Upgrade camera - studio product/macro photography

[transient1]

I've been using a Canon Rebel XSi for a couple of years and have learned a lot from it - applying what I learned many years ago from several photography classes taken during the pursuit of a Graphic Design degree in college. I love tabletop photography and macro photography. I want to upgrade to a full-frame camera now and would like to offer some of my work for sale. I'm leaning toward Canon again because I love my (full-frame) macro lens and I have a Canon speedlite and a few other things I would like to continue to use. However, I put a Nikon on my list. With a camera body budget of about $2000, I thought my best options would be a Canon 5D Mark ii, Canon EOS 6D, or Nikon D600.

I have compared specs, read dozens of opinions and arguments concerning the 6D vs D600 and I'm not one step closer to knowing what might work for me. Perhaps I'm not even looking at the best camera models for my needs. Perhaps any of these cameras would be fine. I didn't find any posts that were specific to my studio-type needs, so I'm looking forward to advice from members of this forum.

Thank you in advance for your responses.

 

[Overread19 7]

Honestly for a studio type macro shoot where you have control over all the elements and (most importantly) the lighting itself it really won't make much if any meaningful difference which brand you use. In this kind of situation the demands upon the camera are very minimal and things such as the high ISO usability are just not typically put to the test.

You can get far more picky about the lens you use, however this really comes down to a question of taste and unless you're the type of person to be studying and getting picky about your straight out of camera contrast and your highlight ring shape then chances are, again, you really won't see a meaningful difference.

So personally I would say stick to Canon - you know the cameras, their menus and setup and you're used to working with them, plus you've already invested in lighting and lens setups so you won't have to replace them if you simply follow on and upgrade to a new canon DSLR.


There is also one bonus to sticking with Canon (asides from those already mentioned); but it only comes to light if you've a desire to really push the magnifications possible to a higher value. This comes in the form of the Canon MPE 65mm f2.8 macro lens which works from 1:1 magnification all the way to 5:1 (5 times life size). This is a very specialist lens and even within macro circles is not as widely used; that said it is a lens that only Canon makes. Although I will point out that you can get as good and better optical quality with alternative setups which means that whilst Canon is the only company to make the all in one lens, other brands can indeed use equipment to get to the same magnifications.

 

[transient1]

Thank you for the very helpful response. Sometimes it's easy to forget what you're looking for when you get tangled in too much information. I've started to look into the lens you mentioned - it looks really interesting!! Thank you again for taking the time to reply.

 

[unpopular]

don't forget to pick up some macro fluid, this is especially important when going beyond 1:1 magnification.

 

[Derrel]

Can a person get a used 5D-II for like $1450 in your area??? That seems like it'd be a good camera at a reasonable price, and fine for studio shooting. SInce you have a Canon macro and a speedlight, it seems reasonable to continue down the Canon road. The D600's testing out pretty well too, but you'd need to get a new lens and a new flash to equal what you already own. I'd say save the extra money, buy a used 5D-II, and pick up a good, clean used 85/1.8 EF lens, and have a great "people" lens, and one that focuses well in bad light, and offers a great combo of sure focusing and high speed, for poor-light work, and all of the many,many situations where an 85mm on FF really shines. 85mm on FF is a VERY useful length. Very useful.