A question often asked on user forums is “what
camera/lens should I take on holiday” ?
The answer to this question depends on what type of subject one wishes to photograph. So an avid
bird photographer will have very different equipment requirements from those of
a landscape enthusiast.
I have just returned from a trip to northern New South Wales
(managing to avoid the floods) and South East Queensland. Anticipating that I would photograph
landscape, scenes, people and places I took a Canon EOS RP with 24-105 STM kit
lens and no other lens as I hate changing lenses at any time and especially on
trips away.
The EOS RP has not received much praise from reviewers but
in practice turns out to be a very competent camera in a wide range of usage
cases. The lens is also very good across the focal length range with just a bit
of softness in the periphery at the wide end.
One of the main complaints I have read about the RP is its
relatively low dynamic range at base ISO as described by DXO Mark and
Photonstophotos. On this trip I
presented the camera with many scenes having great subject brightness range and
found the RP handled them quite well. I also found the RP gave nice accurate
colors, very good sharpness and very good overall image quality.
It was able to hold focus on a dog running towards the
camera and several birds in flight.
So overall I found both the camera and lens gave a very good
account of themselves with no deal breaker problems.
I found the body/lens combination light, compact and easy to
carry, hold and operate.
I paid AUD 1879 for the body plus lens kit, new, retail in
Sydney with Canon Australia 5 year warranty. This puts the EOS RP full frame
kit in about the same market space with respect to size, mass and price as many
APSC and Micro Four Thirds models.
Here are some photos from the trip:
Andrew, thanks very much for sharing your knowledge, experiences, and nice photos. I check your site regularly and always admire your excellence in photography and wordcraft. I have found that my findings often mirror yours, and I am also a "senior citizen".
ReplyDeleteIf you wanted to add one other lens when the goal is bird photography on a trip, which would it be? I'm currently using Sony RX10-IV but there are some operating quirks such as weird focus idiosyncrasies that might send me back Canon SLR where I was for decades. I want to be able to hand hold for birds in flight like I can with the Sony.
ReplyDeleteHI, Check out the RF 100-400mm f5.6-8. That is very compact, light and very well priced. It is also close in overall performance to the 100-500 L. On a trip I would take the RF 100-400. It works well for BIF.
ReplyDeleteAndrew
Thank you, Andrew. I found your reviews of the Panasonic FZ1000 and the Sony rx10-iv compelling enough that after a month with the Panasonic I sold all my Canon SLR body and lenses. And I am happy that I traded the Panasonic for the Sony. I'm not sure if I'm ready to go back to ILC or just feel like spending money that I wasn't able to spend on travel during the worst of the pandemic. I do find with the bridge camera I'm taking a lot more photos because I have it with me when a bunch of gear wouldn't be along for the trip.
DeleteSteve
Hiya, appreciate this post is now a couple of years old but I really enjoyed reading it & seeing your images taken with the RP, they're ace!
ReplyDeleteHow do you feel the RP stands up now, in Jan 25? Do you still own it & use it regularly?
I'm looking to upgrade from Sony APSC & the RP is a real bargain now, for under £500 used in the UK.
You're very positive in this review of the RP so I wonder if your opinion has changed over the years, plus now the R8 is here?
Many thanks again for sharing your thoughts & experience!
Regards