Recently we added a mirrorless digital camera to our extensive arsenal of camera equipment. We all know just how heavy the DSLR full frame bodies are, then add on the lenses…HEAVY!

There is an exciting new generation of cameras on the market these days. They are lightweight and pack a punch, often more than capable of standing up against their larger cousins, the DSLRs. The image above of the Forth Rail Bridge was taken using the Sony a7 mirrorless digital camera.

I’m talking about cameras like the Sony a7, Fuji X-T1, Canon G15 and G16 and the Olympus OM-D etc, the new mirrorless digital camera revolution, offering a lightweight advantage of a small body with full DSLR capacity at affordable prices and they tend to come with some pretty good glass too. Here we have a new breed of digital camera and pros are embracing them across several genres including travel, wedding and portraiture photography.

I’m going to take a closer look at one of these small scale marvels and discuss a few of its ground-breaking features that have been packed into such a small body. Why? Because we have just bought one and it is part of our extensive kit. We will do a more in-depth review on it shortly once we have had time to test it fully and get to know its strengths and weaknesses.

The Sony a7 (24MP). Sony have stirred up the hornets’ nest in creating this little marvel, and it is not alone either. It’s got the a7R (36MP) and the a7S (12MP) as its stable mates. Sony are as yet the only manufacturer to have done this. The image quality from the Sony a7 is outstanding and rivals that of the Nikon D750 and the Fujifilm X-T1. It sits well in the hand, has outstanding build quality and boasts a full frame image sensor. I would not recommend its use for professional sports photography but from all accounts it could be used in just about any other genre.

Traditionally when heading out on manoeuvres one considers what gear to take, the bag always bursting at the seams never wanting to leave kit behind, just in case. We as photographers have a tendency to always be able to squeeze something else in. Always! After 30 years my back lets me know this all the time.

I’ve mentioned that these lightweight gems came with good glass, say hello to the super-zoom family at this point. They might not be the fastest lenses however with their stabilisation features they are well worth some serious consideration. We have one of the Nikon 28-300mm super-zooms and have time and time again been more than happy with the results from various situations. Having said this; not for a minute am I trying to say that these lenses don’t have a downside, they do!