Camera choice for landscape shooting

[Praki]

Hi:

I am new to the site as well as the topic. I just got back from the mountains after a three week trip. Lugging a Nikon D200, tripod and lenses at 17,000+ feet gave me a new appreciation for the force of gravity as well as not being born a sherpa; so most pictures were taken with a Canon G9. I would appreciate the members' input on my next camera choice; I have listed a few desirables and constraints below. Thanks in advance for your comments and suggestions. The D200 has been a faithful companion but the weight and bulk is becoming a factor.

1. The max size I enlarge the pictures is 16x20. Rarely beyond this size.
2. Landscapes are my preferred subjects but about 5-10% are portraits of people.
3. I would like the gear to fit in a case or backpack that can be carried on i.e. not checked as baggage.
4. I would like a camera with interchangeable lenses. I would like the camera to be reliable and have good sharp lenses available. I am looking for two bodies, a macro lens, a wide angle to mid zoom and a mid to telephoto zoom.
5. Good quality video is a definite plus (I do some volunteering for NGOs on my trips and they appreciate getting videos of their activities).
6. I travel the world over and to less accessible places - it would be good if the camera runs on AAA or AA batteries.
7. The two bodies + lenses should be around $6K or less.

So is the micro4/3rds good bet for me or are there other possibilities? I have heard that the Panasonic GH1 is made in China and has had quality problems - the Olympus but with Panasonic lenses may seem a better bet?? All suggestions to address the above are welcome.

Thanks.

[DarkPenguin]

What is the issue with being made in China?

I'd suggest the GF1.  Alternately you might want to poke around pentax's offerings.  They might even run off regular AA batteries.

[Wayne Fox]

Based on your needs I also think the closest thing is probably the 4/3rds Lumix GF1

Small, light, lenses are decent, two zooms get you from 14-200mm (28-400mm equiv).  Decent noise performance, 16x20 no problem at all, and build quality seems excellent ... not what you've heard or how the china thing fits in, but the camera seems solid.  Not a lot of moving parts to break.  Of course the 20mm 1.7 lens is really a nice add, not much bigger than the G9 you were using, but significantly better image quality.  All of it fits in a small fanny pack style bag.  Last flight I just carried it separate from my 2 carry ons and no one at security or Delta gave me a second glance.

You can even adapt it to use standard 4/3rds lenses, or if you want killer glass on it you can even use Leica lenses.

Sweet little camera.

[Chris Pollock]

I'd also recommend the GF1 based on my experience with it. Apart from the Olympus EP-1 (or EP-2 when it's available) I can't think of anything else that would fit your requirements. The slow and unreliable autofocus on the Olympus would be reason enough to prefer the Panasonic.

If you have six grand to spend you might want to consider the Panasonic 7-14 F4 lens. I picked one up the last time I was in Tokyo for a bit under 100,000 yen at Yodobashi Camera. Unfortunately I haven't had the opportunity to use it much so far, but the shots I've taken are promising. It's a little soft in the corners at 7mm F5.6, but that's par for the course with wide angle zooms. I can post some sample shots if you're interested.

[Praki]

Thanks for the feedback.... I will look at the GF1 and the EP2. The "made in China " comment was indicative of the quality - apparently the G1 is made in Japan and its users had no quality issues but would have preferred more features. The user reviews (amazon) for the the GH1 have about 10% 1 star rating because of parts falling off (especially the lug that holds the strap and a part of it falling off outside the camera and a part inside). Michael had reviewed the camera initially and I will wait and see if I hear more about the GH1 on the LL site.

Chris I would appreciate your posting any shots.

[BernardLanguillier]

Hi:

I am new to the site as well as the topic. I just got back from the mountains after a three week trip. Lugging a Nikon D200, tripod and lenses at 17,000+ feet gave me a new appreciation for the force of gravity as well as not being born a sherpa; so most pictures were taken with a Canon G9. I would appreciate the members' input on my next camera choice; I have listed a few desirables and constraints below. Thanks in advance for your comments and suggestions. The D200 has been a faithful companion but the weight and bulk is becoming a factor.

I would answer, half jokingly, that the best investement you can make is into fitness.

Cheers,
Bernard

[Chris Pollock]

Here's a photo of Customs House in Sydney that I took on October 13 at 7mm (14mm equivalent) F5.6. I took it hand held, but the shutter speed of 1/500 second should make camera shake a complete non-issue.

I've included a reduced-size copy of the whole photo, and 100% crops of selected areas to show the sharpness. I converted the raw file to a TIFF using Adobe Camera Raw with the default sharpening settings, did the cropping in Photoshop, and saved the final JPEG files with quality 11 to keep the file sizes reasonable.

[attachment=17938:_1000298.jpg]

[attachment=17939:_1000298_centre.jpg]

[attachment=17940:_1000298_left.jpg]

[attachment=17941:_1000298_top.jpg]

[attachment=17942:_1000298_topleft.jpg]

You can form your own conclusions about the quality. I'll post a few more shots at other focal lengths when I have time.

[DarkPenguin]

I would answer, half jokingly, that the best investement you can make is into fitness.  

Cheers,
Bernard

Most of my money is spent on physical therapy for my spine at my neurologists.  I like m43 cameras.

[Wayne Fox]

The user reviews (amazon) for the the GH1 have about 10% 1 star rating because of parts falling off (especially the lug that holds the strap and a part of it falling off outside the camera and a part inside). Michael had reviewed the camera initially and I will wait and see if I hear more about the GH1 on the LL site.

Chris I would appreciate your posting any shots.

Don't confuse the GH-1 (dSLR 4/3rds) with the GF-1 (micro 4/3rds).  I believe all so far have recommended the later.  Not sure where it's made but to me the build quality seems outstanding.

[Jeff74400]

I would answer, half jokingly, that the best investement you can make is into fitness.

Cheers,
Bernard

+1 Fitness is the key in high mountains....  
Never put your camera in the backpack but directly accessible in a bag like something as a topload TLZ1 or 2 attached on the strap of the backpack.
Tripod is is not necessary; you can use your backpack or stones for this.
Personally a Canon 5D2 or any goog Dslr is the best solution to capture great pictures in high mountains.
Best regard's
Jeff
www.lumieresdaltitude.com

[Praki]

Thanks to all for your suggestions.... will explore the M4/3rds including the GF1 and PE2. Chris, Jeff and Wayne appreciate the pics and the feedback. The sharpness even at the reduced resolutions is great. Regardless of how fit one is, my guess is that less weight for the same picture quality is better. Better go do my stairmaster and pushups now.

Cheers.

[Dick Roadnight]

Most of my money is spent on physical therapy for my spine at my neurologists.  I like m43 cameras.

It sounds as if you need a good long rucksack, that will allow you to support much of the weight on your pelvis.

[BernardLanguillier]

Regardless of how fit one is, my guess is that less weight for the same picture quality is better.

Yes, but be sure to include the full picture when thinking weight... including yourself, your pack, your shoes, water,...  

Cheers,
Bernard

[NikoJorj]

be sure to include the full picture when thinking weight... including yourself, your pack, your shoes, water,...  

Well, having a lighter camera doesn't force you to take more weight with you, does it?  
But all in all, you're very right to point that HUGE weight savings may be made starting with "normal" mountain gear. Lighter shoes, proper clothing, smaller pack... There are dedicated resources on the net to help with these choices, http://www.backpackinglight.com eg.


About the camera, I'll throw another component into the mix : the viewfinder.
I really have a hard time composing on something other than a ground glass.
Though I did try to take a small Ixus (aka SD800) with me, and though image quality was mostly-sufficient-if-not-stellar once the CHDK made it shoot raw, I just can't see what I'm photographically doing when composing on the LCD. And of course, the keyhole mimicking an optical viewfinder is way too small to be usable, and you don't see what the camera is doing with autofocus and autoexposure while trying to see something through it (and they do wrong things, by default).

So, even if I may be a weight fanatic in some cases (I think more and more of spending more than 1 euro-grand on carbon shoes for backcountry skiing eg, or fell in love with the beer can stove concept for that weight reason), I just keep my DSLR while hiking and backcountry skiing. My goodol'Rebel, a 10-22 (and, not always, a 50/1.8 and/or a 55-250IS) make a relatively small and convenient package.

For that reason, I'd suggest trying to get a smaller DSLR : entry-level APS-C or 3/4rds, with lighter lenses (and no tripod when not needed).