$3500 and need help spending it

bango707 · Nov 28, 2007

Thanks everyone for all of your replies!
Lenses aren't an issue because I can still get all of the glass that I need from my school and whatever they don't have I will rent.
I have always been the type to get the best equipment for my money. I am a cinematographer by trade but have been getting more and more into photography since I started going to Brooks.
Anyhow I am going to be shooting snowboarding/wakeboarding/and motorcycle racing. I also do freelance stuff so I would like to have the full frame because I never know where my photos will end up. I want to start blowing up my pics and having them framed for myself, friends, and family. I am also going to shoot architectural photography for my dad.
Anyhow someone asked me to list all the features in order of importance
1-MP
2-full frame
3-fps
although they are all pretty important I am willing to budge an any/all of these if need be. Having all of them is my perfect scenario!
I could live with 8fps, a 1.3crop, and 8mp but I would like to get the best I can afford. Like I said I can get more money but I don't want to break the bank quite yet although I might just have to! :wink:

Again thanks for the feedback!
~Ben

soylentgreen · Nov 28, 2007

Well Ben, with your criteria you are looking at a minimum of a Nikon D3. They're suppose to be out relatively soon. haven't used it, but spec wise it seems to fit your need. Only 9fps though but unspecified RAW buffer. Probably about 15-20. Also have to increase your budget to around $5000 for the body. For Blazing speed at 10fps and a 30 RAW image buffer, it's the 1D Mark III. Have you tried renting these bodies and others to see if they fit the bill? Might want to do that before you drop some serious change.

bango707 · Nov 28, 2007

Thanks everyone for all of your replies!
Lenses aren't an issue because I can still get all of the glass that I need from my school and whatever they don't have I will rent.
I have always been the type to get the best equipment for my money. I am a cinematographer by trade but have been getting more and more into photography since I started going to Brooks.
Anyhow I am going to be shooting snowboarding/wakeboarding/and motorcycle racing and some freelance on the side. I have shot extensively with the 20D and D200. For some reason, maybe the cinematography background, I really like having my focal length set in stone. If Im shooting with a 15mm the I want a 15mm, not a 22 or 30mm. This is obviously me just being picky but It bugs me for some reason.
I want to start blowing up my pics and having them framed for myself, friends, and family. I am also going to shoot architectural photography for my dad.
Anyhow someone asked me to list all the features in order of importance
1-MP
2-full frame
3-fps
although they are all pretty important I am willing to budge an any/all of these if need be. Having all of them is my perfect scenario!
I could live with 8fps, a 1.3crop, and 8mp but I would like to get the best I can afford. Like I said I can get more money but I don't want to break the bank quite yet although I might just have to! :wink:

Again thanks for the feedback!
~Ben

bango707 · Nov 28, 2007

soylentgreen said:
Well Ben, with your criteria you are looking at a minimum of a Nikon D3. They're suppose to be out relatively soon. haven't used it, but spec wise it seems to fit your need. Only 9fps though but unspecified RAW buffer. Probably about 15-20. Also have to increase your budget to around $5000 for the body. For Blazing speed at 10fps and a 30 RAW image buffer, it's the 1D Mark III. Have you tried renting these bodies and others to see if they fit the bill? Might want to do that before you drop some serious change.

I have friends with the Mark III and I am a big fan! Its a really nice camera and Im used to sporting a 30lb motion picture camera so the weight isn't an issue!
Maybe Ill wait till the D3 comes out and try it out first. I hate waiting but this is a pretty major investment!

Buszaj · Nov 28, 2007

all i could say now is im jealous

DSLR noob · Nov 28, 2007

That is a REALY good budget for starting off and quite frankly, these insanely spoiled snobby demands are pissing me off for soemone who'd be getting their first DSLR. There's not settling for anything but the best, and then theres being a spoiled brat who would get equiptment far beyond their own talent wasting the capabilities. Get a Canon 40D non full frame 6.5 fps shooting 10 MP camera and freakin be happy. That's $1500 right there, then get the EF-S 17-55 2.8 IS USM($1,000 ish) and the 70-200 2.8 L ($1,000) then a 2GB compact flash card for $45-$80. There, a great setup.

(part of this might be jealousy ,but I think the fact that you just seem cocky in your demands to me is what caused that mini-rant)

JIP · Nov 28, 2007

I always have to wonder why exactly someone needs to qualify to buy a certain kind of body. I am sorry if some grandma that has never taken a picture in her life wants to go out and buy a D3 (not saying that is what the OP is) why should you try and dissuade them I guarantee you Nikon wouldn't. I see a person asking for advice and a few people getting jealous that they can't afford the same camera that the OP can. There is not some kind of appication you need to fill out or test you need to take to buy an expensive camera all it takes is money. One other thing to all you naysayers you need to realize the consumer market for digital cameras is really what drives the technology to get better. This is not some kind of scietific study but I imagine that if Nikon/Canon just depended on pros to buy their products they would not make alot of money. To the OP buy what you want and more power to you if I could affor a D3 I would buy it the day it ships but that's just me I am a Nikon guy but I would say if you are torn between Nikon and Canon I would wait for the D3 so you can really get a good feel for it before you make your decision I'm sure you would hate to change your mind after the fact and regeret what you aid all that money for.

bango707 · Nov 28, 2007

DSLR noob said:
That is a REALY good budget for starting off and quite frankly, these insanely spoiled snobby demands are pissing me off for soemone who'd be getting their first DSLR.

Sorry If I am coming off like a snob, that isn't my intention at all. I know what cameras I would like to get but I was just looking for some feedback on what some other people think might work for me. I didn't just decide yesterday to get a camera, I am getting deeper into photography and would like to get the nicest camera I can afford. Not being snobby, Im not buying a Hasselblad here :lol:

. I have worked professionally in the visual arts for the past six years. Not a long time but Im not a n00b in the real world, only on TPF!

DSLR noob said:
There's not settling for anything but the best, and then theres being a spoiled brat who would get equiptment far beyond their own talent wasting the capabilities.

Spoiled little brat? Im not eight years old, I am a grown man who has worked my way up from the bottom. You are a bit quick to judge my capabilities imo. Someone asked what I was going to be shooting and I told them. The title of this thread could be taken as cocky but I titled it as such so people would respond to it more than anything. I was looking for feedback and thats what you are doing so I guess I should thank you then! :wink:

Seriously, I didn't intend to rub people the wrong way right off the bat here.

DSLR noob said:
(part of this might be jealousy ,but I think the fact that you just seem cocky in your demands to me is what caused that mini-rant)

Demands? I don't recall demanding anything. I asked for advice if that is what you are referring to.

bango707 · Nov 28, 2007

I agree JIP, thanks!

DSLR noob · Nov 28, 2007

Eh sorry, just a small mostly jealousy driven tangent. And I meant demands in a camera. Also I assumed you were young due to the word "graduation". Mostly a post that came out of nowhere that was full of negativity, ignore it I feel bad now.

bango707 · Nov 28, 2007

DSLR noob said:
Eh sorry, just a small mostly jealousy driven tangent. And I meant demands in a camera. Also I assumed you were young due to the word "graduation". Mostly a post that came out of nowhere that was full of negativity, ignore it I feel bad now.

No worries mate! Im on a few other online forums and I've done the same thing. Its hard deciphering what some people are saying or what they mean sometimes. Again nor harm no foul!

Viperjet · Nov 28, 2007

You can give the money to me.

Well...as a Canon fan myself, I would go with a 5D and get a few good lenses, a flash and possibly a tripod. I think it's a better idea to get a good camera with great lenses (I can't do that myself because I've never had $3500 to spend...)

usayit · Nov 28, 2007

oooOoooo ... not including lenses in that budget and knowing the order of importance of your initial requirements makes sense of everything.

Pretty much all the suggestions have been made... If MP is your highest priority, I say a used 1DsMII or 5D are a good choice but both require you to make a big sacrifice in FPS. So the good choices for yah are the D3 as JIP said or the 1D MarkIII.

jealously.. oh yeh... I feel it....!! hehehe lol.

Holy Ghosted · Nov 29, 2007

bango707 said:
Thanks everyone for all of your replies!
Lenses aren't an issue because I can still get all of the glass that I need from my school and whatever they don't have I will rent.
I have always been the type to get the best equipment for my money. I am a cinematographer by trade but have been getting more and more into photography since I started going to Brooks.
Anyhow I am going to be shooting snowboarding/wakeboarding/and motorcycle racing. I also do freelance stuff so I would like to have the full frame because I never know where my photos will end up. Plus I want to start blowing up my pics and having them framed for myself and my sister. I am also going to shoot architectural photography for my dad.
Anyhow someone asked me to list all the features in order of importance
1-MP
2-full frame
3-fps
although they are all pretty important I am willing to budge an any/all of these if need be. Having all of them is my perfect scenario!
I could live with 8fps, a 1.3crop, and 8mp but I would like to get the best I can afford. Like I said I can get more money but I don't want to break the bank quite yet although I might just have to!
Again thanks for the feedback!
~Ben

Ben if you are going to be shooting a lot of snowboarding, wakeboarding, and motor cross your should really look at bodies that have really good water resistance and dust resistance and that can just really handle extreme conditions salt water sand and freezing conditions are not on every camera makers list of things to build around. Going from the beach to up on a mountain is not for the average camera few are built with this in mind. The ability to handle extreme conditions should be as big of a deciding factor as your FF fps and your MP for some of the things you want to shoot. Because if you can't shoot were you want when you want then then you have the wrong camera!