What kind of camera do professional photographers use?

[chuasam]

Whatever you do, avoid Pentax. Or you'll end up like those weird orphan Pentax users with only old lenses and no way to find accessories. I tell you man, those PentaxFans are WEIRD.

 

[Derrel]

Thank to those of you who gave good information! I stated that I have a rebel t3i, but that's not a professional camera. I also stated that I think I'd like another Canon. I guess my question should have been, if you are a professional outdoor portrait photographer with a business, what kind of camera do you use? Regardless of budget and if I can afford it right now or not, I'd like to know what exactly kinds of cameras professionals use. By kind, I mean brand, type, model, lens, etc. I feel that's a valid question and thank you for those replies that were serious.

I just did a TPF search on the simple string "professional cameras"...tuned up like 20 pages worth of results of posts here on TPF. Might want to wade through that.

http://www.thephotoforum.com/search/4242888/?q=professional+cameras&o=relevance&c[node]=17

LOADS of information in these threads. it'll likely be faster to go through these inactive threads than to weed through "live" replies to your question.

 

[table1349]

Off TPF Search. Just one of the multitude of articles.

Which Pro Camera Do You Really Need to Shoot Like a Pro?

 

[cherylynne1]

If I were looking at Canon APS-C, the only one I'd seriously consider is the 80d. For full frame, all of the ones currently in production (and probably quite a few out of production) would be more than adequate for static portraits outdoors. The more expensive full frame choices in Canon are often due to features like better autofocus, which isn't as important with portraits. If you're also planning to do sports or weddings, then your needs would change quite a bit.

For lenses, the 70-200 2.8 would be great and give you plenty of flexibility. I personally drool over the Canon 135/2 for portraits on full frame.

My favorite place to go for gear reviews is DPreview. They have excellent buying guides based on price.

 

[Didereaux]

Forget the dayam camera! YOU absolutely need a TOP end LENS first!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ...and since you didn't know that you might get the $ fro one by suing your photography school for fraud!

 

[greybeard]

If you are set on Canon, then the 5d MK III with a 24-70 and a 70-200 f/2.8. If you want to go Nikon, D610, D750, D810 and similar lenses will give you a good start.

 

[Solarflare]

Thank to those of you who gave good information! I stated that I have a rebel t3i, but that's not a professional camera. I also stated that I think I'd like another Canon. I guess my question should have been, if you are a professional outdoor portrait photographer with a business, what kind of camera do you use? Regardless of budget and if I can afford it right now or not, I'd like to know what exactly kinds of cameras professionals use. By kind, I mean brand, type, model, lens, etc. I feel that's a valid question and thank you for those replies that were serious.

Professionals use whatever they think produces best results. What exactly that would be ... is of course an issue of debate.

If you actually look at gear professionals use in the field, be prepared to be surprised. You might find really old cameras and/or lenses.

And actual professionals you (rarely) meet on the net test their equipment themselves because they dont trust online tests. They buy the same lens multiple times (to get a good copy) and they return a lot of stuff that gets good reviews.

Nobody can test everything, though.

But especially it is NOT true that the most expensive equipment would be the best equipment. That *can* happen, that *does* happen, but it doesnt necessarily happen. *Many* people are motivated to tell you that, though. See for example Ken Rockwells (1) disclaimer on most of his pages that you should buy through the links he provides. Now Ken Rockwell is a nice guy and tells you he gets money this way. And he doesnt reliably tell you all the time to buy the most expensive stuff. But thats what happening with many other online reviews, too. Thats why everybody tells you the most expensive stuff is best, because their profit depends upon how expensive the stuff is you're buying.

It is also NOT true that sharpness is the only thing thats relevant about lenses. Microcontrast for example is a huge issue as well (2) and no online test ever tests for that. Because, well, in order to make a lens expensive, you have to put a lot of glas into it. And guess what, the more glas in a lens, while sharpness, chromatic aberations etc improve, other qualities get lower - colors, microcontrast, etc. There was even a funny article from Rockwell once in which he complained that film gets better colors - making the same picture taken looking a lot more bland. But he used an "old", simple lens for the film examples, while he used "modern" lenses for the digital ones, so I'm not really sure this test actually proves that film would be better than digital with colors.

Same goes with cameras and Megapixels. The more Megapixels, the smaller is the individual pixel. Thats why old low Pixel count cameras like the Canon 5D and Nikon D700 are still very popular among people - they love the colors they get from these cameras.


(1) Yes Ken Rockwell is a questionable source, but he has many qualities that other sites are missing, like high resolution example images and he is one of the few sources on old lenses, and the shortcomings of his reviews are due to his own character, not because he gets paid by anyone.

(2) But please dont think that Zeiss is the only company that has lenses with good microcontrast, or that all Zeiss lenses have good microcontrast.

 

[robbins.photo]

Thank to those of you who gave good information! I stated that I have a rebel t3i, but that's not a professional camera. I also stated that I think I'd like another Canon. I guess my question should have been, if you are a professional outdoor portrait photographer with a business, what kind of camera do you use? Regardless of budget and if I can afford it right now or not, I'd like to know what exactly kinds of cameras professionals use. By kind, I mean brand, type, model, lens, etc. I feel that's a valid question and thank you for those replies that were serious.

Greetings Ashley.

Ok, couple of quick caveats. I'm not a professional photographer, just a dedicated amateur. I also don't shoot a lot of portraits, well not of people at any rate.

However if I were looking to open a business dedicated to the type of photgraphy you describe, I'd buy the same camera I currently own:

Nikon D600. As far as capabilities vrs cost, I think it's the best deal you can find in a full frame.

I don't shoot Canon myself, but if I were to go Canon I'd probably look at a 6d to start with.

 

[r0r5ch4ch]

Thank to those of you who gave good information! I stated that I have a rebel t3i, but that's not a professional camera. I also stated that I think I'd like another Canon. I guess my question should have been, if you are a professional outdoor portrait photographer with a business, what kind of camera do you use? Regardless of budget and if I can afford it right now or not, I'd like to know what exactly kinds of cameras professionals use. By kind, I mean brand, type, model, lens, etc. I feel that's a valid question and thank you for those replies that were serious.

I thought long time if I should answer because I didn't know if it was a serious question. Still I would have many answers to questions which you didn't ask (should I start own business when I don't know which camera I will use?!? etc.).

But lets stick to the question you asked.

There is a magazine I like a lot, "Amateur Photographer" and normally at the end of the magazine they always show a Professional and the List of cameras he/she owned. It is interesting to see. Some stick to their brand, some change format, some experiment a lot.

I think what makes somebody a good (!!!) professional is somebody who loves what he does. He loves his camera, but more he loves his profession, the act, the hobby, the hunting, the composition and the creative output.

What I want to say is: you need the medium which can express what you want to express.

For some artists/professionals this is a black box with a hole in it and a photosensitive paper. For others it is an Iphone with which they are creating fine art portraits. I have seen many really impressive portraits and not all of them were shot with an high end body.

As shortly I read a book about a full-time street photographer who uses analog camera/film.

Find out what your style is, what you want to express and then search for a tool which is not standing you in the way...

That is my serious tip!

PS: Another thing is: Bodies can change a lot. If you buy good glass, normally that should last a lot longer and is in most times a lot more important...

 

[ronlane]

Wow 4 pages already. (From a Canon guy) What is it about the Canon system that is making you lean that way? If you have a T3i and a kit lens, research and test out the other systems. It's all about feel and the menu system that makes you the most comfortable at this point. (with what you currently have, you aren't locked into one system over another).

 

[greybeard]

From the professional photographers I have known most of them had a huge assortment of cameras and lenses of differing brands. Others just have one camera with a "normal" lens. The guy that shot my wedding used a Mamiya 6x7 with a 90mm "normal" lens and a single "potato masher" flash. Those pictures are great by any standard.

 

[goodguy]

Thank to those of you who gave good information! I stated that I have a rebel t3i, but that's not a professional camera. I also stated that I think I'd like another Canon. I guess my question should have been, if you are a professional outdoor portrait photographer with a business, what kind of camera do you use? Regardless of budget and if I can afford it right now or not, I'd like to know what exactly kinds of cameras professionals use. By kind, I mean brand, type, model, lens, etc. I feel that's a valid question and thank you for those replies that were serious.

Generally, many in a portrait, wedding, events, etc scenario would use a Canon 5d mark III or a newer variant. Commonly used with a 24-70/2.8 and 70-200/2.8

For more sport oriented business a Canon 7d mark II. Used with above lenses or even longer 300/2.8, 400 etc dependent upon use.

I use the Nikon equivalent of those cameras.

Actually I see more Canon 6D then 5D III from Canon pro users in events.
Its so much cheaper, has a better sensor and the AF system is good enough for them.
24-70mm 2.8 and 70-200mm 2.8 is a favorite but I also see lots of Canon users use the 24-105mm F4 L glass instead of the 24-70mm 2.8

 

[Ashley_snap18]

Forget the dayam camera! YOU absolutely need a TOP end LENS first!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ...and since you didn't know that you might get the $ fro one by suing your photography school for fraud!

I did know that, thank you! I never said I didn't know that. I still feel I need a camera upgrade as well as a lens upgrade, obviously.

 

[Ashley_snap18]

Thanks to those of you who have suggestions/info/opinions!

 

[petrochemist]

Whatever you do, avoid Pentax. Or you'll end up like those weird orphan Pentax users with only old lenses and no way to find accessories. I tell you man, those PentaxFans are WEIRD.

I've hardly ever had had any difficulty finding accessories for my Pentax system. Most of those accessories I've not tracked down don't have equivalents currently (or ever) made by Nikon or Canon either. The only accessories I know of available for other systems & not Pentax are a TTL compatible radio trigger (apparently a 3rd party one coming soon for Pentax) & something like this : Neewer Multifunctional Electronic Auto Focus Macro and: Amazon.co.uk: Camera & Photo for controlling aperture on reversed lenses. Both are no more than nice to have IMO.

I do shoot with old lenses, but not exclusively so. Four of my Pentax lenses are current models and 2 more are nearly current (the very latest versions of these have had weather sealing added). Most photographers use less than 5 lenses in their entire kit so my 'weird' collection of legacy glass is not from lack of lenses.