Canon Powershot G7X Mark II Review with Sample Photos | How Does it Compare to a DSLR like the 5D Mark IV?

Is the Canon Powershot G7X Mark II as Good as a DSLR?

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I’m always on the hunt for tiny cameras that can take amazing photographs. But when it comes to my DSLR, the Canon 5D Mark IV, it’s hard to imagine that there’s a pocket-sized camera out there good enough to fill its shoes when I’m traveling. But I bring SO many cameras when I’m traveling, that bringing my giant DSLR just to snap a few photos when I’m attempting to capture a sunset or other difficult lighting situation, doesn’t really make sense either. So for my most recent trip to Portugal, I decided to challenge myself. I left my big, heavy DSLR at home and brought the Canon G7X Mark II with me instead. It’s actually technically my mom’s camera that I got for her before she went on a trip to Africa. She wanted something that was small and super easy to use, but that was capable of taking decent photos. She also wanted a camera with a zoom function, because she was going on a safari and wanted to be able to zoom in on the animals. I did tons of research, attempting to find something amazing within her price point (under $700). She’s not a photographer, so I needed to make sure that I got her something with a full auto setting and that didn’t require a lot of energy to use. When she got home, I went through her photos and was pleasantly surprised by how incredibly beautiful the landscape photos turned out! And since I take mostly landscape and wide shots when I’m traveling, I figured it might just fill the void of my 5D Mark IV if I decided to leave it at home on my next trip.

The G7X Mark II has become a highly sought-after camera over the last few years and is actually kind of difficult to get your hands on these days. If you’ve come across one, consider yourself lucky! They’ve gone up in price too because of the desirability. There’s a newer version of it, the Canon G7X Mark III, which is also quite popular and difficult to get as well. They aren’t extremely different from each other, so either one would be a great option. I think they are so popular because of their combo of photo/video features and the fact that point-and-shoots are quite desired by the younger generations these days. It’s a great camera for TikTokers, YouTubers and vloggers. But it’s so user-friendly that it’s great for photographers and non-photographers alike, at any level.

So, do I regret leaving my 5D Mark IV at home?

It’s kind of complicated. During my trip to Portugal, I loved how easy it was to pull the G7X Mark II out of my purse and snap a photo. It’s just a tiny point-and-shoot, it turns on quickly, it’s digital so I can take as many photos as I want, and it’s inconspicuous. I don’t have to be the “photographer girl” with her giant DSLR and zoom lens walking around on the street. It also has a video feature that we used a few times as well. Not to mention that I did have 8 other cameras with me, so not having the weight of my DSLR was extremely nice! I didn’t really find myself missing my 5D Mark IV, mainly because it was easier to pull the G7X Mark II out of my bag than it typically is to get my 5D Mark IV out. The G7X fulfilled the job of capturing tons of wide city shots, and the f/1.8 lens actually allowed me to get some lovely food and detail shots when I wanted them. Though I will say, it takes a bit of patience to get the G7X to live up to its full potential. Because it does have that f/1.8 lens, if you put the camera on full auto, you probably won’t benefit from the 1.8 lens very often unless you’re in a super low-light situation. If you’re more adventurous, you can set it to the aperture-priority mode to benefit from that background blur that you can get with a wider aperture.

But, the only thing that really matters - were the photos up to par?

I spent last week going through the photos and editing them. I made sure to shoot in RAW so I had as much control over the post-process as possible. The landscape photos are quite beautiful and the camera does surprisingly well in full auto mode. While I do think that having a zoom lens on my DSLR makes it much easier to capture the exact image that I want, I started to get more used to the digital zoom on the G7X as the days went by. It’s definitely a much slower process that using a zoom lens, because you have to sit there and wait for it to zoom in. So it might be easy to miss a shot if you’re doing street photography and trying to capture a specific moment in time.

Where I did notice the lack of quality when compared to the 5D Mark IV is when I zoomed in on the images in Lightroom. The details are much noisier and less sharp. The shadows don’t contain as much information. The portraits aren’t as flattering. Particularly photos that are taken in low light seem to be rather soft. I found myself adding quite a bit of sharpness and noise reduction to make them work. I don’t think they would print well in large-scale, which is another question I was attempting to answer on my trip. I always want the option of being able to print my photos in large-scale for a gallery show. If I magically capture the most beautiful photograph of all time on my trip, I want to know that I captured it in enough detail to frame it and enter it into a fine art exhibition. You could definitely get away with a decent 12x18 print, but anything larger than that might be questionable. The camera does best with bright landscapes and lots of light. You probably could get away with printing those larger, its mainly the low-light images that are more questionable.

In the grand scheme of things though, I was pleasantly surprised by how well it did in low light. I used it inside churches and in wine cellars and it had no trouble at all getting a clear image. I was expecting to have some difficulty getting those sorts of images, but even on the auto setting, the G7X managed it all relatively easily. I always take 2 or 3 images in those sorts of situations, just in case the shutter is a bit too slow and the image is accidentally slightly blurry. But that f/1.8 lens really helps in that regard.

However, for everyday social media posts, blog posts and personal memories and prints, the G7X Mark II does perfectly fine. Amazing, actually. My mom, who is not a photographer, took some incredible shots on her trip to Africa that even made me consider putting together a portfolio of images and submitting them to galleries for her! Though I’d probably be cautious of printing them too large. :) The G7X can definitely up your point-and-shoot game if you’re an amateur photographer. It’s better than a cell phone, that’s for sure! And as a professional photographer, I’m definitely noticing things that the average viewer wouldn’t notice. To some, they may see no difference at all when comparing images from the 5D Mark IV and the G7X Mark II. But on a pro level, I don’t think the G7X is quite capable enough to replace the 5D Mark IV. Maybe I’m crazy to have even entertained the idea! It makes sense that a camera that’s 3 times the price would take better photos! But the fact that it’s a point-and-shoot and can take photos this beautiful, is kind of mind-blowing.

Will I take the G7X Mark II on my next trip and leave my 5D Mark IV at home again?

Honestly, maybe! If the 5D Mark IV was my one and only camera that I took with me on trips, then no, I’d forget about the G7X and only take my 5D Mark IV obviously! But I mainly focus on shooting film when traveling so any digital camera I bring is really just a backup. They mainly come in handy in low-light situations; to capture beautiful sunsets, candlelit dinners or spooky alleyways. It was SO nice not having the weight of my DSLR in my backpack though. My body just simply can’t handle that anymore. There were only a few situations that I ran across where I wished I had my DSLR with me. A moonlit evening over the bay. A sunset cocktail with sailboats in the background. But the G7X Mark II worked well enough that at least I didn’t miss the shot. I had to fiddle with the camera in manual mode to get the photos to turn out the way I wanted. But honestly, for the average person, the auto mode probably would work just fine in almost any situation.

I haven’t officially decided what I’ll do for my next trip, but it was incredibly nice not having to lug my 5D Mark IV around. What I really need is a digital/film hybrid camera that shoots medium format and 35mm, has a flash, a multiple exposure function, a zoom lens, a panorama mode, aperture priority, incredible low-light capabilities and a lightweight body - then I’d have my dream camera! If you happen to know of a camera that fits all of these functions, please please please let me know. :) In the meantime, I’ll be filling my camera bag with dozens of random cameras in search of the perfect one to fulfill all of my needs.

I hope this post helps you decide if the Canon G7X Mark II is for you! I find it to be a pretty spectacular camera, especially because it IS just a point-and-shoot! When I think back to my very first Canon Powershot camera I had back in the 2000s, even then, I was surprised by the quality that I was able to get with it. And now, with all of these modern-day functionalities, it’s kind of amazing what they can squeeze into these tiny cameras.

So… while the G7X Mark II won’t be replacing my 5D Mark IV as my everyday workhorse camera that I use at professional gigs, it does have the potential to be a contender for a decent digital travel camera. I’ll have to sleep on it a bit more before I decide what to do for my next trip. But in the meantime, if someone were to ask me if the G7X Mark II was worth the money, I’d say absolutely. It can take quite stunning photographs, even for the average person. It’s extremely easy to use, but still offers those pro-level settings like manual, aperture priority and shutter priority if you want to get more creative. It has full HD video, which makes the camera a good option for social media and vlogging (and some even argue the G7X Mark II is better for video than the G7X Mark III). And the 24-100mm lens offers a lot of versatility for a point-and-shoot camera. The fact that it made my mom’s photos from Africa look almost pro-level was a huge eye-opener for me, and was really the reason that I had the confidence and trust in the G7X Mark II to be a temporary travel replacement for my DSLR.

I’ve included more sample photos below to give you a better idea of the camera’s capabilities, including some of my favorite photos that my mom took on her trip to Africa. If you are interested in seeing photos from the Canon 5D Mark IV for comparison, you can check out my blog post here!

WHERE TO BUY THE CANON G7X MARK II

Amazon

Adorama

eBay (used)

WHERE TO BUY THE CANON G7X MARK III

Amazon

Adorama

eBay (used)

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You can also check out my Amazon storefront for more camera/film recommendations. :)

Thanks so much for stopping by! Feel free to leave any questions/comments below. Have a lovely day!

<3 Myles Katherine

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Contax T2 35 mm Camera Review with Samples Photos | Is the Contax T2 Really Worth the Hype?

 

(By using the links and/or codes below it supports Myles Katherine Photography. We may get a small kick back by you doing so.)

Here we go - the famous Contax T2. I was one of the lucky ones and picked up a Contax T2 before they became one of the most sought after point-and-shoot 35 mm cameras out there (thanks a lot, Kendall Jenner)! I think I paid about $500 for one in near mint condition, but now they’re going for anywhere from $750-2000 depending on the condition. The question is -

Is it Worth All of the Hype?

The Contax T2 has a lot of amazing features that many of my other 35 mm point-and-shoot cameras do not have. It has a sturdy and beautiful titanium body, a SUPER sharp and crisp Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* 38 mm f/2.8 lens and features such as aperture priority, flash, exposure compensation and manual and automatic focus controls. It has many of the features you’d expect in a larger, professional camera, but is small enough to fit in your pocket. When it first came out in the 1990s, it was created to appeal to the professional and luxury camera market. And personally, I have yet to come across a 35 mm film camera that can create images as sharp as the ones I’ve gotten with the Contax T2. It makes sense that once the secret was out, this camera blew up. There’s a reason all of these celebrities are using this camera and it’s because they want the best and this is it. It automatically makes everything look high fashion and amazing because of the sharp lens. Plus it’s small and inconspicuous, yet beautiful to look at.

But is it Worth the Expensive Price Tag?

Personally, the Contax T2 is a missing a key function that I NEED in a camera - a multiple exposure function. While, yes, you can rewind the film and shoot over the images you’ve already taken, I prefer to have more control over my multiple exposures. Because of this, I don’t end up using the camera very often. It’s just a personal preference that I’ve discovered about myself as a photographer over the years. However, my Contax T2 was having a bit of trouble at one point with the battery connections and would occasionally lock up in the middle of taking a photo. Because of this, I’d shut down and restart the camera and it would accidentally shoot over the same frame, causing accidental double exposures. I’ve included a few of these images below. However, they were not planned and don’t necessarily count as a positive attribute of the camera. Since then, I’ve figured out a loophole for stopping the camera from freezing mid-shot, by pushing down the shutter button very slowly but firmly. I’ve been meaning to send my Contax T2 off for service, but when I discovered that it was a minimum of $400 to repair it, I decided to hold off for the moment (Nippon Photoclinic was the only professional camera repair store I could find that I would trust with my Contax T2). Plus, I don’t really mind these accidental double exposures. However, it’s important to keep in mind that the Contax T2 is expensive to repair. The camera itself isn’t getting any younger either, as they were initially released in the early 1990s and are now around 30 years old. The reality is, if you DO want to try this camera out, it’s better to do it sooner rather than later. They aren’t going to last forever and in today’s world, they’re probably just going to get MORE expensive. If you’re desperate to try it out, I recommend keeping an eye on the Ebay listings for a few weeks to get an idea of the price point they’re going for. Sometimes, one will pop up that might fly under the radar and end up getting yourself a good deal. You can also set a price watch on Amazon and watch for fluctuations in price. KEH camera also gets them in every once in a while and have a thorough testing and rating system for their used items.

Would I Purchase a Contax T2 Today?


Probably not. It’s an incredible camera but without a multiple exposure function, it’s hard for me to justify spending that much money on a camera I just wouldn’t use very often. However, I am glad that I had the chance to experience the camera because it is pretty amazing. I love how sharp the photographs are and I especially love how small and easy it is to travel with. It packs a lot into a tiny little camera body. Plus, the titanium body is truly beautiful and makes the camera feel and look expensive when you’re holding it in your hand. As a Japanese camera brand, you can expect attention to detail and quality. Even the protective camera case it comes with feels soft and amazing in your hands. I’ve considered selling my Contax T2 many times, since I don’t get around to using it very often. Even with the battery issues I’ve been having, I could still probably sell it for more than I purchased it for. But there really is something special about the Contax T2 so I’m finding it hard to let it go. If you have the money and are willing to invest, you won’t be disappointed by the camera quality and sharpness of the photographs. Just make sure you get one that doesn’t have any previously known issues and that comes from a reputable seller. I think the Contax T2 is worth all of the hype, as long as you’re not breaking the bank to purchase it. Sure, there are other high end 35 mm cameras out there that are more affordable, but I have yet to come across one that beats the quality of the Contax T2.

Where Can I Buy a Contax T2?

Amazon

Ebay

KEH Camera

I’ve included a few of my favorite images I’ve taken over the years with my Contax T2. I also posted a review on my YouTube channel, so be sure to check that out too!

Feel free to leave any questions or comments below. Thanks so much for stopping by!

<3 Myles Katherine

(click to enlarge images)