Difference in bodies

epp_b · Sep 1, 2008

Mostly, convenience, but also performance.

You can take just as great captures with a D40 as you can with a D3, but some things will just take more time and effort with the former, although the D3 and D700 have amazing high-ISO performance.

Mike_E · Sep 2, 2008

There are Pros and there are Pros.

A successful Pro doesn't go broke buying equipment that costs 2 or 3 or more times than what he/she needs to get a job done.

If you never get it outdoors then weather sealing is over kill. But if you are out a lot then it is mandatory for continued shooting in most of the world. Buy for your needs not you ego is the best bet.

The trick is to sit down with a cool head and decide just what your needs really are.

LWW · Sep 2, 2008

JerryPH said:
"Huge metal" sometimes has weather/dust sealing so that as you are beating them up, no dust gets into the camera.

I hate it when a hunk of a mugger's scalp gets stuck on my camera. :lol:

LWW

William Petruzzo · Sep 2, 2008

Big Mike said:
There is a saying;
If you don't know the difference, you don't need the pro gear.

That's funny, but good point.

demonsmasher · Sep 4, 2008

:hail:If you have to ask your wife, then you don't need to buy pro.:hail:

Garbz · Sep 5, 2008

The saying "More dollars than sense" comes to mind. But in reality while many pros may do just fine on a 350D or D40/D80, I guarantee I would have gone through about 2 bodies by now.

If you are wondering it comes down to how you abuse your camera. If it lives in a camera bag then there's nothing to worry about. If you're more like me and have smacked your camera into a cliff face while lead climbing with it, or dragged it through snow, take it out to shoot volleyball on sandy beaches, the extra money spent on the bodies is money I don't spend on replacements.

demonsmasher said:
:hail:If you have to ask your wife, then you can't buy pro even if you want to.:hail:

There fixed that typo for you.

Bifurcator · Sep 5, 2008

Big Mike said:
There is a saying;
If you don't know the difference, you don't need the pro gear.

bpetruzzo said:
That's funny, but good point.

I didn't know the difference between pro grade skis and rentals but after buying pro grade skis I sure did. My skiing improved 1000% too. Probably more!

I didn't know the difference between pro grade ice-skates and rentals but after buying pro grade ice skates I sure did. My skating improved 1000% too. Probably more!

I didn't know the difference between an excellent target rifle and a low grade Winchester saddle rifle but after buying a Heckler & Koch I sure did. My shooting improved 1000% too. Probably more!

I didn't know the difference between an excellent tennis racquet and a low grade practice racquet but after buying a pro level racquet I sure did. My game improved 1000% too. Probably more!

I don't know the difference between good rock climbing gear and cheap bobbles wanabes adorn themselves with as a fashion. If I ever go rock climbing I will sure find out the and if I try to use the cheap bobbles I will probably be dead to boot.

Does equipment matter? Hells yes it does!!

Garbz · Sep 5, 2008

In each of these cases you're making a jump to two vastly different feelings.
The only difference in feeling with the pro camera comes from extra weight and a nicer button that will not improve your skills.

By the time a 350D has been fully exhausted (that is you have found a feature lacking) then you konw the difference between the 350D and the pro gear, and then you need it lol. This is almost circular logic. Either way I find it true for photography, an art judged not by the quality of the pixels that come off a sensor (in which case your photography does improve instantly with a new camera), but on what those pixels represent. Artistic skill can be learnt, but definitely not bought

Flash Harry · Sep 5, 2008

Bifurcator said:
I didn't know the difference between pro grade skis and rentals but after buying pro grade skis I sure did. My skiing improved 1000% too. Probably more!

I didn't know the difference between pro grade ice-skates and rentals but after buying pro grade ice skates I sure did. My skating improved 1000% too. Probably more!

I didn't know the difference between an excellent target rifle and a low grade Winchester saddle rifle but after buying a Heckler & Koch I sure did. My shooting improved 1000% too. Probably more!

I didn't know the difference between an excellent tennis racquet and a low grade practice racquet but after buying a pro level racquet I sure did. My game improved 1000% too. Probably more!

I don't know the difference between good rock climbing gear and cheap bobbles wanabes adorn themselves with as a fashion. If I ever go rock climbing I will sure find out the and if I try to use the cheap bobbles I will probably be dead to boot.

Does equipment matter? Hells yes it does!!

No it doesn't, as Garbs states its your needs that matter, as pro cameras & lens tend to get knocked about and I cant cry off a job because of rain, therefore I buy to suit my needs, if your'e snapping away at crap all day any old P&S will do, cheaper the better, my family holiday shots are done on a p&s polaroid digital, cost £69, good pics for the occasion but I would'nt turn up at a wedding with one and expect the client to be happy with the output, horses for courses. H

Bifurcator · Sep 5, 2008

Garbz said:
Artistic skill can be learnt, but definitely not bought

True but one can only learn as much as the equipment is capable of.

If all you have is an kodak instamatic you cannot learn about different lenses. If all you have is a point & shoot you cannot learn about off camera flash, the need for mirror lockup, long exposures, the benefits of noiseless ISO, manual focusing, RAW processing, proper DOF affects, in-camera processing options, and etc. etc. The difference between a P&S and a D3 is vast and brazenly obvious. The difference between a 350D or whatever entry level model is being discussed, and a D3 is less but still a factor.

Where is the line? Instamatic vrs D3, P&S vrs D3 or the 350D vrs canon's pro model depends entirely on how far, how hard, and how fast the patron intends to push the envelope in his or her quest for competence and perfection.

I relate it to playing a video game on the most difficult level. After playing it at "death wish" levels coming back to "normal" is cake! But always play the game at "normal" or "easy" and you'll spend ten times longer learning and getting good. I think this applies to photography as well. It certainly has applied to me in my life for just about everything.

And finally the "you can always sell it and move on" argument applies in both directions - and is perhaps more true for buying a professional model that maintains it's dollar value over a much longer period of time.

Bottom line for me is: Don't select the model based on current abilities but rather choose it based on intended goals and target aptitudes. If going into it, one knows all they want to do is snap family gatherings then they should select the P&S - likewise if they really want to get into it a semi-pro or pro model as budget dictates. Bryant didn't really specify so this is all just speculative but to suggest one should buy at their current level and not for their intended use doesn't ring true to me - at all really.

Flash Harry · Sep 5, 2008

Nothing to do with camera functions/ fancy buttons etc etc, I work just as well, possibly better, with my fifty year old Bronica S2A, max SS = 1/1000 with standard zenza 75mm f2.8 lens, not even a light meter, its knowing how, why, when to use it.

Don't think your pushing any envelope fiddling with functions, having the knowledge to pick up any camera, stick it on manual and get a good exposure 9 out of ten is the key to this game, clients dont pay you for fiddling about they're only interested in results.

By all means spend thousands of yer hard earned on the best you can get but remember its not a medallion hanging around your neck its a camera, a box with a hole in it, its for producing images. H

Bifurcator · Sep 5, 2008

LOL! I think you should definitely give me all your cameras and buy a Kodak Instamatic! :thumbup:

:lmao:

table1349 · Sep 5, 2008

Give a man a stick, some string, a hook and a worm and he will eat.

Give a man a Spallation Neutron Source Accelerator and he will starve to death trying to figure out how to turn the thing on. (if I can turn it on and demonstrate it, I can sell it for a few million dollars.)

Knowledge with out the very best possible tool will still allow someone to get the job done. Maybe not as quickly or as efficently but the job still gets done.

The best equipment in the world and no abilty to operate it will get you nothing but frustration, heart ache and pain. And a big credit card bill.