Tillman Bennett
Rookie
- Name
- Tillman Bennett
So I've been with Sony for a while, I had a SLT-A37 for a few years and it did just about everything I wanted, quickly. Around the beginning of the year after the birth of my 4th child I found I was packing around a smaller point and shoot more often than the bigger Sony, but I wasn't happy with the IQ. So I sell the A37 and buy a Nex-6, but I didn't really feel like the viewfinder did a lot for me because I was using the screen 95% of the time anyway shooting waistlevel and I didn't want to pay the premium for it, so it goes back and I got a Nex 5t. I liked the size of the 5t and found the touchscreen nice for picking focus points and the wifi stuff is great, love that. After configuring the Fn menu I found it workable, but not as easily adjustable as I'd like.
I'm a primes kinda guy, so I get the Sigma 30mm f2.8 because it's what I could afford (4 kids, not a lot of disposable income) instead of the Sony 35mm f1.8. This lens is fantastic, buuuuuuut it makes startup on the Nex 5t take about 6-7 seconds, which is fine for any other situation aside from quickly grabbing a spontaneous shot. Now, I know what you're thinking, "That's not that long, you're being too picky" which is what I had convinced myself of because I really wanted to like this setup, but after a while I am getting frustrated at the shots I wanted to take but couldn't because I was in camera startup-limbo and noticing that the number of candid spontaneous shots of the kids went way down. I don't really like to pose my kids because they do the typical kid smile, eyes squinting and mouth stretched from cheek to cheek showing as many teeth as possible, like a cartoon. So after attempting to train my kids to smile the way Dad wants them to, I threw in the towel and decided the problem was on my end.
I sold the Nex because I can't afford a $400 prime that starts up quickly, and I can't afford an A6000 which starts up quickly with the Sigma lens. So now I'm cameraless and it feels funny, like being naked in the supermarket.
I was determined that I'd get a used Fuji XA-1 and the Fuji 27mm f2.8, partly because I like that one can put the screen into sunny weather mode with a long key press rather than diving into menus, and the ease of adjusting a number of things in one screen appeals to me. I realize the Fuji is bigger than the Nex 5t, but that I can live with. I am not familiar enough with Fuji to feel extremely confident in this decision, and none of the local shops here seem to carry Fuji cameras. I'm thinking I might be just as well off to get another A37 and maybe a wifi card for transfering the pictures since I loved the NFC wifi abilities of the Nex 5t. I realize though that this would involve leaving the camera at home more, and that was what I was trying to avoid in the first place. To complicate matters, I recently got the Samyang 12mm f2 and I love it, I figured if I go with Fuji I can sell mine and get the X-mount version.
What I'm wondering specifically is how the AF system is. I found the Nex perfectly usable, I had an Olympus EPL2 and a Panasonic GF1 and they both did the job fine as well. I don't do tracking or continuous focus typically so I'm not concerned with that. I generally keep things simple and keep the drive mode on single shot and focus/recompose as needed.
Also, I've no experience whatsoever with Fuji, just heard good things. Any personal experiences/comparisons would be welcome.
Thanks,
Tillman
I'm a primes kinda guy, so I get the Sigma 30mm f2.8 because it's what I could afford (4 kids, not a lot of disposable income) instead of the Sony 35mm f1.8. This lens is fantastic, buuuuuuut it makes startup on the Nex 5t take about 6-7 seconds, which is fine for any other situation aside from quickly grabbing a spontaneous shot. Now, I know what you're thinking, "That's not that long, you're being too picky" which is what I had convinced myself of because I really wanted to like this setup, but after a while I am getting frustrated at the shots I wanted to take but couldn't because I was in camera startup-limbo and noticing that the number of candid spontaneous shots of the kids went way down. I don't really like to pose my kids because they do the typical kid smile, eyes squinting and mouth stretched from cheek to cheek showing as many teeth as possible, like a cartoon. So after attempting to train my kids to smile the way Dad wants them to, I threw in the towel and decided the problem was on my end.
I sold the Nex because I can't afford a $400 prime that starts up quickly, and I can't afford an A6000 which starts up quickly with the Sigma lens. So now I'm cameraless and it feels funny, like being naked in the supermarket.
I was determined that I'd get a used Fuji XA-1 and the Fuji 27mm f2.8, partly because I like that one can put the screen into sunny weather mode with a long key press rather than diving into menus, and the ease of adjusting a number of things in one screen appeals to me. I realize the Fuji is bigger than the Nex 5t, but that I can live with. I am not familiar enough with Fuji to feel extremely confident in this decision, and none of the local shops here seem to carry Fuji cameras. I'm thinking I might be just as well off to get another A37 and maybe a wifi card for transfering the pictures since I loved the NFC wifi abilities of the Nex 5t. I realize though that this would involve leaving the camera at home more, and that was what I was trying to avoid in the first place. To complicate matters, I recently got the Samyang 12mm f2 and I love it, I figured if I go with Fuji I can sell mine and get the X-mount version.
What I'm wondering specifically is how the AF system is. I found the Nex perfectly usable, I had an Olympus EPL2 and a Panasonic GF1 and they both did the job fine as well. I don't do tracking or continuous focus typically so I'm not concerned with that. I generally keep things simple and keep the drive mode on single shot and focus/recompose as needed.
Also, I've no experience whatsoever with Fuji, just heard good things. Any personal experiences/comparisons would be welcome.
Thanks,
Tillman