Digital 135 format photography in compact sizes this week

Remember when we could go out and buy a 135 format compact camera from US$50 to US$150?  The 1980s and 1990s were full of them and, for the most part, they delivered impressive images for not much money.

When digital technology arrived for consumers in the second half of the 1990s, it was expensive, low resolution, and generally too slow to be completely useful.  I bought an Olympus D300L for around US$999, which had a resolution of 1024x768.  That was decent resolution as a lot of computer monitors were still 800x600 at that time.

A lot has changed and you can actually get decent photos out of the latest compact cameras but they're still not very good.

Sigma tried to change that with their DP1 and DP2 fixed lens compact cameras.  Giving them larger sensors helped but their operational idiosyncrasies make them a pain to use.  They really could use a makeover and any of the camera makers, no matter how bad could make them better.

Sony introduced the RX1 this week.  It uses a 135 format-sized (35mm to consumers, but 135 format was 24x36mm) sensor in a compact body.  At US$2800, it's hardly for everyone and a far stretch from those US50 compacts.  That's about the same price as a Nikon D800, but it is compact.  It should prove interesting in changing thinking about what size body goes with what size sensor.

More affordable and soon to be available, the Nikon D600 has been announced.  It's a 135 format-sized sensor in what is essentially a D7000 body at about US$2100.  The D7000 is a good, smaller body camera that goes up against the Canon 60D, and readily takes sales away from the aging D300s.

The D7000 is weather-sealed and the D600 apparently increases that to a level consistent with the D800.  You won't need one of those cutesy clip-on umbrellas to keep your equipment dry.  Just remember that your lenses have to be weather-sealed as well or you'll be spending double your money on that lens that caught your eye when you're out shooting in the rain.

I'm particularly interested in the D600 for wide angle work.  I still like my Olympus E-1 and E-5 for telephoto work but the widest option is a 7-14mm f/4.0.  It's an impressive lens but at a multiplication factor of 2.0, that's not all that close.  The maximum aperture also precludes it from a lot of indoor work.  If I can get a D600 with a wider angle (weather-proofed) zoom, I'd be pleased.  I suspect the combination wouldn't be any heavier than what the E-5 and the 7-14mm would be.  It's only in the telephoto area where Olympus and the E-system really shine.

I'm interested to see more and more compact bodies containing bigger sensors, but mostly we need to get back to reason.  We no longer need huge digital bodies to create great images.  Those pseudo-professional fanatics whose Canikon camera bodies have the kit lens and are set to Auto mode with auto focus are crying about the changes, but they'll find that they'll be in the minority, as professionals seem to be picking up mirror-less system cameras for holiday.

Nikon D600?

The camera business seems most bizarre now.  Low end cameras gain the most pixels.  Mirror-less cameras are crashing the top 10 in Japan, taking spots away from dSLRs.  Point-and-shoot cameras are looking to replace dSLRs, and phone cameras are looking as good as point-and-shoot cameras for most people.

Then, there is this odd rumour about a Nikon D600.

It supposedly has an FX-sized sensor, meaning that it's roughly the size of a 135 format film frame or 24x36mm.  Looking at the model number, I'd guess that they're fitting it between the coming D400 (or forgetting that entirely) and the still-available D700, to have a fourth FX dSLR.  Of course, it would be economical, maybe priced around US$2000.  That might push the D400 down to meet the Canon 60D, retire the D90, update the D7000 to use the D3200's sensor, etc., and also retire the D5100.

Are the loud people who frequently call for a 135 format-sized sensor ready for a camera body that actually has one?  Will they be ready for the back aches of carrying all the big and heavy equipment?  I'm cynical, so I think they'll be complaining about the price of the appropriate lenses.  You're probably not going to get the best resolution out of a 30 year old craptacular Sigma lens that you got from your grandfather but they're not likely to spend the money to commit to the format.  However, I'm cynical, so maybe they'll prove me wrong.

I would welcome a less expensive 135 format body for wide angle work.  As things are relative, the body size will be big for a while, if not for much more than the size of the mirror and the pentaprism.  If large is suddenly light, I'm sure many would be pleased, or shocked, or both.

Nikon has been winning back their advocates since the D300 arrived.  They've shown a willingness to stand up for their business and show that they're not just a company with a long photographic history.  By the end of this year, it should be quite a lot more interesting.

Well, to update this, the D600 arrived and it's everything I would hope to have in an economy shooter for wide angle work.  The D7000 is a good product on which to base a revision, much like the D300 gave birth to the D700.  I'm impressed Nikon.  Keep going, but one thing, fewer bodies make decisions easier, and please, please, make it apparent which lenses are weather-proofed.

Update: Seeing the Canon 6D, Nikon shouldn't be too worried.  I'd think they'd be laughing, actually, but they can't afford to waste time laughing, really.  Eventually, Canon may make a comeback--Nikon did.  Funny how the D7100 is more advanced in AF and other areas than the D600, but since there is no D400, that makes sense.