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Another year has come and gone, which means it’s time for Shutterbug to once again pick our favorite cameras and lenses of the past 12 months. With so much great photo gear to choose from in 2017, it was a difficult task. The below list though is a good summation of the cameras and lenses Shutterbug’s editors and writers most enjoyed shooting with last year.

One key task when reviewing a new camera is to answer the important question “Who’s it for?” This challenge is a bit more difficult than usual with Nikon’s new Nikon D850 DSLR, because this powerful camera is one that defies classification.

While it might seem unusual that a camera can be both mirrorless and have a medium format size sensor, that’s exactly what Fujifilm has created with their new GFX 50S. The 51.4MP CMOS sensor size is 43.8x32.9mm, 1.7x the size of the sensor in a full-frame DSLR; the body is decidedly mirrorless, lacking a pentaprism finder and replacing it with an EVF and a tiltable rear LCD. 

I recently had the chance to take the new Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II along with my regular full-frame Nikon system to Alaska and the Yukon on an outdoor shoot. Rather than test charts and pixel peeping, I focused on the real-world usability of Olympus’ new flagship mirrorless camera and its ability to get the job done as compared with a large and heavy DSLR system. 

I tend to travel on the wide side when it comes to lens selection, so it was exciting to get a hold of Tamron’s new super telephoto zoom—the SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2 (Model A022). And what better way to give this big beauty a try than to take it on safari? Admittedly, this “safari” was of the local variety with a quick trip to the recently renovated Audubon Zoo barely two miles from my home in New Orleans. I also spent an afternoon with the Tamron 150-600mm G2 ($1,399) on one of the many bayous running through Southern Louisiana to shoot some gators and less exotic wildlife.

The newest version of Canon’s workhorse, full-frame DSLR, the EOS 5D Mark IV, offers a brand-new 30.4MP sensor system, while its forerunner used a 22MP sensor. The new sensor offers Dual Pixel Raw images and new Raw converter software, Digital Photo Professional 4. In addition, the new sensor offers Dual Pixel CMOS AF, which first appeared in the Canon EOS 70D and is helpful when shooting in live view mode or when recording videos.

I’m one of those guys who likes to sit down with a new camera, peruse the manual, familiarize myself with the controls, and configure my custom settings before heading out on a maiden voyage. But shortly after arriving in Newport, RI, to join a group of journalists testing Canon’s new EOS-1D X Mark II flagship professional full frame DSLR, I was handed a camera and a bag of lenses and off we went.