Sony RX100 - Cayman Islands (Img Heavy)

wt21

Hall of Famer
After thrashing around with gear before my Caymans trip, I ended up just bringing the RX100 and a waterproof camera. Frankly, I was tired of thinking through gear, and wanted to go simple and relax.

RX100 shots, mostly in RAW and processed in LR. Other interesting photos (not shown) from the waterproof camera include snorkeling and sting ray city. I might post those in a different thread.

My findings are that the RX100 still amazes given it's size, but I did miss some IQ from my m43 (not noticeable in web sizes, though), and some shots from not bringing P100-300. That lens, especially, would have been handy for some up-close wildlife.

On the flip side, I didn't play the role of "camera guy," and I got to put my feet up.


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Spotted Eagle Ray in close at night, under the dock
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The view from The Wreck :)
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On the flip side, I didn't play the role of "camera guy," and I got to put my feet up.

I'm finding that to be a better and better thing every day.

Thanks for sharing the shots. Looks like I remember it, though it's been many years for me.

How did you find the LCD in the bright tropical sun?
 
Nice stuff Bill. I particularly like the second one and the night shot of the pier. I spent many years not being "the camera guy" and shooting with point and shoots that were pretty good for their time. What I wouldn't have given for an RX100 (or LX7 or S110 or similar) when I was playing that role, particularly with such great video capability built in. Now I don't have kids at an age I need to deal with in the sam way and I rather enjoy being the camera guy, because its not about documenting the family vacation (although I happily do that too) but about working a lot of photography into any travel we do. But for where you are in your life, with kids still around and lots of family stuff to tend to, I can't think of anything better than today's small cameras... I hope that if today's technology had been available when I was at a similar point, that I would have gone for an RX100 or similar and not just been satisfied with a cell phone camera. But I don't have any idea how that would have played out...

In any case, you clearly found the right combination for you to be able to both enjoy your vacation in the dad and husband role yet still get some great photos...

-Ray
 
How did you find the LCD in the bright tropical sun?

I found the LCD to be quite useable in the tropics. I don't remember shooting with direct glare, so maybe that'd be different?? I remember using the electronic level a lot (given the ocean views, it was a MUST), so I had to be able to see that clearly.

I was also very pleased with how quick the camera turned on and time-to-shot. I really didn't miss any shooting opportunities due to camera speed.

Oddly, though, when shooting RAW, the write speed is pretty slow. So, if I took a RAW shot and then turned off the camera (because I was on the move), it took a long time (6 seconds!) before the lens collapsed. This is using a Transcend class 10 card. My one wish for this camera is that it would collapse the lens immediately, even if the LCD said "writing" and it didn't power down until done. If the file was already written to the card, though, then the lens would collapse down nearly instantly.
 
What I wouldn't have given for an RX100 (or LX7 or S110 or similar) when I was playing that role, particularly with such great video capability built in. Now I don't have kids at an age I need to deal with in the sam way and I rather enjoy being the camera guy, because its not about documenting the family vacation (although I happily do that too) but about working a lot of photography into any travel we do. But for where you are in your life, with kids still around and lots of family stuff to tend to, I can't think of anything better than today's small cameras...

My wife usually rolls her eyes, when I'm like "wait! I need to change my lens" or "I've got to take the camera bag" etc. This time, I show up with a belt pouch and the little RX100, and my lovely better half is concerned about me not getting good memories for the year book, lol. I think, though, that she'll be happy with these.
 
A side note: I think I might be losing my youngest daughter from northeast living. Granted, she's still under 10, but for months now she's been bemoaning the cold, and all she talked about on the flight back is how she didn't want to come back to spring, and just wanted to stay in summer. Also, she swims like a fish. Well, my job is clear. I need to lead her to a life of being a dive instructor in the Caymans, so I can visit her each year at the end of winter :)
 
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