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Shoot with the Camera that's right for you...
8 years ago
General
A bit of advice I've learned about Photography over the years I've been doing this:
Shoot with the Camera that you enjoy using. Don't go off and buy the most expensive gear because "It's the BEST" because this isn't necessarily true. Don't buy a brand of camera because someone on the street told you "Oh only Nikon makes good cameras, or Only Canon makes good lenses..." ETC ETC.
The beautiful thing about today's digital photography world is it's advanced to the point that no matter what advanced camera you pick up; you'll get some damn fine pictures with it. Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus, Pentax, Panasonic, ETC has solid digital cameras, and EVERY camera has its strengths AND weaknesses.
Yes, even the Full Frame DSLRs have very prominent weaknesses. There is NO perfect camera out there; it doesn't exist.
A lot of people seem to think that if you buy something like a Canon 5D Mark IV or a Nikon D810 or a Sony A9 you'll have the perfect camera and instantly be "Good" at photography just for owning expensive equipment, it doesn't work that way.
I follow a professional Art photographer on Twitter who shoots with a 7 year old Canon Rebel and uses mostly kit grade glass. He has some amazing and breathtaking stuff. Yes, he may have to use a good amount of skill to push that camera to its limit and do a lot of work in POST, but you know what- he pulls it off.
I like having options, I like being able to test out new gear; and I've learned along the way that not every piece of gear I've shot with I've enjoyed the experience with nor had good quality results, whether video or still cameras. I've sold off some equipment in both photography and video that was just not for me, and that includes gear that was rated "Better" then what I'm currently using. But I didn't get "Better" results with it.
Not everyone has an infinite budget either. Some people are very well off either from having high paying jobs or having inheritance from wealthy relatives, friends or Significant Others. Many people are on a tighter budget then what I have to spend on Photography equipment too.
Shoot with equipment you can afford, buying used can also get you gear that normally would be out of your price range- I do this quite often.
But whether your budget for Photography is $500 or $5000 you can get good results if you are comfortable with your gear. Get to know its strengths and weaknesses. Accept that the super expensive gear may actually be worse for you depending on how you use it.
If you get good results with a $5000 pro DSLR then great, but the guy with the $1000 DSLR (me) or even the guy with the $500 DSLR can still take great photos.
To wrap this up: Don't get camera envy if you have equipment you enjoy shooting and get good photos off of. (I've been here myself...). Use what you can afford, but also what you feel comfortable using. I got great results on APS C bodies, then drank of the "Full Frame Koolaid" and got a bitter taste in return. So I went back to APS-C rather then stretching my budget with Full Frame equipment I could barely afford that took photos in a style I did not care for (Shallow DOF, lots of Vignetting, lack of reach)
And one more important note: Don't belittle other photographers for having "lesser" gear. This is part of the reason a lot of Pro photographers rub me the wrong way, and why when Photography will always be a passion it will also stay as a Hobby for me.
Shoot with the Camera that you enjoy using. Don't go off and buy the most expensive gear because "It's the BEST" because this isn't necessarily true. Don't buy a brand of camera because someone on the street told you "Oh only Nikon makes good cameras, or Only Canon makes good lenses..." ETC ETC.
The beautiful thing about today's digital photography world is it's advanced to the point that no matter what advanced camera you pick up; you'll get some damn fine pictures with it. Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus, Pentax, Panasonic, ETC has solid digital cameras, and EVERY camera has its strengths AND weaknesses.
Yes, even the Full Frame DSLRs have very prominent weaknesses. There is NO perfect camera out there; it doesn't exist.
A lot of people seem to think that if you buy something like a Canon 5D Mark IV or a Nikon D810 or a Sony A9 you'll have the perfect camera and instantly be "Good" at photography just for owning expensive equipment, it doesn't work that way.
I follow a professional Art photographer on Twitter who shoots with a 7 year old Canon Rebel and uses mostly kit grade glass. He has some amazing and breathtaking stuff. Yes, he may have to use a good amount of skill to push that camera to its limit and do a lot of work in POST, but you know what- he pulls it off.
I like having options, I like being able to test out new gear; and I've learned along the way that not every piece of gear I've shot with I've enjoyed the experience with nor had good quality results, whether video or still cameras. I've sold off some equipment in both photography and video that was just not for me, and that includes gear that was rated "Better" then what I'm currently using. But I didn't get "Better" results with it.
Not everyone has an infinite budget either. Some people are very well off either from having high paying jobs or having inheritance from wealthy relatives, friends or Significant Others. Many people are on a tighter budget then what I have to spend on Photography equipment too.
Shoot with equipment you can afford, buying used can also get you gear that normally would be out of your price range- I do this quite often.
But whether your budget for Photography is $500 or $5000 you can get good results if you are comfortable with your gear. Get to know its strengths and weaknesses. Accept that the super expensive gear may actually be worse for you depending on how you use it.
If you get good results with a $5000 pro DSLR then great, but the guy with the $1000 DSLR (me) or even the guy with the $500 DSLR can still take great photos.
To wrap this up: Don't get camera envy if you have equipment you enjoy shooting and get good photos off of. (I've been here myself...). Use what you can afford, but also what you feel comfortable using. I got great results on APS C bodies, then drank of the "Full Frame Koolaid" and got a bitter taste in return. So I went back to APS-C rather then stretching my budget with Full Frame equipment I could barely afford that took photos in a style I did not care for (Shallow DOF, lots of Vignetting, lack of reach)
And one more important note: Don't belittle other photographers for having "lesser" gear. This is part of the reason a lot of Pro photographers rub me the wrong way, and why when Photography will always be a passion it will also stay as a Hobby for me.
I also doubt I would have gotten some of those shots even with fancier equipment because it is hard to crawl around on river shore gravel to sneak up on a dragonfly with a camera as big as your arm!
At that time, the Pentax ME-Super had a slightly smaller and lighter body. I sold a lot of those to people with smaller hands for that reason alone. An Olympus OM-1 went to an insurance investigator because the black body was less conspicuous. The point is, I was able to get a number of cameras into their hands and sell what was right for them.
It's a shame that camera stores such as the one I worked in are vanishing. Most consumers today don't have the opportunity to walk into a shop and pick up a half dozen similar cameras to make that sort of comparison. Instead they must rely on on-line reviews and pray that they have made the right choice.
Keep on shooting!