Would you ever buy a car you thought was ugly or horrible to drive? Would you ever eat food you don’t like in a restaurant because it’s cheap? And yet it’s a curious thing in photography that there are so many ‘experts’ who insist that practicality, value and features are all that count and all the rest is shallow vanity or just plain stupidity.
There’s this idea that only trendy influencers or wealthy fashionistas buy deliberately stylish cameras and that ‘proper’ photographers should be above this kind of shallowness. Well, I can’t agree. I love photography, and I love cameras, and I love taking pictures even more if I’m holding a camera I feel some connection with and not some anonymous lump of plastic, alloy and glass.
Now I do have good friends who think differently. Friends who can’t find any enjoyment in a camera, or in any other device, unless it IS functional and cheap. We can’t all be the same.
So with that in mind, here’s a list of cameras which I think do bring a kind of style and engagement to photography, and which are also designed to be enjoyed for their own sake, not just as purely functional tools. I’m going to stick to interchangeable lens cameras here – I have a separate guide to the best compact cameras.
Not every brand is represented. Canon, despite persistent rumors of a new ‘retro’ camera, is firmly on the side of features and functionality. Sony is the same (should we make an exception or the A7C series? Not sure), and Panasonic has moved away from its Lumix G MFT roots towards a bland, generic design approach that puts function very much ahead of form. So be it [sigh].
Fujifilm X-T30 III
- Fujifilm X-T30 III price body only: $999 at B&H | £829 at Wex
- Fujifilm X-T30 III price with XF13-33mm f/3.5-6.3: $1,149 at B&H | £999 at Wex
This is a new version of an old camera, and I’m not going to make any apologies for that because it’s also priced to appeal to beginners and students. It is possible to have style on a budget! The 26MP sensor is still good today, there’s no IBIS so you will have to pay attention to shutter speeds, but you’ve got an old-school shutter speed dial on the top for that, and many Fujifilm lenses (though not the cheap zooms) have aperture rings, so this is a camera with real physical controls.
Fujifilm X-T5
- Fujifilm X-T5 price body only: $1,999 at B&H | £1,549 at Wex
- Fujifilm X-T5 price with XF 16-50mm f/2.8-4.8 kit lens: $2,399 at B&H | £1,899 at Wex
I could mention the X-T50, but to be honest I think if you’re considering the X-T50 you might just as well pay that little bit extra for the X-T5. It’s a more substantial camera with twin card slots and a dedicated ISO dial for fans of exposure triangle calculations. The X-T5’s 40MP sensor places extra demands on lenses, so if you want to get the full benefit you might need to avoid Fujifilm’s cheaper zooms. Otherwise, though, this is a camera with real style and class that also offers cutting edge sensor and AF technologies at a competitive prices. It’s the best of both worlds.
Nikon Z fc
- Nikon Z fc price body only: $957 at B&H | £669 at Wex
- Nikon Z fc price with 16-50mm kit lens: $1,097 at B&H | £829 at Wex
This little APS-C pseudo-retro Nikon has been around for a while now, but it’s an especially attractive buy right now because prices have fallen considerably. It has the look of a classic Nikon FE 35mm SLR, a design that still makes photographers of a certain age swoon, but with all the advantages of modern mirrorless technology. It is a little plasticky in parts, so it looks perhaps a little better than it feels, but it’s still a very classy little camera. You get a shutter speed dial on the top for that retro experience, though the lens aperture is controlled by the camera, so it’s viewed in a tiny window on the top plate – so it’s not quite the Fujifilm experience.
Nikon Zf
- Nikon Zf price body only: $1,897 at B&H | £1,699 at Wex
- Nikon Zf price with 40mm SE lens: $2,137 at B&H | £1,949 at Wex
This is the grown-up full frame version of the Nikon Zfc, and while the looks are similar, the feel and finish of this camera are in a different league. It’s a thoroughly modern and competitive full frame mirrorless camera with a 24MP sensor, subject-detect AF, 8-stop internal stabilization and a choice of beautiful finishes. With ISO, shutter speed and EV compensation dials on the top, it offers modern features but a real retro vibe based on the original Nikon FM2 film camera. Are you paying a little extra for this splash of style? Sure, but not all that much, and you get a modern camera that’s designed to be loved, not just used.
OM System PEN-EP7
- OM System E-P7 price with 14-42mm EZ lens: £849 at Wex
This choice is slightly trickier because this camera is only available in certain territories like the UK, but not in the US. That is such a shame because this is the final evolution of the Olympus PEN series, and a camera so beautiful that you could just put it on your desk and sit and look at it for hours (get the black and silver version, though). There’s no EVF (not like the much-lamented PEN-F) and just a 20MP NFT sensor, but you have exceptional IBIS, a huge range of image effects from its Color Creator, mono modes and Art Filters, and in the 14-42mm EZ kit zoom, one of the most remarkable and compact kit zooms ever made.
OM System OM-3
- OM System OM-3 price body only: $1,699 at B&H | £1,699 at Wex
- OM System OM-3 price with 12-45mm f/4 Pro lens: $1,999 at B&H | £1,999 at Wex
The OM-3 is like a modern replica of the classic OM 35mm SLR series of beautifully made, compact but technically advanced cameras. The OM-3 looks wonderful (though a grip would be nice), has a beautiful finish and feel, and inside it packs OM Systems’ latest stacked sensor for high-speed shooting and advanced video capabilities (compared to previous generations). It’s another camera that looks and feels wonderful, but still packs the latest mirrorless imaging technology. The OM-5 II is also a very attractive camera and cheaper too, but the OM-3 is the one to truly lust after. For Olympus fans, anyway.
Hasselblad X2D II 100C
- Hasselblad X2D II 100C price body only: £7399 at B&H | £6,400 at Wex
- Hasselblad XCD 35-100mm f/2.8-4 E price: $4,599 at B&H | £4,099 at Wex
So straight away we go into stratospheric pricing territory, but no guide like this would be complete without the extraordinary Hasselblad X2D II 100C. Yes, the Fujifilm GFX range is cheaper and more practical, but it doesn’t look and handle like this. The Hasselblad is like Scandinavian design style ramped up to maximum. My experience of this camera was the first-generation 50MP model with slow and flaky AF and slow and flaky everything really, but this is a much more modern version with twice the resolution, proper phase-detect AF and in-body stabilizatiion. If that’s not enough, Hasselblad’s XCD lenses are spectacularly good.
Leica M EV1
- Leica M EV1 price body only: $9,290 at B&H (US) | £6,799 at Wex (UK)
The Leica M EV1 is not just more expensive than a regular Leica M rangefinder, it also commites the ultimate sacrilege of replacing the classic M optical rangefinder with – gasp – an EVF. That’s like, I don’t know, putting vinyl seats into a Ferrari. BUT this makes Leica’s M series way more accessible to users brought up on digital cameras, while maintaining that Leica design, build quality and heritage. Of course, once you’ve. recovered from paying for the camera, you’ve got to start all over again with the lenses – but Leica’s M mount primes are legendary for their compactness, their handling and their unique image rendering.
So which of these cameras with style is the best?
For a start, you don’t need to spend a fortune. The Fujifilm X-T30 III gives you classic film camera controls at a very competitive price, while the Nikon Zfc is perhaps a little less capable but really, really cute.
If you can stretch a bit further, the Fujifilm X-T5 blends power, professional appeal and style perhaps better than any other camera, and it’s not hugely expensive either. It’s in the same ballpark price-wise and the beautiful OM System OM-3, but I would have to say the X-T 5 delivers more for the money. And then there’s the Nikon Zf. The Fujfilm and OM-3 both use crop sensors, but the Zf is a full frame camera that gives little away to its 24MP rivals technically but has a style the others just don’t have.
And then there’s the prestige end of the market. Here, the Leica M series still reigns supreme for most, whether you go for the EV1 or the more difficult but more traditional M11. But don’t rule out the Hasselblad. If you’re strolling down the pitlane at Monaco, everyone will have a Leica M, but no-one will have an X2D II 100C.