Buy a camera for my dad ain’t as easy as it sounds
When my mom asked me to help choose a camera (and chip in some funds as well) for my dad to bring for his upcoming holiday, I started looking around for options.
While cameras like the Canon S100 and Fujiflm X10 makes total sense, my dad dropped the bomb on me (and my wallet) saying that he would like an EVIL camera and a long lens instead of compact cameras.
He doesn’t even know what does EVIL stands for.
Therefore my research for suitable cameras extended into Electronic Viewfinder Interchangeable Lenses cameras.
But before I list them out, there’s a need to understand the criteria here:
- My dad is a complete photography noob and only got interested in EVIL cameras because of the bombardment of advertisements on TV
- He wants a lens that can shoot everything. (Like everyone else in the universe)
- DSLRs are out of the picture because they are bulky and old people hate bulky items.
- Image quality is not a top consideration because the camera is what it is meant to be – a good snapshot camera. If I wanted to find a camera with good image quality I’d make my dad bring a Mamiya 645 AFD and Leaf Aptus digital back for his holiday.
- Yours truly can use it once in a while for the occasional snapshots when H&M (Hasselblad & Mamiya) is not in use.
And here’s what I got so far.
The Nikon 1 V1
Interestingly, the first camera that my dad was interested in was the Nikon 1 series, no reasons given.
My first reaction? A firm NO because the 2.7x sensor was a total letdown.
That said, I am taking back my words and slapping myself in the face. As soon as I picked up the camera I knew I had a winner (or at least a finalist) in my hands. Image quality aside, the camera built felt just about right and I loved the 1.4m-dot LCD electronic viewfinder.
Besides, two of my most respected photographers and bloggers Steve Huff and Kirk Tuck gave a pretty decent review of the camera.
Yes the sensor may be small compared to its competitors but again, image quality is not one of my priorities. The few cons I can think of so far is the poor lens choices and the fact that the small sensor will not be able to give as much bokeh as I would have liked. Oh and I am more of a Canon guy.
Likelihood-to-buy-for-my-dad meter: 9/10
The Sony Nex C3
I had the opportunity to use the Nex C3 for about 2 weeks last year and the results were fantastic.
The only problem that I had is, being a complete noob, my dad would struggle to manage/operate the user menu. For me, the biggest lure is the Zeiss 24mm f/1.8 lens that would make it a 36mm f/1.8 on the C3. According to Steve Huff, the lens is not the sharpest ever made but it has character. Being a Zeiss user for the last year or so, I knew exactly what he means by ‘character’ but I shall not discuss further.
Likelihood-to-buy-for-my-dad meter: 8.5/10
Likelihood-to-buy-for-my-dad-plus-the-Zeiss-lens meter: 0/10
The Zeiss lens itself cost a whopping 1000 USD. Way out of my budget for now.
The Olympus EP-3
Being one of the pioneers of EVIL cameras, I had great interest in the EP series. I had the opportunity to test out the EP-1 and EP-2 when they were launch a few years back and they were nothing short of being a fun camera to play with.
Did I mention the ultra-fast auto-focusing of the EP-3 is a pure joy? The combination of the fast auto-focusing, its wide selection of lenses and the uber awesome Black & White filer makes the camera a top contender… Until I saw the high ISO images that came out of the camera.
Don’t get me wrong. The high ISO images are definitely usable by my dad’s standards but spending money on a three-year old sensor? Hmmm.
Likelihood-to-buy-for-my-dad meter: 8/10
The Panasonic GF series
Sorry…
Conclusion
Well the conclusion is that I do not have a conclusion as of yet. I find it incredibly hard to choose from three amazing systems as each of them has its own pros and cons. For now, the Nikon V1 has my preferance but ultimately, I will need to consider my dad’s needs and not mine.
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I go through discussions like that fairly regularly. At the end of the day, people like your dad just want to bypass the technical mumbo-jumbo (shutter speed, aperture, ISO, exposure, etc) and get round to shooting.
If i were any more cynical, I’d recommend getting him an iPhone and be done with it. What’s there not to like? 8 megapixels, ability to share easily, easy to post process. Even better, you don’t need to help him set up a blog since you can just get him to share via Facebook, Path or even on Posterous. He can even store his images in his phone and show his pics to friends and family any time, any where. In comparison, with even something as simple as a point-and-shoot, he would have to download the pictures to his computer, and figure out how to get it to his audience, whoever they may be. In fact, he might even have to crop or post-process, and all this just adds Time To Gratification (c).
I’ve stopped buying into Steve Huff’s BS in the same way that I disregard anything that comes out of Ken Rockwell’s mouth. Such ‘reviewers’ have only one objective – make money on the side when they can inspire people enough to get them to buy stuff off B&H and/or Adorama through their affiliate link. On the other hand, I would take Luminous Landscape reviews a little more seriously, though it would depend on who the reviewer is. These days, I don’t even bother – I just look at sample images and decide if they are acceptable to me. Composition etc don’t matter since that’s creative. I look at sample images and see if it delivers the ‘character’, sharpness, dynamic range and color tones that I need.
Coming back to your dilemma, assuming that your dad is willing to go through the hassle of taking the SD card out, sticking it into his notebook or card reader, copying them to his computer, and then doing some post-processing or cropping (by the way, Snapseed for OS X is pretty good), then posting or mailing, and/or syncing it to his phone, then I would assume that the C3 would be a pretty decent choice.
In fact, I’d push the budget envelope a bit more and get him to look at the NEX-5N instead. Granted it is a little more expensive (US$100 more than the Nikon J1), but set to Auto mode and Auto ISO, it’s pretty decent, and the 18-55 lens isn’t bad. He’s not getting Leica sharpness, but he’s not getting grainy images with weird colors at ISO3200 either (I’m talking about the J1 here). AF performance is decent, and the multi-shot handheld twilight mode, HDR mode kick in automatically, as does macro mode.
If he’s up for it, he can take lessons and learn to shoot in P,A,S,M mode as well, which opens up new possibilities. And if he wants to get new lenses, he can always try out the 18-200 for complete convenience or try the Zeiss prime. Even the 30mm macro isn’t a bad little unit. The 5N kits usually come with the slightly-soft-in-the-corners 16mm f2.8, which easily becomes a fisheye or wide-angle lens with reasonably priced (SGD130 to 199) attachments that stick to the front of the lens. For even more flexibility, he can even go hardcore and get the optional EVF later, and use old Leica lenses with a Fotodiox adapter for a different look. Or an SLR Magic toy camera type lens for that old-school lomo camera look. So many possibilities, just from getting the right body.
I have a simple philosophy – if you’re going to be buying something, don’t settle for something that’s ‘within’ budget cos it usually ends up being a POS that no one’s going to want to use after that. Get something that performs well, because it’s going to make photography more fun (with more keepers) and if you want to sell it, you’ll get better resale value than a POS that no one wants to pay what you paid for it in the first place.
Interestingly, my dad wants to shoot and print them out. He is THAT old school.
I don’t blame him. He’s 76 after all.
Also, that kind of matches one of my personal photography goals this year – make more prints. It’s a craft that is slowly disappearing from the world of photography.
Where post-processing is concerned, I’m afraid yours truly has the honors -_-||
Trust me when I say NEX3C.
Here’s the interesting bit about the menus…
A seasoned (not pro) photographer will find the NEX’s UI a little tricky.
Noobs however, would love it.
You must remember:
1. It’s built for noobs
2. Noobs don’t care much for dedicated buttons and controls
As for size, the Nikon 1 isn’t much smaller than the NEX considering it’s sensor size.
Lens is an issue however. When the zoom lenses start coming out, it should be much smaller than the Nex’s.
Just a thought.
Thanks for the suggestions Aaron.