Dear Wirecutter: What’s the Best Camera for a Surgery Resident?

Q: I am a plastic surgery resident, and I need a camera for documenting every case we do with pre- and post-op photos. But surgeons have a lengthy list of requirements when it comes to cameras.

Articulating screen for intraop photos

Decent flash, with possibility of hot shoe (although not a dealbreaker)

Compact so we can carry it in our bags (DSLR is too large, as is anything more than 1.5 pounds)

Video needs to be adept, but 4K isn't necessary

35mm lens or equivalent of at least 35-120mm for wide-angle, as well as portrait focal lengths

"Macro" or close focal distances for details of injuries

Wireless or Bluetooth transmission would be ideal

As residents we don't get stipends for technology, and I can measure our salary by the number of bags of peanut M&Ms we earn per hour, so it needs to be affordable

Given your extensive knowledge of current and past models, could you formulate a recommendation for the criteria above on a budget, and one if cost was no issue?

Olympus OM-D E-M10

If a tilting screen (rather than a fully articulating one) will suffice, the Olympus E-M10 is very affordable and fits the rest of the criteria.

A: You've ruled out a DSLR already, and your flash needs are beyond the basic pop-up flashes found in compact, fixed-lens cameras, so your options come down to a mirrorless camera with either an APS-C sensor or a Micro Four Thirds sensor. A Micro Four Thirds camera will have smaller lenses (and often, but not always, a smaller camera body).

You might want to rethink the need for a fully articulating rear screen. Several cameras have screens that tilt up and down, but if you really need a screen that flips out to the side and rotates 180 degrees, the only Micro Four Thirds camera under $1,000 that has one is the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G7, and it's nearly as bulky as a beginner-level DSLR. As for a flash, you need only the kind with a head that tilts up to bounce the light off the ceiling; that will give you bright but evenly lit photos with no shadows. Panasonic sells a flash, the FL200L, that will do the job. As a bonus it features a continuous LED bulb for shooting video.

If you can live with a screen that tilts up and down about 45 degrees or so, you have many more options. I'd recommend the Olympus OM-D E-M10. The predecessor to the current E-M10 Mark II, this earlier camera is still available and really cheap now. It's smaller than the Panasonic G7, and Olympus makes a small flash, the FL-300R, that can tilt 90 degrees to bounce off the ceiling.

Neither of these cameras can capture 4K video, but they can shoot Full HD video of decent (but not outstanding) quality.

For either camera you can get the Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-50mm (24-100mm full-frame equivalent), which comes close to covering your requested focal length range; it also has a macro mode1 that you can activate by pulling it outward. If you prefer something that hits 120mm equivalent on the close end without macro capability, the Panasonic Lumix G Vario 12-60mm lens will do the job.

I doubt you need a dedicated macro lens. Those are for 1:1 reproductions of tiny things like insects. Getting a detailed photo of an injured body part won't be a problem with either of these lenses. And with 16 megapixels of resolution, you could always take a step back and then crop the image later if necessary.

Both Panasonic and Olympus have Wi-Fi apps, but they support only Android and iOS, so you'll need your phone or tablet to transfer images. If you want to send images via Wi-Fi straight to a computer, just use a Wi-Fi enabled SD card from EyeFi.

Right now the Olympus E-M10 is a couple hundred dollars cheaper than the Panasonic G7. I know you asked for a top-end pick, but you really have no reason to spend $1,000 or more on the camera body. You'd be paying for features you don't need, and you'd probably end up with a larger camera on top of that.

Hope that helps.

—Amadou Diallo

The Wirecutter's editors answer reader questions all the time (much more than once a week). Send an email to notes@thewirecutter.com, or talk to us on Twitter and Facebook. Published questions are edited for space and clarity.

Footnotes:

1. Technically speaking, it's not a macro lens because the max magnification is .36x, and a true macro has to be at least 1x. It locks the lens at a fixed zoom, and all you can modify is the focus. But it should work for the purposes of documenting injuries at extremely close distances. Jump back.

Source: Dear Wirecutter: What's the Best Camera for a Surgery Resident?