring as a backup and something I could take if I needed more reach.

What do you experts think?

we "experts" think you have plenty of camera gear!
When I travel I prefer smaller and lighter so I'd vote for the Olympus
www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless
 


If I were in your shoes I'd take the Oly with the 3 zooms. This will cover almost every situation. However, I'd also bring along the A7II + 85 for more creative shots. I'm guessing the A7/28mm combo would be your best dark ride combo vs the 25 1.4 , but you would want to bring whatever combo works best/fastest at high iso. I wouldn't carry all of it each day, but would pick and choose what to leave at the hotel and what stays in the bag.

So I guess my answer was to take everything.
 
Thanks for all the help! Yes. I have a lot of gear. My wife agrees. I usually buy stuff used, refurbished, or on sale, and with lenses they don't lose too much value that way. For example, I bought the 9-18mm for $350 3 years ago, and I could trade it in on Amazon for about that today. I break even most of the time or lose some money in transactional costs, but it is cheaper than renting most of the time. I am really patient though. Photography is a hobby for me so I can be patient.

The bodies value drops quickly, but I bought a used EM-1, the A6000 I got for $300 with kit lens, and the A7ii I got as an open box. But I usually use my bodies for a couple of years, and I will upgrade them every other generation or wait until they sort of stabilize on prices, which takes about three years.

The Olympus would be the most versatile and lightest. I also have the 17mm 1.8, which might be better for dark rides. I'd probably like the 12mm for that, but it is pricey, and I wouldn't use it that much.

I was primarily using my m4/3 stuff and then used my DSLR stuff if I needed shallower depth of field or action. I really liked using an EVF, and I got hooked. It felt like cheating. Now that I have gone full mirrorless, my m4/3 stuff is getting used less because I have been using the Sony kit more. I think I like the Olympus lenses more and the Sony sensor size more.

Maybe I will go 17-40mm on the A7II, 14mm, 28mm, and 24-70 4.0 on the A6000 if I need reach. If I need to do a portrait inside (I have two daughters, 5 and 2, so we do a lot of princess meetings), I can stick the 28mm on the A6000. I think the 85mm would be too long. I could use the 50mm, but it is slow to focus in dark areas.

Last time we were there, I mostly used the Olympus 9-18mm, 12-40mm, and 25mm 1.4.
 
Thanks for all the help! Yes. I have a lot of gear. My wife agrees. I usually buy stuff used, refurbished, or on sale, and with lenses they don't lose too much value that way. For example, I bought the 9-18mm for $350 3 years ago, and I could trade it in on Amazon for about that today. I break even most of the time or lose some money in transactional costs, but it is cheaper than renting most of the time. I am really patient though. Photography is a hobby for me so I can be patient.

The bodies value drops quickly, but I bought a used EM-1, the A6000 I got for $300 with kit lens, and the A7ii I got as an open box. But I usually use my bodies for a couple of years, and I will upgrade them every other generation or wait until they sort of stabilize on prices, which takes about three years.

The Olympus would be the most versatile and lightest. I also have the 17mm 1.8, which might be better for dark rides. I'd probably like the 12mm for that, but it is pricey, and I wouldn't use it that much.

I was primarily using my m4/3 stuff and then used my DSLR stuff if I needed shallower depth of field or action. I really liked using an EVF, and I got hooked. It felt like cheating. Now that I have gone full mirrorless, my m4/3 stuff is getting used less because I have been using the Sony kit more. I think I like the Olympus lenses more and the Sony sensor size more.

Maybe I will go 17-40mm on the A7II, 14mm, 28mm, and 24-70 4.0 on the A6000 if I need reach. If I need to do a portrait inside (I have two daughters, 5 and 2, so we do a lot of princess meetings), I can stick the 28mm on the A6000. I think the 85mm would be too long. I could use the 50mm, but it is slow to focus in dark areas.

Last time we were there, I mostly used the Olympus 9-18mm, 12-40mm, and 25mm 1.4.

That's a plan. With multiple cameras, the reasons to bring more than one, would be if they give different advantages, or simply to reduce lens swapping.
Zackie commented that he mostly stopped bringing his dSLR, using mirrorless only -- but truthfully, other than maybe wanting a larger body, his aps-c dSLR has no advantages over his A6300...

On the other hand, your A7ii, A6000, and EM-1 can each play to different strenghts..
I don't know the EM-1 well, but I'm going to assume it's the smaller system of the 3. And paired with the 35-100, you can get decent telephoto reach in a very compact package.
The A6000 brings speed with 12fps. And of course, it can share lenses somewhat with the A7ii... The A7ii isn't as compact as the others, but will give you the best IQ, low light capability, narrow DOF..

So having different cameras and set-ups that play to different strengths is wise.

I need to pack my camera bag(s) for vacation this weekend, and I'm still undecided. I am bringing my Sony A6300 and Nikon D750. 5 days cruise and then 5 days at Universal. I know I'm bringing both cameras, but debating what lenses to bring for each -- What "assignment" to give each camera.
Nikon D750 -- I just got a new toy, the Irix 11mm lens. So I'm bringing this new toy for ultrawide.

But for my A6300, should I also bring my 10-18? Or leave all my ultrawide work to my D750? And do I also bring my 18-35 for the D750, for less extreme wide shots?

Should I bring a telephoto lens at all - and if so, it is either the 70-200/4 for the Sony, 70-200/4 for Nikon, or 300/4 for Nikon. I'm leaning to either none, or the 70-200/4 for Sony. Make the A6300 my telephoto camera.

For general walk around.... I have lots of choices. The 16-70 for the Sony, 24-70 for Nikon, or go primes -- 45/1.8 for Nikon, 35/1.8 for Sony, or 24/1.8 for Sony. I'm leaning towards leaving most of the Sony primes behind, and making the Sony my casual walk-around quick jpeg camera with the 16-70. (maybe throw 1 prime in the bag too). Leaving the high IQ work for the Nikon -- but do I go prime or 24-70? The VC on my Tamron 24-70 has been acting weird, tempting me to bring the 45/1.8 instead...
But that brings me to short telephoto/portraits -- I could use the Tamron 24-70 for portraits on the D750. 45/1.8 is too short... so if I went with the 45, I'd be tempted to also bring my 85/1.8.

Alright, subject to change, my bags:
Nikon D750
SB700 flash
11mm
18-35
45/1.8
85/1.8 (4 lenses, 3 of which are prime, covering me from 11mm to 85mm, all in top IQ)

[In theory, if I went with the 24-70, I could leave behind the 18-35, 45/1.8 and 85/1.8... having just 2 lenses instead of 4, would simplify things a lot]

smaller camera bag, to be shared with my kids:
A6300
16-70/4
70-200/4
Zeiss 24/1.8
[Still bit tempted to bring the 10-18... stick the A6300 on a gorillapod with 10-18 at night, you get some amazing night time landscapes, with a really tiny kit]

Any opinions?
 


Thanks for all the help! Yes. I have a lot of gear. My wife agrees. I usually buy stuff used, refurbished, or on sale, and with lenses they don't lose too much value that way. For example, I bought the 9-18mm for $350 3 years ago, and I could trade it in on Amazon for about that today. I break even most of the time or lose some money in transactional costs, but it is cheaper than renting most of the time. I am really patient though. Photography is a hobby for me so I can be patient.

The bodies value drops quickly, but I bought a used EM-1, the A6000 I got for $300 with kit lens, and the A7ii I got as an open box. But I usually use my bodies for a couple of years, and I will upgrade them every other generation or wait until they sort of stabilize on prices, which takes about three years.

The Olympus would be the most versatile and lightest. I also have the 17mm 1.8, which might be better for dark rides. I'd probably like the 12mm for that, but it is pricey, and I wouldn't use it that much.

I was primarily using my m4/3 stuff and then used my DSLR stuff if I needed shallower depth of field or action. I really liked using an EVF, and I got hooked. It felt like cheating. Now that I have gone full mirrorless, my m4/3 stuff is getting used less because I have been using the Sony kit more. I think I like the Olympus lenses more and the Sony sensor size more.

Maybe I will go 17-40mm on the A7II, 14mm, 28mm, and 24-70 4.0 on the A6000 if I need reach. If I need to do a portrait inside (I have two daughters, 5 and 2, so we do a lot of princess meetings), I can stick the 28mm on the A6000. I think the 85mm would be too long. I could use the 50mm, but it is slow to focus in dark areas.

Last time we were there, I mostly used the Olympus 9-18mm, 12-40mm, and 25mm 1.4.

OK - bring all the camera gear. vacations are temporary, photos last a lifetime.
I'm going on a couple trips this summer with one mirrorless system to carry around

www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless
 

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