Which camera is right for me?

[eightball]

Hello guys, Well here's the thing. My goal this year is to open my own photo & video studio to film and take pics of weddings,commercials,etc,etc. I am ready with my DVX100A but as far as pictures, I need advise on what camera to buy for taking pics at the studio and on location(banquethalls). Any advise is helpful. Which camera? What flash? Which batteries? I prefer digital for Photoshop use. Thank You guys and HAPPY NEW YEAR! :undecided

[scharky]

Well, that all depends on your preference, and how much cash you want to spend. Personally, if I had the cash, this is the order that I would choose cameras.
I am a canon, man, so here are my choices. . .

5D
20D
Rebel Xt (I currently own this one)

If your a nikon man
D200 is the camera to get
D70

You will then want to invest in some fast telephoto, and good wide angle lenses. A nice 200-400 2.8, for the long shots, a 28-80 for medium, and a good wide angle, depending on the camera you get, the 28 may suffice.

Good luck

[eightball]

Thanks for the advise (very helpful).

[kai]

I am a canon, man, so here are my choices. . .

5D
20D
Rebel Xt (I currently own this one)



Aww cmon where's the 1Ds? You said money no object , right? :)

[MattinSTL]

I've had all Canons so far, but my next digital will be a Nikon D200 and if not that a D70.

My only aggravation with digital is no stop-action. So that will be my first priority... it's got to be fast enough to stop the action when I need it to.

[dougspice]

My fairly old D100 here will go to 1/4000th, so I'm not really sure what you're talking about. It does have a very slow flash sync, if that's what you mean.

[Zim]

I use Nikon. D100, D70s and now the D200. All work really well. You can jump up to the D2X if you want but for $5,000 you could buy two D200 and fllash's for both.

I use a Nikon SB800 flash and a older SB24. The on camera flashes work ok but for weddings use something better.

I put a 70-200 VR lens on one body, then a wider angle lens on the other. 18-35 most of the time. I carry two cameras and it covers most shooting without the need to change a lens.

Have extra batteries and compactflash cards.

[eightball]

Well with all the great advise you guys gave me, I think I have made up my mind on purchasing a D200 with a great flash for my weddings and my studio work. What do you guys think, did I make a wise decision? Any recommendations on a perfect flash for my line of work? Thank you guys for all your help.:thumbsup:

[Zim]

The Nikon SB800 is really a good flash.

I haven't done a wedding yet with my D200 but I saw pictures of one and it was real good. The guy used a single SB800 and a alien bee.

The D200 is set up so nice. The LCD is big and it is easy to use.

[Don Tucci]

the d200 and a d70s with 18-70 dont over look the 80-200/2.8 nikon has a sleeper the 28-105 tiis is a good people lens.

[bgundu]

the d200 and a d70s with 18-70 dont over look the 80-200/2.8 nikon has a sleeper the 28-105 tiis is a good people lens.


I have the 18-70. Very good lens for the money. I also had the older push-pull 80-200 2.8. It was built like a tank. I kind of liked the shots I was getting from this older lens than my newer 70-200 2.8VR.

[MattC]

I'm still shooting a D1X and am happy with it. Although I recently tried out a D2X....


nice.

Matt

[J. Hart]

I am primarily a still phoographer who is developing an interest in video. As for still cameras, Canon is the only choice. Check out the used sections in any camera store... all the pros are switching to Canon . The processor is just plain better than the others on the market. All megapixls are not created equal and jsut the specs won't tell you a thing. You have to use the things to really find out what is happening inside.

[dougspice]

I'll admit that Canon is dominating the market, but that doesn't mean the cameras are necessarily better. I chose Nikon because I liked the feel of my old N90s more than the Canons at the time, and then because of the long line of lens interchangeability. I use an old 1970s macro lens on my Nikon, and it works just fine.

bgundu, there really shouldn't be any difference in the optics between the 70-200 and the old 80-200. Both really great lenses. The 17-35mm AF-S is my other favorite.

[scharky]

Debating Canon and Nikon is like debating Mac and PC, do we really need to get into it?

[dougspice]

No, and to end the debate I'll say this: Leica!

[bgundu]

I'm still shooting a D1X and am happy with it. Although I recently tried out a D2X....


nice.

Matt

My brother still uses his D1X too. However, the metering in the newer cameras like D70, D2H, D200 and D2x are leaps and bounds better than the D1X.

[kai]

My only aggravation with digital is no stop-action. So that will be my first priority... it's got to be fast enough to stop the action when I need it to.

What are you meaning? If you're referring to shutter-lag (as in you have to push the button and wait for it to take), that's because you're probably only using a point & shoot. The cameras being discussed here are SLR-type bodies with a physical shutter, and instantaneous release.

[MattinSTL]

Yep... sorry to open my mouth and reveal my stupidity.

I had a Canon Elan IIe (yeah, cheapy) and I still have a Yashika monstrosity (but this one takes great pics)... and yes, my digi-cam is a freakin' G6. Aaaarrrrgggh! Oh the humiliation!.... I hate this thing unless everything is still.... yeah... shutter-lag... friggin' fraggin... yep, can't wait to get a D-SLR... I don't know what the heck I was thinkin'... sorry to pop into a pro-conversation guys. D'oh!

I honestly didn't realize that ALL the D-SLRs had zero shutter-lag now! Anything more then about a 20th of a second and many action shots are missed... then again I figured that they still lagged... but that everybody shooting action was anticipating a shot and then doing bursts... like 5 or 10 or something... and then just grabbing the shot they want out of the mix.

Zero shutter lag means I can't wait.


EDIT: Does anybody else think they can tell a Nikon pic from a Canon pic? Maybe not always... but often?