Professional or photography lover, no matter, one question always haunts your mind: DSLR or Mirrorless, which camera to choose? Is investing in new equipment a guarantee of capturing better images?
You have seen here what is a DSLR camera and a Mirrorless. The truth is that both have high performance systems and strengths to consider. But relax, that today has a nice summary for you to decide which one and if it is worth investing in a new equipment.
DSLR or Mirrorless, which camera to choose?
First, you need to understand and recognize your real photographic needs. Quality and versatility are certainly at the top of the list. Make sure there are many DSLRs and Mirrorless cameras that suit almost any type of photographer. Being aware if your focus is professional or leisure and travel helps a lot. Planning and knowing your routine is half the way.
Purchasing a DSLR or Mirrorless camera used to be a simpler question. The answer practically boiled down to dividing the world between those who were professionals – or thought about becoming one. Hence, anyone who wanted a camera that produced images with the best quality possible, acquired a DSLR. If you were a consumer more concerned with weight and not necessarily image quality, Mirrorless was perfect.
However, the market has evolved so much that today this analysis does not work well and perhaps in the past it has been somewhat limited. The difference between the two types of camera starts with clues already by name.
DSLR stands for Digital Single Lens Reflex. Simply put, this means that after the light passes through the lens, it hits a 45 degree angled mirror. The light fires up and into a viewfinder that, when you look at it, shows exactly what the lens is seeing at that moment. A true optical path.
Already on a Mirrorless camera – surprise! – has no mirror. Instead, light passes through the lens, directly into the sensor, where it is processed and, almost simultaneously, displayed on the monitor at the rear of the camera or on a very small monitor – an electronic viewfinder (EVF) at the top. When you press the shutter button, the camera records what is on the sensor at that time.
The withdrawal of the traditional mirror in Mirrorless, however, leads to several advantages. Mirrorless cameras do not need a complicated optical viewfinder or a large mirror to reflect light, which means they can be much smaller and lighter. Some works, such as autofocus, can be performed on the sensor itself, leading to very fast reading times, which can be said that some cameras without a mirror are capable of achieving ‘supernatural’ performance.
We are also seeing more and more mirrorless cameras with full-frame sensors; therefore, in the end, there is no discernible difference between the output of a Mirrorless camera and that of a traditional DSLR.
If you are confused on how to evaluate so many details, follow our comparison:
| DSLR | Mirrorless | |
| First time users | The experience can be frustrating for completely beginners and the user will be held hostage automatically. You can end up investing a lot and making use of few resources. | Suitable for beginners. |
| Professional users | Suitable for professionals. | Suitable for professionals. |
| Image quality | High quality results. | High quality results. |
| Presence of pentamirror | Present in the cheapest cameras. | – |
| Presence of pentaprism = better results | Present only on the most expensive (heaviest) cameras. | – |
| Viewfinder | – | In the absence of the mirror, this is where the image will form. |
| Practical lens change | It must be done with due care, using the air sprayer. The mirror protects from dust and further damage. | It should be done with double care and, if possible, never without the air sprayer. |
| Weight | Heavier, average 650g. | Lighter, average of 200g. |
| Mirror | Gift | – |
| Interchangeable lens systems | Yes. | Yes. |
| Drums | It lasts longer for being in bodies that house larger batteries. More than 1200 photos can be taken per battery. | Smaller batteries, shorter durability. Only a few Sonys take 700 photos per battery. Most take an average of 400 photos. |
| Light | The light fires up and into a viewfinder that, when you look at it, shows exactly what the lens is seeing at that moment. | The light passes through the lens directly on the sensor, where it is processed and, almost simultaneously, displayed on the monitor at the rear of the camera or on a very small monitor – an electronic viewfinder (EVF) at the top. |
| Size | They are larger and bulky, although this can help when shooting with large telephoto lenses, helping to balance the weight. | They are generally smaller, but in some cases the lenses can be as large as those of DSLRs. However, mirrorless cameras are as large as equivalent-level DSLRs. |
| Lenses | Big variety. Canon has approximately 150 lenses. | More restricted number. The Sony has about 80 lenses – more expensive, but can be adapted to DSLR lenses. |
| Real view of the photographed scene | Just looking at the rear display. | Using the capture viewfinder, it is possible to see the image clearly, without interference from the sun, for example, as in the rear digital viewfinder. |
| View of the photo on the screen | With more complex adjustments, the result seen at the time of the click can be quite different from the result on the rear display. Requires greater understanding of photometer, lighting and other adjustments. | Real view, regardless of where the scene is taken to capture the image. What you see is the photo. |
| Privacy | The famous “click” sound will always be present in everyday work. | You have the option to silence, increasing discretion. |
| Video | They offer video features, but the focus is photography. | Almost all shoot in 4K, with option, even slow motion and several other features. |
| velocity | They can take an average of 5 shots per second. | You can take more than 10 photos per second. |
Well, now you just have to cross this table with your priorities and go around cutting the world.