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upgrading equipment | nikon vs canon | advice appreciated!

melissajeanne

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hello!

i am new to the forum, and i was hoping for your invaluable advice!

just recently i discovered my love for photography! after shooting a couple of events (two weddings, a bridal shower, a baby shower, and a couple of newborn/toddler sessions) it is clear to me that this is something i would like to pursue as a side business.

i shot all of these events/sessions with a nikon d3100 and a 50mm 1.8 lens

i am about to book another wedding a couple of other sessions, and i feel as thought it is time for an upgrade. maybe i'm just buying into the hype that you need to show up with the best camera (the guests shouldn't have better cameras than you, right?!)... but i am ready for something more professional.

from the little research i have done, i just keep coming back to one thought - nikon is EXPENSIVE!!

so here is where i would love your advice.

i am hoping to trade my camera in to help alleviate the cost of new camera. do most camera shops or big stores do trade-ins? can anyone recommend a good place to consider?
and is there really a difference between nikon and canon? they are both well-weathered brands that have stood the test of time so can i really go wrong either way?
and perhaps the most personal question of them all - what camera would you recommend a beginner-hoping-to-turn-professional photographer?

thank you for your help!

:heart:melissa jeanne
 
Welcome to the forum.

News flash, both Nikon and Cannon are expensive.

If you are going to continue to shoot weddings, I would suggest that you have two bodies, so trading in the d3100 might not be a good idea.

That being said, since you already have the d3100 and the 50mm, I would stick with Nikon, they seem to have the dynamic range and you are already getting used to the lay out of the camera.

There are real differences in the canon and nikon but it is like coke/pepsi, ford/chevy, etc.
 
Hello,

I've never known a trade in to be the best option for anything. Convenient, sure, best return, NO. But if you're shooting weddings you need to be prepared and have a back up camera. What happens if something goes bad?

If you want to sell your gear to a store and not someone on Craigslist, eBay etc., I would suggest KEH.com

Canon / Nikon, both have amazing products with similar capabilities and loyal followers. No reason to turn back now. You can't go wrong with either really.

Depending on budget I would first suggest the Nikon D7100 as a replacement camera for the Aspiring Pro. It has all the doodads of the more professional Nikons in a well priced package. If thats out of your range then I would go for the older D7000

Best of luck to you.
 
Great camera gear is not cheap. Cheap gear is not great.

Trade-ins on stuff like a D3100 are pitiful, and you'll feel abused. KEEP the body, to use as a thrasher/emergency backup/testing body.

Is there a difference between Nikon and Canon? Umm...you should watch famous Canon shooter Tony Northrup's video released August 4th.

Which camera would *I* recommend? Well, honestly, I think beginners and intermediate shooters are the people who benefit the MOST from higher-end bodies and lenses that have limitless capabilities. I'm serious...I have 30+ years with crappy cameras, good cameras, state of the art models, the low,mid,upper mid, and highest-end camera bodies and lenses. I mean it: noobs and intermediate users get HUGE benefits from the best gear. I know how to work around limitations with consumer lenses and slow bodies and stuff, and how to achieve end results DESPITE gear limitations. I have taken a few people out shooting with me, and have started offering individual one-to-one photo lessons. When people get ahold of a 70-200/2.8 VR or the new 85/1.8 Nikkor or even the 70-300 VR they are like, "WOW!" and they get better shots because the equipment, those lenses.

Three Paths: Nikon DX body kit: D7100 body, D3100 held in reserve. Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 OS, and Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 OS lenses. Nikon SB-910 flash.

Nikon FX: Nikon D610 body, Tamron 24-70mm f/2.8 and Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 VC lens kit, Nikon SB 910 flash.

Nikon FX, D810, Tamron 24-70 and Tamron 70-200 VC lens set and SB 910 flash as above.

This is the best body in each price category, and the best, third-party lenses with matched color rendering and focal length ranges, and the best flash,PERIOD, in each price category. NONE of these outfits will make you profitable as a semi-pro or new pro, but you will know that your gear is THE BEST you can buy in its price category, and that you have the really truly NEEDED lens lengths in both your normal zoom and in your telephoto zoom.

A lot of people have faith in $55 made in China flashes. I've bought Nikon-brand speedlights for about 30 years now...they ALL still work. I believe, again, for beginning and intermediate shooters, that the BEST gear offers benefits. The more-skilled you are, the more you can rely on low-cost solutions and second- or third-tier options. I will never buy "discount" life jackets, or "used tires".
 
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leave money in your budget for a RAID 1 storage unit, backup flashes, batteries and lots of cards.
 
thank you so much for the feedback! i appreciate all of your advice! happy shooting!

:heart: melissa jeanne
 
Derrel - thank you for your response - it is full of really great information! and i loved the video! i actually watched it two times last night and then went on their website and ordered the book! i'm excited to continue to learn everything that i can about photography and look forward to growing immensely as a photographer! after serious discussion with my husband and really reading up on each of your equipment suggestions - we agree that i should keep my d3100 and also purchase the d610. again, thank you for your help! happy shooting!
 
A few additional thoughts;

1) At this point where you're considering an upgrade consider if you want to go fullframe or stick with crop sensor. If you wish to go for fullframe make the change in camera body now then you can grow your lens selection around that point. If you try to do the reverse you'll end up likely having to rebuild your lens selection from the ground up (because you'll have gotten used to what a focal length looks like on crop and then you'll want that same working setup with the fullframe).
It sounds like you've already chosen this path in going toward the fullframe so go for it.

2) Light Science and Magic - 4th edition. A good reference book for learning lighting. It's a very good place to make a start in learning the core of lighting and light control/manipulation. From there you can branch out into other resources for other varied situations.

3) If you can identify a few key areas you want to work in and a few key areas that you feel your setup is lacking with - then focus your early purchases upon fixing those problems. So long as each purchase is fixing an actual problem and/or adding a new ability/focus/direction to your setup you'll be good. The key is to avoid buying gear just because "its really good/expensive/shiny". Gear bought like that can end up gathering dust on the shelf - whilst gear that fixes problems or opens up new horizons gets used.
 
Derrel - thank you for your response - it is full of really great information! and i loved the video! i actually watched it two times last night and then went on their website and ordered the book! i'm excited to continue to learn everything that i can about photography and look forward to growing immensely as a photographer! after serious discussion with my husband and really reading up on each of your equipment suggestions - we agree that i should keep my d3100 and also purchase the d610. again, thank you for your help! happy shooting!

Thanks for the follow-up message, melissajeanne, I appreciate hearing back from you, and am glad that you and your husband were able to agree with something nice and FX like the D610. Twenty-four megapixel Nikon has pretty good image quality: good at higher ISO levels, plenty of detail for cropping, and a good file size for storage. I shoot 24MP FX Nikon, and get about 339 raw files for every 8-gigabyte memory card on average, which is pretty economical in terms of both memory while shooting, and drive storage/backup space. I bought my cards back when "8's" were considered HUGE...lol. I bought my earlier SanDisk high-speed cards back when 2-gigabyte 45 MB/second SanDisks were the top dogs, and here it is 9 years later--I still have and use those too. The lesson is: buy right, buy once, and stuff stays capable for yearrrrrrrs.

I think Tony's published book and the information in it is probably a good value. A book is information in one,single place, and like he said in his video, some education on photo techniques and methods is really a GREAT investment. Photo education is really worth the small amount, and for the price of say coffees at Starbucks for two weeks, you'll be getting knowledge that will last your entire life!

Good luck in your photography career, melissajeanne! Wishing you the very best!
Derrel
 
A few additional thoughts;

1) At this point where you're considering an upgrade consider if you want to go fullframe or stick with crop sensor. If you wish to go for fullframe make the change in camera body now then you can grow your lens selection around that point. If you try to do the reverse you'll end up likely having to rebuild your lens selection from the ground up (because you'll have gotten used to what a focal length looks like on crop and then you'll want that same working setup with the fullframe).
It sounds like you've already chosen this path in going toward the fullframe so go for it. QUOTE]

Overread - i am so glad that you posted your thoughts! you absolutely confirmed what my husband and i discussed last night. we agreed that it would be better to purchase another camera body now and then build onto that. i will have two camera bodies and hopefully some lenses that are interchangeable, and from there i will continue to build up what i need. if i had to guess, i would say next would be another lens - probably the Tamron 24-70mm f/2.8 like Derrel mentioned and an external flash - these things will be incredibly valuable especially if i continue to shoot weddings. but first... storage! just like Chuasam mentioned - storage and backup cards are a must! again, thank you for the advice! it's greatly appreciated.

:heart: melissa jeanne
 
With Nikon cameras all the lenses will fit - even the crop sensor only lenses will fit onto the fullframe (it detects and goes into a crop mode where it ignores part of the larger sensor so you don't get wasted space on the shot). The only issue is with some older lenses and auto-focus control. I can't recall enough of the Nikon line to know how relevant that is with the cameras you've got - however there shouldn't be any issue with most modern lenses.
 
I'm glad you took Derrel's advice--it's spot on.

Okay, a couple of thoughts about your gear and shooting weddings.

1. You absolutely need a backup body (and it looks like you're going that route--keeping the D3100 in reserve). You see pictures of photojournalists carrying two cameras...that's b/c in the middle of the riot or firefight you can't say "hold it....my battery's dead...can you guys do that over?". Well, in a wedding, you can't ask them to repeat the "I do" part or "you may now kiss the bride" b/c your gear went down.

2. For glass, look at a zoom. Derrel's recommendations here are good ones--they'll give you good portraits, they'll let you get closer when your feet/body has to stay further back, and they'll provide some nice portrait options. You're going to be at some weddings where the only possible way you can get the picture is to zoom in...b/c the setup won't allow you to get 30 feet closer. It either needs to be a fast lens (f2.8 or better). Or you need to master (or at least learn) off-camera speed lights. If you try to save money by buying a 200mm zoom that is f4.5 than you should plan to buy a couple of speed lights and triggers and stands and soft boxes.

3. You're probably going to want at least one portable soft box and stand (for impromptu portraits at the wedding or reception). This is one area that Derrel and I might differ in. B/c you're starting out and you'll be on the road, I'd look at a cheaper soft box. Typically, traveling equipment gets the crap beat out of it (or it develops legs). You can get an inexpensive soft box and stand with case for $100. Down the road you will want to upgrade. But in the meantime, this one will get knocked over two dozen times, get drinks spilled on it, get stepped on, get crap piled on it in your trunk.

There are some very good threads in this forum about shooting weddings and being a good wedding photographer. Good wedding shooters specialize in this, they've got it down to a science. You should create a checklist of equipment to bring with you. You should create a checklist of "must-have" shots (it will vary somewhat with each wedding but there will be a lot of overlap). You'll want to think about shooting style with weddings (traditional, photojournalist, contemporary, etc.) and that will help guide you about what gear to acquire/bring, what shots to set up. You'll need to get a good contract (b/c weddings and their aftermaths) have the potential to cause real headaches unless you lay out the ground rules and expectations for what the client can expect from you.

Best of luck!
 
Like many of the others I'd recommend you stick with Nikon, and that you keep the D3100 you have as a backup if you wish to shoot professionally. Full frame would be fantastic for the low light capabilities but from the sounds of things that will most likely be out of reach, so for crop sensor I'd recommend you take a good look at both the D7100 and the D5200. The 7100 will give you a lot of options such as additional card slot, extra command dial, more advanced options for off camera flash, etc - however it is quite a bit more expensive than the 5200.

The 5200 is a really good camera with it's 24 mp sensor, good high ISO to low noise ratio, etc - without being tremendously expensive. If you need to save even a little more you can look for either a used or a refurbished model. I'd recommend you look at online retailers like KEH or B&H Photo, I've done business with both in the past and they are both solid, reputable companies.
 
Shoot, grab the 35mm F1.8 & 85mm F1.8 and toss them on there with your 50mm F1.8. You'll love 'em all.
 

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