Old 06-14-21, 07:30 PM
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mschwett 
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Camera for shooting and riding, and stopping and shooting

I'm pretty new to cycling, but been a mostly amateur photographer / enthusiast for decades.

I have my iPhone on a quad lock, and pull it off the bars and take pictures occasionally when riding (when it's safe to one hand, obviously), and stop from time to time to do the same. But years of photography have made me a total camera snob, and whenever I have one of those epic amazing light / scenery rides, I wish I had a camera with me. I searched threads here and there's a lot of good action cam and strap recommendations. I'll probably wear the camera on a blackrapid sling.

Possibilities -

Nikon Z7, which happens to be a camera I already have, plus about 50 nikon Z and F mount lenses. But this is a 1.5lb camera with no good pancake lenses. The smallest lens I might use, which isn't that exciting (24-50 f/4-6.3) is another 7 oz, so almost 2lb (850g) of fairly awkwardly shaped camera hanging on my shoulder all ride. full frame, 46 megapixels.
Sony A7C. a third lighter, more pancake-y lens choices, including a nice 24 f/2.8 that's less than 2" deep and only 6 oz, for a total of 1.5lb. (671g) full frame, 24 megapixels.
Sony RX1R II. Smallest and lightest, but not interchangeable, 35mm f/2 only. 507g total, barely over a pound, full frame, 42 megapixels.
Nikon Z50. A compromise, allowing me to use existing lenses, with a smaller sensor and less resolution. Only 395g for the camera, and there's a very small and light 16-50 f/3.5-6.3 lens for a total weight of only 530g, essentially the same as the RX1R II, but with a smaller sensor, slower lens, but zoom!

I'd like fairly high resolution to allow aggressive cropping and recomposing in post, given the very quick nature of photos taken while riding, and the limited focal lengths available. That argues against the A7C, and for the Z7 or RX1R II. The former is free, the latter 3 grand...

Any suggestions from those who carry a decent quality camera on their body while riding? I'm not a huge fan of M4/3 from past experience, and had a mixed relationship with a couple Fuji X cameras. Most of my rides are 20-75 miles, typically early morning or late afternoon, average speed around 14mph with 1500-4000 feet of climbing. I ride a turbo creo, with the motor off 95% of the time, so the weight might not be that big of a deal other than the comfort factor.
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