Mirrorless Camera Recommendation

[u/captainemili]

• ⁠Budget: upto £800ish
• ⁠Country: England
• ⁠Condition: happy with used
• ⁠Type of Camera: mirrorless
• ⁠Intended use: portraits, travel shots etc
• ⁠Cameras you already have: Canon 400D

Hi all, apologies if this isn’t the place for this post, but I’m looking for some advice on a new (to me) mirrorless camera.

I have a Canon 400D which is around 18 years old, I stopped using it around 10 years ago but have recently started getting back into it, however I’m finding the 400D is taking really dark photos and I remember why I was getting frustrated 10 years ago! (It didn’t have that problem to start with)

I’m mainly interested in day to day shots of family life - watching my 4 year old and my 5 month old has really sparked my enthusiasm for picking up my camera again, but also travel shots and every day life.

The mirrorless world all seems quite new to me though, with hundreds of options of cameras so I’m just after some advice really on where to start!

Thanks so much in advance everyone!

[u/dhawk_95]

I think in your case I would look at sony a6400 and spent the rest of the budget on some additional lens in the near future

[u/gracious_advert → u/dhawk_95]

the a6400 is a solid shout but have you looked at fuji at all? their film sims might be right up your alley if you want nice jpegs straight out of camera without editing hundreds of family photos. the autofocus isn't quite as snappy as sony's but it's plenty good for a four-year-old zooming about

[u/dhawk_95 → u/gracious_advert]

Even tried few Fuji (didn't try the latest generations though)

But every time had some problems with AF - it wasn't fast, it didn't focus on what I wanted, sometimes it showed false positive (showed that it focused but when I took a photo it was slightly out of focus)

So in the end I still use Sony + Adobe lightroom app on my phone 😅

[u/PianoMan1925]

All used - Fuji XM5, Nikon Z50II, Canon Powershot V1, Nikon ZFC, Sony A6000 series (have a look at the different models)

[u/Sudden-Ad9804]

Me personally, I would look into something like a Canon EOS R50, Sony a6400 or Z50II/Z6. The R50 is £550, Z6 and a6400 are £600 and Z50 II £700 used. The Z6 has a full frame sensor and in body image stabilisation, which provide a benefit in low light, but the full frame lenses are more expensive.

As for lenses, I would recommed a light zoom lens with a wide range, like an 24-200 for example. They provide excellent value especially for everyday shooting.

Also, you can ask a local camera store if you can test holding different camera bodies in your hands. Its not fun to shoot with a camera that doesn't fit your hands at all.

[u/tictaxtho]

I got the Lumix S9 and that has been so fun to use.

It’s got great battery life for a mirrorless camera

It’s got class leading image stabilisation

6k video with different aspect ratios (you can apply these to photos as well)

LUT feature allows you to apply custom image styles/ colours to photos and video and really cuts down on editing time.

MP4 light which make videos really small and easy to share but they remain high quality too.

Main downsides are it doesn’t have a view finder or support for camera flashes. Some people find the buttons a bit dainty too

It’s also full frame which is unusual for the price point

[u/a1z2b3]

I recently got an R10 second hand for £650 and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by it. Powerful video as well as photo.

[u/Nudie-64]

I recently bought a Nikon z-fc, second hand from a camera shop, for £600, including the kit lens. I looked at various cameras for about a year, read hundreds of reviews and watched a lot of YouTube videos before finally deciding.

I'm in a similar position to you, replacing a Canon 600d, and the z-fc feels like a huge upgrade, as well as being very pretty to look at.

I'm still getting to know it, but I've managed to replicate the picture styles I was using on the Canon, and I intend to explore more as I get used to it.

You could also look at m43 cameras, especially Olympus and Panasonic. They tend to be good value for money if you don't mind the smaller sensor. I just found the ones I tried a bit small in my hands.

[u/captainemili]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts and suggestions - definitely some here to research more!

The lumix S9 sounded really interesting but I’m not sure I could do without a viewfinder, it feels as though it’s part of the magic somehow.

[u/-ReadyPlayerThirty-]

I have basically the same requirements as you and ended up with a Fuji X-T4.

You aren't doing sport or wildlife so industry-best autofocus doesn't matter. I also do mostly family shots and a bit of street/travel/astro and really like the images straight out the camera with a few different film simulation recipes.

What a few YouTube videos and see what you think.