All the cameras I own are OLD - even the digital ones!

[gb hill]

I’ve still not bit down on the bullet to purchase my 1st digital camera. Phone doesn’t count😁. But I’m still lusting after a Fuji X100s. Being just a mere Hobbiest would be all the camera I’d probably ever need.

 

[Evergreen States]

I’ve still not bit down on the bullet to purchase my 1st digital camera. Phone doesn’t count😁. But I’m still lusting after a Fuji X100s. Being just a mere Hobbiest would be all the camera I’d probably ever need.

I used to own an X100S. Any X100 camera is an excellent digital complement for someone who's predominantly a film shooter. If you can spring for it, I'd strongly recommend the X100T instead. The autofocus is a bit faster and it's tuned up in many minor ways that add up to a much better camera for the money. Be aware that, if you use the autofocus, these cameras have an incorrigible tendency to backfocus. As far as I know, this is much less of a problem in X100 cameras from the X100F on. But the T is the oldest I'd venture to get if I ever were to buy back in.

 

[wrs1145]

My rangefinder cameras are a 1957 and a 1959 w/ a had- held Sekonic digital meter. They serve me just fine.

 

[Godfrey]

It's kind of, well, obvious (duh!) but I only just realised that not only do I own a lot of old cameras, but that even the digital cameras I own (the ones I use, too!) are quite old.

The most recent camera I own (aside from my iPhone), which I kind of regard as 'new' (even though I've had mine nearly two years now), is a Canon 5D mark IV - and that model is from freakin' 2016!!

Seven years old!! Which in "digital camera years" (which I've kind of regarded like "dog years", only worse) is freakin' ancient! I'm not sure if this bugs me, or why it should if it does (I don't think it does). They still take photos just as well as they always did. I can still print from them as large as I care to, for the uses I make of each of them.

Yet, still, it somehow seems to be "a shock". I was also surprised, a bit, when I thought on this and counted the digital cameras I actually use - and came up with eight of them (including my iPhone). Eight, somehow, seems a lot - but I do indeed use them (I used "took photos with intent, in 2023" as a proxy for "still use them").

(I have plenty of other digital cameras, too. All older, but none really used anymore.)

If there is any reason for this (aside, maybe, from being a cheapskate) it’s that I'm something of an "optical finder bigot". I've never taken to EVFs - and that seems to be where all the action on new cameras is, these days. Maybe, perhaps, sometime, I should make the effort to look through a "really modern" EVF, since people keep saying "they're so much better than they used to be". But then: 'they' have always said that, and I've never found it to be true, so I probably won't bother. 🤷‍♂️

For what little it's worth, I put a album up on Flickr with a sample from each of the digital cameras I use (shots not previously put on Flickr, for the record) at:

Even my digital cameras are old!

Sample shots from all the digital cameras I currently use ("currently" defined as "still used in 2023"). All of them are OLD...

www.flickr.com

...Mike

P.S. It could just be a case of “old guy, old cameras”. That does seem plausible 🤔😂

I don't consider a 2016 digital camera as being old. I still regularly use a 2003 Olympus E-1, a 2013 Olympus E-M1, and until recently had a 2018 Leica CL, all of which work very well and produce lovely photographs. Old is a judgment that makes no sense with relatively mature cameras like a 2016 Canon DSLR.

G

 

[gb hill]

I used to own an X100S. Any X100 camera is an excellent digital complement for someone who's predominantly a film shooter. If you can spring for it, I'd strongly recommend the X100T instead. The autofocus is a bit faster and it's tuned up in many minor ways that add up to a much better camera for the money. Be aware that, if you use the autofocus, these cameras have an incorrigible tendency to backfocus. As far as I know, this is much less of a problem in X100 cameras from the X100F on. But the T is the oldest I'd venture to get if I ever were to buy back in.

Thank you for the info. I’ve been away since I had my stroke last March. So haven’t heard of the T. Will certainly look into this.

 

[Bob Michaels]

gb hill: Welcome back. I am happily shooting with my original X-100 with my XT-1 and Xpro-1 when I need to change lenses. I occasionally step back and assess if my photos would be better if I bought newer cameras. So far, the answer has always been no, I am the limit, not the cameras.

 

[Dogman]

I'm still using a pair of previously owned X100S Fujis and I'm very happy with them. I like the look of the 16mp sensor and it has an OVF which I consider essential. It's also styled like the original X100 body, before Fuji squared off the design. I like that. The slower AF doesn't bother me and my photos are always sharp enough for me. Fuji makes nice cameras. Apparently used cameras in the X100 series are highly popular today if the prices being asked are any indication.

 

[ChrisPlatt]

There's nothing wrong with "old tech". It has proven effective and reliable over time. As an old geezer it is my preference.

Chris

 

[Archiver]

Most compact digital cameras prior to 2010 still had issues of slow autofocus and poor dynamic range. Fuji released the X10, which had a larger sensor and better dynamic range, and Sony released the RX100 with a 1 inch sensor and f1.8 lens. This really opened up capabilities for other manufacturers, with Canon and Panasonic joining with their own 1 inch sensor cams. I still use my Panasonic LX10 from 2016, which is a very capable little camera.

The Sigma DP1 and DP2 of 2008 and 2009 were a big step forward but still very flawed, and it wasn't until the Ricoh GR and Nikon Coolpix A that aps-c sensor came to compact digital cameras. Oddly, only Canon would follow with larger sensor compacts like the G1X, and later G5X and G7X variants.

 

[Michael Markey]

Thank you for the info. I’ve been away since I had my stroke last March. So haven’t heard of the T. Will certainly look into this.

Sorry to hear that Greg

Michael Markey

 

[mfunnell]

I’m off to Canberra (I live in Sydney) tomorrow for, well, who knows how long 🤷‍♂️

I’ve packed all 10 of those 8 cameras I mentioned 🙄 🤪 (all 8 of ‘em plus a Canon 5D classic and another old pocket P&S - plus more lenses than you can shake a stick at, plus the stick .. or monopod + tripod, at least).

While there is madness in my method, for sure, I simply don’t know how long I’ll be away for. My Dad (88 years old) busted his other hip in a 🚲 accident - and I’ll be there ‘til he can drive and ride again. That might be a while (it was last time).

Because of that, I plan to do a lot of photography over the next couple of months +/- …

Sure, best laid plans, and all - but I’m taking gear that I hope I can explore a bit more and especially some less delicate/expensive stuff I’m comfortable throwing in my bike pannier (no reason I can’t ride, even when Dad can’t; which gives me an excuse to take a break from an impatient patient 😉)


…Mike

P.S. I’m sure I won’t use half the gear I’m taking. Trouble is: I don’t know which half 🤣

 

[Ko.Fe.]

I couldn't care less how old cameras I have are. And I'm not pixeholics.

My freshest one is M-E 220, made in 2015. I was able to get it as BDG only because snobs didn't want this old camera and store kept original price all way into end of 2016, despite local currency going low.

This year I ditched two years old Canon RP and purchased Leica X2 from ten years ago. Always wanted it since X1 release.

I have grown and learned most of technical aspects of photography with Canon 500D from 2009. It still works with 100K clicks on it.
I been nominated by international contest, published with this camera.

I also have Canon 5D MKII and this camera has now cult status just as original 5D.

Why? Why young ones are buying this old cameras. It is not because of Kardashian's syndrome. It is because of the camera.
It has, sorry to say, more solid feel comparing to MKIV. And less clutter.
Canon 5D MKII has something modern CMOS cameras have lost a while ago,
It is low ISO rendering.
Modern sensors are tweaked for high ISO and due to this low ISO rendering became less appealing.

I'm not doing high shutter speed shots. I don't really need high ISO. And I'm not lazy or limited to use flash.

Here is a lot of smearing at DSLRs at P.O.T.N. With confessions like "I'm able to have person in focus now because of eye recognition, because I have Canon Rsomething now"
But I have zero problems to have person in focus with FED-2 in 1984...

New cameras brings digital aid for less capable in photography people. But I'm capable and don't need digital menus clutter.
Sorry.

 

[Dogman]

I’m off to Canberra (I live in Sydney) tomorrow for, well, who knows how long 🤷‍♂️

I’ve packed all 10 of those 8 cameras I mentioned 🙄 🤪 (all 8 of ‘em plus a Canon 5D classic and another old pocket P&S - plus more lenses than you can shake a stick at, plus the stick .. or monopod + tripod, at least).

While there is madness in my method, for sure, I simply don’t know how long I’ll be away for. My Dad (88 years old) busted his other hip in a 🚲 accident - and I’ll be there ‘til he can drive and ride again. That might be a while (it was last time).

Because of that, I plan to do a lot of photography over the next couple of months +/- …

Sure, best laid plans, and all - but I’m taking gear that I hope I can explore a bit more and especially some less delicate/expensive stuff I’m comfortable throwing in my bike pannier (no reason I can’t ride, even when Dad can’t; which gives me an excuse to take a break from an impatient patient 😉)
View attachment 4829991

…Mike

P.S. I’m sure I won’t use half the gear I’m taking. Trouble is: I don’t know which half 🤣

Sorry to hear about your dad, Mike. I hope he mends quickly although "quickly" is a relative term when you're his age. Take care and take pictures while you're there.



.....................

 

[Coldkennels]

Like most of the people in this thread, my most recently-made camera is from 2016 - the X-Pro 2. I bought it as a step up from the X-Pro 1 and X-T1 when it became apparent that the video quality of the X-T1 no longer "cut the mustard" in the modern age; the X-Pro 2 allowed me to consolidate the photo shooting I did with the X-Pro and the videography I did with the X-T1 into one package, and with a big bump in high ISO performance to boot.

I actually picked up the X-Pro 2 just as the X-Pro 3 was coming out. I didn't see any major improvements that made me want to drop more money on the newer camera - in fact, I considered the changes to the OVF to be a real downgrade. Like people have already said, cameras seem to have plateaued a bit since then, so I still don't see myself changing from the X-Pro 2 any time soon... although more accurate auto white balance would be a big help.

 

[The Spastic Image]

My newest camera dates from 1967. Brass, Glass, and mechanical movements for me. My oldest two cameras date from 1957. No batteries needed save for one 9V for the Gossen Luna-Pro F. Which is newer than the cameras.

 

[Disappointed_Horse]

If this many enthusiast photographers find that cameras introduced in the last 8–10 years do not offer any benefit to them, the camera industry should be very, very worried.

Personally I am not much interested in shooting video and for stills newer cameras offer little more than added complexity. As for megapixels, I got over that when I made a 16x20 print from a 6MP file I shot with my D40. As for high ISO, I shoot mostly film and manage to get by just fine shooting at 400 most of the time. As for AF, well, most of the time I shoot with manual focus lenses, so no benefit there either.

About the only new digital camera I find particularly appealing is the Ricoh GRIII line, but then I wasn't sure if I would carry it around everywhere once the novelty wore off, so instead I decided to upgrade my phone to the latest Pro model (iPhone 13 Pro at the time). It takes care of about 90% of what I'd be inclined to do with a digital camera. I'm curious whether many of us shooting older cameras are using newer phones to pick up the slack.

 

[DownUnder]

I’ve still not bit down on the bullet to purchase my 1st digital camera. Phone doesn’t count😁. But I’m still lusting after a Fuji X100s. Being just a mere Hobbiest would be all the camera I’d probably ever need.

I looked into the Fuji 100 series when I decided to invest in a lighter weight kit for my travels. But I found them too limiting. The 23 (35mm equivalent in FF) isn't really my preferred view of the world.

That, and while I love the Fujinon lenses for their tonal rendition, the cameras are not really to my liking. Especially the XT range. (This said, I've not used an Xpro, so my jury is still out on that one. )

I ended up with an XE2, bought used from a friend at a low price. 16MP is enough for my needs. Two years later, I used it almost daily, and as cameras go, I've never looked back.

So yes, consider the Fuji XE2. Made in Japan, solid, reliable. Easily found (and usually affordable) in secondhand photo shops. Matched with a 23/2.0 or an 18/2.0, you will then have the ideal minimalist kit for 90% (in my case, anyway) of your needs.

 

[gb hill]

Thank you & I will look into the XE2. Not familiar with the camera but will study it. Sounds like a good reliable camera.

 

[Darthfeeble]

I would second the X-E2 and 18/2 but with the proviso that the X-E3 isn't that much more and an even better camera

 

[JohnGellings]

If this many enthusiast photographers find that cameras introduced in the last 8–10 years do not offer any benefit to them, the camera industry should be very, very worried.

Oh, don't worry, social media hypes up new cameras and there are always people buying into the hype. RFF isn't exactly the general enthusiast market.