BobbyT Loc: Southern California

I would like to encourage all you old codgers to quit complaining about your diminished strength and capabilities.
I am 78 yrs. old and I go to a fitness center 3 days a week. Of course I am not the strong athletic person I was but I can still carry my photo equipment without getting cramps. Come on you guys, start exercising and quit complaining, and enjoy your leisure time and your favorite hobby.

gary northrop

I'll be 80 years old in August and have no trouble handling my various full frame Canons and telephotos, including a EOS 5DSR and the Tamron 150 -- 600mm. I attribute this to going to the gym at least twice/week for many years, doing 30 minutes of arm and shoulder exercises with dumbbells and cable machines. I can also still fish competitively for 9 hours/day, constantly casting, without experiencing the fatigue many younger anglers complain about. I've never played athletic sports and have the silhouette of a couch potato -- but believe me, exercise works!

When THAT day eventually comes, I'll pick up my wife's Canon SX50, which does about a good a job as all my fancy equipment.

John_F Loc: Minneapolis, MN

Thank you, Bruce. I hope so, too.

Pilot 6 Loc: Eugene, OR

Weight has been an increasing issue for me. I'm 89 and still walking and shooting. Current solution is Nikon DX: D3300 with 55-300VR kit lens on one body and Tokina 12-28 on 2nd body. I can carry both in an old Tamrac bag for a couple of blocks without collapsing, and I love the ergonomics as well as the image quality of both. If I really want to go light, I put an 18-55 VR II on one of the bodies and that's it. This crappy little piece of plastic is one remarkable 100 buck (Ebay used) value.
Pilot 6

JBruce Loc: Northern MN

I turned 78 this month and have some issues, but good wife and I just returned from a 2 mile walk a few minutes ago. I carried my Canon 5d3 with the 400 5.6L prime. and got some pretty fair shots of geese on water from well over a hundred yards, handheld [that's as close as we could get]. I noticed on review that the focus indicator shows my focus point exactly where I wanted it. I still use the focused breathing techniques learned years ago in competition small bore shooting. This evening we will be at our church for several hours shooting the dress rehearsal for a Easter Passion play; same camera, but with a more appropriate lens, slow shutter and the expectation of a good shoot. Not bragging', but just sayin' that heavy equipment and older age are not necessarily incompatible. But each individual must do what they gotta do, and you are the best judge of your own capabilities, and asking questions here surely provides ideas for reasonable options. That being said, eventually, I'll probably go mirrorless myself [ if I live that long]. Good luck on your decision.

wj cody Loc: springfield illinois

i'm one year behind you with a scarred sciatic nerve which means i no longer walk, i dodder. my solution to my very heavy outfits, linhof, hasselblad, minolta, leica and of course, nikon, are wheeled gadget bags. great mobility and i can sit on them when my legs give out!
good luck in your photography!

Jer Loc: Mesa, Arizona

I have full-frame Canon cameras and the heavier l-series lenses. I also have the Sony a6000 and the new 6300. They are very sharp even with the old Legacy lenses with an adapter. I have two Sigma art lenses and they are wonderful. Sony is coming out with more g-series lenses which are top of the line but expensive.

DrCoy Loc: Reidsville, NC

At 84 yr and using a D4, D3x and d200 I don't have any trouble. Sorry you do.

wj cody Loc: springfield illinois

good for you - i think that's really neat. keep on going!

n3eg Loc: West coast USA

Micro four thirds is not just for old people. I was shooting four thirds when I was 21. It was called the Pentax Auto 110 SLR back in the film days. Now at age 56 I'm using a nice small Olympus E-PL5. I even passed up a nice clean Canon SL1 at a pawnshop last Saturday.

Jer Loc: Mesa, Arizona

They're a bunch of mirrorless cameras that are crop frame sensors. The smallest one on the market is the tiny a6000 by Sony.

ricardo7 Loc: Washington, DC - Santiago, Chile

Wrong approach. At 76 you should be eating more rare beef and knocking down craft beers starting at lunch. What's the downside? And while you're at it, a nice plump young wife to lug the camera gear. Cheers!

Reinaldokool Loc: San Rafael, CA

I have made that decision in just the last few months. I chose to purchase a Sony a6000 and am planning to also get an a6300. Either of them is less than half the weight of my Nikons. However, and it is a big however, long lenses are few and far between. I plan to keep an 18-200 on the a6300 and a kit pancake lens on the a6000 as a leave it in the car camera.

Getting beyond 200mm, however, requires that you use adapters and usually work with manual focus. I have used my Nikon 400mm with the adapter as well as a Rokinon Fisheye. Both worked great. But they do add to the weight. I also have an f1.8 50mm for the Sonys.

The only other options are Sony's full frame cameras, but while not as heavy as the Nikons are significantly bigger and heavier than the a6xxx. Fuji also makes a good MILC, but the lenses, while wonderful, are also a big drain on the pocket. I sold mine. All the other MILCs have various issues: Too small a sensor. No viewfinder. Etc. (BTW, the viewfinder on the a6xxx cameras is marvelous.)

Brucej67 Loc: Cary, NC

Why leave Nikon? Why not look at the Nikon 1 V2 or V3 system?

Violameister Loc: michigan

When I was 26 I had a nice plump young wife who did, indeed, lug the camera gear while I stood around looking for things to shoot that weren't a "waste of expensive film". Now, 50 years later she is neither young nor plump. And won't haul the camera gear either. But she does occasionally cook rare beef and doesn't count the number of craft beers I ingest, so I think I have the best available compromise. :lol: :lol:

BTW, I like both Santiago and Montevideo. Nice scenic civilized places.