"Superzoom" bridge camera roundup - March 2023

Jan

Jan

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Best "superzoom" cameras in South Africa

South Africans looking for a capable and portable camera for casual photography or video shooting with zoom capability can consider a digital bridge camera.

Bridge cameras are so named because they strike a balance between a DSLR and mirrorless camera, which have interchangeable lenses, and a compact digital camera with a fixed lens.
 
Jan said:
Best "superzoom" cameras in South Africa

South Africans looking for a capable and portable camera for casual photography or video shooting with zoom capability can consider a digital bridge camera.

Bridge cameras are so named because they strike a balance between a DSLR and mirrorless camera, which have interchangeable lenses, and a compact digital camera with a fixed lens.
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Very good article Jan, what's missing unfortunately on so many models is one of the more important factors with a digital camera and that's sensor size. Unfortunately manufacturers like to pull the wool over our eyes with MP speak when the sensor size and lens aperture size are the most important. f/2.8 or below is good for aperture but sensor size is a closely guarded secret from what I can tell in some models. Probably because it's not a good metric for sales lol.
 
Willie Trombone said:
Very good article Jan, what's missing unfortunately on so many models is one of the more important factors with a digital camera and that's sensor size. Unfortunately manufacturers like to pull the wool over our eyes with MP speak when the sensor size and lens aperture size are the most important. f/2.8 or below is good for aperture but sensor size is a closely guarded secret from what I can tell in some models. Probably because it's not a good metric for sales lol.
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They all have that stupid 6,17x4,55mm small sensors except the good ones on the list that indicate 1inch sensor.
Also you can just look at the zoom. Anything above 25x zoom will have the tiny sensor. Not that under 25 x zoom guarantee a bigger sensor as you get cheap cameras with small sensor and zoom.
 
Jean Claude Vaaldamme said:
They all have that stupid 6,17x4,55mm small sensors except the good ones on the list that indicate 1inch sensor.
Also you can just look at the zoom. Anything above 25x zoom will have the tiny sensor. Not that under 25 x zoom guarantee a bigger sensor as you get cheap cameras with small sensor and zoom.
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And then try and do a handheld shot of anything over 25x zoom without it looking like a Jackson Pollock, which is why the Nikon P range is only for pisscats.
 
Still have my Canon SX50 HS which is considered one of the best ever made. People miss the point of bridge cameras not being good for low or high key lighting in that it's not where their strengths are supposed to be but in being a good all rounder you can always carry with you.
 
Swa said:
Still have my Canon SX50 HS which is considered one of the best ever made. People miss the point of bridge cameras not being good for low or high key lighting in that it's not where their strengths are supposed to be but in being a good all rounder you can always carry with you.
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It's very convenient but the decent ones are priced right up there...
 
Swa said:
Still have my Canon SX50 HS which is considered one of the best ever made. People miss the point of bridge cameras not being good for low or high key lighting in that it's not where their strengths are supposed to be but in being a good all rounder you can always carry with you.
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I daily regret selling my sx50. That thing proved that all these megapixels count for nothing. 12mp was the sweet-spot. Its image quality was way better that the newer superzooms
 
Some of these cameras are really very OLLLDDDD I mean 7 years old. Who buys these anyway.

SLR is also pretty much dead. Mostly. Mirrorless Full Form is faster, has way more focus points I mean about 25x more if not 50x more than some SLR, and shoots really quick. Downside is battery life.

If you have the bucks Get the higher Nikon Zs or the Sony A7 (just watch out which model Sony as some are 12mp bodies but mainly being used for cinematography) ok its no arriflex but the sony is good for colour accuracy.

16mp is great but you ideally want to go higher. Some demand 30mp and higher if uploaded to some photo libraries.

I use a Hasselblad still and a Sony A7R IVA
 
RonSwanson said:
And then try and do a handheld shot of anything over 25x zoom without it looking like a Jackson Pollock, which is why the Nikon P range is only for pisscats.
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HAha this is funny but so true. I never could get into his art. Drip art etc is just too ugly.

I do like Gerrit Pitout though. Reminds me very much of Pierneef.
 
Corelli said:
Some of these cameras are really very OLLLDDDD I mean 7 years old. Who buys these anyway.
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You mean like the Lumix FZ1000? It is the MkII, and yes, still very competitive in this category because of sensor image size. Sales of the Lumix FZ1000 and the MkII variant is enough to guarantee that it is available today (albeit in MkII form).
Corelli said:
SLR is also pretty much dead. Mostly. Mirrorless Full Form is faster, has way more focus points I mean about 25x more if not 50x more than some SLR, and shoots really quick
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And that's why you seem to be stretching the spec, which is bridge cameras, not SLR and not mirrorless. On focus points, the Sony RX10 IV offers over 300 point phase detection. And previous models are so good that you can buy a MkII brand new today.
  • Sony RX10 II: Fast Intelligent AF, offering 0.09s AF speed
  • Sony RX10 III: Fast Intelligent AF, offering 0.09s AF speed
  • Sony RX10 IV: 315-point phase detection AF, 0.03s AF speed
Corelli said:
I use a Hasselblad still and a Sony A7R IVA
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Yep, Sony makes great AF cameras, whether SLR or not, and you are very, very fortunate to have a A7R IVA. It's in a price range that is difficult to justify for a snapshot shooter, yet the RX10 MkIII and IV do come a lot closer. This is an article about Bridge Cameras though, so kinda like unfair comparison.
 
Corelli said:
HAha this is funny but so true. I never could get into his art. Drip art etc is just too ugly.

I do like Gerrit Pitout though. Reminds me very much of Pierneef.
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Speechless.
 
My SX50 is lying in a cupboard somewhere almost 2 years now. I don’t even know which cupboard lol.
 
RonSwanson said:
It depends on the image sensor size...
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You might be thinking of crop factor.

Numerical multipliers [for example 2x, 4x, 125x, etc] are useless without at least knowing the lowest, or the highest, focal length.

Swa said:
Still have my Canon SX50 HS which is considered one of the best ever made. People miss the point of bridge cameras not being good for low or high key lighting in that it's not where their strengths are supposed to be but in being a good all rounder you can always carry with you.
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Still pretty bulky for someone to always want to carry one around with them. I wouldn't. That's why my cellphone gets so much use.
 
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