I own a DSLR (Nikon D850) and a mirrorless camera (Fujifilm X-T3) and I vacillate between the two when thinking about whether I could live with just one system. Often I'll take say a bird photo with the Nikon, using the 600mm Sigma, and marvel at the speed of focus and the ability to crop in really close and get a good shot that fills the whole frame. Then I'll take some shots with the Fuji and marvel at the great colours and the fantastic resolution. If we disregard the weight advantage of the mirrorless and the (questionable) advantage of being able to see the image before you take the photo then it comes down to IQ.

So I decided to shoot the same shot with both cameras, making everything as equal as possible, using good quality lenses for both, and then compare. Both shots were taken in the kitchen, on a tripod, with small apertures, low ISOs and 10 second SS. The Nikon has the advantage of a low ISO 64.

There's not a huge amount in it but the winner is clearly the Nikon (and rightfully so given it's FF status and high megapixel count) but if you didn't have both images side by side to compare I don't think it would be clear cut. They are very close.

So it looks like I'll continue to vacillate :-)

I have an X-T3 and have it configured to use the front command dial to change the aperture (yeah I know that's very old school, and I'm happy to admit I'm still living in the DSLR world). But it works for me.

Overall I'm very happy with this setup but the only complaint I have is to use it in this way I have to set the aperture ring to "A" and it's just too easy to accidentally knock it off this setting.

I've been thinking of putting some sticky tape over it to hold it (or maybe some superglue ). Has anyone else come up with a smarter way to do this?

Thanks!

Our house has been the target of a lot of cleaning since Safer at Home started not quite four months ago. So far, none of it has threatened nor come close to any photographic equipment, but it has nevertheless set me thinking, especially in light of the question asked in a recent post around why photographers shave multiple cameras.

I have been fortunate to progress through a number of cameras since switching from film in 2006. That certainly doesn't take me back to the beginning of digital photography, but it does reach way back into the period of more rapid development and progress in the medium. My recent thinking has been this: If you were required to go forward with only one digital camera and one lens, which ones would you choose? I realize that some of us may have only one camera, and may have only had one camera. Others of us may have worked through more different models than were ever necessary (or even beneficial). As an example, here is a list showing the path that I have followed. I'm only going to list cameras, because my lens library is pretty typical. It covers 14mm - 500mm, with f/2.8 capability at 200mm and below. And there are some slower lenses also. Anyway... here is the camera list. I still have those below the solid line.

Nikon P3 (zoom point & shoot from somewhere around 2005 used at work)
Fuji S3 Pro
Nikon D200
Nikon D300
_________________
Nikon D300s
Nikon D810
Nikon D850
Nikon D500

These are listed in the order that I acquired them.

So here are the rules (or guidelines, for those of you who don't like rules) for responding.

--You don't have to provide a list like the one I made just above. It was meant to illuminate your thinking.
--The camera you choose must be one that you own or have previously owned.
--No salivating over some camera that has always been on your wishlist (although you can also tell us about it)
--Some statement validating your choice is required. Doesn't have to be a dissertation, just give us an idea.
--Keep it civil. This question is about what you would do. It does not require that you critique someone else's choice, especially mine.

One of the reasons that I am posing this to the group is that my choice was a little bit of a surprise to me. I would keep the D500 and my 24-120 mm f/4 Nikkor lens. The reasons are pretty simple...outstanding images, reasonable file sizes, durable construction, excellent performance, high "usability." The 24-120 lens provides a good mix of flexible performance, reasonable focal length range, and good quality images. Is the combination perfect? NO, but it is manageable and will cover a very high percentage of what I shoot with a little bit of accommodation. I'll have to adjust my approach to night sky photography, but will not have to give it up. Things will just require a little more work and time.

I'm curious if any of you make a surprising choice when you stop to think about it. I'm anxious to read what you would do.

When you look at the 1:1 pixels, are you disappointed by lack of sharp details? If yes, what are you doing about it? Most every day here at UHH, some aspect of the solution is presented. I've had success with the following tips:

1. Place a single AF point (or group / zone) specifically over the subject of the image. Do not focus someplace else in the frame and expect the exact subject to be in focus by repositioning the camera after focusing someplace else in the frame.

2. Use the camera's AI Servo (Canon) / Continuous-servo AF (Nikon) focus setting always, without regard to whether the subject is moving or stationary. See BBF (Back Button Focus) below.

3. Shoot in short bursts of 2- to 5-images.

Some commentary before continuing. Idea 1 rejects focus and recompose via the center AF point. Idea 2 leverages the advanced capabilities of your advanced camera body and the system's electronic auto focus. Idea 3 is clearly spray and pray to most. If you care more about old school technique over new school results, fine. It's your camera producing your results.

Now for the rest of us, consider these additional ideas for sharply focused images:

4. Investigate the sharpest apertures for each of your lenses.

5. Keep IS / VR active 100% on your lenses, except if / when this technology is known to be an issue with your specific lens model.

6. Hold your camera properly and / or shoot from a tripod.

7. Configure your camera for Back Button Focus (BBF) to enhance the idea #2 for using AI Servo / Continuous-servo configuration.

8. When you can, shoot at your camera's base ISO, or at the lowest ISO possible for the situation.

Each example image, below provided as attached files in the replies below, shows the original crop from the camera, with a 1:1 crop of the details. The images all follow / demonstrate most (or all) 8 of the ideas above.

Regarding Spray and Pray

You might ask, "what do I need 5 images for?" You're right, you don't. You need only 1 sharp image, pick that 1 and delete the rest: they're digital, they're free except for the time needed to consider the individuals within the group and discard those unneeded.

Remember, we measure the results in photography, not the effort. So, if you go 0 for 1 in sharp focus, you are what your records says you are. When you present only your sharply focused images, it doesn't matter if these results are 1 for 10, 3 in 100, etc. Your record is undefeated at 1 for 1 or 3 for 3, and so forth. We all know: 1 is better than none when it comes to sharply focus images.

Investigate the sharpest apertures for each of your lenses

If you've read any lens reviews, you've probably seen some form of "sharpness improves in the corners at f/x". Different lenses and different reviewers have slightly different forms of this comment. Some lenses need to be stepped down just 1-stop. Some lenses are as sharp wide open as any smaller aperture. Many zoom lenses are significantly different at different apertures across the entire zoom range.

If you go through a testing exercise 'looking at the corners', the technique I want to mention is shooting your subject at a 45-degree angle. The example below takes a crop of the corner of an earlier image to show the difference as compared to where the lens was specifically focused. As a manual focus lens, the digital Sony didn't receive the aperture value from the lens. The lens was probably f/5.6, maybe f/8. The lens was not set to f/11 that is likely to produce 'sharp in the corners' result. The composition wasn't intended for 'sharp in the corners'. Rather, this composition was a more natural view where the image is sharp where your eyes are meant to fall in the frame and a natural softening away from that sharp point of interest.

As you test / consider your own equipment, consider this 45-degree framing to give yourself details in the corners of the image to consider, whether testing with building or landscapes. Your 'kit lens' is likely everywhere as sharp as any of the examples presented in the replies in this thread, your lens just has to be shot at an aperture that best demonstrates that sharpness. Use a tripod (or handheld with the VR / IS active) and create a series of test images to confirm which aperture(s) to use. View those images at the 100% zoom on your computer. Look at the details and make notes. Then, investigate and utilize the 7 other ideas presented above.

Regarding Back Button Focus (BBF)

For the BBF, you have to reprogram a button on the camera. On more advanced models, almost every button on the camera body can be set to something else via the camera's menu options. For the entry-level models, such as the EOS Rebel line, the options to change the functionality of the external buttons are limited to “custom functions”. Consult your camera model or u-tube for your specific model for the reconfiguration / customization process. If you have the focus ‘beep’ active on your camera, you’ll likely need to disable this feature.

After configuring your camera for BBF, you'll grab the camera and use your thumb to enable focus by pressing and holding the a button on the back the camera with AI Servo. You release the shutter with your index finder as normal.

This is BBF. You begin to use your camera as follows:

a. Grab camera.
b. As you raise the camera your eye, enable focusing with your thumb pressing the BBF button.
c. Frame / zoom and release the shutter with your index finger. Keep pressing the BBF button the entire time.
d. Release your thumb when you lower the camera from your eye.

Keep in mind your eyes operate in continuous (AI Servo) focus, whether you're following a moving subject or look at a static subject. You're updating your camera to operate in the same manner so where the AF point / zone is positioned, the camera is continuously focusing there.

No one needs to update to BBF. The key point is updating the camera to the 'continuous' focus mode, whether you use your thumb or index finger to focus.

Will these techniques rundown my battery?

In a word: No

Your camera, specifically the DSRL, and camera battery are optimized for shooting. The main drain on your camera's battery beyond the basic operation of capturing and storing images is the display playback and / or shooting in live view. Running the AF and IS has no material difference on battery life. Chimping your images, culling in the field and / or shooting in Live View is what burns your battery life.

Convergence of vertical and horizontal lines is a natural visual phenomenon. Your camera sees what your eyes see. Some correction for certain architectural subjects is acceptable and makes the image appear more as our mind’s eye sees it. But trying to correct the convergence on an image of a skyscraper, for example, would result in an image that is unacceptable, IMO. It is odd in a way that horizontal convergence is acceptable but we seem to feel that vertical convergence needs to be corrected as a defect or shortcoming in an image.

Stan