You might have heard of DSLR cameras, but have you heard of mirrorless cameras? DSLR cameras are popular for providing a variety of lenses. On the other hand, mirrorless cameras are famous for being compact and lightweight. Both mirrorless and DSLR cameras click high-quality photographs depending on their build.
You can opt for either of the two depending on whatever you prefer and your budget. Here is a list of the best mirrorless cameras under $500. It will help you with segregating your choices and the features you should choose.
Top 6 Mirrorless Cameras Under $500
1. Olympus OM-D E-M10
It has some of the best features at low prices as a mirrorless camera. Its lightweight and compact body are a given as it’s the basic that you would expect from a mirrorless camera. You can carry this camera on your trips wherever you want. Its viewfinder will help you see all that your camera’s sensor can see. Along with it, your view will not be obstructed when clicking photographs helping in clear-cut pictures.
This camera might not be what many professionals prefer, but its features differ from many other similar cameras. With this camera, it is easier to navigate, and you can see what is going to be captured by your camera. Be it a photo or a video with friends or family, and it will be visible to you how it is coming out on a small display.
This camera’s specifications and salient features are listed below to better understand its features.
Features
- Its body is lightweight and compact.
- It has an electronic, large, interactive viewfinder.
- It has special features of the built-in flash and WiFi connectivity.
- It comes with an 81-point AF grid which helps in capturing even the fastest movements.
- It has special filters and art effects.
● It has sensor shifts with three axes for image stabilization and can shoot upto 8FPS.
2. Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II
This camera, even though similar to the previous one, has special features in reference to the outcome of what you click or shoot. Meaning that it has upgraded resolution for both shooting videos and photographs. Compared to the previous model, it has a 16 MP resolution and can shoot full HD videos with great smoothness and stability.
For image stability, it comes with integrated five axial sensors. They provide greater stability and clarity for shooting even moving birds or animals. Not only animals but videos of daily life activities and even vlogging can be shot. Along with the noise cancellation feature, it is perfect for capturing the situation without getting any attention towards you.
This camera’s specifications and salient features are listed below to better understand its features.
Features
- It has built-in sensors with five axes for image stabilization
- It has an electronic viewfinder with OLED having 2.3 million dots.
- It has a special noise-canceling feature(it cancels all shuttering noise).
- It has auto-focus e it from your phone or camera.
- It has burst shooting with 8.5 FPS.
- It also has a built-in flash.
3. Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III
When clicking photographs, the resolution, how the photos will come out in print, their lighting, and how it looks through the lens matter. When you can not carry the needful lighting or create different alterations to the setup in an instant, you have to do the editing and even reschedule at times, which then again takes a lot of time. This camera comes with 15 in-built filters. You can use any of those filters to click the required photograph. Along with this, you would automatically be saving time in doing all the editing.
Along with the filters, you can also shoot videos with ultra HD 4K resolution for high clarity. You can easily pause or start overshooting your video if you need to start again from scratch. These features not only aid in clicking pictures but also save time in editing your media. With all the different models of this camera, you will get a good mirrorless camera under a budget and the features segregated in a price range.
This camera’s specifications and salient features are listed below to better understand its features.
Features
- It can capture Ultra HD 4K videos.
- It has an advanced photo mode with special photo filters.
- It has special art effects and 15 filters.
- It has a shortcut button to start over.
- For clicking photos in different scenarios, it has different settings.
- It comes with a built-in flash hidden away in its body design.
4. Sony A6000
This camera not only has the best features but the most unbeatable ones as well. Its only drawback was that it did not have a touchscreen. With everything turned from buttons to a touchscreen, nowadays, people prefer touchscreen for smoother navigation.
This camera comes with one of the most impressive electronic viewfinders. It not only has the clearest and most stable picture capturing ability, but it also does not produce shaky videos. You can even shoot moving videos and click photographs while moving; they would still not be a blur. To check whether you like the picture or not, you can connect it to the WiFi and transfer your pictures instantly.
To top it all off, it can easily shoot videos of up to 1080 pixels and click photographs of up to 24 megapixels without any issues. Its burst shooting range offers clicking photographs of every move with clarity. To better understand its working, its features and functions are stated below.
Features
- It has an electronic viewfinder with more than 1 million dots.
- It has a maximum burst shooting range of 11 FPS.
- It can shoot up to 1080P videos and 24-megapixel photographs.
- It has fully built-in WiFi and NFC.
5. Nikon 1 J5 Mirrorless
With the development of mirrorless cameras, every camera-making company strives to welcome an upgraded and better camera for its users. A mirrorless camera is normally not expected to work in better conditions than a DSLR for professional situations. But this Nikon camera overcame many milestones. It was one of the few cameras which a good quality body, lens, and features.
This camera comes with high resolution for both clicking photographs and shooting videos, maintaining its quality while it’s been edited. You can shoot videos and click photographs as you like. There are various filter options to choose from, suiting the needs. It can even shoot fast-moving photographs with stability and clear-cut pictures. With the help of these features, you can use them for both your professional and daily life needs.
You can even transfer your photographs to your phone with the help of just a tap on the screen. It has strong NFC and WiFi connectivity which helps it in sharing pictures faster. Where you can edit or share it forward as it is.
Features
- It has a resolution of 20.8 megapixels and can shoot videos of up to 1080 pixels.
- You can shoot videos with slow-motion and time-lapse sequences.
- It has built-in WIFI and NFC.
- It has continuous shooting of up to 20 FPS.
- It comes with a touchscreen that can tilt up to 180 degrees.
- It has a picture angle of 27 times the lens’s focal length.
6. Sony A5100
With the launch of the Sony a6000, it was a great success, but there were a few limitations that were realized as a result of it. Sony a5100 was released as an effort to minimize that limitation while also being in the near-about price range. After upgrading, many of the features that were not available in song a6000 were integrated into song a5100. Both the models were not only a simultaneous hit but also gave the users the option to opt for features suited for them.
It can click photos at a very fast rate with sensing points that can detect the eyes and focus on the person. It not only provides stable images but also focuses on the person or the object in the photo. The photo then can be checked and edited as soon as the picture is clicked with the help of the NFC(Near Field Communication) and WiFi. You can opt to share the picture as it is or edit it according to your needs.
Not only this, but it also comes with a tilt-able screen to get a better view of how the photo is captured. The 3-inch screen also has superior sensing points and clarity for better viewing. It can normally record a video with full HD with 1080 pixels. These features are a gist of how helpful they are for better quality media. To better understand its features, they are listed below.
Features
- It has superfast auto focusing with 6FPs and 179 phase-detecting points.
- It has a resolution of up to 24.3 megapixels, even in low light.
- It comes with built-in WiFi and NFC connectivity.
- It comes with an 80-degree tiltable screen for better selfies.
- It can record videos up to 1080 pixels with full HD.
- It comes with a 3-inch flip-able LCD having 9,21,600 dots.
Buyer’s Guide
When buying a mirrorless camera, its high resolution is a minimum need. But it’s not only for mirrorless cameras but for others as well. So what is that you need to look for in a mirrorless camera? In a mirrorless camera, you need to look out for the stability of an image the camera provides, whether it can detect the eye, and so on.
The main points that you should give priority to are listed below. These features will give you a gist of what you need in a good mirrorless camera. After going through these points, you’ll better understand your priorities in the camera and what you should choose.
● Eye Detection
While clicking photos, if the camera does not detect the person or focus on the wrong area or object, then the setup of the camera takes more time. With the help of eye detection, you can easily focus on the person making your work faster.
● Image Stability
Image stabilization does not only mean non-shaky media, but it also means our free photos. It is very important in a lightweight and compact camera as it is carried everywhere; therefore, you need to click clear photos while movings. The higher the image stabilization higher is the quality of the photo.
● Hybrid Autofocus
It helps you focus on fast-moving scenarios such as moving animals or a sports game. It gives you the best phase detection as well as contrast-detect auto focusing. You get better results when both are combined to produce instantaneous effects.
● Tilting Screen
The tilting screen shows you how exactly the photo is clicked, or the video is shot at a comfortable angle. You can turn the screen towards yourself, upwards, downwards, or ack according to how much you can tilt the screen.
● Sensor-Based Image Stabilization
As mirrorless cameras are still developing, the lenses do not have in-built image stabilization. But if the camera already has sensor-based image stabilization, then there is no need for your lens to have it as well. You can choose whichever lens you want, regardless of whether your lens has image stabilization.
Conclusion
A mirrorless camera does have a few disadvantages in comparison to a DSLR. But when looking at all the features that a mirrorless camera provides, a few extra lenses can transform it into a multifunctional camera. While buying a mirrorless camera, you should be aware of all features you are paying for and hence should go through all the features. Only when you will have a basic knowledge of what a mirrorless camera should have and what you need will you be able to pick your best mirrorless camera.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can you change the lens of a mirrorless camera?
Yes, you can change the lens of a mirrorless camera.
2. Is a mirrorless camera a better option?
A mirrorless camera comes with the advantage of being fast, better at shooting videos, compact, and lightweight. These features weigh heavily over the DSLR making mirrorless a better option.