Oh my I really wish some of my most commonly asked questions were the easiest ones to answer. Alas, some questions just aren’t that easy. But before I try to answer this one, these are my top three unanswerable questions:
- What camera should I buy?
- What lens should I buy?
- What’s better: Canon or Nikon?
And coming in as my #4 unanswerable questions is {drum roll please….}
“How do I know it’s time for a new camera?”
I was a total idiotographer when I started my business. I think back to 3 or 4 years ago and literally just sit here thinking “how the heck am I still in business?!” I upgraded my camera every time something new came out. I bought cameras on credit {ouch} and then bought other cameras before I was finished paying them off. In 2 years, I had a 350d, 450d, 500d, 550d, 7d and 5dmkII. Stupid, right? Why is that succession of cameras stupid? Because the first 4 are all the same camera but with slightly upgraded bells and whistles. I was the Canon marketing team’s dream: blinded by shiny specs and hype. And under the impression that a better camera would make me a better photographer.
So here are reasons not to upgrade:
- Some other camera looks like a ‘good’ one
- Because you think a bigger camera makes you look more serious {c’mon…I’m not even asking you to show your face. Be honest with yourself if you’re thinking this way. I have!}
- Because your pictures aren’t what you want them to be
- Because the features of the newer model make you feel yours is inferior
It’s funny how I’ve been super in love with my 5dmkII for about a year now. Every time I pick it up, I’m like ‘aaaaah I love you!’ but the DAY the mkIII is announced, I suddenly look at it like ‘oh you’re so not a mkIII’. What changed overnight? Did the outstanding quality of my camera change? No. Did my camera break or something? No. Was it still the same camera I was smitten with just 24 hours prior? Yup. The only thing that changed was a new camera was thrown into the mix. Something else for me to oogle online and plot for how I could buy it, which lenses I’d need to sell to afford it, how I might get by without a backup camera so I could sell both my cameras just to get one. But instead of doing all that -for the first time ever- I just said “humph. Yeah, Canon brought out a new camera. Again.” and that feeling of disliking my mkII just faded away. Because really, I love it. And I will probably run it into the ground before I ever consider another camera.
The greatest jump I ever made was from the 7D to the 5DmkII and this is because the 5D is a full frame and that completely changed the game for me. It’s like seeing for the first time. But you know, I knew it would be that way. A friend once said that once you look through the viewfinder of a full frame camera, you will never want to go back to a crop sensor. And I took that very seriously and no matter how many opportunities I had to lift someone’s 5D to my face, I said no thank you. I never even looked through the viewfinder of a 5D until mine came in the mail. Because I know myself. And I wasn’t financially prepared to start wanting a full frame camera yet.
So why did I upgrade?
Of all those silly upgrades, the 5DmkII was probably my smartest. And I’m not saying the 7D isn’t a fantabulous camera because it really is. And I still enjoy it. But even that wasn’t a particularly educated decision. A good decision in hindsight, yes, but it was just the next link in my never-ending chain of cameras. Here are some reasons I’d say warrant an upgrade:
- You’re nearing the end of your camera’s life expectancy.
- You have grown out of your camera. For example, when you got your camera you were a new photographer and now you’re traveling to sessions with off camera flash and your camera doesn’t fire a Speedlite remotely. These types of situations mean you’re actually growing out of your camera and that’s good! Really good! {Note: you can just get a radio trigger for the hotshoe on your camera to fire a Speedlite. But even that costs a couple hundred smackers}
- You need a second camera. I’d never photograph something important like a wedding with just one camera. If you’re going to take these events into your own hands, I would highly recommend having two cameras because any number of disasters can happen that cause you to be responsible for ruining a couple’s eternal memories. So if you find that a second camera is required, you can take this opportunity to upgrade and make your current camera the backup.
- Because you know the value of the upgrade. Like I said, the first 4 cameras in my list were basically all the same camera. Same sensor, fresher bells n whistles. Slightly bigger screen or better quality video {as if I ever even used it}. So when/if you choose to upgrade, do it because you’re actually upgrading. I don’t consider a slightly newer camera an upgrade. Going from the 550d to the 5DmkII? Now THAT was an upgrade. And I say that because the sensor is actually in a whole ‘nuther universe from the sensor in the Rebel series cameras. So if you’re going to get a new camera, make sure you know exactly why you’re doing it and how it will truly benefit your art.
- And lastly, upgrade if you feel there are reasons why a different camera will enhance your ability to create art. I don’t mean this whole business of better camera = better pictures. I mean, for example, you struggle with noise because low-light photography is your thing. Or you’re a wide open junkie {welcome!} and you crave that full frame DOF.
Do you think painters just pick up a different brush because it looks like maybe it’ll be better? Or because someone else is painting with it? No. They choose their tools wisely and for very specific reasons.
So that’s the end of this topic for now. But before I go, let me say…I don’t think that a better camera = better pictures. But I do think you can make that argument in terms of lenses. If you feel like your photography is missing something and you can’t put your finger on it, it’s probably more an issue of lens choice than camera choice. So read this and see why I think a majority of the time, it’s wiser to invest in a new lens and not a new camera.
