To buy M or not to buy M?

[jal2099]

I have one and the 22mm lens.  I also have the EF adapter and a Leica M mount adapter (from RainbowImaging -- i think is the username on Amazon and eBay).  It's a fun camera.  I am not disappointed.  The focus issues are managable and only seldom do I curse at it.   The image quality is very nice.  My other camera is a hand-me-down 1D Mark II, which I haven't touched since.  I am rarely without this camera.

So...here's another vote for this camera.

[paul13walnut5]

Thanks Jal2099.

I'll see what santa brings me, and if not that, what I can sell..

Cheers

[Daniel Flather]

I think the next version of M will have more of those missing features that some are whining about.   

Yes, it'll also have a higher price too, to keep the whiners' fodder supplied.

[FunPhotons]

Like all other companies Canon will place the M cameras in their lineup in such a way that they won't cannibalize anything else. This means that - even if they could make it so - the M series will never be as good as a DSLR except possibly at the low end DSLR, high end M. Canon probably decided to do the line because of competitor pressure, and it provides a stepping off point into DSLR's.

So for an existing DSLR owner why would we get a M, other than for the cool factor? As a smaller body complement to our existing system. We can use our existing lenses, but if we do so then it kind of defeats the purpose of having a smaller complement to the system. Anything above the 40mm pancake will be a monster on that body, and you have to use an adaptor.

So ... using it for it's best purpose, as a small side camera for those times you can't bring a DSLR, look at this



Here we have a DSLR with a pancake next to the M. Sure the M is smaller and lighter, but is it that smaller? I see maybe an extra inch vertically and horizontally at maximum. Indeed, when I put the shorty-40 on my 5DmkII I have a really tiny, lightweight camera. I barely notice it, and I have the full power of the existing DSLR (speed, focus, IQ, features, etc). I don't have a hugely quiet body, but if I had a 5DMKIII then I could use quiet shutter mode.

So ... EOS-M isn't for me. The small reduction in size isn't large enough to warrant the price tag and extra equipment. For the cost of an EOS-M you could get a duo of pancakes, the 40mm and Voightlander 20mm.

I got the Fuji x100 as a side camera for those times when a DSLR wouldn't work. There are a few occasions where it's great, so small and unobtrusive (and quiet) that the DSLR would have been too much. Most of the time though it sits unused.

[tomscott]

If your talking BMW then always M

Heres mine

BMW Z4M Coupe CSL wheels by tom_scott88, on Flickr

Sorry off-topic

[elflord]

the M that is...   the fuji is awesome...

You don't need a full set of lenses. The lenses you choose for a mirrorless (if you already have a DSLR)  are going to be small normal length lenses that don't have a direct equivalent in the EOS lineup. You can generally get by with 1 or 2 native  lenses (with the fuji I'd just get the 35)

Fuji is awesome but you need another set of lens.  I'd wait for the next M. 

Perhaps the only point of the mirrorless from Canon is to keep the party faithful from giving up and buying one of the strong products from other manufacturers. 

[rpt]

If your talking BMW then always M

Heres mine

BMW Z4M Coupe CSL wheels by tom_scott88, on Flickr

Sorry off-topic

For $799 I'd have picked it up in a second!
 

[IronChef]

Like all other companies Canon will place the M cameras in their lineup in such a way that they won't cannibalize anything else. This means that - even if they could make it so - the M series will never be as good as a DSLR except possibly at the low end DSLR, high end M. Canon probably decided to do the line because of competitor pressure, and it provides a stepping off point into DSLR's.

So for an existing DSLR owner why would we get a M, other than for the cool factor? As a smaller body complement to our existing system. We can use our existing lenses, but if we do so then it kind of defeats the purpose of having a smaller complement to the system. Anything above the 40mm pancake will be a monster on that body, and you have to use an adaptor.

So ... using it for it's best purpose, as a small side camera for those times you can't bring a DSLR, look at this



Here we have a DSLR with a pancake next to the M. Sure the M is smaller and lighter, but is it that smaller? I see maybe an extra inch vertically and horizontally at maximum. Indeed, when I put the shorty-40 on my 5DmkII I have a really tiny, lightweight camera. I barely notice it, and I have the full power of the existing DSLR (speed, focus, IQ, features, etc). I don't have a hugely quiet body, but if I had a 5DMKIII then I could use quiet shutter mode.

So ... EOS-M isn't for me. The small reduction in size isn't large enough to warrant the price tag and extra equipment. For the cost of an EOS-M you could get a duo of pancakes, the 40mm and Voightlander 20mm.

I got the Fuji x100 as a side camera for those times when a DSLR wouldn't work. There are a few occasions where it's great, so small and unobtrusive (and quiet) that the DSLR would have been too much. Most of the time though it sits unused.

You show a comparison with the 650D, which  has a smaller consumer body already, and than talk about a 5d, but I find the difference between the M and a 5d  pretty big actually.

http://j.mp/Xsbc3j


And the 64mm equivalent you get from a 650D with a 40mm is a bit to much for a standard prime.

[FunPhotons]

You show a comparison with the 650D, which  has a smaller consumer body already, and than talk about a 5d

Yes I know, I wrote the post

Take it for what it's worth, I don't find the size difference between my Fuji and my 5D w/ pancake to be significant.

[paul13walnut5]

If your talking BMW then always M

Heres mine

BMW Z4M Coupe CSL wheels by tom_scott88, on Flickr

Sorry off-topic

Ooooooh, you've got a BMW.  Good for you.

[Bob Howland]

Perhaps the only point of the mirrorless from Canon is to keep the party faithful from giving up and buying one of the strong products from other manufacturers.

Or to complete the merger of still photography and video. Granted the current offerings are absolutely pathetic but consider the possibility that the 7D2 (or some "M1" professional model) will be M-mount and capable of taking 24FPS. And, oh yes, that extra pin in the M lensmount is for power zoom and introduced concurrently with the 7D2/M1 are a series of video-centric zoom lenses with that capability.

[paul13walnut5]

And, oh yes, that extra pin in the M lensmount is for power zoom and introduced concurrently with the 7D2/M1 are a series of video-centric zoom lenses with that capability.

Let's hope so, as a servo zoom EF lens would hopefully also work on the c series cameras.

There was the old EF 35-80 PZ (sold with the EOS 700 I think) which used an on lens servo control, this type of the design would enable the any new PZ lenses on existing video capable DSLR's, which is a big market.  I'm not sure that any of the EF mount pins had any bearing other than power, which would be going to the lens anyway for aperture and focus.

[RGF]

I was at CPS the other day and talking about the M. Most pro photographers have bounced off the M for two main reasons. Slow & erratic AF plus the lack of a viewfinder, either EVF or optical. I guess I fit into this category too. Version-2 may be worth the wait. Personally I'd love one if the AF was up to scratch.

-PW

Until the AF is solved the rest is a waste of time.   Yes also need a viewfinder.

[bdunbar79]

I'm thinking I'm going with the Olympus OM-D. 

[CircuitR]

I can't tell you what to buy, but I can suggest to write a pros and cons list. I did this and compared it to the other cameras I was considering (X100,Nex,OMD and lumix) and it really showed that the M isn't a too bad of a camera, for its price.
I've just ordered mine and it should arrive in a week. I had to get it parallel imported here in NZ as they only offer 2 kits (single lens and twin lens) and I didn't want the zoom as my 17-40 will be my standard zoom on the M.

I reckon this will make a handy second camera and I think it's pretty cool.

Good luck.
Blair