Lots of photography gear, especially Sony and Olympus products, have found new homes this month.
Another long month of 2020 has passed by (thank goodness), and you guys and gals (our readers) have been busy adding all sorts of photography gear to your personal collections. We have seen a good mix of lenses and cameras find new homes this month, and we’re sure that everything will be put to good use. After the break, we will share the photography gear some of our readers now get to call their own.
There’s no surprise that lots of Sony cameras and E mount lenses have found new homes this month. What is surprising is to see that Olympus products have made the list of bestsellers yet again. In fact, this is the third straight month that Micro Four Thirds photography gear has been some of the most popular around. As a Micro Four Thirds user myself, this warms my heart, especially seeing as Olympus has been in the news for all the wrong reasons lately. Pull up a chair and take a look at all the photography gear your fellow readers have been purchasing in June.
Sony a7 III
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- The best battery life of any Sony or mirrorless camera we’ve ever tested
- A fair amount of resolution and versatility in the RAW files that can be realized with Capture One
- Nice feel to it
- Consistency with all the other cameras in terms of the menu system
- Autofocus can acquire a target in near darkness
- It essentially feels like a scaled-down Sony a9 and Sony a7r III
- Not a bad price point
Cons
- Mount and certain lenses may allow for dust to get in onto the sensor; it isn’t as tight as the a7r III’s
Buy now: $1,998
Olympus OMD E-M1 Mk II
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- Good image quality though you start to see shadow noise at ISO 6400
- They’ve finally fixed that stupid problem where ISO 6400 was marked as an extension
- Weather sealing that is bananas good
- I handheld the camera and got a blur-free image at 15 seconds
- Comfortable to hold and I typically don’t like SLR style cameras
Cons
- Menus got deeper
- Fast autofocus can sometimes miss moving subjects in low light
- Despite having some of the best ergonomics we’ve ever felt on any camera to date, they desperately need a dedicated ISO control dial
Buy now: $1,199
Fujifilm X-T30
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- Solid construction that we’ve come to expect and love about Fujifilm cameras
- Compact
- Lightweight
- Almost everything that made the X-T3 such a hit
Cons
- Lacks in-body image stabilization and weather sealing
- Rear touchscreen-only tilts up and down, unlike the X-T3 which also tilts to the right as well
- Perhaps a tad too compact, particularly for photographers with larger hands
- The new joystick is awkwardly placed on the rear of the camera body, making single-handed operation challenging and increases the risk of accidentally dropping the camera due to its diminutive size
- Unremarkable battery life
Buy now: $899
Olympus OMD EM5 Mark III
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- Beautiful retro styling
- Excellent image quality
- Robust weather sealing
- Reliable image stabilization
- Accurate autofocus
- Compact form factor
- Built-in Live Composite and 50 MP High Resolution shooting modes are highly effective
Cons
- Form factor can be too compact for some, particularly for photographers with larger hands or when mated with larger lenses
- Plasticky build quality
- Single UHS-II SD Card slot
- Lacks dedicated joystick
- Poor battery life
- Convoluted menu systems
- No major innovations after over four years
Buy now: $999
Sony A7 MK II
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- Image stabilization is pretty effective
- Improved grip, though there wasn’t much of a problem with the first
- Improved battery life performance with the same batteries that every other Sony mirrorless camera uses
- Better autofocusing than we’ve seen in previous versions in that it acquires a subject faster than before
Cons
- Slow startup time
- Not a whole host of differences from the A7
Buy now: $1,398
Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 Di III RXD
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- Weather sealing
- Sharp optics
- Fast-focusing in pretty much any situation
- Nice bokeh
- Small and lightweight
- Considerably under $1,000
- More than good enough for what most photographers will need to do
Cons
- Some folks may gawk at the fact that it isn’t a Sony G Master lens and will fetishize the G Master series in the same way Canon shooters put L glass on a pedestal
Buy now: $849
Sony 85mm f1.8 FE
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- Great image quality
- Fast-focusing with the Sony a7r II and in good lighting, it will focus quickly with the Sony a7
- Nice feel, though not as great as the G Master 85mm f1.4 lens.
- Weather resistance built-in
- Compact size
Cons
- Honestly, not a darn thing
Buy now: $598
Sony 70-350mm f4.5-6.3 G OSS
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- Sharp image output
- Light and easy to carry around
- Excellent image stabilization
- Attractive price point
- Very fast and very quiet XD Linear autofocus motor
- Bright, bold, vibrant colors that will please wildlife photographers
- Some weather sealing and good build quality overall
Cons
- We wish it had a slightly faster maximum aperture
Buy now: $998
Olympus 7-14mm f2.8 PRO
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- Very sharp
- Relatively low distortion
- A small form factor that will make this lens almost permanently attached to your camera.
- f2.8 is awesome for light-gathering abilities.
- Fast-focusing
- Weather sealing
- Super wide landscapes and buildings at one end while street photography ready at the other end
Cons
- The bulbous front element is easily affected by the rain or any other sort of precipitation that you take this lens and camera out into
Buy now: $1,099.66
Sigma 16mm f1.4 DC DN Contemporary
Here are the pros and cons from our full review:
Pros
- Fast aperture
- Weather sealing to a point
- Fast autofocus performance for the most part
- Nice bokeh
- Sharp, surprisingly sharp
Cons
- To be honest, nothing
Buy now Canon EF-M: $398.34
Buy now M4/3: $385
Buy now Sony E: $389
