I have 2 DLSR's (Canon 6D and 7D) with an assortment of lenses (fisheye, 100-400) 1 bridge camera (Panasonic FZ-1000) as well as two Sony DSC-RX100's (the original one, and the latest iv). And of course my iPhone6s+. The 6D certainly takes great pictures, and the 7D with the 100-400 (used for the extra magnification on the 7D) did a great job in Africa. I also love the GPS tagging on the 6D.
The problem is their weight. The 6D weighs 26.7 ounces. With the 3.1 pound 100-400 lens you're talking 4.7 pounds. When you're on a non-photo centric safari there's no time to setup a tripod so you have to hold it by hand if you're not seated at the side of the jeep. Taking a movie of two giraffes play fighting holding this for several minutes becomes a significant problem. Since you have to put all of this in your carry-on even cutting back as much as I can I'm still at 21 pounds, 6 over the usual 15 pound airline limit. And it just wasn't fun. And it's very expensive.
I finally decided to switch to the FZ-1000.
It is much lighter,
Reaches to 400 (more than the Sony DSC-RX10 which only goes to 200)
It goes down to 25 mm, so I can quickly move to a landscape shot from a zoom quickly without having to change lenses.
It focuses extremely quickly (very useful when you're on a moving vehicle)
It takes 4K videos. This is mandatory for me now. Remember how old VHS tapes look now? In 5 (?) years it will be the same for 1080p
Much less expensive than a DSLR with the multiple lenses required (assuming you're sticking with the Camera vendor)
It has almost all of the same controls as my Canons, but is easier to use.
I used it in the Galapagos with wildlife and absolutely loved it. I wouldn't try wildlife photography with anything less than a 400. Even when you can get within a few feet of a bird or animal as you can there, if it is very small (such as a finch) I'm still using the zoom to fill the frame. I certainly miss the superior metal construction of the Canons, and I'm sure they are more dust and water resistant. But for me they aren't worth the hassle.
The DSC-RX100iv I use when we're moving and with luggage and backpack I don't want the weight and bulk of the FZ1000 around my neck and I need at least some zoom capability. For example in Japan taking a 4K movie at the train station as our bullet train pulled in, or a shot from the window as your plane takes off. It also is better in low light than the FZ1000.
And don't slight the iPhone. In low light, such as museums, it seems to do just as good a job as my 6D as long as you don't need to zoom or crop. And the 6s+ now has 4K. My ratio of shots is about 1/3 for each camera - FZ1000, DSC-RX100iv, and iPhone 6s+.
But my interest is more in capturing a travel moment.
The attached file was taken with the FZ1000. 1/2000 second, f4.0, iso 125. Even though I was about 3 feet from the bird I still was zoomed in at 146 mm. You want to get really close in so you can see the color of their eyes as that is often a significant feature. The blue came out well here I think.
