Purple Tree

One of the most common questions I get asked by clients and friends is what kind of camera should they get. So here is my answer,

I don’t know!

How helpful am I? Ha!

Ok ok! There is a reason there’s more then one camera and lens on the market, because there is no perfect answer to that question for everyone. I also must admit that I’m not a huge techy. I don’t follow all the different brands and everything they offer from point and shoots to the highest end DSLR’s. In fact I don’t even know all of Canon’s products (the brand I own)! Phew, I feel better. With that being said I can offer a little advise on your quest for a “good” camera.

• Go with a Canon or Nikon. This is just my personal opinion but they are the leaders in the camera world.
• Do some research online. Bhphoto.com is a great place to look at reviews from real people. Go to canonrumors.com and/or nikonrumors.com and make sure a newer version of the camera you’re about to buy isn’t about to be released. Even if you don’t want to purchase the newer (and likely more expensive) version, the previous version’s price should drop before the new one comes out.
• If you’re buying a DSLR, purchase the camera body separately from a lens (it will be listed as body only). When you purchase a camera body and a lens together, it’s called a kit. The kit lens on the entry level camera’s, in my opinion, usually isn’t great (aka the 18-55mm) and probably won’t suite your needs.
• Sorry to tell you this but a perfect, do it all lens for your DSLR does not exist and if it did it would be pricey! The len’s topic can get kinda complicated quickly (we’ll save that for a different blog post) but keep in mind that 50mm is roughly what you see with your eye. The lower numbers are how wide the lens is and the higher numbers are how zoomed. And when it comes to lens’ (and portrait photographers *wink*)  it’s true, you get what you pay for! The more expensive the lens, the better quality it is.
• Consider what you would most like to get out of your camera. If you want a basic smaller camera that you can carry with you easily maybe a point and shoot is the way to go. On the other hand, if you’re interested in having more artistic control and don’t mind carrying around a larger and heavier camera then a DSLR might be right for you. But do consider your level of knowledge, willingness to learn and what you plan on photographing most often.

I own the Canon 5D Mark II (the 5D MarkIII  just came out and I WANT IT BAD) and four lens’: 85mm 1.2, 50mm 1.2, 24mm 1.4 and the 24-70mm 2.8.
I hope this non techy advise was a little helpful to someone!

peace & pictures,
kelli