Starting out..

[RichardFrancis]

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Hello,
I am a long term (but somewhat lapsed) photographer of some decades based in the UK. I've used a variety of film and digital cameras over a 45 year period. Olympus, Mamiya and Rolleiflex on film. Canon on digital. I used to have my own darkroom right up until 2003 when I moved house and lost it (no attic anymore). I have a City & Guilds in Photography and am a lapsed member of the Royal Photographic Society. I have exhibited a bit, and done a little commission work over the years here and there.
I'm slowing down now work wise - and wish to get back into image making. I only have an EOS DSLR and a Mamiya C330S Professional (which I've lugged to many countries) but my weightlifting days are done! 
My favourite subjects are landscape, architecture and people/events. I had a crack at studio portraiture for a while, but found it all a bit static (though I still have some of the kit). 
Ideally, I want to find a high quality camera that's very easy to carry about and flexible enough to cover the subject material I'm interested in, which may mean interchangeable lenses.
Ideally, digital. The one thing I hate about digital is the sensors go obsolete - and when they do - you often have an expensive paperweight!
I was considering an X2 as they don't seem to be too complex, have a hot shoe, and prices are not insane. However, if the sensors are unrepairable - this is maybe not the way to go as the camera design is now nearly 10 years old? 
Has anyone got a little advice? I have not got unlimited budget, and for film I will stick with my Mamiya for now. 
Thank you. 

[Robert M Poole]

Hi, welcome to the forum!

I guess it all depends on budget. If you are looking for value for money then I would suggest a Fuji X series. The X100 is a fantastic camera, small and lightweight with a fixed lens or an XPRO/XE which are interchangeable lens systems. These can be picked up second hand at a bargain for the quality, a couple of hundred quid for an original X100. 

If you want a Leica that's a different story... I love my M9, despite it having numerous... quirks..., but it is fairly heavy and the cost of bodies and a number of lenses means that I stick with just a 50mm. There is always going to be the problem of them becoming a paperweight as you say with any digital camera and that is a lot of money to sink if that is a concern.

Good luck!

 

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[Ouroboros]

The Fujifilm X100 series are very versatile lightweight cameras, especially if you add the 28 & 50mm equivalent converter lenses.  
 

I originally bought an X100S for general use.  I liked it a lot and began to use it alongside my Nikon dslr’s for a lot of my paid work including wedding photography.  I upgraded the S to the X100F on launch and I still use it for both personal and paid work.

 I have been tempted to upgrade to the X100V, but the F just keeps on delivering for me and I’m happy to keep on using it.  
 

In my experience, these have proven to be reliable and versatile little cameras that are easy to use. 
 

 

Edited November 24, 2021 by Ouroboros

[RichardFrancis]

Thanks for the responses so far. Certainly worth taking a look at the X100's. 

With the interchangeable lenses, do you find issues with the sensor becoming compromised?  Leica dealers will clean them for you - often f.o.c (certainly the dealer I spoke to in London will), but I suspect dealers of the Fuji may not? 

Maybe it's less of an issue now than it was when I first went digital?

 

[Ouroboros]

The converter lenses screw directly onto the fixed 23mm lens (35mm equivalent). The is no risk of contaminating the sensor, mine has no marks or spots after several years of quite hard use, often in camera unfriendly environments. 
 

I would definitely put.an X100, S, T,  F or V on your shortlist.

 Good to see you’re keeping the Mamiya C330S Pro , great cameras, I used one for a few years in the studio!

[ianman]

On 11/24/2021 at 2:18 PM, RichardFrancis said:

With the interchangeable lenses, do you find issues with the sensor becoming compromised?  Leica dealers will clean them for you - often f.o.c (certainly the dealer I spoke to in London will), but I suspect dealers of the Fuji may not? 

My XPro-2 has some sort of cleaning function that is triggered every time the camera is switched off, I suppose the X100 has a similar feature. In 6 years of use I have never seen a spot of dust on the sensor.

Re the converter, the only lens I have that doesn't fit is the 21mm f3,4 Super-Angulon. It's too deep.

[Robert M Poole]

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I've had far less issue with dust in my fujis than my Leica M9