Pros don't use crop bodies

jamiebonline

TPF Noob!
Joined
Aug 14, 2013
Messages
122
Reaction score
21
Location
Ireland
Can others edit my Photos
Photos OK to edit
Hi everyone,

So I thought the title would get some attention. :) I want to raise a point about what it is to be a pro in relation to gear. I am starting out professionally. I have done a few paid gigs. Couples shoots mostly. The clients were pleased but since I don't have 'pro gear' I feel like I must keep my price low. I mean, if I shoot with an APSC sensor and a 50mm 1.8, to what extent am I not professional? How relevant is it?

I don't want to get hung up on this but it does seem that investing large amounts of money must be the next step. I live in a country now that pays very low salaries compared to Western Europe and photographers are only paid 1/4 what they can be at home but electronics cost the same! :( It means I am forced to work with cheaper gear. I can't afford an fx camera without some considerable saving. The 70-200 2.8 seems quite standard for portraits but the new versions of this lens even from the less expensive Sigma or Tamron is still so expensive.

What are your thoughts?
Maybe you are a very experienced pro who shoots a lot of APSC or other smaller sensors and maybe you also favour primes. How is your work effected by your wallet? To what extent does what gear you have contribute to how much you charge?
 
Get the best gear you can afford is always good advice. If that means you have to get a full time job outside of photography for saving up then do it. Build your photo business up gradually to the point where it can be a full time gig.
Dont focus on gear in the beginning. Get the best results you can from the gear you have.
 
..since I don't have 'pro gear' I feel like I must keep my price low.
Nonsense!

You charge;

1. based on your market

2. based on your results

Most customers will not know the difference between kits. They will most likely decide on a photographer based on the portfolio or "style".
 
no one cares what equipment youre using, only that they get their value's worth out of you.
 
The result you create is far more important on how you get there. For all you know, the client doesn't know how " pro " your equipment is. If you learn how to use what you have really well, that will always be better than having " pro " cameras and not knowing how to use them. Being Pro is not what you have, it's what you do. Don't charge based on what you have, but base it on what you do :)
 
Do you ask your mechanic whether he uses S-K or Matco tools?

Do you ask your dentist whether he uses Henry Schein or Patterson instruments?

Do you ask your handyman if he uses Skil or Milwaukee saws?




Do you care?
 
Do you ask your mechanic whether he uses S-K or Matco tools?

Do you ask your dentist whether he uses Henry Schein or Patterson instruments?

Do you ask your handyman if he uses Skil or Milwaukee saws?




Do you care?

everyone knows real mechanics use SnapOn!
 
no. real mechanics use Harbor Freight.
 
The choice to get a full frame begins and ends at whether or not you need the strengths full frame provides (better low light performance, wider field of view and increased control over depth of field). What you're able to charge and whether or not it makes you a "pro" is a silly consideration.

If that were the case, we could say that everybody who doesn't shoot with a phase one "isn't a pro." Honestly 35mm isn't that big of a deal. Going to medium format is a *MUCH* bigger difference than going from crop frame to 35mm.
 
If all you own is a crop-body d-slr and a 50.1.8 lens, you are exceptionally under-capitalized and honestly, your work could not help but reflect that. It's difficult to hear at times, but the difference to me between a professional photographer and a wanna-be or part-timer is in both results, but also capability and familiarity with a suite of tools. In this thread we've talked about mechanics, but the idea of a mechanic with only ONE single wrench is as absurd as the photographer with a crop-frame body and nothing more than a 50mm lens...that's simply not enough equipment to offer first-class photography. It's just not. Just as one, single wrench is not enough to be a mechanic.

Professional photographers that cannot afford even the basic equipment that 95% of professional photographers own...hmmm...no wide-angle photos? No telephoto images? No flash? No reflectors? I dunno...sounds very low-rent to me. Sounds a lot like the "professional carpenter" (self-professed) who cannot afford anything except a nail gun...no square, no level, no circular saw, no nothing....except the ability to air-sink nails with a nailgun. "Nailgunner" is my personal terms for a number of modern day "carpenters" who cannot even handle an actual hammer...these are the $15/hr. guys hired to do framing work on spec houses.

If the OP wants to come back and flesh out his or her inquiry with a bit more detail, that might be helpful, but the OP itself mentions nothing but a crop-body camera and a 50mm lens and the inability to afford even a third-party 70-200...like a mechanic with one wrench, or a carpenter with ONLY the ability to nail gun in nails...
 
Theres always an even better, even more expensive camera.

But small format cameras are cheap now. Get a used one in good condition from ebay etc, and get a good lens for it.
 
no. real mechanics use Harbor Freight.

hazfra01.jpg


hazfra02.jpg


hazfra03.jpg


hazfra04.jpg




Sorry, I just had to!
 
If all you own is a crop-body d-slr and a 50.1.8 lens, you are exceptionally under-capitalized and honestly, your work could not help but reflect that. It's difficult to hear at times, but the difference to me between a professional photographer and a wanna-be or part-timer is in both results, but also capability and familiarity with a suite of tools. In this thread we've talked about mechanics, but the idea of a mechanic with only ONE single wrench is as absurd as the photographer with a crop-frame body and nothing more than a 50mm lens...that's simply not enough equipment to offer first-class photography. It's just not. Just as one, single wrench is not enough to be a mechanic.

Professional photographers that cannot afford even the basic equipment that 95% of professional photographers own...hmmm...no wide-angle photos? No telephoto images? No flash? No reflectors? I dunno...sounds very low-rent to me. Sounds a lot like the "professional carpenter" (self-professed) who cannot afford anything except a nail gun...no square, no level, no circular saw, no nothing....except the ability to air-sink nails with a nailgun. "Nailgunner" is my personal terms for a number of modern day "carpenters" who cannot even handle an actual hammer...these are the $15/hr. guys hired to do framing work on spec houses.

If the OP wants to come back and flesh out his or her inquiry with a bit more detail, that might be helpful, but the OP itself mentions nothing but a crop-body camera and a 50mm lens and the inability to afford even a third-party 70-200...like a mechanic with one wrench, or a carpenter with ONLY the ability to nail gun in nails...
yeah, the lack of lenses is 10000% a bigger issue than having a crop body. You have to be a very certain type of photographer to get away with one lens only, and a 50mm on a crop wouldn't be it in that scenario either. To me its like photographers I see on here who buy a D800, but only own one actual good lens for it.

FF is nice, and has its benefits, but having a decent selection of quality lenses is vastly more important. And you can absolutely do professional level work on a crop body. A lot of big time professional photographers do.
 

Most reactions

New Topics

Back
Top