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[Ty4on]

Pentax, while a bit weird, is really good value wise. There's some weird ergonomic quirks (They have a really weird setting dial that makes absolutely no sense to me), but I know their K mount 50mm 1.4 is some good stuff -- I bought my mom one to go with her K1000, and got kinda jelly when I was testing it on my A7 to make sure there was nothing wrong with it. And their Full Frame was like what, $600 or some shit? Do I remember that right? I remember it was stupid cheap for what it was.

It's D750 priced, but good value for something with the D810 sensor.

Pentax has plenty of old film bodies. The K1000 is the most well known, basic fully manual and really popular with students back in the day. KM had slightly more features and the KX is the step up with mirror lock up and shutter speed showing in viewfinder. K2 was the high end and first with automatic shutter speed.
MX is the KX successor and followed the M series trend of being much, much smaller (SMC-M lenses are also much smaller than preceding SMC lenses, sometimes called SMC-K). It's also got automatic shutter speed. ME is the budget model and is locked in automatic shutter speed or aperture priority. ME Super is the same except for a manual model where you use buttons to change shutter speed versus the old dial. MV and MG are even cheaper versions of the ME.
LX is probably way too expensive, but was the highest end model in the 80 and one of the first cameras I know of that boasted of weather sealing. It's known for some unreliability tho with shutters locking up, but that can be common on older cameras. Make sure you check the shutter through all settings and speeds before buying one. There's nothing wrong with firing the shutter with the back open to check if it opens all the way etc.

 

[RuGalz]

Sooo I'm interested in the Blackrapid style straps, I want something that can be used with a big backpack, that allows for free movement of the camera and that isn't cumbersome for hip style shooting. Should I just go for a standard Blackrapid or is there something special you guys love?

I changed to Peak Design's leash strap because it's more comfortable with backpacks and doesn't get in the way. Also, I can wrap it around my wrist and it's kind of like a hand strap.

 

[JadedWriter]

I changed to Peak Design's leash strap because it's more comfortable with backpacks and doesn't get in the way. Also, I can wrap it around my wrist and it's kind of like a hand strap.

Can the Peak Design stuff survive a gripped D810 with a 2.8 70-200 hanging off of it? I like the look of the straps, but for some odd reason I'm nervous about hanging my heavy stuff off of one.

 

[Astral/H3X]

Can the Peak Design stuff survive a gripped D810 with a 2.8 70-200 hanging off of it? I like the look of the straps, but for some odd reason I'm nervous about hanging my heavy stuff off of one.

Those little tabs will survive the camera, I swear.

WELL okay they won't, but they have multiple layers of.... cord? and the layers are different colors so if it starts to wear you can tell visually.

The strap depends on what camera you have. Their Slide straps would easily, EASILY do a FF camera. Hell the Slide Lite is already pretty damn tanky. Shit, I used it as a rifle sling once for an M16.

Leash is mainly if you have a MILC, but is my favorite strap because it can be worn several different ways.

Any Peak Design strap is better than any other strap ever by anyone. IMO of course, but a strap is useless to me if it takes me 10 minutes to put it on or take it off.

 

[RuGalz]

Can the Peak Design stuff survive a gripped D810 with a 2.8 70-200 hanging off of it? I like the look of the straps, but for some odd reason I'm nervous about hanging my heavy stuff off of one.

The leash can withstand 200lb base on the specs. The weaker point is actually the anchors. Those eventually wear out and you want to change them to avoid accidents.

 

[JadedWriter]

Those little tabs will survive the camera, I swear.

WELL okay they won't, but they have multiple layers of.... cord? and the layers are different colors so if it starts to wear you can tell visually.

The strap depends on what camera you have. Their Slide straps would easily, EASILY do a FF camera. Hell the Slide Lite is already pretty damn tanky. Shit, I used it as a rifle sling once for an M16.

Leash is mainly if you have a MILC, but is my favorite strap because it can be worn several different ways.

Any Peak Design strap is better than any other strap ever by anyone. IMO of course, but a strap is useless to me if it takes me 10 minutes to put it on or take it off.

What is the longevity? I've been using the same BR strap for about two years.

 

[Astral/H3X]

What is the longevity? I've been using the same BR strap for about two years.

As RuGalz mentions, the weak point is the anchor, and those indicate their level of tear. I've had mine for......... year and a half? At least? No indicator yet.

 

[JadedWriter]

As RuGalz mentions, the weak point is the anchor, and those indicate their level of tear. I've had mine for......... year and a half? At least? No indicator yet.

Ok...that's not bad at all then.

 

[Astral/H3X]

Ok...that's not bad at all then.

I also used the Leash extensively in it's single point sling type of config quite extensively, which would put all of the camera's weight on one point. And that's their thinnest strap.

(granted I don't carry around a tank cannon in lieu of a camera but HEY)

EDIT: One thing I'll mention is that I've bought 3 "straps" from them (Leash, Slide Lite, and Cuff or whatever), each one of those comes with two or three anchors, and then the Capture Pro, which comes with two (it's seriously the greatest), and so I have a fuck ton of extra anchors and don't exactly make sure to wear a set exclusively, so there may be some wear balancing going on.

 

[JadedWriter]

I also used the Leash extensively in it's single point sling type of config quite extensively, which would put all of the camera's weight on one point. And that's their thinnest strap.

(granted I don't carry around a tank cannon in lieu of a camera but HEY)

EDIT: One thing I'll mention is that I've bought 3 "straps" from them (Leash, Slide Lite, and Cuff or whatever), each one of those comes with two or three anchors, and then the Capture Pro, which comes with two (it's seriously the greatest), and so I have a fuck ton of extra anchors and don't exactly make sure to wear a set exclusively, so there may be some wear balancing going on.

I love my stove pipe sized lens...granted I prefer it a lot more now since I stopped using the damn lens hood.

 

[Astral/H3X]

I love my stove pipe sized lens...granted I prefer it a lot more now since I stopped using the damn lens hood.

The Samyang 85mm and 100mm are my two largest lenses, and it was only ever so slightly bothersome to use the Leash with those. For your setup, the regular Slide should work amazing. I highly recommend Peak Design to *anyone* that can afford one -- there's a reason I have four of their products now (Well I guess 5, if I count the Capture Clip and Capture Lens as two separate things)

 

[VitalNerve]

Looking for some advice on what camera(s) to look at for a beginner. Photography seems like a fun hobby that will help me get outside more often.

1. What is your budget budget?
Between 400-500$

2. Main purpose of the camera?
Take plenty of beatiful photos

3. What form factor is most appealing to you?
Doesnt matter to me

4. Will you be investing in the camera? (buying more stuff for it later)
If it turns out that I do enjoy photography, than yes.

5. Any cameras you've used
Just a point and shoot in the past.

 

[opticalmace]

Dunno if this is heresy, but any suggestions on smartphones with great cameras? I know the S8/S8+, G6, Pixel, and I guess iPhone are all supposed to have good ones.

I just end up with a lot of photos from my phone, but my Note 2 has a really awful camera and the phone is just ripe for replacement.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Dunno if this is heresy, but any suggestions on smartphones with great cameras? I know the S8/S8+, G6, Pixel, and I guess iPhone are all supposed to have good ones.

I just end up with a lot of photos from my phone, but my Note 2 has a really awful camera and the phone is just ripe for replacement.

I dunno if it's just hype, but Huawei P9 and P10 have Leica cameras. They're supposed to be good phones to take pictures with. The P10 even has a dedicated black and white camera, lol.

 

[Astral/H3X]

Dunno if this is heresy, but any suggestions on smartphones with great cameras? I know the S8/S8+, G6, Pixel, and I guess iPhone are all supposed to have good ones.

I just end up with a lot of photos from my phone, but my Note 2 has a really awful camera and the phone is just ripe for replacement.

Nokia Lumia 1020, Lumia 950 XL, or Panasonic Lumix... Phone... Thing...

Enjoy old phones that are unsupported! Cameras are afterthoughts on phones.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Any modern smartphone has a fine camera for taking snapshots. No smartphone has a good camera. They can't have bigger sensors or else they would need to have bigger lenses, too, and that doesn't compute with the never-ending quest for slimmer phones. Not being able to have bigger sensors means we're not going to see massive leaps in low light or higher ISO performance, which means image quality really isn't going to get much better than it already is.

 

[JadedWriter]

Any modern smartphone has a fine camera for taking snapshots. No smartphone has a good camera. They can't have bigger sensors or else they would need to have bigger lenses, too, and that doesn't compute with the never-ending quest for slimmer phones. Not being able to have bigger sensors means we're not going to see massive leaps in low light or higher ISO performance, which means image quality really isn't going to get much better than it already is.

And to the uninitiated they think their phone is the best camera ever...

 

[Deleted member 17706]

And to the uninitiated they think their phone is the best camera ever...

And they're right, too! An ultra-compact Internet-connected computing device with an integrated camera that you always have with you cannot be beat in terms of convenience and features. The image quality is good enough for most things, too.

Ever since really getting into photography as a hobby last year, though, I hate the look of most shots taken with my iPhone 7 Plus. The only ones that look good to me are those taken out during a bright sunny day.

 

[JadedWriter]

And they're right, too! An ultra-compact Internet-connected computing device with an integrated camera that you always have with you cannot be beat in terms of convenience and features. The image quality is good enough for most things, too.

Ever since really getting into photography as a hobby last year, though, I hate the look of most shots taken with my iPhone 7 Plus. The only ones that look good to me are those taken out during a bright sunny day.

I have a Note 4...I don't do photography on it, it's just not for me. Phone cameras are for snap shots.

 

[Thraktor]

I dunno if it's just hype, but Huawei P9 and P10 have Leica cameras. They're supposed to be good phones to take pictures with. The P10 even has a dedicated black and white camera, lol.

I own the Honor 8 (which has the same camera as the P9, but without the Leica branding), and it's definitely a good camera for a phone, but even a cheap second hand MFT camera is orders of magnitude ahead of it. Ironically I keep buying phones with some of the best cameras on them (I had a Z3 compact previously, and an iPhone 4 before that), and never using them for photography. All the photos on my phones are things like labels with serial numbers on them.

You definitely can do good photography on a phone (lots of great examples in the photography thread), but physically you're always going to be limited in low light with such a small camera module.

 

[Ty4on]

I dunno if it's just hype, but Huawei P9 and P10 have Leica cameras. They're supposed to be good phones to take pictures with. The P10 even has a dedicated black and white camera, lol.

They basically pay Leica a bit of money to put the brand on the camera. It used to be quite common with Nokia using Carl Zeiss and LG using Schneider Kreuznach branded cameras/lenses.

 

[GoldenEye 007]

So I think I decided today. Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II it is. Silver.

Now the searching and waiting begins for when I actually pull the trigger. I talked to one of my friends that has been into photography for a number of years now and I found out he had an Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II and he had nothing but good things to say about it. From IQ to size, etc.

I see kits with the 14-42mm lens going for $699. But I feel like it makes sense to get just the body and a lens separately. I've seen bodies go for $400-425 on eBay. And 14-42mm lenses at places like Adorama on sale for $99.

 

[JadedWriter]

So I think I decided today. Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II it is. Silver.

Now the searching and waiting begins for when I actually pull the trigger. I talked to one of my friends that has been into photography for a number of years now and I found out he had an Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II and he had nothing but good things to say about it. From IQ to size, etc.

I see kits with the 14-42mm lens going for $699. But I feel like it makes sense to get just the body and a lens separately. I've seen bodies go for $400-425 on eBay. And 14-42mm lenses at places like Adorama on sale for $99.

I hope you enjoy it. I almost got an EM1 Mark 1 at some point, but just never pulled the trigger and the Mark II is fucking bananas expensive.

 

[slothmeister]

HNGHHHHHH I'm so conflicted!!!

So i've been shooting with a Nikon D7000 for about 4 or 5 years, and i'm finding myself using it less and less, I've used it once this year and that was only because we went on holiday and it was the same last year. My main reason for not going out with it is because of the size and weight.

I've recently been getting a real urge to get out with my gear again but just want something smaller and lighter, so i'm considering selling my D7000 and the 5 lenses I have.

I've been looking at the Olympus E5 mk2 and the E10 but was really unsure of which one to get, i've held both and was impressed equally. However I then threw a spanner in the works and looked at the Fuji X-T20 which impressed me just as much.

I really don't know what route to go down, I shoot mainly landscapes and very occasionally motorsport.

Just need someone to tell me what to do, or do I wait for the E5 mk3 to come out??

 

[JadedWriter]

HNGHHHHHH I'm so conflicted!!!

So i've been shooting with a Nikon D7000 for about 4 or 5 years, and i'm finding myself using it less and less, I've used it once this year and that was only because we went on holiday and it was the same last year. My main reason for not going out with it is because of the size and weight.

I've recently been getting a real urge to get out with my gear again but just want something smaller and lighter, so i'm considering selling my D7000 and the 5 lenses I have.

I've been looking at the Olympus E5 mk2 and the E10 but was really unsure of which one to get, i've held both and was impressed equally. However I then threw a spanner in the works and looked at the Fuji X-T20 which impressed me just as much.

I really don't know what route to go down, I shoot mainly landscapes and very occasionally motorsport.

Just need someone to tell me what to do, or do I wait for the E5 mk3 to come out??

The X-T20 is pretty much a baby X-T2. I love my X-T2, but don't really take it out as much as my D810 mainly due to focal length limitations. I'm honestly fighting the urge to buy the 2.8 50-140.

 

[Ty4on]

I see kits with the 14-42mm lens going for $699. But I feel like it makes sense to get just the body and a lens separately. I've seen bodies go for $400-425 on eBay. And 14-42mm lenses at places like Adorama on sale for $99.

If you find a body plus lens on eBay that's usually the cheapest option. People with time sell lens and body separately, people without it sell them together a little cheaper.

 

[RuGalz]

Looking for some advice on what camera(s) to look at for a beginner. Photography seems like a fun hobby that will help me get outside more often.
1. What is your budget budget?
Between 400-500$

You can stretch the dollars a lot further going used route. I always recommend Pentax for low budget because you get the most features out of the camera than the name brands such as Nikon and Canon. I have seen used Pentax K30/50/KS2 with 1 or 2 lenses with weather sealing at that price range. They all have 2 dials and 100% penta prism view finder which really helps with shooting experience. Nikon you are probably looking at D3xxx and potentially D5xxx series. Canon is whatever Tx series that fits the bill.

For mirrorless, ones with view finder, you might be able to find Fuji X-E2 or Sony A6000. I personally wouldn't look for anything older than those but they are probably slightly outside of your budget with a lens. If view finder is optional, Fuji X-M1 is still a pretty decent camera and should be within your budget. There might be some other options in micro-43 line up (smaller sensor than the ones mentioned above) like the Olympus EM5.

I think just find something that fits your budget and play around with it for now. After a while, you will know better about your likes and dislikes and have enough knowledge to know if one system suits you more than the other. Then decide, if you need to look for something different. By then, you haven't really invested in a system so it's not as expensive to switch.

 

[Snkfanatic]

Back for more thoughts on a mirror less secondary.

Still looking at Fujifilm and the X100F but the price is the biggest thing holding me back. Anyone have any thoughts on the X70? Half the cost almost and the pictures still look great. Seems like it would be even easier to have with me at all times. I also love that the touch screen can be pulled out to make taking lower shots much easier. A feature I wish the 100 had.

 

[RuGalz]

Back for more thoughts on a mirror less secondary.

Still looking at Fujifilm and the X100F but the price is the biggest thing holding me back. Anyone have any thoughts on the X70? Half the cost almost and the pictures still look great. Seems like it would be even easier to have with me at all times. I also love that the touch screen can be pulled out to make taking lower shots much easier. A feature I wish the 100 had.

If you are considering X70 you could also look at Ricoh GR II (or GR if you don't need the few things added to II). There are some unique workflow features that many street photogs love.

 

[Elfotografoalocado]

Can the Peak Design stuff survive a gripped D810 with a 2.8 70-200 hanging off of it? I like the look of the straps, but for some odd reason I'm nervous about hanging my heavy stuff off of one.

If it's any useful, I used the Wii wrist strap with a 7D and a Sigma 17-50.
Thanks for the advice too.

 

[Lasthope106]

If you guys own Sony cameras, you should sign the petition below.

Sony Star Eater petition

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Back for more thoughts on a mirror less secondary.

Still looking at Fujifilm and the X100F but the price is the biggest thing holding me back. Anyone have any thoughts on the X70? Half the cost almost and the pictures still look great. Seems like it would be even easier to have with me at all times. I also love that the touch screen can be pulled out to make taking lower shots much easier. A feature I wish the 100 had.

I didn't realize how small the X70 was. It's almost in the 1 inch sensor camera category in terms of size and weight!

 

[RuGalz]

If you guys own Sony cameras, you should sign the petition below.

Sony Star Eater petition

Didn't they release FW to address it after like 2 years? https://petapixel.com/2017/06/09/sony-firmware-update-fixes-a9-heat-warning-star-eater-issue/

 

[Rentahamster]

If you guys own Sony cameras, you should sign the petition below.

Sony Star Eater petition

This seems like a dealbreaker issue for this particular niche. Why would any hardcore astrophotography people (like the people who made the petition) stick with gear like that if that's their main line of work?

 

[Ty4on]

This seems like a dealbreaker issue for this particular niche. Why would any hardcore astrophotography people (like the people who made the petition) stick with gear like that if that's their main line of work?

They want fast, wide primes on a big sensor. FF mirror less is pretty much perfect when you can mount so much on it and AF/optical viewfinder is useless for astro.

Wide primes can be much smaller without the retrofocus design required for the mirror (or without being as retrofocus)

 

[Snkfanatic]

I didn't realize how small the X70 was. It's almost in the 1 inch sensor camera category in terms of size and weight!

Really does seem like a perfect "take everywhere" kinda camera.

 

[Rentahamster]

They want fast, wide primes on a big sensor. FF mirror less is pretty much perfect when you can mount so much on it and AF/optical viewfinder is useless for astro.

Wide primes can be much smaller without the retrofocus design required for the mirror (or without being as retrofocus)

Sure, but what's the point of all that if parts of your main subject disappear?

AF/optical viewfinder is useless for astro.

I don't think it's "useless". Besides, there's always live view too.

 

[Lasthope106]

Didn't they release FW to address it after like 2 years? https://petapixel.com/2017/06/09/sony-firmware-update-fixes-a9-heat-warning-star-eater-issue/

We all thought they did, but it ended up not being the case. The guy that discovered the issue made a blog stating there was no difference after the update.

This seems like a dealbreaker issue for this particular niche. Why would any hardcore astrophotography people (like the people who made the petition) stick with gear like that if that's their main line of work?

If someone is a serious astrophotographer then Sony isn't an option right now. If you follow the history of this particular issue, you'll read that this was introduced along the way. For those people who got a Sony before the problem, what can you tell them. Even when I bought my a7ii earlier in the year I was unaware that the camera had this bug. Was it lack of research on my part? Probably. But then again, my photography up to that point had consisted of everything other than night photography. Only once I had interest in doing night phototography I came to discover the problem.

The blame rests solely on Sony since it is something that most people believe can be fixed via a firmware update.

 

[RuGalz]

We all thought they did, but it ended up not being the case. The guy that discovered the issue made a blog stating there was no difference after the update.

That's a shame. I am always hearing my friend talking about random workflow issues on his A7R2 since the release (some have been fixed by now) and he pretty much doesn't go shoot stars with us lol.

I guess this is the blog you are talking about: https://www.lonelyspeck.com/why-i-n...-for-astrophotography-an-open-letter-to-sony/

 

[Rentahamster]

If someone is a serious astrophotographer then Sony isn't an option right now. If you follow the history of this particular issue, you'll read that this was introduced along the way. For those people who got a Sony before the problem, what can you tell them. Even when I bought my a7ii earlier in the year I was unaware that the camera had this bug. Was it lack of research on my part? Probably. But then again, my photography up to that point had consisted of everything other than night photography. Only once I had interest in doing night phototography I came to discover the problem.

The blame rests solely on Sony since it is something that most people believe can be fixed via a firmware update.

Damn, thanks for the insight.

For those people who got a Sony before the problem, what can you tell them.

I'd tell the pros to switch, because, well, they're pros.

I'd tell everyone else to deal with it, and perhaps take pictures of something else instead lol.

 

[KalBalboa]

Opinion time GAF. Which option would you prefer:

• A7Sii with Speed Booster and Canon Glass?
  or
  
• A7Sii with Metabones Adapter and Canon Glass?

One method above gives less rolling shutter at the expense of using a crop of the full frame, the other gives you better DOF control and less noise at the expense of the extra stop. The shallower depth of field gained by the extra stop is seemingly traded off against the sensor being cropped from FF to APS-C, or at least eaten into. This would be for a documentary shoot. Lots of handheld interviews, not a ton of cameras whipping around.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Really does seem like a perfect "take everywhere" kinda camera.

Yeah, I almost bought it until I saw the buffer size. Only 6 frames when shooting RAW + JPEG before the buffer is full and takes 9 seconds to clear.

I'm sure this isn't an issue for most people, but I do a ton of burst shooting with my kids. I'll definitely keep an eye out for a potential successor, but it will surely be larger and heavier.

 

[Addi]

Opinion time GAF. Which option would you prefer:

• A7Sii with Speed Booster and Canon Glass?
  or
  
• A7Sii with Metabones Adapter and Canon Glass?

One method above gives less rolling shutter at the expense of using a crop of the full frame, the other gives you better DOF control and less noise at the expense of the extra stop. The shallower depth of field gained by the extra stop is seemingly traded off against the sensor being cropped from FF to APS-C, or at least eaten into. This would be for a documentary shoot. Lots of handheld interviews, not a ton of cameras whipping around.

Metabones Adapter, no need for the speed booster on that camera. You can shoot in APS-C with the Metabones adapter too if you need to. Better to have more option. The extra stop of the Speed Booster is unnecessary with the FF and the insane ISO.

 

[Ty4on]

Sure, but what's the point of all that if parts of your main subject disappear?


I don't think it's "useless". Besides, there's always live view too.

That's not the point. They want Sony A7 cameras to work because apart from the filtering applied to long exposures they're great astro cameras.

It's also an issue for general photography. These files are flat out less sharp.

 

[Lasthope106]

...

Don't get me wrong. I love my a7ii, but everything about this issue discourages me from even trying astrophotography.

...

If I was a pro, and my livelihood depended on it, I would not even give it 2nd thought. I would switch. But since it doesn't, and I love the small form factor and many of the other features, I shall bear the pain that Sony inflicts.

Opinion time GAF. Which option would you prefer:

• A7Sii with Speed Booster and Canon Glass?
  or
  
• A7Sii with Metabones Adapter and Canon Glass?

One method above gives less rolling shutter at the expense of using a crop of the full frame, the other gives you better DOF control and less noise at the expense of the extra stop. The shallower depth of field gained by the extra stop is seemingly traded off against the sensor being cropped from FF to APS-C, or at least eaten into. This would be for a documentary shoot. Lots of handheld interviews, not a ton of cameras whipping around.

I don't know enough to give an answer. But do you require AF at all? If so the latest Metabones adapter is the way I would go.

 

[KalBalboa]

Metabones Adapter, no need for the speed booster on that camera. You can shoot in APS-C with the Metabones adapter too if you need to. Better to have more option. The extra stop of the Speed Booster is unnecessary with the FF and the insane ISO.

My thoughts exactly. Thanks for proving me some confirmation bias, heh.

I don't know enough to give an answer. But do you require AF at all? If so the latest Metabones adapter is the way I would go.

Most likely not, but I've been reading personal accounts online that vouch for what you're saying" the Mk. V apparently handles AF noticeably faster.

 

[VitalNerve]

You can stretch the dollars a lot further going used route. I always recommend Pentax for low budget because you get the most features out of the camera than the name brands such as Nikon and Canon. I have seen used Pentax K30/50/KS2 with 1 or 2 lenses with weather sealing at that price range. They all have 2 dials and 100% penta prism view finder which really helps with shooting experience. Nikon you are probably looking at D3xxx and potentially D5xxx series. Canon is whatever Tx series that fits the bill.

For mirrorless, ones with view finder, you might be able to find Fuji X-E2 or Sony A6000. I personally wouldn't look for anything older than those but they are probably slightly outside of your budget with a lens. If view finder is optional, Fuji X-M1 is still a pretty decent camera and should be within your budget. There might be some other options in micro-43 line up (smaller sensor than the ones mentioned above) like the Olympus EM5.

I think just find something that fits your budget and play around with it for now. After a while, you will know better about your likes and dislikes and have enough knowledge to know if one system suits you more than the other. Then decide, if you need to look for something different. By then, you haven't really invested in a system so it's not as expensive to switch.

Now, if I go used (which I have no problem doing), are there other cameras that you would suggest in place of the ones you mentioned, or were you suggesting I get pentax used?

Otherwise, that info helped narrow my focus quite a bit, thanks!

 

[RuGalz]

Now, if I go used (which I have no problem doing), are there other cameras that you would suggest in place of the ones you mentioned, or were you suggesting I get pentax used?

Otherwise, that info helped narrow my focus quite a bit, thanks!

The ones I listed are the ones I'd consider. I have used most of them but my daily driver is Pentax. IMO Pentax will give you the most photography tool for your bucks when it comes to DSLR. There's very little compromise when it comes to ergonomics compared to their flagship models unlike the big names. If you want something a bit more compact, then definitely look at the mirrorless options.

Don't get me wrong. I love my a7ii, but everything about this issue discourages me from even trying astrophotography.

Yea there are just a lot of things you don't run into until you use a camera for a while imo. I was a bit jelly when my friend got A7R2 at release, because of all the hype, but that's long gone. First it was compression issues then they fixed it but then the camera became more sluggish. Then there was sensor overheat with long exposure which I think is mostly fixed but hot pixel still shows up sooner than other comparable FF sensors. The last draw for me is I am permanently on continue shooting mode and I just control how much bursting I want, and having it falling back to 12bit is just silly for the amount of money it costed him. (Sure 12bit isn't that big of a deal right now because everything is in SRGB color space but by the time our monitors all switch to having HDR capabilities it will be relevant.) Having to remember how to avoid the camera falling back to 12bit mode is just something that I don't care for. I'm sure it will be fixed one day when the technology advances further and I'll re-evaluate it again.

 

[VitalNerve]

Awesome, thanks again for the recommendations

 

[Ty4on]

I really wanna get a cheap old mirrorless so I can feel more confident giving recommendations.

They're really cheap so they seem like great starter cameras for someone not used to using a viewfinder. You still get all the manual settings and good IQ with a large-ish sensor.