Camera or lens... yes I know its been asked ... but....

[jayohphotography]

I have a t3i, I am a second shooter at parties/events (photos & sometimes video). I know this question has been asked a million times, but i dont think ive seen one ask coming from a t3i...
so i have money to upgrade to a 70d (the follow focus for video is a big +)
or i can get a 24-70 mm f/2.8 and keep my t3i

i currently rent a 24-70 each time i shoot, but its really adds up.

 

[Eagles1181]

My thought, buy the lens. Then "rent" it to yourself. Each time you use it, put the money you would have spent renting the lens aside. When you have enough set aside, go get yourself the new body.

Eagle

 

[ronlane]

My opinion is probably going to differ from others because most will say that glass trumps bodies. But even with the f/2.8, the T3i is going to be limited in low light situations. I have the T3i and I don't care for using anything above ISO 1600. The f/2.8 will help make that better, but the 70D is newer and should handle it better. Actually the 6D (used) would handle the situation even better than that and will be in the same ball park price wise.

 

[robbins.photo]

I'd also recommend the lens purchase first, the 70d would give you a little bit better lowlight capability but not nearly the benefit you'll see from the 2.8. Then take what you were spending on renting one and save up for the body upgrade later.

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[Overread]

If video is your primary focus then the body would seem to be a better bet for the focusing aid (DSLRs wihtout a supporting video rig around them are very limited in features for video compared to a real video camera.).

If that is just a bonus and not the primary part of your work then the lens would be a far superior purchase. For a real big difference body wise in terms of noise performance you'd really need to be looking at the 5DMII or 5dMIII or the 6D

 

[IronMaskDuval]

I'm going to go against the grain here and say buy both. If you can only buy just one, finance the other. If you don't want to finance, sell your house, car or wife to get it. Now, you won't have to debate about the lens or body anymore, and you'll have something new to debate about.

 

[astroNikon]

I'm going to go against the grain here and say ... sell your .... wife to get it.

+1
:thumbup:
that will save so much money lol

But I think you are saying that you want both, which is good. It just depends if you current need the video abilities of the 70D now, or not.
if not, then the lens. If you do really need the added video of the 70d then the body.

 

[jayohphotography]

I'm going to go against the grain here and say buy both. If you can only buy just one, finance the other. If you don't want to finance, sell your house, car or wife to get it. Now, you won't have to debate about the lens or body anymore, and you'll have something new to debate about.

I dont have a wife... but, i am looking for a husband, maybe I can sell him when I find one, but I do have two kids i can auction off.... lol jk. Eventually a mark is the goal, I actually thought of financing the 70d, and buying the lens. But lets just say I wasnt the most responsible person out of high school with my credit cards. And YES! in low light the t3i isnt too fun... which is another reason im leaning towards the body...but that lens is just so nice... oh the dilemma lol... leaning towards the lens, until i fix my credit then i can upgrade the body

 

[jayohphotography]

I'd also recommend the lens purchase first, the 70d would give you a little bit better lowlight capability but not nearly the benefit you'll see from the 2.8. Then take what you were spending on renting one and save up for the body upgrade later.

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well thanks for everyones input, the lens it is. Hopefully I can get the body by next year.

 

[sm4him]

I think the idea of buying the lens and then "renting" it to yourself is a great way to save up for the body upgrade. It sounds like you really do need both, but I am absolutely NOT an advocate for financing something like that. Buy it when you can afford it, and until then, you make do with what you've got.

Once you get the lens, every time you're doing an event where you would have otherwise had to RENT the lens, take the money the rental would have cost, and put it into a savings specifically for the body upgrade. You can also add funds to this from a lot of other sources--for instance, give up something (soft drinks, Starbucks, whatever you might "nickel and dime" yourself on) and instead put that money into the camera account. You may be surprised how quickly you can reach what you need for the upgrade.

 

[davisphotos]

I too like the 'renting' to yourself idea. I use BillMeLater for some of my purchases, which gives me 6 months with no interest to pay them off, so if you knew you had enough gigs coming up that you could pay the new camera off in that time frame, I would say go for it. The downside is if you don't pay it all off by the time the promo period is up, you get hit with a pretty big finance charge...

 

[goodguy]

I'd also recommend the lens purchase first, the 70d would give you a little bit better lowlight capability but not nearly the benefit you'll see from the 2.8. Then take what you were spending on renting one and save up for the body upgrade later.

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If you would say you will upgrade to the 6D then I would say get it over a lens but the low light performance between the t3i and 70D is indeed not too big so yeah get the 24-70mm 2.8