Sometimes, you just don’t want to carry a full bag of gear around. Whether you’ve got tight luggage restrictions, a sore back, or just want to float lightly through the day, I want you to know that it’s okay, and you don’t lose any photographer cred for admitting it!
That being said, you don’t want to be left completely without a way to capture The Perfect Moment, either, and while phone cameras are getting better all the time, they’re still a poor substitute for a dedicated image-capture device. We’re bringing in a few new cameras in the 1″-sensor-and-below category, so if you haven’t refreshed your every-day-carry camera in a while, take a minute and see what’s new in the industry!
Here we go, in reverse alphabetical order…
The Panasonic ZS80

- 20.3 MP 1/2.3″ sensor
- 30x zoom lens (24-720mm equivalent)
- Optical image stabilization
- 4K/30p maximum video quality
- 380 shots per charge
- Available late April
The latest in Panasonic’s line of travel zooms improves on the ZS70‘s telephoto maximum aperture and sports a significantly better viewfinder as well as Bluetooth, to make it even easier to transfer, edit, and share your photos. Click here to preorder now!
The Panasonic FZ1000M2

- 20.1 MP 1″ sensor
- 16x zoom lens (25-400mm equivalent)
- 5-axis enhanced optical image stabilization
- 4K/30p maximum video quality
- Up to 440 shots per charge
- Available late March
With an improved sensor and a host of new buttons/dials for better manual control, the FZ1000 seems to have a worthy successor in the M2.
The Nikon B600

- 16 MP 1/2.3″ BSI sensor
- 60x zoom lens (24-1440mm equivalent)
- Macro mode—focus as close as 1cm
- 1080/60i maximum video quality
- 280 shots per charge
- Available late March
This fantastically wide-ranging camera makes it easier to work zoomed all the way in with the excellent Snap-back zoom feature—temporarily expand the field of view to reacquire your subject at the push of a button!
The Nikon A1000

- 16 MP 1/2.3″ BSI sensor
- 35x zoom lens (24-840mm equivalent)
- RAW recording capability
- 4K maximum video quality
- 250 shots per charge
- Available late March
Also sporting the Snap-back feature, this pocketable super-zoom can shoot 4K video and RAW pictures.
The Fujifilm FinePix XP140

- 16.4 MP 1/2.3″ BSI sensor
- 5x zoom lens (28-140mm equivalent)
- Waterproof to 82′ (IP68), shockproof to 5.9′, freezeproof to 14°F
- 4K/15p maximum video quality
- 240 shots per charge
- Available late April
4K comes to Fuji’s venerable series of rugged cameras in the XP140, along with significantly-expanded ISO range. Click here to preorder now!