Still camera advice

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Seth.A

Pre-Flight
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Nov 25, 2020
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Seth.A
I'm looking for a camera to take flying for still photos. I have a fancy DLSR that is simply to big and cumbersome, and the cell phone is far to fiddly to use while flying. I'd like some compact point and shoot with a good zoom range and image stabilization that I can mostly use one handed and keep in my flight bag. Of course picture quality is a priority, and bonus points if it can shoot reasonable video. I'd like to keep this under 1K, preferably well under but I understand you get what you pay for.

I'd be interested to hear what others have had success with.
 
For pocket-size, I have a Nikon A900 (the current version, A1000 is nicer, and has a mini-EVF) that has a pretty nice 35X optical zoom lens. The sensor size of these type cams (and phones) limits image dynamic range, but I have lots of nice letter size prints made from this size sensor. For higher quality images in a small camera format, I use a Nikon Z50 with its ultracompact 16-50 mm pancake lens. Image quality is actually better than my heavier and larger Nikon D7100, my former workhorse cam, even at high ISO settings. This is an APS-C size sensor, which is head and shoulders above pocket cams or phones. There is an 18-140 mm lens coming soon for the Z50, and that would make a fairly lightweight one-lens cam solution, but not exactly pocket size.
 
asicer said:
Can you post before AI and de-noise?
Click to expand...
These are the original RAW files, unedited except converted to jpeg and reduced in size for display here. Both of the airplanes had horrible green-tinted windows, so the images needed a lot of color correction.

DSC03258.jpeg

DSC01691.jpeg

DSC01963.jpeg

Unedited RAW files look bland and sometimes distorted, but there's more information in the file that can be accessed in editing. These original files would have looked better if I'd set the camera to shoot in jpeg format.

This cool retro-style leather case with neck strap makes the RX100 very convenient while flying ... https://www.amazon.com/MegaGear-MG2...ds=case+for+sony+rx100&qid=1632602308&sr=8-10
 
Last edited:
Pilawt said:
These are the original RAW files, unedited except converted to jpeg and reduced in size for display here. Both of the airplanes had horrible green-tinted windows, so the images needed a lot of color correction.

Unedited RAW files look bland and sometimes distorted, but there's more information in the file that can be accessed in editing. These original files would have looked better if I'd set the camera to shoot in jpeg format.

This cool retro-style leather case with neck strap makes the RX100 very convenient while flying ... https://www.amazon.com/MegaGear-MG2...ds=case+for+sony+rx100&qid=1632602308&sr=8-10
Click to expand...
I always shoot in RAW (and the camera saves as both RAW and JPG). Most look great, some get enhanced in Gimp, Affinity Photo, or dXO PhotoLab. Can't stand Adobe's subscription model.
 
Another vote for the RX100..pretty much any version
 
Pilawt said:
Unedited RAW files look bland and sometimes distorted, but there's more information in the file that can be accessed in editing. These original files would have looked better if I'd set the camera to shoot in jpeg format.
Click to expand...
Not too bad, but definitely lacks the "pop" from the AI/de-noise. That the RX100 saves in RAW is an important bit of info. Thanks.
 
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