jrcarpe Loc: Jacksonville,AR

Check out the Canon Rebel line. Great little cameras.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

A Rebel body like a T6i only saves 9 oz's over the weight of a full frame body like the 5D Mark IV, and there won't be much if any savings on lens weight depending on which lenses are chosen. I think a OP is looking for a significantly greater reduction in both size and weight, like a camera and lens solution around the same weight as Rebel body without a lens attached, and smaller in size..

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

Sony RX10 I or II - or if you have the money, the III.

jaduff Loc: Northern NJ

Like jerryc41 above, I went for the Sony A6000. I also went for the Sony 18-105 f4 OSS which for my needs has nice range and high IQ. Total for the body and the lens was just under $1000.

Picture Taker Loc: Michigan Thumb

If you love photography, think long term so you don't have to start over or regret what you are doing now.

frankie c Loc: Lake Havasu CIty, AZ

Smaller, lighter, great picture quality, I went through this a couple years ago. My choice was Olympus OMD. I decided at the time to go with the OMD E-M10. This was the smallest and lowest priced of the OMD’s at the time only differences were (not weather sealed) also, 3 axis instead of 5 axis in camera Image stabilization. I always felt the In-camera stabilization would be really great for my DSLR’s. The extra weight and size stabilized lenses added to the camera just added to the bulk of stuff I had to cargo around. Also, back in the day one the SLR’s I had was an Olympus which had maybe the best view finder an Optics of any of the camera’s I ever used. So anyways I got in without straining my budget. The camera body and kit lens (14-42mm f3.5). I also added the extra grip to fit on the camera (which I highly recommend) for general feel and handling of the camera. I soon found my picture taking took on a whole leap forward.

When I got into the DSLR world I Stayed with Nikon, which I used for years in the SLR world. I love my Nikon’s but it was time to look at the technology changes and my current needs. After doing my homework and looking at a lot of compelling choices I pretty much decides I wanted to go with micro four thirds and the choices pretty much were down to between Olympus and Panasonic. Esthetically the Panasonic really had my attention. However, technically Olympus had my heart. I chose Olympus and have never looked back. Prolly the most important difference for me was in camera stabilization. I now own my Original OMD E-M10, OMD E-M1, and the new OMD E-M10 mark ii. I will say that the OMD E-M5 mark ii is also an awesome camera. The reason I did not choose it was that I am not a big fan of the fully articulated screen (I prefer the tilt screen on the OM10 and OM1. Also, the OM5 did not have as good facial recognition but certainly better video and that 54 megapixel option (pixel stacking) for landscapes is pretty awesome. However. I am not a landscape photographer I do more Street and Event shoots.

OK so what about lenses? One of the neat things about micro four thirds systems is that the lenses (no matter who the manufacturer is will fit and work on your camera). Sometimes having a standard is a good thing. I have accumulated a significant group of lenses. I will include here that all of you Nikon or Cannon of other lenses will work admirably on these cameras with an easy to find lens adaptor although you will have to use manual focus you will maintain full 5 axis stabilization (NOTE the newer OMD models including the OMD E-M10 mark ii all have 5 axis Image stabilization). I have become an advocate for using prime lenses. My 2 favorite (on camera most of the time) are my Olympus (ZUIKO) 17mm f1.8 and my Panasonic Lumix 20mm f1.7. The ZUIKO is blistering fast on focus, while the Lumix tends to be a little slower to focus (not unacceptable) renders sharp, great color and is a little lighter (which really gives great balance to the camera body). Also, I really like this focal length for people pictures. These two lenses meet my need to keep my camera small and inconspicuous especially for street photography. As for zooms. I have the Olympus 12-50mm (which adds a function button on the lens has a sudo macro mode that works really well for close up work and gives me a working point of view (35mm equivalent) of 24 to 100mm f3.5. It is very light weight and dog ugly but sharp and versatile. Also, I have an Olympus 40-150mm f4 (so 35mm equivalent 80 – 300mm) unbelievably sharp and fast to focus. These are not on the list of Olympus pro lenses so are relatively inexpensive but I will challenge anything I shoot with these lenses to the pro models. Oh and the 12 to 50 has a weather seal making it splash proof in case you choose one to the weather proof models over the OMD E-M10/mark ii). You will go out and play in the rain without worrying about harming your camera.

Sum it up: My choice for camera is the Olympus OMD E-M10 mark ii. Small easy to tote and packed with enough options to get you through any shooing situation. Also, comes in at a price point that most of us can live with. You can buy this for under $600 new. That is $200 less than I paid for my Original OMD E-M10 with some really great enhancements. The competitor cameras are formidable, so it’s not an easy choice. I will also, mention that the Olympus software (Olympus viewer 3) well let you re-think your shooting mode and use all of the in camera options (providing you are shooting RAW/ORF) will allow you to make changes without losing data. GOOD LUCK, may your decision meet your photo needs and keep you smiling. Oh and thanks for the opportunity to let me share my adventure.

mas24 Loc: Southern CA

Yes. I agree that a good choice is the Sony mirrorless a6000 with the 2 kit lenses. 16-50mm and 55-210mm.

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

All the choices have their pros and cons. And all the suggestions so far are great. I'm from the 4/3rds crowd. The 4/3rds market is well developed and offers a lot of bang for the buck. The new Olympus E-M1mrII 4/3rds is even comparable to the Fuji XT-2 APS-C (unfortunately not in your requested price range). But several of the Olympus and Panasonic cameras are in your price range. My suggestion is to handle them at the camera store and see what seems right for you. My personal suggestion is to choose one that is weatherproof so you will not have to add any rain gear and can clean up the camera under a water faucet. Look beyond Olympus and Panasonic if they don't seem to fit the bill. Maybe an APS-C from Sony or Fuji will impress you although I'm not sure about weatherproofing.