Some cameras feel right, some cameras feel wrong. Specs aren't everything

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We live in a data-driven world where everything is measured and rated with numbers. But cameras are also physical tools we use with our hands and our eyes. Cameras are machines, but we aren’t.

So when we choose a camera it makes sense to make sure that the specs and the features are what we need. But very often, there will still be any number of cameras that meet our basic requirements and we have to choose one.

So it’s tempting just to go for the biggest numbers, the longest list of features or even the most favorable reviews – but this is still focused on the data not the actual experience of using these things.

In our reviews, we do try to focus on the user experience as well as the camera performance and specifications. But we can only offer our own judgement and experience. Photographers are not all the same. So there comes a point when we all have to stop taking refuge in numbers and specifications and try these cameras out for real, with our own hands. 

That’s when you might discover that a camera that looks perfect on paper just doesn’t suit you at all, or that you fall in love with a camera that doesn’t have the best specifications or features but just feels ‘right’.

The Sony RX100 IV is a camera I wouldn't use, even if you gave me one

I’ll give you some examples. The Sony RX100 series is one of the most efficient and effective pocket-sized compact cameras on the market. Lots of my colleagues love them, but I don’t like them at all. If I was given one, I wouldn’t use it.

Nikon D610 is a camera I still love to use (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

By contrast, my Nikon D800 and D610 are two full frame DSLRs long past their use-by date which I simply love using. They are hefty, comfortable to hold and have logical, clearly labeled controls. Camera technology may have advanced in leaps and bounds over the past decade but physical camera design, I would suggest, has often gone backwards.

For me the Canon R8 needs an accessory grip to make it usable (Image credit: Gareth Bevan)

If I were to pick a theme, it would be camera size. Cameras today are sold on how small they are or how little they weigh, as if it was obviously a good thing. It’s not. A camera has to be the right size for your hands and the lenses you use, and many modern cameras aren’t. The mirrorless revolution has a lot to answer for. I bought a Canon EOS R8 for its formidable AF and video features, but you know what, it's not big enough. I had to buy a Canon grip extender.

People don't just buy Leica M cameras because of what they do, but because of how they feel. (Image credit: Rod Lawton)

For many photographers (like me), how a camera feels and handles is crucial. That’s why people pay a fortune for Leicas or still buy Pentax DSLRs. These things matter.