I have high-end full-frame DSLR gear and have shot indoor sports part-time professionally. However, I've realized that most of the memorable moments of my little girls have been captured with my cell phone. This is tragic, but as they say, the best camera is the one you have with you, and I just can' t be lugging a DSLR around everywhere.So I've been looking for a compact camera for years that would be able to acceptably capture kids in normal room light without a flash. Technology seems to have finally gotten there and I debated between this, the Canon s100, the Panasonic GX1, and the Sony NEX 5n/7.
Size:
The size of the Canon S100 was certainly much more attractive, being able to slip it into a jeans pocket. However, this can still fit in jacket or cargo pant pocket with a pancake; or easily fit with a zoom in wife's handbag or pouch on pack or stroller.
Stealth:
As soon as my kids realize I'm shooting them, their precious moment is ruined and it's, "I wanna see, I wanna see". So shooting in normal room light without a flash is key, and also the ability to shoot without a shutter sound. The S100's low light image quality without flash is arguably passable, but the Nikon's is just so much better. I'm not aware of being able to shut off the shutter sound for any of the other cameras.
Focus:
This is where the Nikon really shines with its phase-detect autofocus. This is no big deal if you're shooting landscapes or bowls of fruit, but is really a huge breakthrough that seems to be underplayed for shooting active youngsters. All the other cameras, even most DSLRs, spend too much time hunting during video, with the subject frequently going in and out of focus. The Nikon's ability to keep things in focus is remarkable, even tracking multiple faces when shooting video. The Sony was particularly bad at continuous focusing, constantly wobbling in and out (with lens noise while doing so), and often missing the moment. Capturing the moment with acceptable image quality trumps missing the moment with great image quality every time.
Sensor size:
People tend to focus on the negatives of a relatively small sensor.... the theoretical lessor low-light image quality, and the larger DOF. But there are a number of advantages. The first being the larger DOF. I appreciate nice bokeh as much as anybody, but for capturing moments, I want to be able to shoot with a fast prime, say f1.2 or f1.4 (in order to get lower ISO/higher shutter speed) and get BOTH my kids in focus, and even some surrounding area for context, especially for video. Second, longer reach from standard prime sizes. Not sure if I'll spring for the F-Mount lens adapter yet, but being able to reach a gymnast from the bleachers with an f1.4 would make a DSLR jealous. Third, smaller file sizes. Half the size of the GX1, effectively doubling the capacity of memory cards and SSDs (which aren't cheap). Also makes for twice as fast per-image transfer.
Image quality:
The Nikon's image quality was quite a bit better than what I saw from the S100. When looking at raw image samples in Aperture, I found the high-iso detail between the V1 and G3 (proxy for GX1) to be pretty close, despite the G3's larger sensor and 60% pixel advantage. That indicates a lot about the sensor technology advancements being used in the Nikon. Also, the Nikon images consistently looked great straight from the camera, whereas the Panasonic consistently needed +2/3 stop exposure compensation and a hue shift. The Sony's low light performance seemed to be about 1-2 stops better, which was its main draw for me. It was hard to say for sure because Aperture didn't support Sony's RAW format. Also, Sony's color seems a little too reddish for my taste.
Lenses:
Sony's lenses are on the large side, and pricey. At the moment, m4/3 seems to have the best lens offerings, with a well-regarded Olympus portrait prime, a 40mm f1.7 pancake for around the house. And a powered zoom that's even smaller than Nikon's yet has powered zoom and power collapse. That's compelling. However, the rumored/leaked Nikon roadmap looks pretty good with some fast primes on the way. Fast primes are really key for this Nikon, in order to get away from the high ISO indoors.
Video:
I like being able to capture full res snapshots while recording video. I don't think any of the other contenders can do that. Uses a video format I can play directly on computer and various devices without having to convert (as I would with AVCHD from the Sony). Nikon's video generally looks great. No "jello effect". The 60fps progressive is great for shooting kids and sports. Noticeably smoother action, and gives the option to do slow motion, which is nice for incorporating into slide shows. S100 and Panasonic can't do this, NEX can. Nikon can also trim videos in-camera, which is nice for freeing up card space before you get a chance to dump. Warning, though, you have to do this well before the card is full, because it takes temporary space to edit.
Flash:
Compact flash disconnects and stows easily. Allows for bouncing, even in portrait mode (unlike NEX), which gives more pleasing results than straight-on flash in dark environments. More power than any built-in flashes gives much better results, yet so much more convenient than full size speedlight. The ease of use of the flash is really nice. No extra batteries to deal with. No waiting for charge. Can leave it turned on and it shuts on/and off with the camera. Always gets the right exposure no matter the bounce position, ISO, etc. It does lack power to bounce off particularly tall ceilings, but upping the ISO helps that.
Gripes:
The V1 pretty well attains the benefits of DSLRs in a compact size, but one area that is more "compact" than DSLR is the shot-to-shot time when not doing continuous. It seems to be somewhere around 1.5 sec, and requires a little care in timing the half-shutter presses (1 to get out of the preview, and a 2nd to focus).
Review by J. Wilder
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