• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Photography Life

PL provides various digital photography news, reviews, articles, tips, tutorials and guides to photographers of all levels

  • Click to visit our RSS feed
  • Click to visit our Facebook page
  • Click to visit us on Twitter
  • Click to visit our YouTube channel
  • Click to visit our Instagram page
  • Reviews
    • Camera Reviews
    • Lens Reviews
    • Other Gear Reviews
  • Learn
    • Beginner Photography
    • Landscape Photography
    • Wildlife Photography
    • Portraiture
    • Post-Processing
    • Advanced Tutorials
  • Lenses
    • Lens Index
  • Photo Spots
    • Photo Spots Index
    • Submit a Photo Spot
  • Forum
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Workshops
    • Subscribe
    • Submit Content
  • Shop
    • Cart
    • Support Us
  • Search
  • Log In
  • Sign Up
Home » Essays and Inspiration

When People Downsize Their Camera Gear

By Thomas Stirr 90 Comments

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)

This short article summarizes some of the feedback that I have received from seniors who have downsized their gear, or are thinking about doing so. The desire to downsize camera gear is not restricted to seniors! Some of the actions that seniors are taking may make sense for other photographers as well. It has been quite surprising to witness the number of comments and contacts that have occurred since my senior-related article, Senior Perspectives on Photography. I’d like to thank all of the readers who have contacted me and shared their personal experiences! Not only has it been an enjoyable experience to hear from all of you, but very enlightening as well. One of the common topics that these more ‘mature’ photographers wanted to discuss with me was their decision to downsize their gear. There was certainly a range of approaches that people have used to better align their gear with their photographic interests and their need for smaller, lighter camera gear.

downsize 1
NIKON 1 J5 + 30-110mm f/3.8-5.6 @ 38.5mm, efov 104mm, ISO 3200, 1/500, f/8.0, hand-held

Table of Contents

  • Partial Replacement of Interchangeable Lens System
  • Adding Travel Gear
  • Total System Replacement
  • Confusion Reigns

Partial Replacement of Interchangeable Lens System

Only replacing a portion of their camera gear was a very common approach that has been used by many seniors. This was especially true of people who had an interest in bird and nature photography. Some have kept their full frame DSLRs and long zoom or telephoto lenses, along with their tripods and gimbal heads as they simply love the quality that this gear produces for them. Since they are still able to handle this heavier gear when used with a tripod it has made sense for them to keep it. They most commonly replaced some camera gear for other types of subject matter.

Other seniors have kept their full frame bodies and faster glass because of image quality considerations when photographing family events and specifically their grandchildren at school events and other such gatherings which are often captured in lower light conditions. They then used other camera gear for more general photography needs.

downsize 2
NIKON 1 J5 + 10-100mm f/4-5.6 @ 10mm, efov 27mm, ISO 1600, 1/640, f/5.6, hand-held

When seniors replaced a portion of their full frame DSLR camera gear many have kept a number of their lenses but switched to a smaller and lighter cropped sensor DSLR body such as the Nikon 5000 series cameras or models like the Canon SL 1. Some full frame Sony owners have added a cropped sensor bodies for their everyday photography and travel needs. Along with the addition of a cropped sensor body many seniors have added an ‘all-in-one’ zoom lens such as an 18-200mm or 18-300mm to simplify their travel kit down to one body/lens combination.

Initially replacing only a portion of their interchangeable lens camera gear with some smaller cropped sensor bodies appears to be one of the most common approaches used by senior owners of full frame gear. Many also acknowledged that this is likely only a stop-gap solution and that they may need to downsize further as they age.

Adding Travel Gear

Some seniors who are now travelling more have added a super zoom camera so they can travel with one camera to meet their travel needs. Others who do not need the focal length range of a super zoom unit or find them too large and bulky have opted for a fixed lens camera, most often with an optical zoom capability. Their selection of optical zoom range appears to be driven by the nature of their travel. People who mainly travel to city destinations and capture mainly street type photographs were more likely to choose wider angle zoom cameras. Seniors who more commonly traveled outside of urban areas seemed to choose cameras with optical zooms offering more focal length range.

downsize 3
NIKON 1 J5 + 10-100mm f/4-5.6 @ 10mm, efov 27mm, ISO 160, 1/640, f/5.6, hand-held

Total System Replacement

Anecdotally, replacing their entire camera system doesn’t seem quite as popular as adding a cropped sensor body for many seniors. For those seniors who told me that they have switched systems completely it appears that one of two approaches was most commonly used. The first was to switch from DSLRs to a cropped sensor mirrorless solution. Quite often brands like Sony and Fuji were mentioned in this scenario. People that made this switch most often cited their need to maintain image quality with a cropped sensor body, but also shedding some weight by going mirrorless as their main determinants.

downsize 4
NIKON 1 J5 + 30-110mm f/3.8-5.6 @ 64mm, efov 172.8mm, ISO 3200, 1/160, f/8.0, hand-held with extension tubes

The second very common approach was to move to a Micro Four Thirds (M4/3) system. Seniors that took this route wanted to physically downsize their camera bodies as well as their lenses. Many of them mentioned that they thought that the image quality had improved with M4/3 sensor bodies making them now well suited to their current needs. Olympus and Panasonic were both mentioned frequently with Olympus appearing to be the more popular brand.

downsize 5
NIKON 1 J5 + 10-100mm f/4-5.6 @ 10mm, efov 27mm, ISO 400, 1/800, f/9.0, hand-held

I also had quite a few people mention the Nikon 1 system. Realistically, I don’t think that the Nikon 1 system is nearly as popular as M4/3 and I likely got a higher percentage of inquiries and comments about Nikon 1 since many readers know that I shoot with it exclusively. Of the people who have switched to Nikon 1, or have an interest in the system, two basic groups emerged. The first group was bird/nature photographers who are specifically interested in a Nikon 1 V3/CX 70-300mm combination. The second group was looking for a small interchangeable lens camera to use primarily for travel. These folks tended to ask about the Nikon 1 J5 with a 10-30mm kit lens or with the 10-100mm f/4-5.6. Some of them also had interest in other 1 Nikon lenses like the 6.7-13mm, 30-100mm, and 18.5mm prime.

downsize 6
NIKON 1 J5 + 10-100mm f/4-5.6 @ 33.6mm, efov 90.7mm, ISO 160, 1/100, f/8.0, hand-held

Confusion Reigns

Of the many emails and calls I received almost half of them were from folks who are contemplating downsizing their camera gear but were very confused with how to proceed. Most seemed conflicted when it came to camera sensor size, or were caught up in the confusing but somewhat pointless DSLR vs mirrorless debate. Others viewed their plethora of available camera choices, i.e. interchangeable lens systems, bridge cameras, fixed lens cameras, as simply overwhelming. This conundrum ended up being the creative spark for an article I recently wrote for my photography blog that helps people create a camera buying decision matrix.

I’ve never thought is was appropriate for any of us to tell other folks what camera gear they should buy as it is impossible for us to really understand the photographic needs of another person. Carefully defining one’s needs, then evaluating our options against those needs is, in my view, the most prudent course of action.

downsize 7
NIKON 1 J5 + 10-100mm f/4-5.6 @ 17.1mm, efov 46.2mm, ISO 160, 1/10, f/5.6, variable neutral density filter and tripod used

If you’ve downsized your camera gear, share you experience!
Regardless of whether you’re a senior or not, if you’ve downsized your camera gear we’d love to hear from you! Tell us what you were using in the past, what you’ve moved to and why. And, just as importantly what your experience has been (both good and bad) with your new gear.


Article is Copyright 2017, all images are Copyright 2016/2017 Thomas Stirr. All rights reserved. No use, adaptation, or reproduction of any kind including electronic or digital is allowed without written consent. Photography Life is the only approved user of this article. If you see it reproduced anywhere else it is an unauthorized and illegal use. Readers posting comments on offending websites by calling out people who steal intellectual property is always appreciated!

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

If you liked this article, please subscribe below to our weekly email to get more great content like this!

Related articles:

Disclosures, Terms and Conditions and Support Options
Filed Under: Essays and Inspiration Tagged With: DSLR Camera, Nikon 1, Mirrorless

About Thomas Stirr

Thomas Stirr is an author, photographer/videographer, and executive coach based in Grimsby Ontario Canada. He specializes in industrial photography, as well as safety/training/corporate videos. His work also includes landscape and nature photography, and experimentation with photo art. Nikon Canada has featured Tom's work numerous times on Facebook and Twitter. To follow Thomas, please visit his photography blog and check out his eBooks.

Primary Sidebar

Categories

  • Composition and Art
  • Essays and Inspiration
  • Photography Techniques
  • Photography Tutorials
  • Post-Processing
  • Reviews

Photography Tutorials

Camera BasicsPhotography Basics
Landscape PhotographyLandscape Photography
Wildlife PhotographyWildlife Photography
Macro PhotographyMacro Photography
Composition & CreativityComposition & Creativity
Black & White PhotographyBlack & White Photography
Night Sky PhotographyNight Sky Photography
Portrait PhotographyPortrait Photography
Street PhotographyStreet Photography
Advanced PhotographyAdvanced Photography

Recommended Gear

  • Best DSLR Cameras
  • Best Mirrorless Cameras
  • Best Entry-Level DSLRs
  • Best Cameras for Landscape Photography

Support Us

B&H Photo Video Banner

Recent Topics

  • Can Lightroom 6 be used for Nikon Z files
  • Can’t get photos to be right exposure
  • HDR Bracketing + Interval Timer mode + Silent shutter not compatible
  • focusing
  • Fuji 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR sharpness
  • Your country is blocked
  • Shutter Repair Options
  • AF-S NIKKOR 24-120mm f/4G ED VR
  • High speed sync
  • Nikon Z6 save to clean with Eyelead?

Footer

Site Menu

  • Beginner Photography
  • Lens Database
  • Photo Spots
  • Search
  • Submit Content
  • Subscribe
This site uses cookies to improve your experience. To find out more, please see our Privacy Policy

Reviews

  • Camera Reviews
  • Lens Reviews
  • Other Gear Reviews

Copyright © 2019 · Photography Life
DMCA.com Protection Status