• 05-01-2010, 10:02 PM
    timwaters77
    Need some good advice from the pro's
    I owned a photographer business 10 years ago and due to financial reasons had to quit and sell my equipment. I am looking to get back in the business and can use some advice on new equipment. Back then I was still using film, and obviously want to go digital now.

    What minimum megapixels you would want for your camera?

    I am looking to do mostly outdoor portraiture and possibly weddings.

    I was looking at the Canon 50d with the 70-200 f2.8 lens.

    What do you think of that? It's a 15 megapixel.

    I owned medium format back in the day...Hasselblad. But can't afford to shell out the cash for the digital hasselblads. I also owned a canon slr with that same lens before and just loved it.

    Thoughts?

    Appreciate the help!
  • 05-01-2010, 10:56 PM
    n8
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    I'm no pro, but considering pro-dslr's are sitting at around 12-16mp depending on the manufacturer, I'd say 12mp would be your minimum. Being a Nikon person myself, I believe the D300, D700, and even the D3, are all about 12.3mp (as is the consumer level D90 for that matter). I reckon the 15mp Canon would do you fine, but it sounds like the image isn't all about the mega-pixels anymore.
  • 05-01-2010, 11:03 PM
    timwaters77
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    thanks Counsel. Appreciate the input.

    If megapixels are not that important to a digital? what IS important?
  • 05-01-2010, 11:10 PM
    megan
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Lens quality. Megapixels go out the window if you're shooting with a crappy lens.
  • 05-01-2010, 11:27 PM
    mattbikeboy
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Being a Nikon guy I really love the D700 and the D300s. I get great results with both cameras in everything but low light -- then the D700 beats the D300s and everything else in it's price range (including the 5dmkII).

    I comes down to your budget though. I hear the Canon 7D is pretty good at a similar price point to the D300s. One of the photographers just got the 7D to go as a back-up to his 5D. He seems to like it and likes the crop factor when shooting sports and the extra reach it gives his lenses.

    mbb
  • 05-02-2010, 12:52 AM
    WesternGuy
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    It would help if we knew what type of budget you have.

    I am not a pro (never had the urge, nor do I have the marketing skills - done well in a few contests), but have been shooting for many, many years - digital for the past 4 to 5 years. I have used both the Canon 350D and the 5D and now use the 5D almost exclusively (love to get a MkII). It has a 12.8 megapixel sensor and the IQ is great, so anything with more, like the 50D, should give you excellent IQ. Don't forget, however, that, as has been mentioned, lens quality is extremely important. I am fortunate enough to be able to afford L lenses and those with IS where available, so that helps immensely.

    As far as lenses for what you want to do, the 24-70, the 40-70 or the 24-105 might serve your purposes, but if the 70-200 fills the bill, then by all means, because only you know what you are really going to be shooting and in what situation. I would avoid EF-S lenses because if business gets really good and if you ever decide to go full-frame, then they will not work with FF bodies. I have the 24-105 as my walking around lens and shot a pile of images at my sons wedding a couple of years ago and they seemed to work out okay with it, at least he and his new wife said they thought they were good. So I hope this helps a bit...

    Cheers,

    WesternGuy
  • 05-02-2010, 06:24 AM
    Frog
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Canon seems to have gone with more megapixels while Nikon goes with larger pixels.
    Almost identically sized sensors.
    From what I understand, more pixels may give more detail while larger pixels give better high iso performance, (less noise)

    here's one article I found http://www.dansdata.com/gz059.htm
  • 05-02-2010, 07:02 AM
    Franglais
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    I'm not a Pro either, but I keep an eye on what they do.

    I have a film Hasselblad. I find that a 10Mpix APS-C DSLR gives me about the same image quality when I print with my materiel. 12Mpix is enough.

    The APS-C DSLR's dominated the low-end pro market for a long while. The Canon 50D, 7D and Nikon D300S are all general-purpose sports/news/anything bodies.

    There has been a shift to the more affordable "full-frame" DSLR's. The Canon 5DMkII is pointed towards wedding photographers, the Sony A850 is perhaps more orientated towards studio work and the Nikon D700 is sports/news. But you can use any of them for anything.

    I don't think you'll look ridiculous with a 50D and the results should satisfy you. You might find the 70-200 f2.8 is a bit long - remember it's the equivalent of a 112-320mm on the 50D).
  • 05-02-2010, 07:56 AM
    timwaters77
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    thanks all.

    I owned the 70-200 lens with my old elan 7 and loved it. took wonderful pictures.

    But if the 50d converts it to a 112-320mm I might reconsider. That would a little too tight for the things I want to do. the 70mm was already a little too close for some of the stuff I did.

    My budget is $2500.00. I can get both the body and that lens for right around that.

    I will look around for some other options too
  • 05-02-2010, 09:43 AM
    Frog
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    When you look at lens choice, remember that because of smaller sensors, you need to multiply canon lenses by 1.6 and Nikon by 1.5. I'm not sure what the other makers ration would be but close to those.
    If you end up with a full frame then they are what they are.
  • 05-02-2010, 10:03 AM
    Franglais
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by timwaters77
    ...
    I owned the 70-200 lens with my old elan 7 and loved it. took wonderful pictures.

    But if the 50d converts it to a 112-320mm I might reconsider. That would a little too tight for the things I want to do. the 70mm was already a little too close for some of the stuff I did.
    ...

    It doesn't "convert" the lens. The APS-C sensor on the 50D is smaller than the 24x36mm image drawn by the lens and it leaves the edges off. This gives you a view which corresponds to a focal length 1.6x greater if fitted to your Elan. We keep on getting questions from people who don't understand this.

    One other thing - as you will be using a shorter focal length on the 50D to get the same view as you had on the Elan, the depth of field will be greater (to get the same view as a 70mm on the Elan you would use a 43mm on the 50D). If you want to get that out-of-focus background for portraits then you will have to open the aperture wider.

    You might be tempted by a more lowly lens than the 70-200 f2.8, as you can go to much higher ISO on a DSLR without noise/grain being visible, but the depth of field of a zoom with maximum aperture f5.6 is going to be much greater than your 70-200 at f2.8. You might not get the results you want.

    I was going to suggest that you looked at the 50D with the 18-200 IS but I'm not sure it's right for you..

    p.s. Frog jumped on the same point as me but he got in faster because he didn't write so much..
  • 05-02-2010, 02:47 PM
    timwaters77
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Man, what a hassle.

    Would Nikon or Canon be the way to go? What about Olympus? I was once told that the Olympus lenses are specifically made for digital so were better than the Nikon or Canon cameras.
  • 05-02-2010, 03:21 PM
    Franglais
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by timwaters77
    Man, what a hassle.

    Would Nikon or Canon be the way to go? What about Olympus? I was once told that the Olympus lenses are specifically made for digital so were better than the Nikon or Canon cameras.

    This is nothing to do with the lenses being designed for digital or not (difficult to find a lens that's not designed for digital nowadays anyway). A 70mm lens is a 70mm lens whether it was designed for digital or for film. The smaller the sensor you put behind it, the more image that is left out and the more telephoto the image appears.

    Olympus is actually worse for your needs. The 3/4 sensor is even smaller than the APS-C one. To get the same view as with a 70mm on your Elan, you would have to use - a 35mm lens.
  • 05-02-2010, 03:39 PM
    timwaters77
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    well, ok then.

    Thanks for your help Franglais.

    Appreciate it.
  • 05-03-2010, 10:25 AM
    racingpinarello
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Buy used..I buy a lot of equipment from KEH and you can even buy a D2X (12mp) for $900. I haven't looked at Canon prices, but I am sure it's much cheaper to buy second hand camera that is in good condition.

    it's all about the glass that you shoot with it. save some money and buy a couple of lenses.
  • 05-03-2010, 12:24 PM
    timwaters77
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Thanks all for your advice! I purchased everything today from bhphoto. I looked on ebay first but didn't see a huge difference in pricing so decided to buy new.

    I bought:

    Canon 50d (came with a standard 28-135mm lens)
    Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 USM lens
    Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens.

    and some misc stuff.

    Pretty pysched. Arrives on Wednesday and I am off of work Thursday and Friday so I will get to shoot it right off. Will post a couple pics when I do :)
  • 05-03-2010, 01:08 PM
    drg
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Don't forget that you are going to need Software for Post processing capability if doing weddings.

    - Way to generate proofs and show them either with an online service or soft proofed low quality samples on CD/DVD.
    - Special effect service, a real necessity in the Wedding biz these days; pic-in-pic, color replacement, mono/duo/tri tone imagery, and the occasional photo that needs 'saving' as it is the once in a lifetime shot that didn't get exposed perfectly.
    -Image management or Digital Asset Management to catalog, sort, and be able to find all those photos among the thousands you will shoot.

    Also consider in the Canon system buying an entry level DSLR (500 series Rebels or step back a notch to a 400 series) as a backup. Or it can be used by a second shooter or as a lens holder! I hate changing lenses at an event because of dust, jostling, and inadvertently laying one down on a moving object and it falls . . .

    Are you going to do your own printing, use a fulfillment service, or do digital only delivery?

    We'll all be looking forward to your first test shots.
  • 05-03-2010, 06:39 PM
    timwaters77
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    I used to do printing at a wonderful local lab here, that pretty much went under with the rise of digital. There is another good lab here that has survived so will use them from printing.

    I haven't gotten those logistics down yet, honestly.

    Hadn't thought of photo editing software or management software.

    Will just have to stick with what I got for now. Weddings are going to be down the road a bit. Really, until I can buy what you just mentioned, a back up body.

    Still just feeling it all out. First things first.
  • 05-05-2010, 01:56 PM
    henryp
    Re: Need some good advice from the pro's
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by timwaters77
    Thanks all for your advice! I purchased everything today from bhphoto.

    Thank you.