JJRoss0 Loc: Lexington, KY

I have a Nikon D5200 with a Tamron 18-270mm zoom lens. I LOVE this camera, takes SUPERB pictures and Nikon has made it really easy to operate (even for "the wife".) Recently, I've been having problems with my shoulder and carrying this has been difficult.

Should I go with a mirrorless camera for less weight and, if so, which one do you suggest? The lens may be the issue for the weight; is there a similar quality zoom lens that has a lighter weight?

(I did Canon back in my 35mm days but really like the Nikon.)

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

Changing cameras and keeping the zoom range isn't going to save you appreciable weight. How about looking for a different lens? The first step might be to check and see what focal lengths you actually use. Maybe you don't need to go all the way out to 270 or all the way down to 18.

Once you figure that out, you might be able to come up with a less radical option.

Also keep in mind that if you should move to full frame, you are going to need to have almost 400mm to do what you do now at 270. And by the way...how much do you use 18mm?

Also...is your situation permanent, or do you expect to correct it with surgery or injections? That might make a difference in what you decide.

JJRoss0 Loc: Lexington, KY

Thanks for the quick reply. I'd say that, at MOST, about 5% of my shots are at the 18mm end... maybe a little higher % on the 270 side. Maybe a shorter range would take off some weight and put the old lens in the bag (bet I never pull it out!)

The shoulder is an old-age thing. When you start in the late 60s and now into 70, things seem to fall apart. I've had the shots but they don't do a thing. Going to the Y and doing weights does seem to alleviate it some. Amazing you can press reps of 80 to 100 pounds but can't carry a 4 pound camera!

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

A long time ago when I was on Windows, I used ExposurePlot. You put a copy of all your images into one folder and aim ExposurePlot at that folder. It will go through all the EXIF data and plot the frequency of settings. As I recall it would plot focal length, shutter speed, ISO and maybe aperture. From that you can determine what focal lengths you use most often. In my case there were peaks at short and long focal lengths and a dip in the middle so I concentrated on acquiring short and long lenses. Once I finally got a full range I didn't use ExposurePlot any more. I don't know if it's available for the Mac.

I have had arthritis develop in knees and shoulders. The left shoulder has no cartilage left so it's frequently sore. I had a shot in both shoulders. They lasted about 6 -8 weeks. Rather than get frequent shots I started taking Advil. One a day in the morning. My doctor recommended Acetaminophen instead of Ibuprofen so I tried it. It took twice as much Acetaminophen as it took Ibuprofen for the same effect so I went back to Ibuprofen. Long term use can have effects on your liver and the maximum dose is the same for each so I figured that the one that was effective at a lower dose was the one to use. Three years later I take two 200mg Advil a day, one morning and one night. Sometimes I miss the evening pill and in the morning it is obvious that it is still effective. The Advil doesn't cure the pain but makes it tolerable.

I also tried a CBD Gummie, two a day. The first day was great -- it knocked out the pain. The second day the pain was tolerable. The third day it did nothing. I went back to Advil.

I would expect that different people would have different results so you might want to experiment a bit. But let your doctor know about your results because medicines sometimes interact and (s)he might have other recommendations.

The shoulder has been a problem since I was around 60. I'm now 84 and have been taking the Advil regularly for 2 years. Before that I just lived with it.

Strodav Loc: Houston, Tx

Look at micro fourthird cameras, which means Olympus and Panasonic, but you should do your own research and do what is right for you. Don’t let anyone spend your money for you.

BudsOwl Loc: Upstate NY and New England

I feel your pain. I have 4 activities that have been limited or eliminated because of pain. I no longer curl because of a hip and knee problem. After falling twice in the last season I curled (2021-2022 season when I had turned 91 in August 2021) I decided to give that up. Then I stopped playing golf when each time I swung a club the pain in my hip was excruciating (although I did drive the cart for my playing partner and would throw my ball onto the green and putt). When it came to bowling, I no longer could do a four step approach so I would walk up to near the foul line and stop then step with my left foot as I swung my arm and threw the ball. For photography I. O longer hike the trails looking for eagles and other birds and flowers and unusual trees and landscape. I sold my my Canon 5D IV and a number of lenses and bought a Canon RP and now do a little walking using a cane and take occasional neiborhood shots plus I have four great grandkids and when my daughters drive me to see them or when they come to visit My pain control is 2extra strength Tylenol with breakfast and two more at bedtime. I also get a cortisone shot about once every four months or so which alleviates my hip pain for close to three months.
Bud

JJRoss0 Loc: Lexington, KY

Thanks for the medical response... I'll try that. I've been using Acetaminophen but it really hasn't done much. I have noticed that when I regularly go to the Y, it seems to add to the range of motion.

JJRoss0 Loc: Lexington, KY

Thanks. Good advice!

JJRoss0 Loc: Lexington, KY

Thanks. We should all be so lucky at 91 (although 91 is a lot closer than it was). My wife likes to do a lot of traveling and I've enjoyed taking her "reference photos" for her art work. This last trip, though, had me rethinking my equipment.

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

You have received good advice from larryepage, DirtFarmer, and Strodav, both equipment and medical. My contribution will be toward equipment.

Iarryepage is correct the lenses add the most size, weight, and cost to a system. Then there are adapters that may be needed to accommodate the mirrorless change. And Strodav is correct: no matter what advice we give you, you still have to check the information out for what is in your best interest.

Format wise, 4/3rds saves one the most in size, weight, and cost. Right now, OMDS (formerly Olympus) and Panasonic offer the best in 4/3rds format. I am will only going to suggest weatherproof systems since that is what I have using since 2011 (shoot in any rain and snow without any rain gear). There are the older E-M5 mkII / mkIII and E-M1 mkII/ mkIII on the used market that are excellent with Super Control Panel menu (very easy menu) and a harder scroll menu (can be learned). There is the new OM-5 and OM-1 with Super Control Panel menu and a newer easier scroll menu. These bodies run 1.3 pounds and have a minimum of 5.5 stops of image stabilization or more. Lenses that are in the same "ballpark" range as the 18- 270 are the 14-150 f4/5.6 mkII, 12-40 f2.8 Pro, 12-45 f4 Pro, 12-100 f4 Pro IS, and 12-200 f3.5/6.3 (double the 4/3rds focal length to equal the full frame focal length angle of view: 4/3rds 14-150 has the same angle of view as 28-300 in full frame). The 12-40 and 12-45 are short on the telephoto end but are extremely sharp lenses. The weight of these lenses are 0.63, 0.84, 0.56, 1.23, and 1.0 pounds. With a 4/3rds body and one of the lenses, one can have a system that weights from 1.86 to 2.53 pounds.

Panasonic has similar bodies and lenses. Again, I would choose a weatherproof combination with similar IS levels. One other versatile to OM and Panasonic is one can interchange bodies and lenses. One can put an OM lens on a Panasonic body or a Panasonic lens on an OM body.

And, again, be sure to do your "homework" before you buy anything.

JJRoss0 Loc: Lexington, KY

Thanks for the info. I definitely need to do a lot of research and was hoping that y'all could send me on a good path.

MacroTheory Loc: Central Arkansas, USA.

Take a serous look at a 'Micro Four Thirds' camera setup. Also referred to as MFT, M43, M4:3, etc. You may already know all about this but just incase, I am going to drop a few nuggets of info to consider for comparison. MFT cameras and lenses are about half the weight and size of Full Frame systems! It might be perfect for you! The sensor is about half the size of Full Frame and with that the Megapixels are usually around half as well.. but dont let that scare you.

Because of this, that means it has a 2x crop factor. Your D5200 uses a APS-C sensor (which is about an estimated 1.4x to 1.6x crop factor) so your 18-270 lens is effectively a 36-540mm focal length compared to full frame. I have both a full frame camera and an MFT camera.

My Full Frame is a Nikon Z7. I shoot with a Nikon Z 24-70mm f/2.8 and now the new Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 telephoto. BUT OMG ITS SO HEAVY compared to my MFT setup which is the Olympus OM-D EM-1 Mark 3. (Olympus is now called "OM System").

I have 3 lenses for it. The 12-45mm f/4 PRO (this is equivalent to 24-90mm on Full Frame... I just wish I would have spent a little more and got the f/2.8 version since doesn't do too great in low light but is tack sharp outdoors). The 60mm 2.8 Macro... (Full Frame equivalent 120mm). And my favorite lens, the 40-150 f/2.8 (Full Frame equivalent 80-30).

My wife also loves shooting with the MFT because it doesn't hurt her wrists. We have a newborn now, and after hours of bottle feeding... we both feel as if we have tennis elbow or carpel tunnel so it's not so comfortable to grab a heavy camera anymore.

If you look at any used Bodies, steer clear of Mark 1's and Mark 2's of most models. They are good bodies, but usually lack a USB-C port and the ability to charge the battery in side the body. But that's a personal preference for me... Don't be afraid of buying used lenses either!

I took some pictures of humming birds on the back patio last week using the Olympus with the 40-150 lens (hummers were about 6-8 feet away) that came out pretty decent using the "Pro Capture" mode. Attached are 2 images, both the same... one is not cropped, the other cropped.

{EXIF}
ISO: 800
Aperture: F/3.5
Shutter Speed: 1/2500
Flash Power: No flash.

--------------------

Green Lynx Spider
https://www.instagram.com/p/CwHUIowAgSo/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
{EXIF}
ISO: 400
Aperture: F/8
Shutter Speed: 1/30
Flash Power: 1/32
Five Image Stack in body, handheld.

{EQUIPMENT USED}
Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark 3
Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 60mm f/2.8 (+ Raynox DCR250 on first image).
Godox V350o fitted with Cygnustech macro flash diffuser.

(Download)


(Download)

niteman3d Loc: South Central Pennsylvania, USA

I have a few Nikons so I can give an idea for each of the lighter choices... none of them are new options and all have some sort of strap. Pretty close to your setup is the D5500 with a Tamron 16-300 at a little over two pounds six ounces. The Nikon Z50 with the Z 18-140 lens weighs one pound twelve ounces, but the lightest option I have is the Nikon 1 V3 with a 10-100 (2.7 crop factor) zoom which weighs one pound eight ounces. Having said all that, I still prefer the D7500 on a monopod which is considerably heavier, but these days we usually just stick to flowers, birds, and insects that we shoot either from the car or very near the car. It's surprising the number of good subjects we find near parking lots or in our neighborhood on short strolls. Getting older can be a pain. Good luck!

JJRoss0 Loc: Lexington, KY

Those are some amazing pics. Thanks for sharing.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Most mirrorless cameras come in similar weight to what you are currently using. So I am suggesting a Sony HX99. Has a Zeiss 24-720 mm zoom, pop up viewfinder, flash for auto fill, easy four way panoramic shots, shoots RAW, can shot in manual. All of this in a very light weight package. This is my main travel camera.
I can print to a 20x30 prints that shows sharp details. What more could you need.