Advice requested: In 2021 my wife and I are planning to take a 2-3 week trip to Europe. I’d like to focus on the trip, and not lug my overweight bag with my Nikon D850, lenses, flash...

Jgrosso Loc: Long Island, NY

In 2021 my wife and I are planning to take a 2-3 week trip to Europe. I’d like to focus on the trip, and not lug my overweight bag with my Nikon D850, lenses, flash, etc. Can anyone suggest a single camera, that’s easy to carry with good image quality? I’d prefer a camera with a viewfinder and one lens, preferably zoom. I’ve had pocket Canon and Nikon cameras, but not in the last 10 years or so. Not sure what the current state of that art is. Please give me your thoughts. Thank you!

47greyfox Loc: on the edge of the Colorado front range

I faced the same dilemma last year, as did a friend. I choose my Canon G16 for the street shots and G3x (with EVF) for most everything else. Didn’t miss my DSLRs. I’ve since replaced the G16 with a refurbished G1x iii. My friend did the entire trip with a Sony RX100 iv. Another choice might be the Canon G5x ii or the Lumix FZ1000 ii.

jwreed50 Loc: Manassas, VA

I went through the exact same decision calculus recently. Like you, my wife and I are planning a trip to Europe in 2021 and I don't want to carry my D850 or other digital cameras with interchangeable lenses, so I started looking at alternatives.

I ended up with a Leica Q2. Has a fixed 28mm lens, 47 MP sensor. You can electronically "zoom" (i.e., crop) to 35, 50 or 75mm focal length. I have used it for about 3 weeks now, and the image quality is superb. It's a nice compact camera that's easy to carry all day -- to me, it's pretty much the "perfect" travel camera.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

if I were doing that trip, my first choice would be the D850 with a 24~70 f/2.8 lens. Perhaps a CP, several batteries, charger with voltage adapter, and a number of memory cards.
--Bob

Jgrosso wrote:

In 2021 my wife and I are planning to take a 2-3 week trip to Europe. I’d like to focus on the trip, and not lug my overweight bag with my Nikon D850, lenses, flash, etc. Can anyone suggest a single camera, that’s easy to carry with good image quality? I’d prefer a camera with a viewfinder and one lens, preferably zoom. I’ve had pocket Canon and Nikon cameras, but not in the last 10 years or so. Not sure what the current state of that art is. Please give me your thoughts. Thank you!

oakvillebob

My wife and I went to Ireland and Portugal last fall I carried a 7500 with 16/80 which was perfect for me. I also brought my 70-300 but used it once only because I brought it

sabfish

Sony RX-100. Small, light, one inch sensor; newer models have an impressive zoom range. Downside: Expensive.

dukepresley

At those prices, I probably would opt for my current Z6 & add a 24-200 lens...I am still using my already-owned Nikon 24-70 f/2.8 with the adapter, but that is too heavy at my age.

tomad Loc: North Carolina

The Sony RX10 II would be a good choice. It's light and has a fixed zoom that goes from 24mm to 200mm. Here's a used one in excellent condition from a very reputable company for $600. You could probably take use it on the trip and sell it for around the same amount when you returned if you didn't want to keep it.

https://www.keh.com/shop/sony-cyber-shot-rx10-ii-20-2-megapixel-bridge-camera.html?aid=367694-2266333&utm_source=google_shopping&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=Sony&utm_term=367694-2266333&rmatt=tsid:|cid:1726193671|agid:67652216636|tid:pla-951531002301|crid:336794645941|nw:g|rnd:26844280859388435|dvc:c|adp:&gclid=CjwKCAjw5Kv7BRBSEiwAXGDElc9b4AQR1nnUXQX8uqRa_0B12VZJ9TlhRR3yl0kPaL9kBCrFIgJjJRoChpMQAvD_BwE

CWGordon

Though I no longer have one, I thought the Olympus OM-D line was awesome. High quality of build, reasonable new and used prices, good variety of lenses from which to choose, decent amount of pixels and a sensor of a larger size than the pocket cameras offer. Very reliable cameras you can count on to finish the trip.

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

Jgrosso wrote:

In 2021 my wife and I are planning to take a 2-3 week trip to Europe. I’d like to focus on the trip, and not lug my overweight bag with my Nikon D850, lenses, flash, etc. Can anyone suggest a single camera, that’s easy to carry with good image quality? I’d prefer a camera with a viewfinder and one lens, preferably zoom. I’ve had pocket Canon and Nikon cameras, but not in the last 10 years or so. Not sure what the current state of that art is. Please give me your thoughts. Thank you!

I don't know how many vacations and other trips I have successfully handled with a simple 35mm viewfinder camera. There were some things I couldn't do, but in general, I came home with a lot of good pictures. If I were in your shoes and thinking like you are thinking, I'd probably take my D850 and maybe a 35mm f/1.8 lens, figuring I could crop as necessary when I got home. If I were waffling on that, I might take a 50mm lens instead. If I were feeling really radical (and wanted to irritate folks here), I'd still take the D850 (or maybe a D500) with an 18-200mm DX zoom and shoot in square format (24x24mm). I'd come back from that trip with better images than 95% or more of other folks, even with the zoom.

47greyfox Loc: on the edge of the Colorado front range

larryepage wrote:

I don't know how many vacations and other trips I ... (show quote)

Your suggestion is what the OP clearly stated what he wants to avoid.

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

47greyfox wrote:

Your suggestion is what the OP clearly stated what he wants to avoid.

Not if he just takes the camera, one lens, a battery, and a charger. No flash is needed with the D850, nor is a whole bag of "stuff." There are always other options. The big one that D850 shooters block out is the possibility of putting something other than an "ultimate" lens of some sort on the camera. It doesn't have to be a 10 pound albatross.

47greyfox Loc: on the edge of the Colorado front range

larryepage wrote:

Not if he just takes the camera, one lens, a battery, and a charger. No flash is needed with the D850, nor is a whole bag of "stuff." There are always other options. The big one that D850 shooters block out is the possibility of putting something other than an "ultimate" lens of some sort on the camera. It doesn't have to be a 10 pound albatross.

Okay, my bad.....

tradio Loc: Oxford, Ohio

If you do not have a limit, check out the Leica Q2.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

Cameras we have successfully traveled with:

Sony RX100 (Original version). Wouldn't shoot 4K video.
Panasonic LX100 -- Shoots 4K video, has a larger sensor and a Leica lens. There is a newer version.
Panasonic ZS100 -- My wife's camera. Has a 1" sensor and good zoom range. Her images are all very good. There is a newer model.

Small cameras can provide better travel photos because they are unobtrusive. Point a big DSLR at people and watch them run or hide.