To grab the moment

[Jonathan Cross]

Larry Allen started a current thread in the Landscape Showcase section about just seeing what is out there.  I have Fuji and Canon gear, none of it that I carry with me all the time in my everyday life. I might have some in the car, but not in my pocket.  I do have an iPhone 5s though.  At 10Mp, I can print A4.  I am wondering if that is all I need to have in my pocket all the time to grab the moment when I spot a fleeting combination of light and subject that appeals.

Do I keep the iPhone, upgrade it (but not to the top range iPhone; too expensive) or spend the same amount on a small camera with, say, something like a 24-70/100 integral lens that will fit my coat/anorak pocket? If a camera, any ideas what? Any solution would not replace the rest of my kit.

Best wishes,
Jonathan

[Jonathan Cross]

2 further points to my post above.  My iPhone 5s is only 8Mp, not 10 (oops), and I do like to take RAW images, but could put up with just JPEG.


Jonathan

[degrub]

Olympus Pen series with your favorite small lens if all you want are decent snaps. Buy used.
Why not carry your Fuji ?

[Jonathan Cross]

Would love to carry my Fuji.  It is just that it will not fit in my pocket even with 35mm f2 lens.  When I am travelling I have a small rucksack with me, so a body and my 2 zooms fit easily and do all I want.  I want something even smaller, for being with me all the time, so it is just do I stay with a mobile phone or get a small camera for those grab moments.


Jonathan

[Telecaster]

I have an iPhone 8 Plus (12mp main *camera) that goes wherever I go. Took quite a few pics with it, using the ProCamera Raw-generating app, on my just-concluded trip. Also had a Panasonic GX8 m43 outfit with me. Because the phone cam's quality is high enough, when I'm out & about I don't feel the need to carry around the GX8 "just in case."

I took the first attached pic while walking back to my hotel after having dinner "in town." The low overall light level and high contrast push the 8 Plus harder than they would the GX8, but IMO the result is still fine. I don't mind the noise at all…it adds texture, which I like. The second pic is a better example of what the phone can do during daylight.

-Dave-

*Technically two cameras since each lens, ~28 & 56mm "equivalents," has its own sensor.

[hogloff]

I'm either serious about my photography and have my kit with me or I just let the images that reveal themselves just lock into my mind. I don't find using anything less than my photography kit worth the effort of taking the image. I have zero use for such images.

[Jonathan Cross]

Thank goodness we all have different ways of working.  It would be very boring if we all did the same.  There are many occasions when I do not have my photographic kit with me and so times when I say, ‘If only I had a camera with me.’  We go to Tate Britain, the amazing gallery in London.  A few years ago, in a long space inside the entrance a group with red tops was silently dancing in the magnificent stone surroundings of the space.  It really stopped visitors in their tracks; so imaginative.  No camera, so it was an iPhone image.  Now it acts as a memory tickler when I occasionally want to refresh what is in my mind.
 
I have a friend who supplies bricks for conservation work and so travels around. He always has a small sketchbook with him and uses it.  The sketches (he is good) provide both memories and ideas.  A small camera or smartphone can serve the same purpose.  Sometimes those sketch photos are worth keeping; the moment was grabbed. These are the reasons why I am interested in something I can have with me that takes up little room.  It will complement those times when I am seriously photographing, an activity which Jane, my wife, tells me is not a spectator sport!

Best wishes,

Jonathan

[John Hollenberg]

When I want to step up from cell phone but want something very small I carry Sony RX100-4.  Weighs 10 ounces, very compact. For $100 more you can get the Sony RX100-5VA, but for what I use it for it wasn't worth the extra money.  Sensor has about 3 times the area of a cell phone sensor and the lens is pretty good.  Printed a 21X14 taken in a Sierra pass in August and it looks amazing.

[Slobodan Blagojevic]

iPhone Xs Max is in a different league for photographers, often rivaling or even beating DSLRs, thus worth every penny.

[Chris Kern]

I do have an iPhone 5s though.  At 10Mp, I can print A4.  I am wondering if that is all I need to have in my pocket all the time to grab the moment when I spot a fleeting combination of light and subject that appeals.

I have an iPhone 6s with a 12 Mpx camera.  Aside from the slightly higher resolution, I think the low-light performance is probably an improvement over that of your 5s (sample here), although way below that of the best cameras in current cellphones.  I save raw files using Lightroom Mobile, and post-process them in the desktop ("Classic") version of Lightroom.  Nobody would ever mistake the results for what you can do with a dedicated camera with a larger sensor, but for capturing a "fleeting combination of light and subject," it works more often than not.

[nma]

Have you considered the Ricoh GRii? APS-C  and 1.4 x 2.5 x 4.6 in, Fits many pockets

[Paulo Bizarro]

The upcoming Ricoh GRDIII looks promising: 28mm lens and IBIS.

[hogloff]

Thank goodness we all have different ways of working.  It would be very boring if we all did the same.  There are many occasions when I do not have my photographic kit with me and so times when I say, ‘If only I had a camera with me.’  We go to Tate Britain, the amazing gallery in London.  A few years ago, in a long space inside the entrance a group with red tops was silently dancing in the magnificent stone surroundings of the space.  It really stopped visitors in their tracks; so imaginative.  No camera, so it was an iPhone image.  Now it acts as a memory tickler when I occasionally want to refresh what is in my mind.
 
I have a friend who supplies bricks for conservation work and so travels around. He always has a small sketchbook with him and uses it.  The sketches (he is good) provide both memories and ideas.  A small camera or smartphone can serve the same purpose.  Sometimes those sketch photos are worth keeping; the moment was grabbed. These are the reasons why I am interested in something I can have with me that takes up little room.  It will complement those times when I am seriously photographing, an activity which Jane, my wife, tells me is not a spectator sport!

Best wishes,

Jonathanû

Jonathan, sorry my post burned you so much. Yes it's great we all approach photography differently. I just don't see the point of a image taken with a phone. I've done plenty and they just disappear after time. I've since decided to just enjoy the moment rather than having to record all these moments...just works fine for me.

[Slobodan Blagojevic]

The real question about capturing the moment actually is:

[Paulo Bizarro]

The real question about capturing the moment actually is:

GoPro camera, waterproof. No need to worry about aperture too.

[Jonathan Cross]

To all who contributed to this thread, many thanks.  To Hogloff, you did not burn me, I just replied amplifying why I was asking the question; phones suit some but not others.

Best wishes to you all,

Jonathan

[NancyP]

I am not crazy about the ergonomic experience of using a cell phone camera, but it does have its function for snapshots, and for "identification" photos of insects and plants. I have an iPhone "6" SE, the base model, with 12 MP, and use ProCamera RAW-format-capture software. A big enough pocket for a 1" 24-75mm equivalent camera with full manual controls, that would be my preference.

[guido]

A digital version of a leica M6 would be a delight. For grab work I'm fine with a fixed lens.

But Leica has decided to price for doctors, dentists and hedge fund managers not artists.

So I make do with my Google Pixel XL which makes much nicer out of camera images than my olympus Pen F did and has a much better ui...