Who Has Actually Owned Another Current System?

[JohnDizzo15]

So who around here has bought and/or extensively used a non-canon system from the current generation of tech while maintaining a canon kit?

In the last three years, I have owned/own a 5D3x2, 70D, t5i, 6D, 7D, EOS M, Fuji x100s, xt1, xe2, Sony a7r, Casio ex-100, and a closet full of about 20k worth of lenses.

I am in fact, a Canon fan. But only because I actually enjoy using their products and the results they yield me. Which is precisely why I'm also a fan of other companies as some of them are also able to provide me with intriguing and very useful products with different yields.

The one thing I've always wanted to point out is that there are just way too many web junkies making opinions or statements based on things they've read from other people that have just read what other people on the interwebs have had to say about something. Parroting as it were. Or sometimes, parroting another parrot who may have very well been parroting someone else already.

We can sit here and measurebate, talk about other people's findings, and stroke ourselves all day over them. But who has.....walked the walk? Sound off!!

 

[Don Haines]

I love the Olympus "tough" series of p/s cameras.... With several underwater modes, you know it has superior weather sealing....

 

[RLPhoto]

Pertaining to 35mm, I haven't found the time to bother with another system. Canon got what I need and if I need more, I move to a larger format.

 

[JohnDizzo15]

I have often times thought about selling off some more stuff and going with the Pentax 645Z. But then I realize it would be a painful process and then I would also be buying into a system that doesn't play nice with any of my other stuff so I back off the ledge. lol.

The reason I bring up this topic specifically is because I feel as though I have been reading a ton of posts recently of people naysaying either Canon products or other company's products without actually having owned or had significant handling time with the stuff they're naysaying.

I just wanted to have a way to identify what/which some forum members have actually had significant use time with and also to identify who the members are that don't have any business vehemently spewing their opinions are.

 

[Eldar]

I have been with Canon since the mid 70ties. In the old film days I was playing with Bronica, Mamiya and Hasselblad MF, which I could borrow from an older (and richer) friend, but it was too expensive for me to buy. After going digital, I have been fairly happy with what Canon offered, so I have been rather loyal.

But during the last couple of years, I have been on the verge a couple of times. When I decided to buy the first Otus I thought of getting the D800E, but since I have all the Canon stuff I have and there is no adapter Canon to Nikon, it didn´t make sense. A friend of mine has the same Zeiss lineup I have and the D810. When we go out on a hike together and comparing our images afterwards, the D810 becomes a very tempting alternative.

More or less at the same time, when the Sony A7R came out I thought that could be an interesting alternative, with the availability of an adapter and the use of all my Canon/Zeiss glass. But having tried it for a weekend, I decided there was simply too much I didn´t like, so I skipped that.

After the 5DS was announced, I was so disappointed that I decided to go for a Pentax 645z package. I tried it and really liked it and negotiated a package price for body and three lenses. But then I had a reality check. I would still keep my Canon stuff for action, birds and wildlife, so it would mean carrying two systems around. One system is voluminous and heavy enough. So after a long think and more grumping over the 5DS specifications, I caved in and ordered the 5DSR instead (today actually), crossing my fingers that I have underestimated its performance.

So back to your original question; No I have not owned or used any other current system extensively. But I have been close.

 

[AcutancePhotography]

I am bi-cameral

I shoot Canon and Nikon systems. I am not sure I am going to spend my limited photo-bucks upgrading/maintaining both systems though. But for now, I go both ways.

And you know what? Both manufactures make good cameras.

 

[slclick]

I had a small Nikon system in the film era (1980-1992) and loved everything about it, no complaints but have only been Canon since buying a Digital Rebel at launch. I personally am all about glass and feel (know) that's where the real investment is as bodies are transient creatures.

 

[dak723]

I own both Canon and Olympus micro 4/3rds. I like both and they serve different purposes to some extent as the Olympus is a 2X crop. I have no "brand loyalty" - just want cameras that are reliable and do the job.

The constant talk on the internet regarding the Exmor sensors in the Sonys and Nikons did have me curious, however. People ripping Canon right and left made me think that these other cameras much be so much better for so many folks to comment on them. Or, as you say, they may just be reading all the hype and looking at the test results on various sites. So I purchased an A7 II - and after I returned that - have just purchased an A7. Granted, my testing is limited. I shoot primarily landscapes with my Canon 6D - so that is what I have been shooting to compare the two. I don't have the budget for new lenses, so I am using the kit lenses - so an obvious advantage there to the Canon 24-105 L.

I don't know how many times i have read that landscape shooters are the most disappointed with Canons limited DR. Everyone seems to want Canon to improve the DR to be able to compete with these newer Exmor offerings. Well, after testing for a few days, I beg to differ. Is the wider DR of the A7 noticeable? Maybe, just barely. Generally, what is dark and in shadow shooting with my Canon, is dark and in shadow with the A7. On close examination, I can make out maybe a slighter greater amount of shadow detail with the Sony. On the whole, the Canon (perhaps BECAUSE it has less DR) produces punchier images due to greater contrast. The Sony images are noticeably more washed out.

In all other respects, the Sonys (both A7 II and A7) were quite disappointing. The copy of the A7 II that I had underexposed most images by a full stop. The exposure on the A7 is better, but despite trying both Multi and Center exposure modes, I had trouble getting consistently correct exposure. The Canon did better. Perhaps most frustrating was the viewfinder. I like the EVF on my Olympus OM-D EM-1 so was expecting something similar. It is not as good. Images shot outdoors are slightly too dark in the viewfinder thus minimizing the advantage of WYSIWYG. Using the viewfinder to judge and adjust exposure wasn't as much as an advantage as it should have been.

While I know that the Sony kit lens (28-70mm) wouldn't be as good as the 24-105 L, it is very soft away from the center. I did some comparison shots against the SL-1 and the 18-55 STM kit lens and the Canon kit lens was the better lens, in my opinion.

I have ordered an adapter, so I will do a bit more testing using the Canon lenses on the Sony, but after my initial comparisons, I think the A7 will be returned. The difference between the 12 and 14 stops of DR is very minimal in my actual usage. Others folks, shooting under different conditions, may have different results. Comparing the two cameras with shots of identical scenes, the Canon 6D would be my recommendation for landscape shooters. I'll take the greater Canon contrast over the greater Sony DR any day of the week.

 

[JohnDizzo15]

I am bi-cameral

I shoot Canon and Nikon systems. I am not sure I am going to spend my limited photo-bucks upgrading/maintaining both systems though. But for now, I go both ways.

And you know what? Both manufactures make good cameras.

I feel the same way about having multiple systems which is a big reason I haven't moved to MF. The Sony system would have fit in nicely aside from the fact that it was a pain to operate and make images with (for me). The Fuji system has served me well as I have been able to use all of my manual focus EF mount lenses along with all of my m42 screw mount stuff with relative ease along with the few stellar native lenses.

Either way, every system has its own pros and cons which vary from user to user. I'm sure the Sony allows plenty of shooters out there to make beautiful work. But I had all kinds of trouble being happy with the files and the process of making them. Lots of people knock Fuji, but most of my favorite images in the last year have come out of it and it's allowed me to do a lot of things I couldn't do with my Canon cams. All the while, I still have a gigantic Canon kit since it is reliable when I need reliability and rock solid performance.

I find that many people ogle over a system having this or that while never really addressing how well things may work in THEIR hands. There are unique features that work really well in almost everything I have handled as of late. With those features though are a host of difficulties that you must accept and work with if you choose to continue on with those systems. Everyone has different needs, but most won't know if any of these other systems are right for them so long as they sit back in their computer chairs and simply talk about the theoretical use of them as opposed to getting it in their hands.

Why speak ill of something you have no idea about? I didn't want to be that guy, so I bought the A7r and 55/1.8 a while back. Now I can say without a doubt, it sucked (to me). I can also articulate all the reasons why I think it sucked.

Sure, I can figure out singular ways to exploit key features of any system to give me images here and there that stand out as good examples of those systems. But how do they perform for real world everyday use? That's what I want to know.

So c'mon guys. Who else is running another system or has done so recently? So much chatter in all the other threads about how things suck. Come on and tell us what you have had experience with to know that!!!

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

I've owned many. Several Canon DSLR's, Several Nikon DSLR's, Sony DSLR's, and point / shoot cameras from most makers.

Truthfully, I'm comfortable using any of them. They all have strong points and weak points. Images from all are so good that its the lens availability and other features and accessories as well as customer service that makes the difference.