Every once in a while, I dabble around with what it might be like to switch over to mirrorless photography . . . it’s certainly not a reality yet, but it sure is a lot of fun to watch the technology develop!

No, DSLRs are not outdated . . . yet

One of these  recent “dabbling sprees” was initiated by a question from someone I met during the Family Conference in Texas last year.

Here is my question: Yesterday, all five of us returned from a 17 day trip to Egypt, Jordan and Israel.  It was a life-changing experience to see the great places of Biblical history and to walk in the very same places where Our Savior actually walked.  Unfortunately, my high-end point-and-shoot was woefully inadequate causing me to capture many poor quality pictures and actually miss many telephoto shots.  (I think the camera on my iPhone 6plus is actually better.)  On the way home from our trip, I resolved to get a much better camera like a Canon T6s with an 18-135 lens.  Then, I started hearing about mirrorless cameras and just today talked to several stores and individuals who all said it is the future of photography.

 

Our older son has a slightly used Sony a6300 with a 16-50mm lens that he wants to sell for $800 (new ones are about $1,150) in order to upgrade to a Sony a6500.  The s6300 is the first Sony 4F camera which shoots enhanced video…which you probably already know.

 

All that said, do you think mirrorless is the future of hand-held photography and would you recommend going that way? And, is the Sony a6300 a good camera?  Since I respect your say in this area, I look forward to your reply.

 

Blessings, Vince

Here’s was my reply (you can translate that: my woefully inadequate and inexperienced opinion). If you have brighter light to shed on this subject, please feel free to leave a comment!

Hi Vince, thanks for reaching out!

Mirrorless cameras are indeed the camera of the future! They continue to advance in technology and will eventually take over DSLRs. “Eventually” is the keyword here; in my opinion, DSLRs are still much better for professional photography. However, if you’re not purposely trying to go pro, then mirrorless is a great idea!

In fact, I’ve often thought about buying a high-end mirrorless camera for travel. DSLRs are big and heavy. Mirorrless provide basically the same quality in a compact body.

Mirrorless is great for when you’re traveling

Compact can be a drawback in some respects though, tending to be less durable, easier to loose/drop, more difficult to hold steady, have smaller buttons, rely more heavily on menus, are compatible with fewer lenses, etc. You also have only a screen to work with as your viewfinder.

Those are the drawbacks. Portability (and being on the cutting edge of technology) are the positives.

I have precious little experience with mirrorless cameras, but from my research, it looks like the a6300 is a good camera and would definitely be a tremendous upgrade from your point and shoot. This article indicates that it’s “the best right now” mirrorless camera in 2017. It may potentially seem a little outdated, as it doesn’t have touchscreen or GPS. The Fujifilm X-T20 seems to have very similar specs except with touchcreen and GPS. Here’s a list of The Best Midrange Mirrorless Cameras if you’re still wanting to look around.

Keep in mind that 50mm doesn’t have much reach. Personally, I feel $800 seems a bit high if that’s all the reach you’re getting, but if you’re buying it from your son so he can get an upgrade . . . that’s a different story.

Hope that helps! If you’d like more perspectives than just mine, you can post your questions on the Lenspiration forums. @buddingphotographer I’m sure would have a heap more to say about it than I would! He’s more into the technical side of things than I am.