Today’s Post by Joe Farace
“A picture is a picture, it doesn’t matter what camera you use!” – Chris Geiger”
Flashback: Since I pay for all of my own gear out my own pocket, you’ll probably notice that some of the cameras I use are “old” and occasionally I’ve received e-mail asking “why are you using that old thing?” I’m not an equipment freak for good reason: I can’t afford to be.
Flashback 2: Mary encouraged, well insisted really, that I buy it (Leica 45mm lens) right then and there. I’ve heard that not all wives are this supportive of their husband’s camera purchases but Mary has always been like that.
I had just finished registering some of my Panasonic Micro Four-thirds cameras and lenses as part of the process to join the (free) Red level of Lumix PRO Services. (If you shoot Lumix cameras, you should too.) But as it turns out, many of the cameras and one of my lenses were not eligible for their program, which includes an extended warranty, because (maybe) they weren’t professional enough or were too old. Funny though, because they work just fine for me.
It was against the background of the second flashback quote above that Mary suggested that I needed to update my camera gear. Being an analytical soft of person, she asked me to prepare a spreadsheet listing all of my (digital) cameras, the year they were introduced, what the newest replacement for that model was, when that camera was introduced and what was it’s current price. She was surprised by some of the dates most of my cameras were introduced; I was not. I won’t bore you with the details, but here are some of the highlights:
- My oldest Canon (EOS 5D Mark I) was launched in 2005
- My newest Canon (Canon EOS M6 Mark II) was launched in 2019
- My oldest Panasonic camera (Lumix GX1*) was launched in 2011
- My newest Panasonic camera (Lumix G9) was launched in 2017. I later sold this camera because its ergonomics drove me crazy. I am hoping —if all the planets align—to get a G9 Mark II, which has the chassis of the full-frame Lumix S5, sometime this year.
- My oldest Olympus camera (Pen E-P3) was launched in 2011
- My newest Olympus camera (Pen F) was launched in 2016
This spreadsheet produced two fireside chats—it’s snowing as I write this—between Mary and I as we tried to reconcile my actual need for a new camera and what I would use it for. The first issue we discussed was an unfinished series of Sigma L-mount lens reviews that were upended when I had to return the Lumix S1R I that was on loan from Panasonic. As I’ve mentioned here endless times, when I finish a review I have to return the camera/lens to the manufacturer. This may not be true of all reviewers that post on-line and, in this case, I wasn’t finished writing my L-mount lens reviews. But the company politely requested the camera to be returned and so back it went.
Mary, not unexpectedly had some strong opinions on this and other subjects. Her first camera suggestion was the $5195 Leica SL2-S, which would help take care of my L-mount review commitments while adding a Leica to my digital camera lineup. Her next suggestion was the no longer available FujiFilm GFX 50R a (more or less) medium format camera because it would get me into doing something completely different, which she thinks is a good idea. When I told her the camera was no longer available she thought a FujiFilm GFX 50S II might do the trick, A while ago, on of my friends sold his DSLRs and switched to Fuji GFX series cameras and she is loving what he’s been doing with this format. And my pal Matt Staver recently acquired a new Hasselblad X2D medium format digital camera andjust told me, “I feel I’m more creative with the X2D than I would ever be with my Canons. Not sure why.” I know why. It’s a version of The Contax Effect,
What did we decide?…to be continued.
*I own two Panasonic Lumix GX1 camera bodies: I purchased the black body model on eBay from a camera store in Japan, I typically use it with a LVF1 External Live Viewfinder that I bought from a friend. My second GX1 in what Panasonic calls a “silver” body but is really an attractive grey color. I bought this camera used but in Like New condition from Robert’s Camera and had it converted to infrared capture by Life Pixel using their Hyper Color conversion. I love both of these cameras and while Panasonic has tried, I don’t think that it’s ever duplicated the look and beautiful feel of these wonderful cameras.