Gingerbeard
Ayup Me Duck
https://www.mpb.com/en-uk/used-equi...enses/canon-ef-400mm-f-5-6-l-usm/sku-1086005/
Granted it’s not 600mm focal length but I’m sure it’s a great lens nonetheless
Time to go mirrorless - but what?
- Thread starter hc25036
- Start date
https://www.mpb.com/en-uk/used-equi...enses/canon-ef-400mm-f-5-6-l-usm/sku-1086005/
Granted it’s not 600mm focal length but I’m sure it’s a great lens nonetheless
Tony Lockhart
Avoiding Stress, at Every Opportunity
And you’d need the adapter (EF to RF), and a 1.4x...
All I have said is that it’s worthy of consideration while acknowledging its limitations. There really is no need to point out its very obvious shortcomings again.
And if someone buys an R, they’d be well advised to only buy RF lenses from that point.
Maybe I am biased, but I was asked to take some shots at a soccer game with a new Canon mirrorless (can't recall the model) and found it abysmal. No diopter adjustment, screen goes black when you take a shot, huge lag, no usable continuous frame, tiny viewfinder, poor battery life. I am sure that there are higher end models but my impression was that certainly for any non-stationary subjects the technology isn't there yet.
Bananahead
pfm Member
There are none of those issues on my R5 except for the battery life. It is having to power a lot more than a DSLR though. If it was an RP then it is a low-end camera.
Tony Lockhart
Avoiding Stress, at Every Opportunity
It’s there, you just need to pay for it. As ever.
Tony Lockhart
Avoiding Stress, at Every Opportunity
At the moment, not enough to make me part with my cash. If I was starting from having no equipment, I’d be silly to buy a dSLR, I think.
The latest mirrorless cameras are much better than they were a handful of years ago, which is when good ol Ken wrote this:
https://kenrockwell.com/tech/mirrorless-vs-dslr.htm
I’m happy with my 5D3, and have too much that needs sorting in the house for now.
There's loads of benefits. Let's review SLRs:
First up, remember that an SLR is itself a compromise, it's not the only or for that matter the best way of making a camera work. An SLR redirects light from a movable mirror to give you a viewfinder. The focus accuracy is dependent on the light path length from the lens off the mirror to a focus screen matching the path length to the film plane. This is not guaranteed, and over time you get variation in this length leading to focus problems.
Second, for auto focus to work, the centre of the mirror is half silvered, and a secondary mirror underneath the main mirror sends light to a focus sensor under the lightbox, and again, this path length (plus the alignment of the second mirror) needs to be correct for AF to work properly. The half silvered mirror allows the finder to not have a dark spot, but means that the AF sensor doesn't see all the light, so it's low light performance is compromised.
Third, when taking a photo, the viewfinder must go blank as the mirror needs to move out of the way. If it moves fast, it introduces vibration, if it moves slowly, you get significant shutter lag, so it's a trade off. Whilst the mirror is out of the way, focus and metering doesn't work, so you can't take long exposure shots in changeable light and have the metering still operate (some off the film light meters do work in this situation, but I don't think any DSLRs have this). It also introduces significant noise when the shutter fires, and reduces the maximum frame rate, since the shutter is slower than the capture rate of sensors these days.
Also, light entering through the viewfinder messes with the meter, so you have to meter with your eye against the eyepiece to block stray light messing with things. If you've ever stuck a camera on a tripod and then taken a photo with a cable shutter release, and the shot is underexposed, that's probably what's gone on (very easy to forget to cover the eyepiece).
The requirement for a mirror means the registration distance (distance between the image plane and the back lens mount) needs to be at least the width of the mirror so it can miss the rear elements. This is typically around 45mm or something like that, so this means that it's impossible to build a simple lens for wider focal lengths than the registration distance, leading to the need for retrofocal designs, which is more optical elements, more weight, more cost, larger lenses.
Mirrorless cameras solve all of the above. By using the same sensor for image capture, AF and metering, there are no alignment issues. Shutter lag is eliminated, no noise, or possible mechanical failure. The camera ends up smaller and lighter (less stuff in it). There are also actual benefits too, but by just solving problems with SLRs I think there's definitely reasons to use mirrorless designs, and clearly the market is moving in that direction.
The shorter registration distance is what leads to the much smaller lenses on rangefinders compared to SLRs (go compare, say an Xpan 45/4 to a Hasselblad 50/4, or a Leica 50/1.4 to the canon/nikon equivalent).
Derek Wright
pfm Member
I remeber when SLRs were introduced - the photography mags were full of articles on the difficulties of fitting in a flapping mirror - all that has happened with mirrorless is that camera and lens design has returned to where it all started.
Gromit
Plasticine Dog
Good point.
As the great Derek Bell once said of the Porsche 911 - 'it's great to drive, not because of its design, but in spite of it'. A bit like a certain Scottish turntable I guess. Fortunately, both my DSLRs have no focus issues both in terms of accuracy and shift on stopping down. I have had problems in the past though and it's bloody frustrating.
Mirrorless does make so much sense, and one aspect I like is its purity. Subject>lens>sensor with the EVF giving the user a direct visual feed to that sensor. Then there are all those lovely lenses which can be adapted too (itching to try my Summicron on a Z6).
Bananahead
pfm Member
Bananahead
pfm Member
I didn't realise that you were so old. The first SLRs were produced in the 1930s ..
Gromit
Plasticine Dog
alanbeeb
pfm Member
They do and they do still make some noise.... but they can be switched off and use the electronic shutter instead - which is fine for most situations, but I understand not so good for artificial light, fast moving subjects or slow shutter speeds. Still a decent advantage over DSLRs where you would have to lock the mirror up to reduce noise and not get use of the viewfinder.
I love leaf shutters. It's one of the (many) reasons why I love the Fuji X100 line of cameras.
Lefty
Gromit
Plasticine Dog
Agreed - for me it's probably the X100*'s best feature (along with them looking rather nice too).
Whilst I wouldn't wish to hijack the OP's thread, I'm also going through a bit of a quandary re mirrorless. Not helped with the 2 latest Tamron purchases being fully compatible (via FTZ) with Nikon Z bodies. Both the D700 & Df have gorgeous IQ, but so does the M-P 240. The downside is there's no cross-system compatibility with any of the glass - go for a Z, and all my M mount glass (well, the 2 lenses I own!) comes into play which I do find quite an enticing prospect.
Agreed - for me it's probably the X100*'s best feature (along with them looking rather nice too).
Whilst I wouldn't wish to hijack the OP's thread, I'm also going through a bit of a quandary re mirrorless. Not helped with the 2 latest Tamron purchases being fully compatible (via FTZ) with Nikon Z bodies. Both the D700 & Df have gorgeous IQ, but so does the M-P 240. The downside is there's no cross-system compatibility with any of the glass - go for a Z, and all my M mount glass (well, the 2 lenses I own!) comes into play which I do find quite an enticing prospect.
Are you able to buy on sale or return? I think the best way is to get the camera in your hands and see if it works for you. I absolutely love the Z cameras. The bodies are superb and as you say, due to the short flange distance, they can be used with a wide array of lenses. Not only that, but due to the IBIS, you get to shoot these lenses stabilised too
(another benefit of mirrorless - it seems only Pentax are doing IBIS in a DSLR body)Lefty