Looking to go into Headshot photography professionally. Canon 5DS or Sony A7RII

[chazz]

I have chosen these two cameras because of their high resolution, I’m a pixel peeper and love some good high res photos. I’ve been doing photography for years now in and out of education and am thinking of finally pursueing it professionally, in which case I’d want to go into headshots, as portraiture is what I’m good at.

These are the only two cameras in my budget at the moment, so I’m trying to decide on which one to go for.

Canon 5DS pros:
- I love canon interface/menu/controls etc.
- I love canon colours (I know Sony’s they can be changed in photoshop/Lightroom to match them)
- I have a 50mm f/1.8 stm already, so wouldn’t need to get a new lens.

Sony A7R II pros/cons:
- I dont love the menu/interface as much as canon’s, but am willing to sacrifice for the extras if you guys think they’re important:
- Eye tracking autofocus.
- Better ISO Performance, for if I do other types of photography, such as Astrophotography, Portraits on location, wildlife.
- Sensor Shift IBIS, I love videography too, so this would be nice. Although photography will be the main use.
- I have an 85mm Viltrox 1.8 II Lens
- I have an adaptor for the canon lens, but it is very slow, so I would need to buy another lens. (I’ve been thinking of a 24-70 2.8 for either cameras in the future anyway)

Any advice would be amazing!

My budget is about £900 for camera and lens, that’s why I wanted to just use the lenses I have.
I also have to consider a flash, soft box and stand..

 

[Jeff15]

Hello and welcome, good luck with your new venture....

 

[RAZKY]

I have chosen these two cameras because of their high resolution, I’m a pixel peeper and love some good high res photos. I’ve been doing photography for years now in and out of education and am thinking of finally pursueing it professionally, in which case I’d want to go into headshots, as portraiture is what I’m good at.

These are the only two cameras in my budget at the moment, so I’m trying to decide on which one to go for.

Canon 5DS pros:
- I love canon interface/menu/controls etc.
- I love canon colours (I know Sony’s they can be changed in photoshop/Lightroom to match them)
- I have a 50mm f/1.8 stm already, so wouldn’t need to get a new lens.

Sony A7R II pros/cons:
- I dont love the menu/interface as much as canon’s, but am willing to sacrifice for the extras if you guys think they’re important:
- Eye tracking autofocus.
- Better ISO Performance, for if I do other types of photography, such as Astrophotography, Portraits on location, wildlife.
- Sensor Shift IBIS, I love videography too, so this would be nice. Although photography will be the main use.
- I have an 85mm Viltrox 1.8 II Lens
- I have an adaptor for the canon lens, but it is very slow, so I would need to buy another lens. (I’ve been thinking of a 24-70 2.8 for either cameras in the future anyway)

Any advice would be amazing!

My budget is about £900 for camera and lens, that’s why I wanted to just use the lenses I have.
I also have to consider a flash, soft box and stand..

Personality and talent in posing and lighting is key to successful portraiture - most any brand camera and lens will suffice. As you noted, you can always fake the colors in post. In a studio, backgrounds with little or no texture can eliminate the need for fast lenses to blur distracting backgrounds - I use flannel sheets of various colors and patterns hung about 6 feet behind the person. I personally don't like very sharp lenses for other than children, younger women or older men. For full frame, 70-135mm is a pretty good focal length range.

 

[DanOstergren]

If you don't want to buy a new lens, go with Sony. A 50mm lens isn't suitable for traditional headshots due to it's somewhat wide perspective, which causes facial features to appear bulbous to the point where many of your clients could feel as if the photos are unflattering to them. 50mm is much better suited for artistic portraiture that doesn't follow the usual "rules", but for professional headshots it just isn't suited for the job. Your 85mm lens is perfect for headshots. Even better would be a 100mm lens if you can afford it, but regardless the 85mm should be suitable for professional headshots.

 

[f64_or_bust]

I’ll just second the no-50mm-lens thing. 100-135, and a fast lens to permit depth of field choice is very important.

Put more into studio lighting. We don’t need high power studio strobe’s anymore (but I’d still use them!), but you’re looking at a minimum 3 light kit, and 4 is much better. Facial lighting is minimum 2,hair/rim light at least one, and you will need to light the background at some point, if for no reason other than to chase shadows.

It’s a nice idea to try for a “universal “ camera, but portraits and Astro are pretty far apart. In the end you’ll have more than one camera just to have a backup to save the shoot. The Sony is probably the better choice for Astro but those goofy menus….wow. They did much better on the A7IV. Also look at the available lenses from 3rd parties for a camera under consideration. The cost of the glass is actually the big one, and you don’t want to be limited by the body choice.

 

[Ozzie_Traveller]

G'day Chazz

You say in your header .... 'professionally' ....

A successful business is 90% running the business and 10% actually taking the photos. I really hope that you have good business skills and experience here !

Hope this helps
Phil

 

[Rickbb]

G'day Chazz

You say in your header .... 'professionally' ....

A successful business is 90% running the business and 10% actually taking the photos. I really hope that you have good business skills and experience here !

Hope this helps
Phil

Ditto this, tried several times to go "pro", discovered my salesmanship just sucks. That and taking shots of what other people want instead of what I want just makes me not want to do it at all.

 

[f64_or_bust]

Yes. The business thing. It's a big deal. Two oppposing concepts: 1. Do what you love, you'll never work a day.... and 2. "The E Myth" (E is Entrepreneur) you think you can do what you love, but don't realize you can't wear all the hats in any business. You can only do what you love about 20% of the time, and then switch hats to accounting, sales, marketing, management...Your buisiness survives 5-7 years on average. Or you bring in other people to help, farm out your marketing, accounting, and sales. Very few one-man armies survive.

"The E Myth" by Michael Gerber should be required reading, even if you decide to go it alone anyway. It's a smaller and more valuable investment than any gear you can buy.