A camera Every Photographer Should Have - Compact Super Zoom.

[jcrutcher]

I have a V-Lux 20, its been good to have and use when needed. I ride bicycles and it fits in my jersey pocket. They are nice to use for snapshots during the day. If I want a photograph I'll carry a M. I vote that if you have one you'll use it, if you don't you've not needed it and shouldn't get one.

 

[NickTrop]

http://www.dpreview.com/news/2011/12/08/LeicaVLUX3announcement

Wow... Leica's even getting in to the act. Hmmm. Interesting. Wonder if this is a rebadged Panny. Probably - they were among the first on the superzoom tip.

Shadowfox - best comment, "good to have when needed". At one time I had a bunch of cameras - rangefinders mostly, that were virtual clones of one another... even the output was largely indistinguishable one to the other. All similarly spec'd cameras...

Now, I've largely relegated rangefinders to "full frame in your pocket" (see ode to the Olympus XA.) Digital can't do that - yet, but possibly never.

Now, my "camera line-up" is one where each camera gives me something useful the others can't...

Ultrawide
Vivitar SLR. Pretty much has a fixed 19mm lens for when I'm in an ultrawide mood. Digital can do this too, but the lenses cost too much money. I'm not in a "super wide mood" that often.

General purpose/quality matters/street shooter
Nikon DSLR with 35/1.8 permanently attached. Good fast lens, my "general purpose" camera that replaces the late, great Yashica GSNs. Better at high speed low light than previous film cameras. Nice and compact with quiet shutter.

Full frame in your pocket.
Olympus XA - full frame in your pocket (nuff said). Digital can't give me this.

Just have cuz I like to shoot'em sometimes
Fujica Compact Deluxe (just a fun to shoot rangefinder. My "fondle" camera...)
Yashica T3 Point-n-shoot. Point-n-shoot fun.

Above limited to two

Infrared
Nikon Coolpix converted for infrared... For the spring and summer when I want to shoot infrared, which I enjoy...

General purpose, take anywhere camera with high versitility (and some tradeoffs)
Fuji F80 EXR. No need to buy a honkin' zoom for DSLR. Can shoot discretely from far away, pocketable. Decent IQ. Kids on the beach playing in the water? I'll stand on shore and zoom in. Good too as a bit of a beater, when I don't want to take better gear in hazardous conditions. Want to take "street photography" pics but not into pissing people off? Zoom in. High on the versatility index. Decent macro capabilities (but better are out there... but at least it has it.) Good enough 720p video capabilities. Truly a photographic "Swiss army knife" - genuinely pocketable, and relatively cheap. This model has an innovative sensor and I like Fuji's approach, which is why I bought this one. Others, I'm sure, do basically the same thing. Has manual controls too, used sometimes for when I want to constrain the shutter speed from going too low creating too much motion blur in automatic modes when shooting people in low light - boost it up later in Photoshop.

Indispensable.

Must have.

 

[jsrockit]

Put aside your prejudices and get one. They're required photo gear..

Prejudice is all we have in photography... when choosing gear.

 

[ferider]

Wifey loves her FZ30, she got it for Christmas 2 years ago.

If I ever figure out how to put Tmax 100 in it, I might use it, too.

 

[Jamie Pillers]

Certainly there must be a T-Max 'app' you can download! 🙂

 

[NickTrop]

Jamie - there certainly are "T-Max" apps you can download, I've got one. The F80 has this built-in to the firmware: Provia, Velvia, Astia. Has a sepia and black and white "app" too - just not T-Max.

 

[menos]

Honestly and without prejudices:

When I shot mainly a D300 and D3 with bulky zooms and a huuuuge bag, to lug that stuff, I itched for the perfect, fully manual, super small compact camera, to exchange for one or several lenses.

I tried many, hated most and ended up getting a Ricoh GRDII back then. I loved that camera (still have it in almost like new condition).
I then bought the GRDIII, to upgrade on the issues, the GRDII has (the III has a slightly faster lens, even better ergonomics and a slightly better sensor).

Now enter the rangefinder system camera:

I started shooting Leica M and am now a fully DSLR to rangefinder convert, shooting 99% of what I do with a M.

I never ever feel any need for any pocket camera anymore, ever!
I always have at least one M body with me - mostly two with two or three lenses, sometimes only one with a really tiny 35mm lens.

With a camera like this always with you, you really are not willing, to make the compromises of a small sensor PS camera, giving up all that a Leica M is for what - a little bit more shirt pocket ability?

Well, I don't wear any shirts with pockets and mostly no shirts to begin with.
My two excellent GRD cameras rot in storage (and these are probably the finest shirt pocketable cameras, there are).

I never felt like a zuperzoom, since I sold my very first DSLR lens back then - a Nikon 18-200 (yes, at some point, I thought, I need such a lens - Thank you Ken Rockwell !!!).