A new camera

I hope you all had an enjoyable Christmas, and are having a good break, perhaps even getting some modelling done! 

My main present this year was a new camera - well, new to me. For the last decade I've used a "premium compact" Canon which has served me well, but these days it struggles to better a phone camera. I've also tried a Panasonic bridge camera, but the results are similar to the Canon. Most day-to-day photography uses my phone these days, but a manual-control camera works better for layout and model photos (including magazine articles), and I prefer to use a camera at exhibitions and some holiday trips. My photography student son is a fan of Sony mirrorless cameras, and suggested I look at them. The big sensor makes a lot of sense for model railway photography, but I didn't want a bulky, heavy camera. I decided to go for the Alpha 5100; it's little bigger than a compact, with a sensor about 2/3 of a full 35mm frame, and a barely used one is not too expensive from MPB. 

As with DSLR's the lenses are interchangeable; this is the standard lens which is very compact, and offers 25-100mm equivalent range with power zoom so behaves like a compact, as well as being cheap. I might invest in a longer lens at some point for more flexibility, but this should suffice for model trains. I also got a remote shutter release which is a real boon for long-exposure model photography using a tripod.

I had a play this afternoon, including taking some photos of Hexworthy. This view along the layout is challenging as it is very deep - the loco is about 2 feet from the camera, while the tree in the distance is at least four feet away. This shot has all but the most distant features in focus, little sensor noise, and no sign of barrel distortion which is a real issue with compact and mobile cameras. 

So it works well on a tripod, we shall see how it goes at an exhibition once the season gets going. Don't bet on a big improvement in photos on the blog though, as the mobile remains the most convenient way to get quick progress shots!