Mirrorless Camera Maniac: The Wrong ( Or Right) Reason to Buy Mirrorless

I was out making pictures with three other photographers, yesterday–just a random assortment of friends–and all of us were using mirrorless cameras and that's the first time I've been out with a group and no one had a DSLR. We took a short hike to a waterfall and as we walked everyone remarked once that they loved how much lighter their mirrorless systems are, which is always a big selling point. But I think getting into mirrorless because it's lighter would be a mistake.

We're photographers, not adventure racers trying to reduce our equipment weight. We don't cut the handles off our tripod heads to make them weigh less like backpackers do with their tooth brushes. We make pictures, and we all want to make the best picture possible. William Henry Jackson made pictures with large format cameras and wet processes that required an entire animal to carry his equipment to the top of mountains, but his efforts helped shape the world's impressions of the American West at a time when one couldn't even ride a train to go see it. We make pictures because we love doing it, and we use the right equipment to get it done.

Fortunately, mirrorless cameras are lighter and often cheaper than their DSLR counterparts. But there's a whole lot of other features that make them worth buying–they're at the cutting edge of imaging technology and they're making it easier than ever to learn to make great photographs. I jsut got he new Lumix GH5, and it's much bigger and heavier than my other GX8, but it's new features make the greater mass absolutely worth it. Here are a few of the features I've heard other photogrpahers remark that they love about their mirrorless cameras and I'd love to hear more from you in the comments.

What You See Is What You Get: you see the actual exposure in the viewfinder before making the picture

Seeing the picture in black and white or other picture styles in the viewfinder

Excellent lens quality, often better than is available for DSLR's

Seeing a long exposure get brighter and brighter and stopping it when it's done

Incredible low light performance

Sharper pictures in low light using both lens stabilization and in body image stablization (IBIS)

Marvelous film reproduction settings for picture styles

Form-follows-function designs that are easier to use and hold

Classic styling and really cool looks

Built Wifi communication for wireless tethering and instant picture sharing

Built in GPS so you can record where your pictures were made

Fully articulating screens and viewfinders for shooting at any angle

Focus peaking for precise manual focus

60 second shutter speeds and wireless bulb mode

Best video cameras in the world

Incredible autofocus

In-camera focus stacking

Shooting toward the sun without damaging eyes

Terrific time lapse controls

In-camera panoramas

Truly silent operation

Highest frames per second shooting

Face tracking autofocus

Terrific flash controls

Did I mention that they are light weight? 😉

There are so many good reasons to explore mirrorless cameras, and this Maniac would love to hear what your favorites are, too. Please weigh in with a comment and go out and make some pictures!

Source: Mirrorless Camera Maniac: The Wrong ( Or Right) Reason to Buy Mirrorless