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Best camera of 2014, your opinion?
  • Post your personal view about best camera of 2014.

    You can even list two cameras with one aimed mostly on video (can be camcorder also!).

  • 53 Replies sorted by
  • My own view:

    General camera with good video - Samsung NX1 and whole NX system also

    4K consumer camcorder - Sony AX100

  • Best photo/video camera for me is the Sony A7S. Had the chance to try a Shogun on it now, and all I can say is: wow!

  • I would rank the LX100 as the best cam ever made for personal photography and video (pocketable). GH4 is my preferred cam of 2014 for paid video projects. A7S gets an honorable mention for extreme low-light capability and features such as s-log.

  • The AX100 is my choice. It isn't perfect but it's damn good. I rarely use camera audio other than to sync to so I don't miss the XLR inputs.

  • I'm with @nomad Sony A7S is a winner(IMO)

  • Sony A7s hands down. You can shoot everywhere without worrying about light. It changed everything for me. Oh and you get beautiful stills as well.

  • AX100. I love the Sony A7s and it would be my choice if it could record 4K internally and the price were a bit lower. I haven't bought the Samsung but I will when Vitaliy hacks it.

  • I sure bought the LX100 because I think it was the best camera offered (for my needs) in 2014. Second choice would have been the GH4.

  • GH4....It's complex but I think it will continue to surprise and second camera budget permitting would be AJA CION

  • @DrDave Save you wishlist for Santa :) Or win the lottery and get yourself Sony FS7.

  • Sony A7. I shoot with it almost daily. Easy to use, easy to grade, great picture. Incredible in low light. It's really changed the way how I work.

  • @abolit I think there will be a development reasonably soon--an improved NX1, a new camcorder from Canon, who knows? But for now the AX100 has the features I like--resolution, flat color and a super lens, and is missing the things I don't like in the Panasonic GH cams--weird chalky color. Someone may also may a cheap hdmi recorder that does H.264 or H.265 on the Sony A7s. I won't be buying an FS7 since the A7s with an external recorder would be better.

  • @abolit @DrDave

    It is specific format topic, avoid talks here.

  • well, since it was hardly available last year, I'm gonna say BMPCC. :)

  • Well you know how it goes, the best camera ... is the one you carry!

    Having said that, my GH2 is still my best camera of 2014. Sure, I would like to replace it. Though about a GX7, but savings and ergonomics spoke higher. Waited endlessly for a G7. No cigar. Now, each day I'm thinking smaller, so...

    IMHO the best camera that came out of 2014 was definitely the LX100. No contest there. It can cover 90% of my needs except for long telephoto and UWA.

  • @Vitaliy_Kiselev

    +1 NX1. It has made my current workflow of shooting flat and fiddling for hours in DaVinci seem a bit silly - because after all that time the baked NX1 image still looks better and more natural. It's the best "on the card" 4k video out there at the moment. Plus OIS that works great for movies.

    Another thing I haven't heard mentioned about this camera: Samsung does not have the old consumer/pro division dynamic. This is their top camera period, they have a massive budget, and they will not be holding back features. They've already put a firmware update out which improved the 4k mode nicely. The engineers have admitted it has the horsepower to do 240fps at 6k - this is a camera capable of a very long life in the market.

    Oh and 28mp stills.

  • A7s...seriously the best camera for both stills/video ive owned for years. Pairing the A7s with old FD's seem to have a magic combination. I don't even have to consider fast glass unless its for a "look" rather than a lowlight requirement. :-)

  • @racer5, No doubt that NX1 has tremendous potential of being a number one camera but ,from my perspective , it's not "there" yet. Still needs some improvements. Got to admit though Samsung did an excellent job and will definitely be a winner quite soon. But for now I'll be watching the progress of NX cameras having my A7S in my hands

  • For me, "best" would mean best overall performer, which for me is the GH4. The A7s and NX1 have some sexy aspects for sure, but their rolling shutter isn't workable for what/how I'm shooting.

  • Since I'm into the $500 or less category, I'd say the pany g6 or the sony a5100. You get 95% of the goods for a small fraction of the price.

  • @abolit Agreed that its an early adopter platform at this point. It shoots to a codec nothing understands yet after all:)

    @aldolega If rolling shutter is a factor for you the NX1 is probably not your camera. Other than some shots out of a train window, I haven't yet encountered any real world cases where skew has shown itself (ie something in frame with more velocity than the sensor scan).

  • Another vote for the A7s. I just got back from a trip where I was shooting a lot (mostly stills) in extremely dim abandoned buildings and it was great to

    1. shoot handheld
    2. keep the lenses I was using (FD 24/2.8, FD 50/1.4, and Voigtlander 12/5.6) in the pockets of my hoodie (with one on the camera body, obviously).

    I love the resolution on the A7r, but if I can bring only a single camera with me, it's probably going to be the A7s.

  • GH4 for me. Best all-rounder, most practical for both doc and narrative work, grades very well, no nasty habits, fantastic image straight out of camera, fast and instinctive controls in the hands, can use lighter weight MFT lenses or speedbooster for Super35 equiv. In short: flexible, practical, mobile, affordable.

  • @StudioDCCreative

    Actually, GH4 is not 2014 camera :-)