Thinking about upgrading and I need a little insight...

WaistedRaven · Nov 5, 2011

Hello all! I've stalked the forums for quite a long time but this is my first post!

I currently have a Nikon D80. I bought it about 4 years ago now and up until recently I've been content with it. I've been into photography now for about 10 years and over the last 5 years or so started doing portraits for family and friends as well as through word of mouth. I've been getting more and more requests as of late and have given the thought of making this my profession some serious consideration...and since I got laid off back in June I figured if I'm going to try to make a go of it now is the perfect time!

That said, even though I don't consider myself a professional yet, I'd really like to start making my way towards earning that title...and obviously a Nikon D80 isn't really going to keep up with me much longer...

To give a little background, I prefer to use natural light and very rarely use a flash let alone a studio setting. My main focus are portraits. (Engagements, maternity, birth, newborn, children, family, and even some head shots) As I mentioned before, I'm currently unemployed so price is certainly a factor...though I will certainly consider going a little higher if it's something that fits my needs well.

I will admit, since I got my D80 4 years ago I really stopped being "up" on the latest cameras and equipment coming out...having a few kids really makes the time just fly, lol. So when I started looking over what is available now...well...I glazed over a bit... :lol:

I'd really appreciate any advice you can muster!

Thank you!

mwcfarms · Nov 5, 2011

Why do you think you need to upgrade again? Because your camera is on the fritz or? Specifically you should look at business insurance, license, back up equipment and a solid business plan before jumping the gun and upgrading with the intent on making this your profession. Maybe meet with your local chamber of commerce or small business association in town and see if they can help you develop these things. Nikon makes quite a few good cameras although availability is questionable on some of them atm because of the disasters in Japan.

kundalini · Nov 5, 2011

I think you may have some backwards thinking going on. The D80 is capable. If portraiture is your main interest, then a good lens in the 85 to 135mm focal lengths AND lighting equipment should be more of a priority. You can't control the weather, but with lighting, you can control results and overcome poor conditions when nature doesn't want to play.

WaistedRaven · Nov 5, 2011

I'm sorry, I should have mentioned . I have done quite a bit of homework on small business practice and I have a dear friend who owns his own shop so he's helping me with pretty much everything in a business capacity. So I feel very prepared there.

It's not so much that I feel I need to upgrade, it's more that I want to get an idea of what's the next step equipment-wise if I were to upgrade. Honestly I really like the d80, it's served me well! It's just something that I was thinking about down the road a bit.

WaistedRaven · Nov 5, 2011

And yes, Kundalini, lighting is something I've been looking into as well. I'd love some suggestions there if you have some. There is just so much out there, and being that I seldom use it, I really haven't found a preference.

kundalini · Nov 5, 2011

I started my digital photography with a D80 and that was the reason behind my statement. Unless you're needing to push the ISO beyond 800, it does perform quite nicely.

It sounds like you'd prefer portable, lightweight and budget minded lighting from your OP. Speedlights could fit the bill there. I went with Nikon speedlights because with the D80, the Commander Mode can fire them wirelessly. Hindsight is 20/20, right? Although I have no practical experience with them, the Vivatar 285, Metz, Sunpack, Nissin, Flashpoint Yougono (sp) and one more that starts with an "L" would be worth a look. The reason is that TTL function is not all that. If you learn to shoot manaully, you'll be further down the road with more consistant results. There are also a whole array of light modifiers (umbrellas, softboxes, grids, snoots, etc) made for speedlights now.

A lot of information is found here within TPF, so I suggest using the Search tool, scour the Lighting forum and other random places for some of this information (several on-going threads dealing with lighting). When you get a better handle on specific questions, people here can offer some good advice. Good luck.