Upgrading SONY SLR camera, Advice?

[Stevepwns]

I shoot with an A77 and love it. If you are getting good responses then keep what you have and buy lenses. You can upgrade the body later. You will get the most improvement in image quality buy buying better lenses. I upgraded from an A33 and it was a huge improvement but saw the most improvement after buying better lenses and doing a little testing between the two. IMO spend the money on some good glass. Sony has the 16 - 50 F2.8, great lens. They also have the Ziess glass but its really expensive. I use the Minolta 50 f1.7, Sony 16 - 50 F2.8 and the last generation 70 - 200 F2.8 primarily and have started selling prints pretty quickly. Again, in my experience, I saw the biggest improvement with new better glass.

Whats your total budget you are working with?

 

[Stevepwns]

Some pro are very happy with the a77.

Sony has pro lenses too...

I am sure they are but if you need to shoot in low light sutuation the a77 is not at its best, no crop sensor camera is at its best.
A pro need to have the best equipment to do its job, you cant tell your client Ahhh sorry but I dont have enough light to take the shot or you take the shot with high ISO and get a very grainy picture.

I think a serious pro needs a full frame camera and maybe have a crop sensor camera as a backup or second body.

Being a pro just means you get paid. There countless award winning photographers that use crop sensors. This is simply not a true statement. Not everyone starts out with the best gear, not to mention ALL cameras out now are better than what was pro 20 years ago. So the body he has is more than capable of producing quality shots.

 

[DiskoJoe]

If youre serious about making this a business then leverage your assets and get a line of credit. Use this credit to go out and purchase a full frame and better quality lenses. If the business is successful then the gear will pay for itself. If not you still have assets that have a better resale value. Aps-c has basically no resale value what so ever.

 

[robbins.photo]

Hi everyone.

I am beginning to build a business after a good response with my portfolio. I have been using a DSLR basic camera the Sony A390 Sony DSLRA390L Alpha Digital SLR Camera with SAL1855: Amazon.co.uk: Camera & Photo for four years now and now that I am beginning to build a portfolio for a business I would like to upgrade but I cant upgrade to the top notch brand nor camera yet as I don't yet have the money to do so. I have decided to upgrade to a camera around the £399 budget as in my eyes it'll still be an upgrade. I would quite like to stay with Sony due to the lenses I have but I am not entirely sure to be honest what the best choice is. I am worried that if I go with a new brand I'll be disappointed as I have to admit I do love my camera. I found this camera Buy Sony SLTA58K 20.1MP DSLR Camera with 18-55mm Lens - Black at Argos.co.uk - Your Online Shop for Digital SLR cameras. but after searching had seen the odd negative review which made me feel doubtful. If anyone has any camera recommendations in the Sony range (for a budget) or they feel there is a better range than Sony I'd be happy to listen. I don't want to be limited manual wise as I shoot in manual and RAW. I am admittedly a bit worried about upgrading in case I don't like the upgrade, or I spend money to find its not added anything to my photography. Thank you for your time x

My advice, take a look at the cameras available in your price range, make a list of features you'd like, and narrow the list down to maybe 3 or 4 cameras that fit your budget and have the features you want. Then head to a local camera store or two and try them out. See which one is the best fit for you personally. I don't shoot Sony so I'm afraid I won't be of much help giving you specific advice on Sony camera's, but hopefully the more general advice will come in handy for you.

 

[robbins.photo]

The a58 should do all that for you. But do remember it has no ovf it has an evf. Some love these and some hate them. The a58 seems to be the fastest in its class at the moment. A guy at a club I am in uses one and gets great images but to be fair I think he could with any camera. Another option would be to add a little and look at the a65. This seems Sony's best value dslr. To many options. If the ovf is a deal breaker for you there is no option but change brands if you want a "new" camera

EVF quality can vary - a lot. The EVF on the Canon SX50 I used to have, for example, was barely usable. The EVF on the Panasonic FZ200 I have is very usable, but still no where near as good as the pentamirror view from my Nikon D5100. As for Sony's EVF, I can't really judge as I've never used one - but I highly recommend if it's at all possible that you test one first prior to purchase. The quality and clarity of EVF can vary widely.

 

[goodguy]

Being a pro just means you get paid. There countless award winning photographers that use crop sensors. This is simply not a true statement. Not everyone starts out with the best gear, not to mention ALL cameras out now are better than what was pro 20 years ago. So the body he has is more than capable of producing quality shots.

You dont seem to understand what I am saying.
I have a crop sensor camera and for my needs it is perfect, I dont think I will get any better picture if I would buy a full frame camera.
No argument crop sensor can create good pictures but for a professional crop sensor camera is a limiting factor due to low light performance.
If a client walk into your store and need pictures being taken in a low light situation then the full rame has the advantage.
What will a pro do say sorry but I cant provide high quality product because I have a crop sensor camera ?
Today full frame cameras are becoming cheaper and cheaper and I dont see the logic to get a crop sensor camera by a pro especially when the price difference is not big.

If I am a professional car mechanic I dont buy 10$ tool that can break and damage a customer car.
I buy 100$ tool that will last me a life time and I can trust never to break.
A pro attitude needs to be very different then a hobbyist, its simply a completly different world.
If you want to be a pro then get pro equipment period!

 

[Victo]

The main difference between a pro and a (good) consumer camera these days is it's durability and different working regime. It has very little to do with IQ.

 

[goodguy]

The main difference between a pro and a (good) consumer camera these days is it's durability and different working regime. It has very little to do with IQ.

I am glad you agree with me, IQ in both cases is excellent but low light performance is the realm of full frame and gives a professional the flexibility to work in different environments that a crop sensor camera would be limited in.

 

[cosmonaut]

I know it seems outside your budget but the best move I ever made was going full frame. The added color depth and dynamic range is nice to have. You might consider a used a850/900. They are a pure joy to use. Even if you have to settle for some old primes to me it's worth it.

 

[brunerww]

cosmonaut - Even a used A850 is £775 on eBay UK, and a little over £300 is where RCJ said their budget limit was.

DiskoJoe - As far as borrowing goes, I am not a fan of buying capital equipment on credit, especially for unincorporated small businesses. When such businesses fail, the owner's personal assets are often at risk.

RCJ - in my view, it is better to operate within your means until the business is generating enough income to upgrade to full frame.

In the meantime, you can save a few pounds by keeping your existing lenses and buying your A58 for £335 from Camarthen via Amazon instead of Argo.

As others have said, your next investment should probably be quality glass, and after that, full frame. Since you'll be invested pretty heavily in Sony Alpha glass - perhaps a Sony A99 or, with an LA-EA3 adapter, the new Sony A7r.

Cheers and best of luck in your business,

Bill

 

[Stevepwns]

Being a pro just means you get paid. There countless award winning photographers that use crop sensors. This is simply not a true statement. Not everyone starts out with the best gear, not to mention ALL cameras out now are better than what was pro 20 years ago. So the body he has is more than capable of producing quality shots.

You dont seem to understand what I am saying.
I have a crop sensor camera and for my needs it is perfect, I dont think I will get any better picture if I would buy a full frame camera.
No argument crop sensor can create good pictures but for a professional crop sensor camera is a limiting factor due to low light performance.
If a client walk into your store and need pictures being taken in a low light situation then the full rame has the advantage.
What will a pro do say sorry but I cant provide high quality product because I have a crop sensor camera ?
Today full frame cameras are becoming cheaper and cheaper and I dont see the logic to get a crop sensor camera by a pro especially when the price difference is not big.

If I am a professional car mechanic I dont buy 10$ tool that can break and damage a customer car.
I buy 100$ tool that will last me a life time and I can trust never to break.
A pro attitude needs to be very different then a hobbyist, its simply a completly different world.
If you want to be a pro then get pro equipment period!

I agree with you actually. But I get the impression OP doesnt have the ability to go spend 2 or 3 thousand on pro gear. Everyone has to start somewhere. Some of us start with less than pro gear and work our way up from there. OP seems to be in that situation. So in my opinion I would advise to work with what you have abnd what you can afford until a time comes they can upgrade to pro gear. Thats all.

 

[goodguy]

I agree with you actually. But I get the impression OP doesnt have the ability to go spend 2 or 3 thousand on pro gear. Everyone has to start somewhere. Some of us start with less than pro gear and work our way up from there. OP seems to be in that situation. So in my opinion I would advise to work with what you have abnd what you can afford until a time comes they can upgrade to pro gear. Thats all.

Very good point, better get basic equipment and work with it then nothing at all.
Still I think its worth taking a small loan and buy pro equipment but if OP cant then really any modern DSLR will do.
I am a strong believer that all modern DSLR whether made by Sony, Nikon, Canon Pantax...etc are very good and capable cameras that can produce very good pictures.

a57 and a58 are very good basic cameras and very well priced, they are ok to start a business with I guess.

I mean no disrespect to Sony but I think I would consider Nikon or Canon because of the huge amount of used lenses to get in the second hand market.
There are lots of good very affordable lenses of these 2 companies which is a big plus to a person who wants to start a photography business and is strapped with cash.

 

[DiskoJoe]

cosmonaut - Even a used A850 is £775 on eBay UK, and a little over £300 is where RCJ said their budget limit was.

DiskoJoe - As far as borrowing goes, I am not a fan of buying capital equipment on credit, especially for unincorporated small businesses. When such businesses fail, the owner's personal assets are often at risk.

RCJ - in my view, it is better to operate within your means until the business is generating enough income to upgrade to full frame.

In the meantime, you can save a few pounds by keeping your existing lenses and buying your A58 for £335 from Camarthen via Amazon instead of Argo.

As others have said, your next investment should probably be quality glass, and after that, full frame. Since you'll be invested pretty heavily in Sony Alpha glass - perhaps a Sony A99 or, with an LA-EA3 adapter, the new Sony A7r.

Cheers and best of luck in your business,

Bill

Incorporating is easy. And yes there is risk when going into business or else there would be no reward. The worst thing that could happen to him is that he is stuck with a FF camera and some sweet glass that he could sell off if needed.

 

[DiskoJoe]

Some pro are very happy with the a77.

Sony has pro lenses too...

I am sure they are but if you need to shoot in low light sutuation the a77 is not at its best, no crop sensor camera is at its best.
A pro need to have the best equipment to do its job, you cant tell your client Ahhh sorry but I dont have enough light to take the shot or you take the shot with high ISO and get a very grainy picture.

I think a serious pro needs a full frame camera and maybe have a crop sensor camera as a backup or second body.

Being a pro just means you get paid. There countless award winning photographers that use crop sensors. This is simply not a true statement. Not everyone starts out with the best gear, not to mention ALL cameras out now are better than what was pro 20 years ago. So the body he has is more than capable of producing quality shots.

There are many film cameras that are far superior to many digital cameras out now. I personally dont know any pro photogs that use crop sensor.

 

[DiskoJoe]

I agree with you actually. But I get the impression OP doesnt have the ability to go spend 2 or 3 thousand on pro gear. Everyone has to start somewhere. Some of us start with less than pro gear and work our way up from there. OP seems to be in that situation. So in my opinion I would advise to work with what you have abnd what you can afford until a time comes they can upgrade to pro gear. Thats all.

Very good point, better get basic equipment and work with it then nothing at all.
Still I think its worth taking a small loan and buy pro equipment but if OP cant then really any modern DSLR will do.
I am a strong believer that all modern DSLR whether made by Sony, Nikon, Canon Pantax...etc are very good and capable cameras that can produce very good pictures.

a57 and a58 are very good basic cameras and very well priced, they are ok to start a business with I guess.

I mean no disrespect to Sony but I think I would consider Nikon or Canon because of the huge amount of used lenses to get in the second hand market.
There are lots of good very affordable lenses of these 2 companies which is a big plus to a person who wants to start a photography business and is strapped with cash.

There are plenty of Sony lenses available out there.