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Snap Happy
7 years ago by
I’ve been thinking a lot about cameras lately.
Personally, I’ve always used my trusty iPhone to snap pictures – both at home and while traveling. Occasionally, I’ll pull out my Polaroid to capture my surroundings, but other than that, I’m a little bit in the dark when it comes to camera knowledge. So, with an upcoming trip next month, I’m debating whether or not to take the plunge and invest in a quality camera, or just stick my phone into my back pocket and call it a day.
With that in mind, I’ve decided to enlist your expertise: what are your recommendations when it comes to travel photography??
By Alex, intern at the Studio
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Hi Alex!
I invested for my first travel to NY in a DSLR camera. Totally worth it, but I really love taking pictures!
If you are interested in photography it’s a very good investment
If not that much, a digital camera might as well do the trick
Try a mirrorless digital camera, it has all the quality of a digital DSLR- but the compactness of a point and shoot. They can be less expensive too! They take beautiful hi-res photos that can be wirelessly sent to your phone! I just got a Fuji X-A1 and love it, but there are many options on the market. Sony has some great ones too. I appreciate the color accuracy with Fuji, and my camera has a few ‘film’ color options. B&H Photo in NYC is a great place to buy from, including new and used equipment. It’s a little larger than a phone, but extremely lightweight for a camera- you will not be disappointed in the photo quality, especially since you can change the lenses if you choose. Good luck! :)
I would definitely buy a small digital canera. I am an artist and work in photography. I have tested the iphone and my Leica D-Lux and the difference in quality is enormous. It is a good investment and worthwhile.
I just went through the same dilemma and ended up with a Canon G16. So happy we did it! Beautiful resolution pictures..better zoom function than phone which is great for travel and don’t have to deal with the iPhone battery life. So excited to snap our summer in South of France!
As Marisa mentioned, a mirrorless is the way to go I think. You will get amazing photos but you don’t have to carry a massively bulky camera around. I have had a DSLR for 6 years and it doesn’t get used as often as it should because I just don’t want to carry it around. I was looking at this the other day – it’s an Australian site – but I’m sure the models would all be available in America – just cheaper!
http://www.techradar.com/au/news/photography-video-capture/cameras/best-compact-system-camera-2013-the-best-models-reviewed-960832
I got the exact camera from the banner image here a couple years ago for Firefly but find myself coming back to my Nikon D3300 time and again, even though it’s a bit bigger and less easy to pack. The photos quality is excellent.
If you want to be absolutely and totally gorgeous I would recommend a Fujifilm X20. I love it because you can do everything manually if you’re not a photo buff (I am not) but there are also a range of manual settings in case you suddenly get the urge to learn what aperture actually is and how to control it. And it’s just a stunning design. I have never felt cooler than when walking around with my X20.
Hi Alex!
I’ve been over this same thought for months and just bought a Nikon D3200. I’m totally in love! It’s an easy to use, kinda affordable, SLR camera which snaps amazing pictures. Great toy and even light weight and compact in comparison to other SLR cameras. I would take the plunge! If only to come home and have all these pretty pictures which really show the beauty of those places you’ve been!
Good luck and have fun!
I’m a photographer myself. I would definitely recommend you a mirrorless system camera. They are becoming a huge revolution in photography at the moment. They are small, very handy,most of them a very stylish as well. And you can still change lenses and you got the same good quality as with DSLR.
The Sony Alpha series is amazing. They try to adapt to the social media/blogger market, so their camera got a built-in WIFI function, so you can upload you photos to your smartphone directly. Also the Olympus PEN series got this feature.
My recommandations: Sony Alpha (i.e. Sony Alpha 7), Olympus Pen (i.e. Olympus Pen F), Fuji X (i.e. Fuji XT-1 or XT-2)
And get yourself at least 2 lenses. One lense comes with the camera body. Most of the time it’s a Wide Angle Zoom lense. It’s fine for the beginning and as a standard lense, for travelling the range is great. I would also reccomand you to get a tele zoom lense (70-300mm), or a fixed lense (50mm) for portrait and fashion stuff.
I’m sure you will make a good choice :)
Definitely the Expert Compact Sony RX100.
I made amazing pictures in Bali recently, perfect for travelling.
I also recommend a mirrorless system because they are smaller but similar image quality to DSLR. I use a Fujifilm X-T10 and the picture quality is great, especially the colour rendering as someone else mentioned too. Fujifilm cameras also excel at low light/night photography. I like the interchangeable lenses because that means I can use the same great camera for different types of photography. The X-T10 isn’t the most compact of the Fujis, but they do have some smaller options.
However, these systems can end up very expensive (lenses aren’t cheap!) and there are some good travel cameras with amazing zoom range that cost much less. I think you should consider what kind of images you want to take, how much you want to spend, and how much you’re willing to carry around. I used to carry a Canon S100 and even though mirrorless systems are relatively lightweight compared to DSLRs, the added weight of the Fuji is noticeable for me.
Moi aussi je me suis réfugiée dans l’appareil photo de mon téléphone pendant des années tant les appareils du marché ne me correspondaient pas. Je sortais d’une relation de rêve avec un Canon argentique et plein d’objectifs. J’adore faire de la photo, alors j’étais frustrée : comment trouver un appareil respectant les couleurs, avec un zoom activable manuellement (et non avec un moteur trop lent ou pas précis), pas trop gros ni trop lourd. Je me suis beaucoup renseignée sur le net et il me semble qu’il existe des perles rares chez Fuji, notamment les X-T1 et X-T2 sur lequel j’ai envie de craquer dès qu’il sera sorti. Voilà :)
I am absolutely in love with my X20, from Fuji. It`s extremely good and beautiful.
I recently started taking pictures on my Fujifilm disposable camera and it had been my bag essential eversince. I learn so many techniques to improve precision like playing around with sunlight/reducing noise- it’s honestly the most enriching and amazing photography experience ever. I’ve met so many people along the way. I have older people coming up to me and asking me why I shoot film(I’m 18) & there were instances when they would share their stories with me! The disadvantage of shooting film is that it’s expensive and subsequently, it’ll be a financial stretch in the long run. I’d recommend this camera for developing photography skills purposes and snapping sentimental memories.
Salut Alex !
Pareil je prends mon iphone pour prendre des photos quelques soient les évènements, c’est pratique puisque je l’ai toujours sur moi ! Et pour les moments spéciaux je n’ai pas de polaroïde mais un appareil photo jetable, j’ai de belles (ou non) surprises quelques mois après. J’ai bien un appareil photo numérique (que j’ai beaucoup utilisé avant d’avoir une assez bonne qualité de photo avec mon portable) mais qui prend trop de place quand je ne prends qu’un mini sac ou une pochette en soirée.
Bonne été !