zdncer Loc: Vancouver, WA

Happy hunting. You are welcome. One other thing you might try renting the A6000 and a few others it will help you decide what feels good in your hands. And what is the easiest to work with for your fingers.

TB4 Loc: TX

I have an a6000 with 55-210 lens plus UV filter, extra batteries and charger, all in very good condition. I am willing to sell it for $650 if you are interested.

FalconChase Loc: Canton,Ohio, USA

Another vote for the a6000.

By the way, I have owned 5 Sony cameras starting with the a100. Never had a problem with any of them.

leftj Loc: Texas

Right now you can get the Fujifilm XT-1 with a 18-55mm f/2.8-4 for $899.00. I have this camera and the lens combination.

NelsonARowe Loc: North Georgia USA

I bought the Sony A6000 this January at Best Buy, it was on sale for $400 and Target had it at same price. I did a lot of research before buying and there were a lot of great reviews. If you’re interested in movies I would recommend going up to the a6300. The camera I bought came with the 16-50mm lens. If you think you need the longer zoom they have the kit with both the 16-50 and 55-210 bundle. It should be right in your price range but look at the adds and see if you can find it on sale. Both Best Buy and Target will price match. The dual lens kit was on sale for $800-900 depending on store. It can do an amazing amount of things and so far the learning curve is so so. I bought the book on eBay cheap and that has helped a lot. Really like this camera and I have heard the “rumors “ about the service but I have also heard that they don’t break down often so... I live in the sticks in north Georgia and have found a camera shop within 45 miles that services Sony so I’m not that worried about it. If you take care of it you shouldn’t have a problem. It’s very light and easy to carry and with the 16-50 lens on I can put it in a pocket that would hold a larger cell phone like the 7 plus. Hope this helps.

Ksocha Loc: Bethesda, MD

I have the Sony a6000, the menus are too complicated for a beginner. You will be happier with an entry level Fuji. Much more intuitive and easier to learn. Wonderful color. Check out on YouTube.

dragoncello

I'll echo what I think is the best advice in the thread: try before you buy. Everybody loves the a6000, so I bought it a couple of years ago when it was on super sale for Christmas. It just felt alien to me: too much had to be done by plunging into the menus, and I especially disliked the offset view finder. Colors seemed a bit too cool for me. Clearly, I was in the minority since it's so highly rated and popular, but luckily I bought it from Amazon and was able to return it after a couple of weeks, no questions asked. Subsequently bought the Olympus em10 mark ii, and it immediately felt like my camera. Ergonomics were instinctive in a way the Sony wasn't. As others have said, virtually all companies these days make excellent cameras. Try a few out and find the one that feels right for you. PS: Amazon has the em10 mark ii with both 14-42 and 40-150 for $600. The mark iii has better features, but might be a bit above the OP's price range.

Ksocha Loc: Bethesda, MD

There is a Panasonic GX85 with an excellent stabilized kit lens for sale for $475 in today’s Ugly Hedghog Sale section. Well worth thinking about. Very nice little camera.

zdncer Loc: Vancouver, WA

The menus are not that big of deal and you can set your favorites/most used in the fn button. It was never a problem for me coming from Nikon and cannon. just take the time to learn it there is a great book that explains the A6000 by Gary Friedman. Don't worry about how hard people are saying it is just relax and play with it you will get the hang of it.

zdncer Loc: Vancouver, WA

There will be a learning curve with each new camera. That is why renting first is a good idea

jmizera Loc: Austin Texas

A G7 kit would be in budget. It doesn't have IBIS and isn't weather sealed like the G85, but performs just as well. Amazing little camera.

kd7eir Loc: Tucson, AZ

TWICE the stated budget WITHOUT a lens is NOT "a little more."

Why do people, when presented with a budget the OP is willing/able to spend always post a reply that entails spending several times the stated budget? Do they not read/comprehend/care what the OP actually asked?

asquaretail

Fuji x-t20 at top of your budget, but has most of features of more expensive x-t2

rodpark2 Loc: Dallas, Tx

The Sony A6000 is selling in newish condition for around $500 here in Dallas on Craigslist. There are a lot of them out there because the owners seem to be the types who always upgrade to the latest model. Mirrorless opens a whole new world adapting older manual focus lenses. I get excellent image quality and the fun factor is unbeatable. Shooting in aperture preferred mode is really easy, just focus and shoot. Battery life is much shorter than with DSLR cameras, so extra batteries may be necessary for long shoots. Older 50-1.4, 1.7, etc. lenses are perfect for portraits and dirt cheap at thrift stores and often on Craigslist. The earlier NEX mount lenses were pretty poor, but they're getting some really good ones out now. I also use Olympus, Panasonic and Fuji mirrorless and rate them pretty close together, but Fuji lenses seem unbeatable.

gwilliams6

Sony A6000. Stick with Sony, they are the leaders in mirrorless cameras right now. Fuji, Panasonic and Olympus are also very good choices. Stay away from Canon or Nikon right now, they lack greatly in mirrorless tech. Cheers.