Why I Bought A Mirrorless Camera

Photography is one of my main passions. My illness is actually the reason I took it up in the first place and sadly, it has been the reason why I haven’t done much of it over the past few months. I mentioned in a previous post that the downside to a DSLR is that they are big and heavy. Unfortunately, I haven’t had the strength to carry mine around with me and shooting with it was causing me to be in pain. I began to rely on my iPhone to take photographs, which was fine, but it didn’t have the same enjoyment level for me.

You see, being a bit of a geek, I love the technical aspects of photography. I enjoy the challenge of shooting in manual mode and have enjoyed making mistakes and learning as I go. A point and shoot like my iPhone can take good photos but the experience of using it just isn’t the same.

Photography is, without a doubt, a coping tool for me and it has absolutely sucked not being able to enjoy it the same. I have been back and forth for the past few months as to whether to treat myself to a new camera or not. I have honestly researched it to death. The problem is I had my heart set on a Fuji XT-1 and nothing else compared. Knowing I was unlikely to return to work any time soon I decided against spending money that could be needed for more boring things in the future… you know, like paying bills and keeping a roof over my head.

I looked into more affordable cameras. I researched the Samsung NX3300 (and it’s predecessor the NX3000) and the Olympus PEN-EPL7. These are great little cameras and huge favourites among bloggers. But I wasn’t so sure if I would personally enjoy shooting with them. This probably sounds stupid to most people but it was a big issue for me that neither had a viewfinder. I wanted a viewfinder and I also wanted a camera that would allow me to change exposure settings quickly and easily. I guess you could say I wanted all the best features of a DSLR but in a smaller package, which is why the X-T1 appealed to me so much. So I put myself off buying a camera again as I didn’t want to invest in something I wasn’t 100% set on.

Then I had a moment where I was absolutely just pissed off at life. I was pissed off that I have fibromyalgia. I was pissed off that I have lost so much because of it and I was pissed off that I have to spend so much of my money on my damn health. Now don’t get me wrong, I absolutely think it’s money well spent and I wouldn’t be without my supplements. This is not a reflection on them at all. It’s more that I was annoyed about my personal circumstances and was having an almighty “why me?” moment. Not my finest moment I must say.

I discussed it in length again with both my husband and my mum and I think I sickened them so much with my chat that they both turned round and told me to get the camera I wanted. I researched some more and found a second hand Fuji X-T1 for sale on Wex Photographic. I’ve used this company a few times before and think they are great (I had to return a product to them before and they had no quibbles about it). I looked at it for around 3 days, did some maths and then decided “f*ck it, I only live once“.

I have not regretted my decision and don’t care if I have to live off beans and toast* in future because of it! I absolutely love, love, love this camera! It is small, lightweight and I can easily carry it everywhere with me. It produces stunning photographs and I’m really impressed by the quality of the 18-55mm kit lens. The Fuji X-T1 is also incredibly fun to shoot with. The electronic viewfinder is awesome; it’s big and bright and displays all the information you need on the screen. The camera has retro dials for ISO, shutter speed, exposure compensation and a ring on the lens to change aperture. I imagine some people may find it tricky getting used to these dials or get annoyed at the fact you need to take your face away from the viewfinder to change the ISO but I have taken to it naturally. There is not a mode dial but you can put aperture, ISO or shutter speed onto automatic to get the semi-manual modes like shutter/aperture priority or full automatic mode. I think this camera will make me a better photographer as it forces me to think more about my settings beforehand. I don’t intend this to be a review, as a quick google search can find you all the info you need, but in short: the Fuji X-T1 is an awesome camera that rivals many DSLRs. Will it replace my DSLR…. not quite (can’t let go of the pro photographer dream). I’m keeping it for now but the Fuji X-T1 will most definitely be the camera that I use most often.

I think if you have a chronic illness and you are contemplating purchasing a DSLR, my advice would be to research into mirrorless cameras first. You might find that they will fit your needs much better.

Another point: if you have been lusting after something, save up and treat yourself to it. You deserve it! Better to spend money on something you really want, than to potentially waste it on something you don’t just because it is cheaper, especially if it is something that you will get a lot of use out of. When it comes to money, it’s all about priorities. I’m hardly made of money (we have been a one income household and now I am no longer working things are a bit sketchy until my husband finds work as a graduate). But I believe if you want something enough, you will find a way to make it work so that you can get it. I may actually talk about this more in a future post. Watch this space!

* GF of course 😉