The GH4-GX8-E-M5II are among the Top 10 Compact Cameras for Travelers from National Geographic. This is the camera they mention and why they are so good:

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II

Pick for Travelers: This is a new version of an Olympus OM camera that dates back to the 1970s. Here, Olympus revisits its “smaller is better” philosophy and packs in the latest high-tech features. If you like technical features, particularly when shooting cities at twilight, you’ll like the multishot 40-megapixel mode. Like the Fuji, a complete setup fits in a smaller bag.

Pro Tip: Try the articulated screen with touch-screen focusing for video and stills. The option to touch-focus and shoot is set right on the screen. This works particularly well when shooting from a low angle. After framing up the shot, you can wait for someone to walk into the frame, touch their image on the screen, and the camera will focus and immediately take the picture. —Jim Richardson, contributing photographer for National Geographic magazine and National Geographic Traveler

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX8


Pick for Travelers: The Panasonic G series has been a photographer favorite for a few years. The cameras are loved for their small size and excellent image quality, as well as for the huge range of lenses available from Panasonic, Olympus, and Leica. An added advantage is that the micro 4/3 cameras in this series all share a common lens mount and functionality. This is a good choice if you want a higher megapixel count than the Olympus cameras offer.

Pro Tip: David Alan Harvey used an earlier version of this surprisingly tiny camera to capture many of the pictures featured in a National Geographic magazine story on North Carolina’s Outer Banks.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4

Pick for Travelers: If you like a modern-looking, great-shooting still camera, this is a great choice. It has all the advantages of using the micro 4/3 format with a huge selection of lenses that don’t lock you into a particular manufacturer’s camera. But it’s a video-shooting powerhouse. The Lumix DMC-GH4 takes still-camera video into an entirely new class by shooting in ultrahigh definition, a resolution that is commonly referred to as 4K. This camera is the least expensive way to shoot ultra-HD video.

Pro Tip: To see what this camera is capable of, watch “Light of the Yucatan” by Bryan Harvey, an award-winning commercial and documentary director of photography.

Olympus TG-3

Pick for Travelers: Although this camera has the very small point-and-shoot-size sensor, its other attributes more than make up for that slight handicap. It’s pocket-size and completely shockproof, freezeproof, and dustproof, as well as waterproof to 50 feet without a housing. Sometimes the best photos come from the sketchiest circumstances, and you won’t be afraid to bring this camera along—it’s one you don’t have to worry about. Olympus has added a new Tough camera, the TG-860, which incorporates a selfie-friendly, 180-degree flip screen.

Pro Tip: [I took] this camera on my first diving trip to the Great Barrier Reef. I was very impressed by the clarity of the images I got below the surface. All of my dive mates were jealous, especially the one who paid extra for housings and whose pictures weren’t as clear. —Carolyn Fox, former director of digital, Nat Geo Travel