THE SONY RX10 MARK IV AND 5 GOOD REASONS TO BUY A BRIDGE CAMERA: FROM A PANASONIC FZ2500/2000 OWNER

Sony's latest and greatest 1 inch sensor camera is out and it is the fourth version of the RX10 flagship mirrorless bridge camera. Is it really worth it to go out and spend the cash on the latest or should you just get a previous version? This video asks that exact question.

Sony has come out with its 4th generation iteration of the RX10 line. Like the other iterations, it sports a high quality optics superzoom with tons and tons of features that include high quality video, super optics and bells and whistles the likes of which it becomes a challenge to find something that this camera does not do. The RX10 is at the top of its game with only the FZ2500 as a competitor. Its new features are

Here are some specs

New and improved auto focus speed with 315 phase detection AF points to cover 65% of the image area

A more "reliable" High density AF tracking system

Touch screen with the ability to chose auto focus points while shooting and more

The ability to decide which auto focus modes to switch to using Af-A

Continuous shooting at 24 fps taken from the RX100 and A9 cameras

Silent electronic shutter

Fast hybrid for 4k movie recording

Why get the RX10 mark 4?

But with all the bells and whistles on this camera, I truly believe that we are basically just flipping 4 quarters for a dollar, repackaging it and convincing people that they are getting something better and that their images will be taken up a notch because they are using the latest and greatest. I applaude Sony for keeping on the cusp of technology but believe it important to note that there are indeed four versions of this camera that all give you some great images. no matter which one you pick, I truly believe that they are beautiful compliments to your photo, video or photo/video arsenal. I myself have used the two generations of flagship mirrorless bridge cameras by Panasonic (the FZ1000 and the FZ2500) and loved them. But whether you use any of these cameras, one question always arises. What the hell do we use them for?

Why buy a bridge camera?

Most people talking about this camera on the web seem to question the utility of the bridge camera in general. Ted Forbes and Eric Rossi, who's YouTube channels I really do love, seem to weigh in on these cameras but ask why? I myself truly believe that these large massive bridge cameras serve a lot of amateur and professional purposes. Here they are (no necessarily in order of importance)

The super tourist. That very enthusiastic tourist who's passion is to get home and work on home videos to present to others or on the web

Bloggers who need B roll

Those wishing to do photo essays. It is an all in one offering excellent video quality and all the bells and whistles to make an impression and tell a story. Input jack for audio and la focal lengths for B roll

Videographers needing a B cam

Street photographers

But my conclusion is the following. As an owner of the original FZ1000 and now the FZ2500, they are worth having but don't go crazy on trying to find the most features, you will even be fine with the fist versions of these cameras RX10 and FZ1000. After all, it is all about getting the shot.

To buy the RX10 mark3

To buy the RX10 mark 2:

To buy the original RX10:

The blog of this video:

Eric Rossi's channel:

Ted Forbe's channel:

Panasonic FZ2500 playlist:

Panasonic FZ1000 playlist:

To follow me:

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Please watch: "Behind Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” Speech. Why was it powereful?"
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[EdwinHenryBlachford]

It's nice to see a man who loves his work. Personally I'm an architect who also loves his work.. aspiring to photography but we each have our ability. Fortunately there's always a place for people like this. And you get to have some fun too..

[rizwanaly]

One of the best and honest reviews I've watched in a long while... Very good suggestions to not get hyped and to decide which camera satisfies needs from Rx line.. thank u..

[Eric_Rossi]

Thanks for the shout, I still find the price being pretty high, but once again the bridge market cant be ignored. Good points. It just comes down to the user and their goals.

[gillesmatheronpro]

After testing all bridge cameras available in 2016, I bought the RX10M3 and kept it 19 months. Sold it (easily) and turned to the RX10M4 (after testing it, along with the FZ2000/2500, Leica, etc.).
Why ? Because this camera has expendable possibilities no other one offers. I shot photographs that sold and filmed videos that sold... with "technically, perfect images" returned to me when asking about image quality. With the last update, it's even better. I included it in professional production workflows, and major DoP and TV news teams turned to me asking what this camera was... only to ask me for testing it. Two TV channels requested sequences from me, after viewing them on monitor, and a technician turned to his colleague, asking "Why the hell don't we have such cameras, instead of those bulky older ones we have to pull along ?".
So, is its 1700 USD price tag exagerated ? No... and it should even be priced higher without any complain from the owners, as it offers features only found on 2000+ USD lenses or bodies. For that price, some "duos" can compete... but only in one field. Some are better for vlogging, when others are slightly lighter for travel use, or produce higher resolution images in landscape photography. But, when you consider all of its features, the RX10M4 has no competitor as a do-it-all all-in-one camera.
And I don't see any competition coming close.

[georgeeharrison]

The bridge camera I now use is the Fuji HS50 it has very good HD video, but not 4k. I mostly shoot outdoor portraits and landscapes which one would be best for me to buy. The other camera I use is the Olympus EM10 with a 14-150 lens.

[mazdaspeedmxlbs]

I owned the RX10 2 for a short while then got the RX10 3 which I owned since it came out. Now I bought the new RX10 4. I'm selling my RX10 3. I have taken many great videos & pictures with my RX10 3. I like my new RX10 4 because of the new focus features & I mostly needed the 1000 fps high speed for my research, its only 720p but that good enough for my research & now its 7 seconds on the RX10 4 instead of just 4 sec on the RX10 3. The RX10 4 focuses on dark night scenes much better i noticed. Phase detection works only on the optical zoom. When taking pictures With the RX10 4 you touch the display to move the focus point then you push the shutter button & then it will focus on what you touched on the display. For video it will focus immediately on what you touch on the display before & during recording. With the RX10 3 you could lock the focus with your left thumb & then lock the exposure on a lighter or darker object with your right thumb & AEL button then move the camera & frame the picture then take the pic. The RX10 4 has this also.

[EdwinHenryBlachford]

best bridge for motorsports please Jacques? ( RX10 4, 3 vs FZ2000, 2500) Mainly MotoGP, lots of MotoX. Lots of wildlife. mainly 4K video.. great stills a bonus. Physically, bigger the camera the better

[dtoysu]

Thank you Jacques for nice review. I have RX 10 iii but I need RX 10 iv due to TOUCH FOCUS.

[elvinlawcc]

I shoot a lot of video, I think the Panasonic FZ2500 is best, I own a FZ300, it shoots good FHD video. At last I bought the RX10 mk3 for my video works with a offer price recently, reason that I can not buy the FZ2500 in Malaysia. They don't sell this model here. Waited for nearly a year, finally decided to buy the RX10 mk3. The only downside for RX10 mk3 is the battery life. My FZ300 can shoot video for around 3 hours on a single battery. How is the FZ2500 battery life?

[NetvoTV]

Why Panasonic don’t update their bridge camera? Hope Leica version will update too

[EricNelsonYT]

What picture profiles do you shoot with on your FZ2500 for the best results? For images, I use Standard with -2 contrast & -2 noise reduction ( I love to edit). For video, I use Cine-D with -2 contrast & -2 noise reduction. HOWEVER. Above 800iso I am seeing a lot of noise! Any suggestions? I shot A LOT of good images in New York this past summer & love the camera, I just want less noise w/ a sharper image.

[gcprost]

I think you have a point about long lenses and street photography. I am a shy street photographer. I love being able to shoot candid photos from a distance away. Gerry in Calgary.

[mlk]

Would this be a camera for hockey? I'm prioritizing video with strong autofocus, but with the option for quality action photos.

[BenjaminKelliher]

Jacques, I had my heart set on the FZ2500 before the Sony Rx10 IV came out. Im starting a Kitesurfing orientated youtube channel and want a camera with a good zoom for filming Kitesurfing. From what I can tell the Sony is going to be alot better than the Lumix for filming sports, especially something fast paced like kitesurfing. I live in a very sunny location so light is not going to be an issues at all if anything its too bright which is why I like the idea of the built in ND filters on the FZ2500. The price of the FZ2000 is defiantly more within budget. This all said should I be spending the extra on the Sony, am I going to regret buying the FZ2500 over the Sony RX10 IV

[NetvoTV]

A7 III or Sony RX10 IV or Sony RX100 V or iPhone X for street(mostly), event, daily, bird, product shoot, landscape, videos and so on?

[lasaventurasdemateo]

amigo te saludo desde Guatemala. me cuesta un poco entender lo que dices debido al idioma... te explico un poco mi necesidad antes de hacerte la pregunta. yo nunca he utilizado una camara reflex solo algunas bridge de gama baja. la sony dsch 400 y la 400v la fuji finepix y la canon sx 530hs.. pero quiero cambiar a un salto de mejor calidad. que cámara me recomiendas comprar entre las siguientes dos: la fz 2500 de panasonic o la canon eos 77d .. es que las dos me gustan pero no se cual comprar? tu cual me recomendarias? gracias. espero tu respuesta y me gusta tu canal.

[NanogalaxyOrgMedia]

I never owned a DSLR and am planning to get a good one. I'm more of a video maker. But photos are important for me too. Should I go for Canon 80D or wait for this RX10 Mark 4???

[kennythepirate]

Does the Rx10 iv shoot video and photos simultaneously like the Rx10 2 ?

[genesisosvaldo]

RX III/IV is really much better than FZ2000 in terms of photo quality? is really a great improvement in the quality of the images? Im only refeer to photo, becuase the 4K video I think both cameras are basically equal (taste question). Sorry for my english

[ZZstaff]

Please make your pictures full screen. I cannot make any good comparisons when images are so small, and I am 18 inches from a 40 inch monitor.