Best Of - Cameras

Which Olympus camera should I buy? – Demystifying the OM-D and Pen series

17/10/2014 By Heather 11 Comments

Too much choice–it is a pandemic of the modern age, and is no less prevalent in the digital camera industry than in any other. A little over a generation ago, your analog camera would have lasted five years before being ousted by a newer version. Today a digital camera is lucky to have a shelf life of six months before rumours of something bigger and better begin to whittle away at its value.

Which are the smallest mirrorless cameras in the world today?

30/09/2014 By Heather 5 Comments

The other day, I was sitting in the living room with my mum over the usual cup of tea. The conversation had jumped from my life in Italy to gardening to travel, when it finally took a turn towards the inevitable, photography. For years she has used my old Olympus waterproof compact for everything from landscape to plant and wildlife photography, and though it takes reasonable pictures in daylight, it suffers in more challenging conditions. Knowing that she wanted to take better pictures, I recently gave her my Nikon D3000 (an old camera by digital standards but still miles better than her low-end compact) but she’s only ever taken it out once.

At first I couldn’t understand why–after all the D3000 is hardly a large camera as DSLRs go–but compared to the tiny Olympus, I realise now that it must have felt like a literal millstone around her neck.

The Best Mirrorless Cameras for Street Photography

16/07/2014 By Heather 24 Comments

For genres like studio work or portraiture, there are still few photographers who feel confident about replacing their DSLR with a mirrorless camera. If they do have one, it usually functions as either a second body or a casual travel/street camera.

Street photography is a different story.

Many street photographers have switched over to mirrorless cameras because they provide a lighter, more discreet and more compact option reminiscent of film and rangefinder cameras. They aren’t so obsessed with high image quality and pixel peeping because street images are less about perfection and more about capturing the essence of the moment. (This is why you’ll see many street photographers using tools as simple as the iPhone for their work.) In fact, I’d say around 80% of the street photographers we’ve spoken to use a digital mirrorless camera of some sort for their work.

The 6 Best Mirrorless Cameras for Experienced Amateurs (2015)

11/06/2014 By Heather 30 Comments

Having already written a guide to the best mirrorless cameras for beginners and professionals, we felt that the next logical step was to write an article aimed at the experienced amateur who knows his or her way around the technical aspects of cameras and has mastered the art of taking great photographs but has never made an living off of it. We’re talking about the enthusiast who is willing to invest more than your average person in quality gear but does not require all the advanced functions found on a high-end professional camera. Does this sound like you? Then you’ve come to the right place.

The 8 Best Mirrorless Cameras for Professional Photographers (2015)

25/09/2013 By Mathieu 68 Comments

Note: this article was first written in 2013 but has been updated following the latest camera releases and the personal experience we’ve had with them.

One year ago, I remember returning from my summer vacation feeling somewhat angry at myself and antagonistic towards the profession I had gotten into. I owned two excellent DSLR cameras and a wide range of lenses, yet my will to actually get out and photograph for pleasure was like that of a hungover college student on exam day.

The excuse seemed lame at the time but now I have no shame in saying it – all that gear was simply too heavy to be enjoyed.

With this realisation, I gradually began my switch over to mirrorless, though the decision wasn’t completely conscious at the time. I started by buying a used Olympus OM-D E-M5 for stills after selling a couple of Nikkor lenses. Feeling cautious, I used it alongside my Nikon D700 for a few months but I soon realised that the E-M5 was good enough for use on its own.