There are lots of articles on the photographic internet about peoples conversion to the mirrorless faith. About the evils of the DSLR and how mirrorless cameras are the future, the answer to life the universe and everything and the one true way. Usually with some triumphalist nonsense how DSLR's (The Dark side of the force) are finally about to get their comeuppance. It is of course total nonsense, completely ignoring the fact that DSLR's have been very useful to us as photographers and that there are some amazing examples out there. Wonderful picture creating machines that are primarily for stills photographers, but actually get used to shoot movies and television programmes. It wasn't so long ago that the Canon EOS 5D MkII stunned the photographic world with it's ability to create broadcast quality video.
I sold a lot of my mirrorless gear and bought a Nikon D850. At the time I announced that in a blog post I was unsure about what I was going to do with my Olympus E-M1X. I have decided to keep it so I now have the following cameras:-
- Nikon F6 35mm SLR film camera.
- Nikon D850 Full Frame DSLR Digital camera
- Leica M10 Full Frame Rangefinder Mirrorless Camera
- Olympus E-M1X m4/3 Digital camera.
So four different types of camera. And perhaps surprising for someone who has been a great advocate of m/43 cameras I have bought a DSLR. And very good it is too.
Now I've never gotten into this DSLR rubbishing. I don't bang on about them being the work of the devil and how their obsolescence is both inevitable and to be applauded. And I see no reason for the hostility about them in some sections of the photographic internet. As far as I'm concerned that is silly, pointless and yet another way to justify peoples purchasing decisions. Top class DSLR's are robust, reliable, fast and easy to use, have battery life unheard of in mirrorless cameras and over the years have been refined and improved to such an extent that they are the cameras of choice for the majority of professional photographers.
The Nikon D850 is a fantastic camera. With it's 45MP sensor it produces incredibly detailed images and is a delight to use. Yes it's bulky, but when I'm out using it, I just don't notice. It's well laid out, easy to use and while it does have live view, it's designed to be mainly used via the optical viewfinder. And yes EVF's have improved over the years but looking at the world through a non electric system still has something unique to offer.
There is also the point that many mirrorless cameras are very expensive. The Panasonic S1H costs around £1000 more than the Nikon D850. OK the Panasonic has a lot more tech. inside it, but I don't need most of it. I am a stills photographer who shoots the occasional bit of video and these days it is a bit. So most of what's in the S1H is irrelevant for my needs. It's also a bigger and heavier camera than my D850, which makes a nonsense of the supposed size and weight advantages of mirrorless cameras over DSLR's.
There is also the fact that many of us started with film SLR's. So we are used to the idea of mirrors flipping up and the clunk of the shutter. And I'm no different. I originally bought the D850 after using my Nikon F6 35mm film camera. I bought the F6 as I wanted a brand new film camera, to last me a long time. I hadn't used a Nikon (D)SLR for some time and I enjoyed using it so much that I wanted the same experience for my digital work.
So, yes, this is really all about personal choice. There will be many who have gone the other way DSLR>Mirrorless and mirrorless cameras may well eventually cause a significant drop in sales for DSLR's. But that hasn't happened yet and I'm happy to take advantage of the fact that DSLR's have been so refined over the years that they are now incredibly effective and efficient cameras. And in some senses with the proliferation of mirrorless could be said to start becoming cool. I end with an anecdotal story.
I was in an apple store recently and was discussing with an assistant how a piece of gear would work for me as a photographer. He told me that he and many of his colleagues in the store were keen photographers. Being a typical photographic nerd my first question was 'What gear do you all use?' The answer was Nikon and Canon DSLR's. Now this obviously proves nothing, except to say that even those at the cutting edge of domestic technology see a role for the DSLR. As ever, rumours of it's death may be somewhat premature.
