It's been a long week. We got prepared for Christmas and I wrapped up a couple of last minute jobs. We spent some time traveling and seeing relatives. Today was the first day of swim practice since monday and I was ready to work out some kinks, dissipate some routine aggression and get out of breath for an hour or so. But by mid-afternoon I was itching to get out of the house and go for a walk through the Austin downtown.
I wanted a camera that wouldn't hang on my arm or slow me down and I wanted something that was a straightforward, good street camera so I cobbled one together. Something light and quick but competent and highly usable with older, manual focusing lenses. I grabbed for the Panasonic G6 and headed out the door.
Why do I like this little camera so much? Well, it may be because the focus peaking is really good and convenient. It may be because it has a really nice EVF and, combined with focus peaking, it creates a focusing/viewing system that rivals any other manual focusers I have. It could be because the chunky little battery seems to last forever. I keep putting a spare in my pocket but now I have to remember to rotate batteries because I never seem to get around to using the pocket back up.
It may be because the files are nice and neutral and able to take a good bit of post processing before falling apart. It may be because the function buttons are well labeled and everything I want to push or rotate falls right where my hands think the switches and buttons should be. It may be because the +/_ compensation control is perfectly placed and designed.
But to be honest I like this little camera so much because it feels like a real camera and it looks so cool. It seems to track my philosophy that the camera should recede instead of being the center of your attention or the center of the subject's attention. Since the entry price was so cheap I don't worry about the camera being damaged or lost. It just works. And when the camera becomes more and more transparent making photographs seems to get easier and easier. And, on the off chance that you don't see anything you want to shoot on your walks the camera is so carry-able that it makes affable company even with the lens cap on. That's my take today.
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