DP Review camera recommendations late 2014

[haven]

DP Review has published a series of comparisons by camera category. Below are the winners. (In general, they like Sony, Nikon and Panasonic this year.) Check their website for the details. http://www.dpreview.com/buying-guides


High end full frame DLRS
- Nikon D750 (best overall) $2300 body only
- Sony Alpha A7 (best with budget in mind) $1300 body only
- Sony Alpha A7S (best for video) $2500 body only


Enthusiast DLSR
- Nikon D7100 (best overall) $900 body only
- Sony A77 II (honorable mention) $900 body only


Consumer DLSR
- Nikon D5300 (best overall) $700 body only
- Canon Eos Rebel SL1 (larger size) $450 body only


High end pocketable
- Sony Cybershot DSC-RX100 III (best overall) $800
- Panasonic Lumix DMC-LF1 (best with budget in mind) $230


Enthusiast compact
- Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100 (~5x zoom) $850
- Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1000(~16x zoom) $860


Enthusiast mirrorless
- Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 $1500 body only
- Samsung NX1 $1500 body only


Mid-range mirrorless
- Sony a6000 $450 body only
- Olympus OM-D EM10 (second place only because of price) $600 body only
- Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5 (smaller size) $900 body only


Entry level mirrorless
- Fujifilm X-M1 $750
- Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM1 (smaller) $350 body only

 

[Ryanmb21]

Looks like a pretty solid list.

 

[kojackJKU]

Why did they choose the 750 over the D4S? that is Nikon's high performance Full frame camera. I would love to have a D3-D4. The rest of the line is ok.

 

[Colin Hughes]

Picked up a D5300 a couple of months back. I like the lightweight and compact size and so far have been happy with the photos I've taken. It comes down to budget and not being a professional photographer, I think it will work well for me.

 

[workerdrone]

Why did they choose the 750 over the D4S? that is Nikon's high performance Full frame camera. I would love to have a D3-D4. The rest of the line is ok.

I don't see any pro cameras in the list - so it's probably value oriented. D4 is awesome, I owned one, but I sold it because I didn't need the bombproof build and high fps. I actually much prefer my D800 to the D4/s.

I strongly recommend buying used - these prices are high even for new. Paid $200 for D5100, sold for $450. Paid $4,000 for D4, sold for $4700 ;-) And I preferred my D7000 ($500) to the D7100, which has a buffer issue as well as some teleconverter compatibility issues IMO.

 

[robgendreau]

It's sorta hard to go wrong these days. Given that sales overall are probably not the best, it's amazing there are as many choices as there are.

I noticed the list doesn't include P&S superzooms or waterproof cameras; I would think those might rate their own categories since they're pretty popular types. I guess the FZ1000 might fit the former category though.

 

[kojackJKU]

I don't see any pro cameras in the list - so it's probably value oriented. D4 is awesome, I owned one, but I sold it because I didn't need the bombproof build and high fps. I actually much prefer my D800 to the D4/s.

I strongly recommend buying used - these prices are high even for new. Paid $200 for D5100, sold for $450. Paid $4,000 for D4, sold for $4700 ;-) And I preferred my D7000 ($500) to the D7100, which has a buffer issue as well as some teleconverter compatibility issues IMO.

I call the d4 a high end full frame. The rest are consumer full frame models. I cannot see me buying a D4 but I would love own one...