DSLR upgrade

Axe_meister

I currently have a Canon 50D DSLR which by modern standards is getting a bit long in the tooth, but I like its size and weight.
I have 3 EF-S lenses and a 24-108 EF L lens.

Having had a brief look at the camera landscape things have obviously changed quite a bit in the last 9 years.

Would you recommend, sticking to what I’ve got as it still takes good pictures (I’m probably the weakest link)

Upgrade to the modern equivalent (90D) or upgrade to the next range up possibly second hand (5/6D) and throw away my lens investment (except the L lens) or do I embrace the new mirror less cameras (can I still use my lenses?)

Video does not interest me much, and I do most of my shooting in RAW in either Manual or aperture priority mode, mainly landscapes or my dogs.

artiebear

Hate to admit it, but right now If I was looking at that length of upgrade, I'd be looking at the current mirrorless pathway. In the next few years lenses will be developed with mirrorless  in mind. I'm a Nikon user and my D850 is probably  the end of the road in terms of trad lenses etc. Also got a DF and a mirrorless Fuji fixed lense, so will most likely use them until I'm done, but given the chance to reboot ......... 

digitalscream

You've just missed a cracker of a deal at Currys - the Fuji X-A7, down to £360 from £599. They're out of stock now, and won't be getting them back in apparently.

I ended up getting a Lumix GX80 instead, at £420 - it's for streaming and recording videos, so a mirrorless that can do 4k for hours on end without overheating was kind of necessary. Just starting to get the hang of it, will probably end up getting at least one more lens - f/1.4 or f/1.7, I think, for the fashionable shallow look.

Admittedly, these seem to be considered "budget" cameras, which boggles my mind a bit. I mean...I just spent more on the GX80 than I did on my entire amp/effects rack (which I'll probably do a lot more with).

stickyfiddle

I adore my Fuji X-T3. I don’t think I’ll ever buy another DSLR

Tannin

You can use your EF-S lenses with a mirrorless camera such as the EOS R or the EOS RP or R5. But they will only operate on crop mode, meaning that you derive no benefit from the bigger sensor in the new camera. Your 24-105 will work with any Canon camera. 

There are really two main questions you need to answer. First, what sort of photography do you do? (This will bear on the question of whether to retain the 50D or upgrade.) Second, what are your three EF-S lenses? If one is (for example) an 18-55, then it is worth next to nothing anyway. On the other hand, something like a 10-22 or a 17-55/2.8 would be very hard to replace. (Well, easy enough to replace, hard to pay for, I mean.)

The touted advantages of the mirrorless generation are mostly bunkum. I bought an EOS R myself but after 12 months of frustration and annoyance with it, sold it again. Most frustrating camera I have ever owned. (I still have four Canon SLRs, three of them easily superior to the EOS R ergonomic-wise, and the other (a 5D II) so old that we won't hold too many things against it. 

danishbacon

I’ve gone through more systems than I care to count and after about 15 years of working with cameras I find myself back where I started, with a proper DSLR kit. I honestly think there are few better deals out there right now than a low mileage 5d/II/iii depending on how fancy you need. It’s the true ‘point and shoot’ in the sense that it doesn’t get in the way. I appreciate this is all relative and subjective, but the Sony A7 kit I had was truly one of the most frustrating and overdesigned professional kit I ever used. The Fuji X-pro is great but I repeatedly struggled with files and found the photos always looked better on the lcd then on the computer afterwards. Zen for me is a Leica M6 or a Zeiss Ikon ZM, but I don’t shoot any film now nor do I have a Leica kit for various reasons. 

My first bit of professional kit was a Panasonic GF1+20mm (excellent for the time) and later a Nikon D700. I can’t help to think that if I had gone Canon back when I started I might have saved myself some money and aggravation over the years. I finally bought into used Canon kit about a year or so ago and I couldn’t be happier. 

5dmkii + 35f2:

Axe_meister

It seems to me however that the actual fundamentals of cameras have not changed much and are stuck in the past. 
We still have a bulb setting, why? Surely you should be able to just type in a long shutter speed rather than relying on an external trigger.
Also with digital why can't you have digital shutter speeds that vary across the sensor for HDR photography so parts of the sensor that are seeing dark are switched on longer than the parts that get a lot of light, rather than bracketing and stitching together afterwards.

danishbacon

Axe_meister said:

It seems to me however that the actual fundamentals of cameras have not changed much and are stuck in the past. 
We still have a bulb setting, why? Surely you should be able to just type in a long shutter speed rather than relying on an external trigger.
Also with digital why can't you have digital shutter speeds that vary across the sensor for HDR photography so parts of the sensor that are seeing dark are switched on longer than the parts that get a lot of light, rather than bracketing and stitching together afterwards.

That is true, but in a way, the fundamentals of photography are still going strong. I can see the HDR application a useful tool for those interested in HDR. 

boogieman

@Tannin ‘s point about the EFS lenses is good. If they’re the basic kit lenses they’re probably not worth factoring into the equation. Most of the part ex dealers have dozens of the 18-55 because they’re not particularly good and it’s the first lens everyone replaces. 

The one big advantage of going mirrorless is they’re usually lighter and less bulky than most DSLR’s. I’ve considered switching from my Canon gear to Sony just for this reason but I’m heavily invested in Canon gear so I’d lose a small fortune. Also I’ve heard numerous tales of the Sony menus being clunky and non intuitive.  

So it’s a balancing act that very much depends on your budget. If your lenses are half decent personally I’d stick with a Canon DSLR. The single digit bodies, 1, 5,6,7D are all much better built than your current model. The 6D is a very good all rounder and probably the sweet spot between cost and performance.  If you can run to the cost of a Mk2 so much then better, but the original is still a very good camera. I would go used personally, you can pick up decent examples from the likes of MPB or Wex and you’ll get a warranty. Ultimately it depends on the quality of your existing lenses though.... if you’re keeping the EFS ones you’ll need to stick to a crop sensor body. 

Brio

+1 for a secondhand Canon 5D. I had 2 5Diii and sold one to get a 5Dsr. A brilliant camera to use. To get the most of the Canon mirror less you need to buy the matching lenses and I have lot of EF L series lenses I don’t want to change.

ThePrettyDamned

I have a 6D I'd consider selling - absolute insane image quality, not huge files, nice solid camera.

I'd only be selling to go the other way - fixed lens compact! I think I tend to use a 28mm or 35mm lens about 90 percent of the time... Let me know if you're interested. Boxed with everything, and have a great 50mm stm and a Tamron SP 70-300mm lens to go with it. 

Axe_meister

The EFS lenses are nothing special, 50mm prime and a 70 to 300 Zoom (with a very soft focus).
The trouble with the mirror less designs is they are just too small for my hands. I used to have a 350D only once I added the battery pack did it feel comfortable.

boogieman

Axe_meister said:

It seems to me however that the actual fundamentals of cameras have not changed much and are stuck in the past. 
We still have a bulb setting, why? Surely you should be able to just type in a long shutter speed rather than relying on an external trigger.
Also with digital why can't you have digital shutter speeds that vary across the sensor for HDR photography so parts of the sensor that are seeing dark are switched on longer than the parts that get a lot of light, rather than bracketing and stitching together afterwards.

The B setting is still useful for very long exposures like star shots, think that’s why it’s been kept. My 5D3 only goes up to 30 secs through the menu system. I suppose they could have added longer times to the selection but then not many users would want it, B is a decent enough compromise. 

RaymondLin

A lot of camera settings are designed so that you can operate it like a muscle memory.  The other thing is that you want to be able to use it outdoors, in the rain, with gloves on at -10c.  

You might get consumer level cameras starting out with lots of features behind menus and sub menus, but the higher you go, the more tacticle and physical the buttons get.

guitarmangler

For landscapes and dogs have you thought about something like the Ricoh gr? I bought a 2nd hand  gr ( not even the ii) at the start of the last lockdown and it’s awesome. I mainly use it for photographing the kids and cool looking stuff in the street.  I don’t miss being able to zoom. 

menamestom

Moving to the X-T20 I do miss the ergonomics of a DSLR.  Photography is a casual hobby for me, I dip in and out.  The DSLR always felt like a glove with everything there I need it, wheras the X-T20 feels alittle arkward in feel and layout.  I've set it up to my liking and added a thumb grip, but even though it's much quicker focusing than my old DSLR, I can miss the moment occationally because it is less intuitive.

I have considered moving back to DSLR for this reason and also the cheaper lens availibility but I do like the system.  I realise I'd no doubt fint the X-T2/3 better ergonomically and part of the issue is the T20 is a small portable camera.

I'm getting there and plan to get a new lens and comitt to the system, but it's a little more work.   No doubt at some point I'll change the body to the XT3 which should feel more DSLR like anyway.

But I think DSLR's still have a place, it's where the best value probably is.

Axe_meister

My wife as a Fuji mirrorless she bought about 5 years ago, I just don't get on with it at all. For a start the settings dial is not labeled how I would expect, i.e. manual mode, Aperture priority, Shutter speed priority, etc and far too small for my large hands and the lenses cost a bomb.
  

RaymondLin

If you think Fuji lenses cost a bomb then you should check out Canon R...

But if you want to save money, you should share the same system and lenses.

stickyfiddle

Fuji lenses aren't cheap but they're also all excellent :P 

Obviously that's no help if you don't like the cameras - I can totally understand if you don't like how the controls work compared with a standard PASM dial. I'm the other way around, where I love the Fuji controls and now find anything else frustrating. 

ThePrettyDamned

stickyfiddle said:

Fuji lenses aren't cheap but they're also all excellent :P 

Obviously that's no help if you don't like the cameras - I can totally understand if you don't like how the controls work compared with a standard PASM dial. I'm the other way around, where I love the Fuji controls and now find anything else frustrating. 

In fairness also, most camera lenses these days are excellent. A Canon nifty 50 is a fantastic lens, the same way the fuji 35mm 1.4 is. It's also cheaper - fuji now have the plastic 35mm F2 which is a great thing to have in the lineup! 

I'm still sad that m43 is struggling a bit, I think it's the ideal size/cost/price/quality combo for most people that don't shoot for money (and maybe quite a few of those that do!).

I also prefer the Fuji controls more - but can work with both. 

RaymondLin

M4/3 died because of phones, they made them redundant.