Buying adviceShould I sell my X-T30 II and go full frame before I get any deeper into Fuji?

Long post, sorry. I bought a used X-T30 II with the 18-55 about two months ago, mainly for hiking and landscapes in Ontario and Quebec, and I'm enjoying it a lot. But I keep reading that if I'm serious about landscapes I should be on full frame, for dynamic range and low light, and that APS-C is a dead end because nobody's making new Fuji bodies (the X-T6 seems to keep getting delayed?).

I've only spent about $1,100 CAD so far, so if I'm going to switch, now seems like the time, before I buy more lenses. The options I've been looking at are a used Sony A7 IV with the 28-70, or a Nikon Z5 II with the 24-50. Both would be roughly $2,000-2,500 CAD used or new, which is a stretch but doable if I sell the Fuji.

Things I care about, in order: weight on the trail (I do 15-25km days), image quality for big prints maybe one day, weather resistance because I get caught in the rain a lot, and not having to switch systems again in two years.

Things I'm unsure about: is the dynamic range difference actually visible in real photos or only in charts? Is the X-T30 II's lack of weather sealing going to matter? I've read it isn't sealed at all. And if I stay with Fuji, what's the upgrade path if they never release an X-T6?

I'm not in a rush. I'd rather understand this properly than buy twice. Thanks to anyone who reads all of this.

Quinn_R said:

if I'm going to switch, now seems like the time, before I buy more lenses

Keep the Fuji. Buy a better lens if you want to spend money. You'll notice the extra weight of a full frame kit every kilometre and the extra dynamic range almost never.

Quinn_R said:

is the dynamic range difference actually visible in real photos or only in charts?

charts, mostly. if you're shooting raw and exposing properly you'll struggle to pick an APS-C landscape from a full frame one at normal print sizes. APS-C is all most people will ever need, and that includes heaps of people with full frame kits they're carting round for no reason

I was going to say go full frame!! Everyone on YouTube says the low light and dynamic range are way better and you'll never regret it. I'm saving up for an R6 II right now because my R50 struggles indoors.

kevinlearns said:

you'll never regret it

You'll regret it on the 18th kilometre. And at the till. I shoot an A7 III and I love it, but if I was doing 25km days I'd be carrying something a lot smaller than this... just saying

Haha fair! I just mean the low light is supposed to be like a stop better right?

About a stop, yes, and it's worth being precise about what that buys you. At the same field of view and the same f-number, a full frame sensor collects roughly 2.3x the light of APS-C, which is a bit over a stop of noise advantage. For landscapes on a tripod at base ISO that advantage mostly disappears, because you aren't light-limited. You just use a longer shutter speed. Where it matters is handheld at dusk, astro, and heavy shadow recovery.

Dynamic range at base ISO between a current 26MP APS-C sensor and a 24-33MP full frame sensor is closer than forum folklore suggests. You'll see it if you lift shadows four or five stops. You won't see it in a well-exposed frame.

What will actually show up in your prints: lens quality, focus accuracy, whether the camera was stable, and how carefully you process. The 18-55 is a decent lens but it's the weak link here, not the sensor. imo spend on glass and a proper raw workflow before you spend on a new system.

rawtherapist said:

For landscapes on a tripod at base ISO that advantage mostly disappears

This is really helpful, thanks. I don't carry a tripod on long hikes though (too heavy). Does that change things? Most of my shots are handheld at around 1/125. I do stop and brace on rocks a lot, if that matters.

Quinn_R said:

APS-C is a dead end because nobody's making new Fuji bodies

This is not correct. APS-C is not dead end. Fuji still makes many lenses and the bodies they have are good, they are only slow with the new ones. Canon, Sony and Nikon all still sell APS-C cameras too.

I hike in Tatra with full frame, Z6 III and 24-120, and it is heavy, about 1.5kg with the lens, more with the 14-30 in the bag. I would not change it, because I print large and I like the files, and after many years I am used to the weight. But I carry it because I chose it, not because landscape needs it. Some of the best mountain photographers I follow use APS-C.

For 15-25km days in bad weather I think you are better to spend on one good sealed lens and a proper rain cover. The light kit you take with you is better than the heavy kit you leave in the car.

Quinn_R said:

image quality for big prints maybe one day

And here's me hiking with a GX9 and the 12-60 and printing A3 off it no bother. You don't need a big sensor to get a grand picture of a hill. Ten years with the same little bag and I've never once wished it was bigger.

Quinn_R said:

not having to switch systems again in two years

i went the other way, sony a7 iv to x-t5 last year. honestly never looked back, the sony just sat at home

Quinn_R said:

Most of my shots are handheld at around 1/125.

In daylight that's still base ISO most of the time, so no, not much. It only changes at the ends of the day.

Quinn_R said:

I've only spent about $1,100 CAD so far

I'll be the contrarian. If you think you'll want full frame eventually, and it sounds like you do or you wouldn't be asking, then $1,100 sunk is about the cheapest exit you'll ever get. Every lens you buy makes switching more expensive, and folks always end up buying more lenses than they planned. I've watched buddies go APS-C, then "just one more lens", then three years later they switch anyway and take a bath on the whole lot.

IMHO the Z5 II is the best bang for the buck in full frame right now. The weather sealing is the real deal, the AF comes from the Z8 family, and with the little 24-50 it's not as heavy as people make out. I've hauled the Z8 and the 24-120 up some long desert trails in July and lived to tell the tale, and that's a heavier kit than you'd be carrying.

That said, I'm a Nikon guy, so take it with a grain of salt.

• Walt

WaltK_AZ said:

it sounds like you do or you wouldn't be asking

Or he's read a lot of forum posts telling him he should.

Touché.

• Walt

mfrost said:

Or he's read a lot of forum posts telling him he should.

Honestly, a bit of both. I don't have a specific photo that's been ruined by the sensor. It's more a feeling that I should get the "right" system from the start. Weather sealing is a real concern though, I got soaked twice in July and the camera was fine but I was nervous the whole time.

Quinn_R said:

Is the X-T30 II's lack of weather sealing going to matter?

I'll put in a word for weather sealing being what actually matters, Scotland's taught me that much. I've had cameras out in sideways rain on the Arrochar Alps and the sealed ones just carry on, whilst I've watched a friend's unsealed body fog up inside and need a night on the radiator.

But that doesn't mean full frame, it just means a sealed body and a sealed lens. A used X-T4 or X-T5 gets you that, keeps you in the same system, and you can sell the X-T30 II without losing much. Pair it with one of the WR zooms and you're properly set for rain.

And for the record MFT isn't dead either, before anyone starts. My old E-M1 II did years of Highland weather and I only replaced it because I wanted the new toys.

Dreich said:

it just means a sealed body and a sealed lens

this. also a ziplock bag and a cloth in your pocket has saved more camreas than any spec sheet

Quinn_R said:

weight on the trail (I do 15-25km days)

Speaking as someone with an A7R V and a bag of lenses I lug round London... honestly if I were hiking 25km I'd want what you've got. Full frame is lovely but it's the lenses that get you. The 24-70 GM II alone is nearly 700g, and that's one of the light ones. Add a body and the 85 and you're over two kilos before water and a jacket. I don't hike with mine and I don't think I'd want to

I travel with X-S20 and the 18-55 and 70-300, and the whole bag weights about the same as some full frame bodies with one big zoom. Bueno, for hiking I would never go back to heavy kit, my back says thank you every day