Best System: Canon
That said, I would not buy into Canon right now. There is a great deal of upheaval in the digital imaging market and it is unclear where Canon will land.
Runner up: Tie- Nikon & Sony
Nikon has the best wide-angles on the market, and while Sony's system is small compared to Nikon or Canon, their Zeiss lenses are excellent and they have expressed a much greater inclination to innovation. The recently announced unification of the A and E-mount lenses via an adapter means that Sony may soon have the most interesting, if not the best, system.
This results in the ironic situation where I would not buy into my top system, but would buy into my runner up Sony. Nikon's pathetic V1 and J1 evince an arrogant company, and Canon's ignoring of the mirrorless and enthusiast markets evinces a company unwilling to take risks. Sony, for all its limitations, has shown a desire to innovate, lead, and take risks. I appreciate that.
This results in the ironic situation where I would not buy into my top system, but would buy into my runner up Sony. Nikon's pathetic V1 and J1 evince an arrogant company, and Canon's ignoring of the mirrorless and enthusiast markets evinces a company unwilling to take risks. Sony, for all its limitations, has shown a desire to innovate, lead, and take risks. I appreciate that.
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Best Entry-Level SLR Camera: Sony Alpha SLT A57
Ever since Sony released their SLT cameras, I wasn't a fan. I felt that they were taking advantage of the novelty to skimp on other elements of the cameras, be it write speed, buffer size, build quality, or connectivity options.
Their SLT cameras were also behind others vis-a-vis noise performance compliments of the light loss from the translucent mirror. Their last effort, the SLT A77/65 was a full stop behind the NEX-7 in low-light environments, where chroma noise demolished image quality at any ISO above 1600. Combined with a drop in overall sharpness, to an anal-retentive crazy like myself, the SLT's benefits of autofocus during movie recording and rapid shooting speed just weren't enough to tempt.
Thankfully, Sony appears to have grown their technology to the point where their most recent SLT camera, the A57, is a truly viable camera for the price. The SLT fixed mirror gives the A57 an insanely-fast shooting speed (12fps!), the buffer is large, build quality is good, truly, everything is better. ISO performance is slightly behind others for the price, most notably the runner-up Nikon, but by less than half a stop. This is a big difference from the A77. Add into the mix the cross-compatibility of the Sony Alpha lenses and the NEX mount, and you have a serious winner.
Runner Up: Nikon D5100
I almost put the 24Mp Nikon D3200 in this spot, but while it gives you 24 usable megapixels for dirt cheap, the rest of the camera doesn't measure up to the sensor. The Nikon D5100 has superior ISO performance than both the D3200 and the A57, and for most entry-level shooters, they will appreciate better ISO than anything else. Sony's 12fps shooting speed, though, cannot be ignored. You will never miss a moment.
Best Entry-Level SLR Camera: Sony Alpha SLT A57
Ever since Sony released their SLT cameras, I wasn't a fan. I felt that they were taking advantage of the novelty to skimp on other elements of the cameras, be it write speed, buffer size, build quality, or connectivity options.Their SLT cameras were also behind others vis-a-vis noise performance compliments of the light loss from the translucent mirror. Their last effort, the SLT A77/65 was a full stop behind the NEX-7 in low-light environments, where chroma noise demolished image quality at any ISO above 1600. Combined with a drop in overall sharpness, to an anal-retentive crazy like myself, the SLT's benefits of autofocus during movie recording and rapid shooting speed just weren't enough to tempt.
Thankfully, Sony appears to have grown their technology to the point where their most recent SLT camera, the A57, is a truly viable camera for the price. The SLT fixed mirror gives the A57 an insanely-fast shooting speed (12fps!), the buffer is large, build quality is good, truly, everything is better. ISO performance is slightly behind others for the price, most notably the runner-up Nikon, but by less than half a stop. This is a big difference from the A77. Add into the mix the cross-compatibility of the Sony Alpha lenses and the NEX mount, and you have a serious winner.
Runner Up: Nikon D5100
I almost put the 24Mp Nikon D3200 in this spot, but while it gives you 24 usable megapixels for dirt cheap, the rest of the camera doesn't measure up to the sensor. The Nikon D5100 has superior ISO performance than both the D3200 and the A57, and for most entry-level shooters, they will appreciate better ISO than anything else. Sony's 12fps shooting speed, though, cannot be ignored. You will never miss a moment.
Best APS-C SLR Camera: Nikon D7000
As someone who spends all of their time in RAW, the flexibility of the D7000's images is eye-popping. Every other element of the camera is comparable to its competition. With the best general-purpose zooms on the market, Nikon's baby is a fine choice. I prefer the Pentax K5's smaller size and interface, but the lens system is much too small to recommend. (I expect the D7100 to take this position in the near future)
Runner Up: Sony SLT A77
The A77 comes loaded to overflowing with goodies and significantly better video abilities than the D7000, but I dislike the SLT mirror. A significant amount of light and a small amount of sharpness is lost. For an anal-retentive freak like myself, that's just too much.
Two cameras worth consideration are the Pentax K5-II and the Sigma SD-1. Both are very powerful and unique cameras that are otherwise undone by severe limitations. For the K5-II, Pentax's lens selection is garbage. For the Sigma, it is perhaps the quirkiest camera ever made. It is absolutely not a "walkaround" camera.
Two cameras worth consideration are the Pentax K5-II and the Sigma SD-1. Both are very powerful and unique cameras that are otherwise undone by severe limitations. For the K5-II, Pentax's lens selection is garbage. For the Sigma, it is perhaps the quirkiest camera ever made. It is absolutely not a "walkaround" camera.
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Best Full-Frame SLR Camera: Nikon D800
The D800's resolution is beyond any other FF camera on the market. Its color and dynamic range is amazing. And you can even buy the D800E, which eliminates the AA filter, providing even greater resolution. That is one hell of an achievement. I personally would not opt for the D800E, since I take many photos of man-made objects, and I run across nasty moire even with cameras that include a low-pass filter.
The only concern, and it seems funny since it almost sounds like a humble-brag, is that the resolution of this camera requires extreme care. Extreme care. Likewise, it requires expensive glass to be worth it. There are a few sub-$1,000 lenses that will be able to take advantage of this sensor, but not many. If you don't go through with all this, photos will look blurry and nasty at 100%, and that will drive you insane.
The only concern, and it seems funny since it almost sounds like a humble-brag, is that the resolution of this camera requires extreme care. Extreme care. Likewise, it requires expensive glass to be worth it. There are a few sub-$1,000 lenses that will be able to take advantage of this sensor, but not many. If you don't go through with all this, photos will look blurry and nasty at 100%, and that will drive you insane.
Runner-Up: Nikon D600
As with the D800, I have had little/no time with the D600, but that doesn't matter. It's $2,100 for a well-equipped pro-level camera. There are some features that are stripped, but most of them are ones that I wouldn't much miss. Video quality isn't very good, but I've come to expect that from SLR cameras that don't have a Panasonic logo on them.
I am not placing the Canon 6D here because it skimps in areas that the Nikon doesn't. Granted, after finally using the 6D, I am not longer laughing at it, but nor am I impressed with it. It is overpriced and under-specced.
I am not placing the Canon 6D here because it skimps in areas that the Nikon doesn't. Granted, after finally using the 6D, I am not longer laughing at it, but nor am I impressed with it. It is overpriced and under-specced.
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Best Medium Format Camera: I don't know! Do I look like I have the budget to buy MF gear?
Runner Up: Pentax 645D
It's the cheapest MF camera on the market, therefore, the best.
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Best Mirrorless Camera: Sony NEX-7
The NEX-7 is an epic camera. It is amazing. Awe-inspiring. It provides world-class image quality in an impossibly compact body, has excellent controls, great video, and a system that is primed to grow quickly. No other camera in the mirrorless market even comes close to it. It is not fast. I would not want to take this into a super-demanding environment where lightning-quick responses are required, but anything above that is fine.
Runner-Up: Sony NEX-6
The NEX-6 is in many ways better than the NEX-7, but the 7's exceptional sensor keeps it in first place. Still, though, the NEX-6's benefits are numerous. It's faster, slightly better in low-ISO, and comes with a better menu system. And just like the NEX-7, focus peaking and the new Metabones Speed Booster adapter have opened up a world of lenses for this camera.
The Panasonic GH2 was my previous choice for this slot, but the release of the GH3 has not carried on the legacy. It's too expensive and under-performs its Micro 4/3 sibling, the E-M5, in still photography. Adding salt to the wound are the obvious limitations placed on the camera to allow Panasonic to charge more for its higher-end cameras. It's the exact same game that Canon and Nikon play, and it pisses me off. Panasonic says that these are the result of the GH3's primarily video focus, but this actually only makes things worse for Panasonic what with the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera essentially obviating the GH3. Indeed, with the failure of the GH3, I feel as though Micro 4/3's days are numbered. The mount will live on, but the camera companies will not. That said, it's not a bad camera, just not a winner.
I would like to put Fuji's cameras here, since I very much appreciate their innovation and development, but their cameras still have too many limitations.
Likewise, I would like to the put the E-M5 here, because I think it's an excellent "total package" of a camera, but it's quite pricey at $1,000, and the only lens in the Micro 4/3 system that's at all worthwhile is the 75mm f/1.8. If the E-M5 had focus peaking, it may very well have made the runner-up spot, but as it stands, it wallows in obscurity on this list.
The NEX-6 is in many ways better than the NEX-7, but the 7's exceptional sensor keeps it in first place. Still, though, the NEX-6's benefits are numerous. It's faster, slightly better in low-ISO, and comes with a better menu system. And just like the NEX-7, focus peaking and the new Metabones Speed Booster adapter have opened up a world of lenses for this camera.
The Panasonic GH2 was my previous choice for this slot, but the release of the GH3 has not carried on the legacy. It's too expensive and under-performs its Micro 4/3 sibling, the E-M5, in still photography. Adding salt to the wound are the obvious limitations placed on the camera to allow Panasonic to charge more for its higher-end cameras. It's the exact same game that Canon and Nikon play, and it pisses me off. Panasonic says that these are the result of the GH3's primarily video focus, but this actually only makes things worse for Panasonic what with the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera essentially obviating the GH3. Indeed, with the failure of the GH3, I feel as though Micro 4/3's days are numbered. The mount will live on, but the camera companies will not. That said, it's not a bad camera, just not a winner.
I would like to put Fuji's cameras here, since I very much appreciate their innovation and development, but their cameras still have too many limitations.
Likewise, I would like to the put the E-M5 here, because I think it's an excellent "total package" of a camera, but it's quite pricey at $1,000, and the only lens in the Micro 4/3 system that's at all worthwhile is the 75mm f/1.8. If the E-M5 had focus peaking, it may very well have made the runner-up spot, but as it stands, it wallows in obscurity on this list.
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Best Point & Shoot: Sony RX100
We finally have the next generation of point-and-shoot cameras. This market segment has needed a larger sensor for a few years by now, and all we get is Fuji's X10, with a slightly bigger sensor, Nikon's idiotic "1", and Canon's G1X. Forget all of those cameras. Put the RX100 in your bag and never look back. It is the point-and-shoot to own.
Runner-Up: None. Both the Fuji X20 and Olympus XZ-2 are good cameras, but when the Sony RX100 can be had for either less or the same price, only a maniac would buy either of those cameras. You haven't bought the RX100 yet? What's wrong with you?
The Sony RX1 is not here, and never will be, because it is too much of a specialized tool. I don't consider the price an issue, but the fixed lens limits the cameras abilities. Likewise, the new Fuji X100S's fixed lens limits its appeal.
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Best Point & Shoot: Sony RX100
Runner-Up: None. Both the Fuji X20 and Olympus XZ-2 are good cameras, but when the Sony RX100 can be had for either less or the same price, only a maniac would buy either of those cameras. You haven't bought the RX100 yet? What's wrong with you?
The Sony RX1 is not here, and never will be, because it is too much of a specialized tool. I don't consider the price an issue, but the fixed lens limits the cameras abilities. Likewise, the new Fuji X100S's fixed lens limits its appeal.
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Best Third Party Lens: Metabones Speed Booster
The market for lenses is infuriating. It's a mish-mash of closed systems, overpriced products, poor selection, and zero flexibility. It is for that reason that instead of a lens, my choice for this is a product that opens up the lens market. I am of course referring to the Metabones Speed Booster. Once this product is expanded to include the inevitable APS-C Canon, Nikon and Sony mounts, and the 4/3 and Micro 4/3 mount, every person, and I mean every person in a system should buy a Speed Booster.
Runner Up: Samyang 14mm f/2.8
This is one of those lenses that makes you want to hate the major companies. Fuck Leica, fuck Canon, fuck Nikon. The 14mm is not a perfect performer, but its resolution is unmatched at this focal length. Moreover, when Nikon and Canon try to charge $2,000 or more for their 14mm lenses, this Samyang costs $350. It may not be autofocus or image stabilized, but focus peaking alleviates the first problem, and the second problem barely is; who needs IS at 14mm? The Samyang 14mm (and really, Samyang's 85mm and 35mm), are lenses everyone should have.
This is one of those lenses that makes you want to hate the major companies. Fuck Leica, fuck Canon, fuck Nikon. The 14mm is not a perfect performer, but its resolution is unmatched at this focal length. Moreover, when Nikon and Canon try to charge $2,000 or more for their 14mm lenses, this Samyang costs $350. It may not be autofocus or image stabilized, but focus peaking alleviates the first problem, and the second problem barely is; who needs IS at 14mm? The Samyang 14mm (and really, Samyang's 85mm and 35mm), are lenses everyone should have.
Interesting...seems Canon has been having continued problems of late.
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