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Been following this with interest. As I’d like to get back into photography now I’m off bikes for a year or so.
The insta 360 pro 2 camera comparison is super intriguing. Looks amazing.
so out of touch on this, some amazing kit available now.
Prices on these compacts are absurd 2nd hand. An xf10 is probably 400 now(I paid 220 new)
If you want absurd, take a look at the prices of Yashica T5's
Or look at a Contax T2. 750quid for a film point and shoot... Nope.
Prices on these compacts are absurd 2nd hand. An xf10 is probably 400 now(I paid 220 new)If you want absurd, take a look at the prices of Yashica T5's
I did that and in the results page saw an Olympus trip for sale, which I think my old man still has somewhere in his loft. Can’t even think of how old it must be now.
Wow, thanks for all the input folks it's incredibly useful.
I'd actually forgotten that I have an Olympus TG-5 that's probably only been used twice and been stored in a draw for the past few years.
I've just put in on charge and I'm going to have a play with it.
I have a TG-5 and it's great for the use I got it for - it's permanently in a belt pouch when I'm in the hills on a bike or on foot. The problem with it for street photography is that whilst it has an Aperture mode, it's not that great. It has two aperture sizes - f2.0 and f2.8, then it uses a built in ND filter for f8.0. This does give a small amount of control over shutter speed, but doesn't affect depth of field at all. I use it with a variable ND filter to give a bit more control, but other than using it for landscapes and general recording of memorable days out I wouldn't use it for anything I wanted to show around.
I also have a Sony RX100 vi and it's great for travel as it's so small and the quality is better than the TG5 although I miss the artistic effects that the TG5 has. You do at least have full manual control over what's going on though.
But since I really got into photography I'd be absolutely lost without my OM3. It's somewhat over your budget, but even older Olympus/OM system cameras will give amazing results compared with the TG5 or any phone. M43 lenses are cheap and plentiful as well - for a starting point for street the 45mm f1.8 is amazing and can be got for just over £100. Pair that with something like this: USED Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III Digital Camera Body - Black | Wex Photo Video
and you'd have a really good, very upgradeable system capable of fantastic results.
When you get into it, you start realising that photos that you thought were pretty good are actually about the same level as the primary school child bringing home a picture they have drawn that Mum sticks on the fridge. Having joined a photographic club, my photography has improved enormously. Have a look here for some of the images taken by members of the club I go to.
2025-2026 Competition Galleries – Perthshire Photographic Society
Some interesting, if conflicting advice above, cheers all.
The brief had evolved a bit, talking to youngest daughter more, she reckons she mostly wants to shoot “Landscapes and Nature” which I reckon might later turn into a bit of street photography too, all of which points to something portable mostly to be used in daylight settings, so a compact zoom of some flavour makes sense to me.
All of the rummaging online now has me interested in buying some used M43 kit for us both to play with, but sensibly that’s a longer term 2026 and beyond project, I just like the variety of (interchangeable) bodies and lenses you can get for not much, and that you’re not tied to one manufacturer. Obviously someone will explain why I’m utterly wrong, but meh, don’t care right now.
At the same time the SO reckons this should just be a £50 gift, while I am counselling that youngest daughter already has access to cheap compact zoom cameras which are basically rubbish and it might be worth a bit more investment to keep her engaged with it.
clock is bow ticking…
By "nature" does she mean animals / wildlife? If so the technical demands are way higher than most other kinds of photography. The adage of the 'its the photographer not the camera" is still true, but it doesnt matter how good your composition is if the subject isnt in focus - and that's made much much much easier with a better camera.
I started on a canon sx70 (~500 bridge camera), it was great in that I always had it with me, but the results were only usable as a record shot, and even then conditions had to be perfect.
I quickly moved onto a 2nd hand Canon 5Dmk2 + sigma 150-600, which is a olde DSLR. Came in at ~1,000 This was a huge improvment on image quality and focus performance. It had less zoomies than the bridge camera, but the 24MP sensor meant I could crop in alot. The big downside was that it was so big and heavy that I wouldnt take it out unless I was explicitly doing photography. Difficult to shoot hand held. No more camera on dog walks.
Unfortunately, after about a year on the DSLR, I borrowed a pals sony mirrorless rig, and again it was night and day how much better it was. Nearly instant autofocus, completely reliable tracking AND it worked in the dark (much less noise at high iso). Even worse, it was half the weight of the DSLR and quite a bit smaller too. It was a ~5k setup. I got so many more keepers and nailed shots that I couldn't dream of. Totally ruined the dslr for me. So, I did an intrest free finance job. No regrets though, its the best thing I've ever bought, and since im too broken to go to the big mountains on my MTB anymore (only gravel pootles for me now), i travel the world with my camera instead of my bike.
^^ this is a Crag Martin, one of the fastest and most eratic of the Hirundines. There's zero chance I'd have got this in a lifetime of trying with the other cameras.
ofc its totally possible to get results with older / less fancy kit, but you'll get way less keepers, and the photos will be more on the abstract / arty / evironmental side (which tbf are the more interesting photos anyway).
I just like the variety of (interchangeable) bodies and lenses you can get for not much, and that you’re not tied to one manufacturer.
You can but I believe best to stick with one manufacturer, to do with how image stabilisation and auto focus works.
That TG7 has piqued my interest 🙂
You can but I believe best to stick with one manufacturer, to do with how image stabilisation and auto focus works.
It depends on the manufacturer and the system. For vintage stuff it doesnt matter, its all manual anyway. More modern kit there's a lot of data going either way between the camera and the lens, and manufacturer's nerf this to a certain extent to increase the lock in for their system. Sony are quite good about this stuff and as a result theres ALOT of 3rd party glass to choose from, tho even then they'll reduce the frame rate for 3rd party (albeit at a healthy 15fps!). Canon are dickheads about it, or at least were when I was looking to move from DSLR to mirrorless! Can't speak for any of the others specifically but in general, 3rd party glass will have limited autofocus speed or no autofocus at all, little / no exif data/ reduced frame rates and some other nonsense.
I moved from a canon 60d to a canon R6 like said above the difference from DSLR to mirror less was phenomenal. I bought an ef-rf adapter and have used all my old ef kit on the rf body. I assume the rf equivalent would be better, but the 17-40mm, 100m f2.8 macro, 70-200 f4 and 300 f4 have all been flawless with improved performance compared to the dSLR body to the extent I'm happy not upgrading the glass just yet.
Micro 4/3 is interchangeable between brands afaik. I bought an ef-rf adapter and have use
I did that and in the results page saw an Olympus trip for sale, which I think my old man still has somewhere in his loft. Can’t even think of how old it must be now
1967 to 1984. So between 58 and 42 years old ish. Metal shutter button is older.
They're good cameras, fully automatic exposure based on a really simple electromechanical design. If it still works then its still an excellent camera. And because its all metal the automation is reliable rather than rubbish plastic cogs and electronics in more modern fayre. And the lens is nice.
As far as camera pricing goes they're on the more sensible "what you get for your money" scales.
If you’re interested in old Olympus 35mm rangefinder cameras, rather than a Trip, look at the 35RC - way better f1.8 lens, better controls and rugged metal body.
I’m tempted to get a TG-7 for my kayaking for those times an otter or eagle pops up in front of me and I can’t quite get close enough with my phone camera.
By "nature" does she mean animals / wildlife?
Currently she mostly likes wandering through the local woods and occasionally shooting interesting trees, or nice sunsets and cloud formations from a hilltop. She also has a billion pictures of our cat, but he’s a very static subject. Basically her idea of “nature” doesn’t move too fast.
Yet another find, bumping about in the loft earlier I found an old Cannon (35mm) that’s not been touched in about 20 years. But the lens on it is an EF fit so still compatible with an old Cannon DSLR body, which are so dirt cheap used it would be rude not to go and buy a 400D or something for relative peanuts just for us both to play with, other EF lenses still seem cheap, but I still think I want to get into M43 Next.
As for Xmas, I think She’ll just be getting something a bit basic in line with the boss’s decree, but she will be getting access to some more interesting used cameras in the new year hopefully.
Aside from that I do also have an Osmo Action 4 which you can get “street grips” like the Video above showed for an insta360 action cam, she’s played with that briefly, but it requires a lot of poking about in touchscreen menus to get it set up for shooting photos (IMO).
That TG7 has piqued my interest 🙂
I bought mine to replace (as my 'tough' outdoorsy compact) my old Fuji XP120, which I loved in a lofi way but the lens was not great and prone to scratching and it was limited to HD video when 4K would serve me better for my use case.
The TG7 is a great little thing. Whether the 'only' 12MP thing is an issue is down to you (and how much you need/want to crop in). It doesn't unduly bother me and is balanced by other features and the VERY good macro modes. I did go all in and buy the fish-eye lens and the zoom extender lens which give me a bit more versatility at the expense of portability and toughness.
I'm currently overthinking things and trying to settle on either the TG7 or my Insta360 One RS as my 'one camera to rule them all' biking and hiking rig. I do have some M43 bodies and too many vintage lenses but they always feel a bit fragile to sling in the biking backpack. TG7 is more 'stills with a bit of video' and the Insta360 is 'video with a bit of stills'. TG7 has a lot more modes and features, but the Insta allows me to adjust ISO on video (if the TG7 does this I haven't found it yet). TG7 is easier to use with lots of physical controls whereas the Insta360 is a small,fiddly touchscreen (or the phone app that chews battery life).
If the TG7 had a full manual mode it would be a no brainer...
Don’t know if I should start a new thread.
budget of 500:max, would love a Fujifilm, was my first camera a long time ago, but too rich for me now.
looking for an all rounder to get back into photography. I’d prefer a camera with a bigger sensor, but portability is important too. Any reason not to go for an Olympus pen e-p7 ? Can get one for circa 350. There’s a tonne of choice second hand, ridiculous amount of options.
Second hand Panasonic LX100 is a great compact camera for not too much money. 24-70 f1.7 f2.8 zoom on a Micro 4/3 sensor. Full manual controls. Fits in a jacket pocket if not your jeans. Have had excellent results out of mine over the years.
So as a compromise with the boss, I've got her a cheaper Refurbed Lumix Bridge camera (LX100 would still be a bit steep for the brief). She had played with my old Fuji bridge (with a dead rear display, but a working EVF) and taken some reasonable shots, said she liked the form with a grip and controls and while she liked using the EVF to shoot, would appreciate a working screen, which seemed fair enough TBH. It's not new or particularly 'Pro' but probably a good beginner tool for a 13 year old. She almost got a Nikon, till I realised it lacked an EVF.
I've also ordered an old used EOS 350D so I'll quietly introduce her to the idea of manually controlling things a bit more with that (It'll be more my toy to play with, a £25/20 year old, knackered body is basically a disposable toy IMO).
If I can coax her into playing more with both Camera's in the new year hopefully by next Christmas we'll be looking at nicer mirrorless bodies and lenses together.
@colournoise thanks for the write up. Just ordered a TG7, it's something I can stuff in a pocket anytime I'm heading out on the bike/on foot and not give a toss about the conditions. I don't tend to use my DSLR/lenses these days unless it's for something specific. Also, I just don't like using my phone camera as it's not particularly great and fiddly to use.
This forum is starting to get expensive, that's a Panasonic bread maker and now this on the back of random threads.
Don’t know if I should start a new thread.
budget of 500:max, would love a Fujifilm, was my first camera a long time ago, but too rich for me now.
looking for an all rounder to get back into photography. I’d prefer a camera with a bigger sensor, but portability is important too. Any reason not to go for an Olympus pen e-p7 ? Can get one for circa 350. There’s a tonne of choice second hand, ridiculous amount of options.
I bought an Olympus Pen-F (the 2016-ish digital, not the original film) a year or so ago and the consensus when I was scouting around online for opinions and contemporary reviews was that a lot of the Pen e-P7/PL8 etc. family were also still very well regarded and really nice looking & feeling cameras to use. I love the PEN-F but they seem to have rocketed, I think partly since the Fujifilm X100VI came out this year at an astronomical price all the previous X100-series and anything with a similar look/feel has been dragged up as a result.
An alternative might also be the Sony A6000/6100/etc. family. I have a Sony A6000 which I'd say is a "better" camera than the Olympus but doesn't look or feel as nice if you like the classic/retro look.
Don’t know if I should start a new thread.
budget of 500:max, would love a Fujifilm, was my first camera a long time ago, but too rich for me now.
looking for an all rounder to get back into photography. I’d prefer a camera with a bigger sensor, but portability is important too. Any reason not to go for an Olympus pen e-p7 ? Can get one for circa 350. There’s a tonne of choice second hand, ridiculous amount of options.
I bought an Olympus Pen-F (the 2016-ish digital, not the original film) a year or so ago and the consensus when I was scouting around online for opinions and contemporary reviews was that a lot of the Pen e-P7/PL8 etc. family were also still very well regarded and really nice looking & feeling cameras to use. I love the PEN-F but they seem to have rocketed, I think partly since the Fujifilm X100VI came out this year at an astronomical price all the previous X100-series and anything with a similar look/feel has been dragged up as a result.
An alternative might also be the Sony A6000/6100/etc. family. I have a Sony A6000 which I'd say is a "better" camera than the Olympus but doesn't look or feel as nice if you like the classic/retro look.
thanks, think I’ve driven myself nuts looking at old, nearly new, new four thirds, compact aps-c etc. now I’m just thoroughly confused as to what to get.
Seen some panny s9 packages for around 700 ish.
Great full-frame compact camera. My bargain of 2025.