flogging an old Horse with a new sadle...Canon vs Nikon

[quote=]Morgaen made a good point, the right tools make your life much easier. [/quote]
True,but do you have the money to buy into all brands and do you have enough arms to connect to the tools.

Let's hypothetically say Morgaen is doing a wedding. He is doing this beautiful portrait of the bride in the meadows with his Hasselblad (right tool for that job, for sure) next moment something growls in the bush behind her and she starts running. Out comes his super fast Canon (again right tool for the job). So he just points the lens at her, hopes the auto focus works properly and blasts away, hoping she'll win whatever growled in the bush. Off she goes into a nearby cave. Out comes his trusty Nikon D800 with the SB900 and he is champion.

In all circumstances he used the right tool for the job, but frankly most of us won't be able to afford that gear or be able too lug everything around.

That's why I say:
Does your camera take good pictures, or do you create good images regardless off the tools?
Use the equipment you've got and make due with it. Invest in better glass, upgrade bodies, but unless your brand is going down the tubes or becomes ridiculously expensive, why change brands?
In the end what you have in your hands is just a recording device. Yes, having a better quality recorder will have an influence on the end result, but isn't what you are recording and the way you record it of far more importance?

Put a brand new Hasselblad in your grandma's hands and the results will still look crappy, unless your grandma is Annie Leibovitch (excuse the spelling). And if your grandma is Annie then I promise you can put a little disposable in her hands and she will do something great with it.

[quote=]If you're looking to upgrade I suggest waiting till the expo.
Both brands (and all the others too) will have great specials there and you can test the cameras for yourself.

Plus as mentioned above there may be new offerings by then.
[/quote]
Talking about flogging a horse. lol SOLD

mm.... you make a good point.

That's why "what do you want to shoot?" is a good starting point for your kit. No kit does everything perfectly. Horses for courses. If the answer to "what do you want to shoot?" is "everything" then you need to re-evaluate your priorities. You can't be a wedding tog AND a birding tog AND a studio tog AND a landscape tog AND AND AND....

You need to pick a primary objective and cater towards that. A "good all-round kit" will never be a brilliant "specific" kit.

Let's hypothetically say Morgaen is doing a wedding.

I dont do weddings. I am an artist. Weddings would detract from the credibility of my work and are therefore beneath me.

True,but do you have the money to buy into all brands and do you have enough arms to connect to the tools.

My point exactly. Decide what you want to do and get the equipment that suits it.

If you are going to do a lott of low light work, Nikon is your brand. If you are going for studio work canon might offer the cheaper "pro" option. If you shoot sport a 7D is for you. If you work in studio buy something that works best in studio.

In all circumstances he used the right tool for the job, but frankly most of us won't be able to afford that gear or be able too lug everything around.

Even if I did humiliate myself enough to do a wedding I would not have planned to do a action shoot and therefore would not have brought the Canon.

I do mostly studio work, so I bought a camera that suits what I do. If I did mostly weddings, I would by a camera that suited wedding.

Your an idiot [edited - mod] if you think I in any way meant you need to go out and buy equipment to suit every possibly concevable eventuality.

And if your grandma is Annie then I promise you can put a little disposable in her hands and she will do something great with it.

True, but then again she is broke so she has to use a disposable. Put a decent camera in Annie's hands and she will do so much more with it.

Put a decent camera in Annie's hands and she will do so much more with it.

The right tool in the right hands can do so much more than the wrong tool in the right hands.

Reminds me of a story, years ago, with two guys I was working with, Lawrie and Dave.
Dave was fixing his motorbike, and battling his arse off with something, cursing, sweating, and doing everything except getting the job done. So Lawrie walks up, takes out this gizmo, and in 3-seconds flat, he has the job done. Dave just stares in amazement.
Lawrie says "with the right tool, it does not take long".
And Dave replies, deadpan, "yeah, that's what I keep telling Lynn."

@Red B: lol, I think you really missed the point, but it was funny anyway.

I really hate that "give a true pro a piece of rubbish equipment, and she will rule the world..." speech.
It really doesn't relate well to us mortals.

That's like saying something like: "give Tiger Woods a broom stick instead of a Golf club and he will still kick ass!". Which might be true, but give an intermediate level player the same broom stick and they will really suck!
Give them top of the range clubs and a little training and their game will probably improve ,even if it is only a little, and even if it is only because of more confidence.

Good tools make a job much easier, and photography is no exception.
I pinched pennies when I was starting out with photography, and it took me years to figure out how much that stunted my confidence and growth.

I have great respect for the people on this thread, your work clearly speaks for itself, so this comment is just meant to make this discussion more complete for whoever reads this down the line. So this is not directed at any of you, and no offense intended.

As I've said before equipment can make a big difference (or at least it has for me), but I truly believe that a good education around photography can also make a massive difference, and it can cost significantly less of your money (in exchange for significantly more of your time).

It doesn't need to be a costly training course or diploma, because there are some really good resources online, and you could also try find a mentor.

The things you can learn from more experienced photographers should outlast any camera you buy, so to me it's well worth the investment.

Funny was the intention

When I went (kicking and screaming) into digital, my philosophy was to buy the best camera I could (not quite) afford. I could get a decent camera for a lot less than what I paid for my trusty D300, but I reckoned that if anything ever goes wrong, I want to blame myself, not the tools.

I never want to say "if only my camera could..." I did astro-photography a while ago – a thing that is essential to astro-photography is a timer. My D300's shutter can go max 30 seconds – I needed it to do 30 minutes, if not longer.

Nikon makes a little remote control shutter-release/timer that does the job perfectly! But only the "pro-sumer" bodies have the connection for this timer. The cheaper cameras does not have the connection. So point is – if you want to do the right job – get the right tools. Never leave yourself open for "if only my equipment..."

As someone else said, you cannot bake a cake with a hammer and chisel, those are not the right tools – but it's a hell of a lot easier to learn how to be a top class chef with the right tools, than it is to become the same quality chef with nothing but a butter knife and a wonky pan.

When I went for my solitary golf lesson in my life (how I hate that game), the pro told me "always give yourself the best possible chance". That's about the only thing in the entire lesson I remember. Always give yourself the best possible chance. A good, proper, decent tool will give you a better chance of doing the job right than a make-do tool. A cheap tool only sets you back in pace and costs more in the long run when you replace it with the right tool anyway.

No, Ansel Adams did not have a D800. Shakespeare did not have Microsoft word. But can you imagine what they would have produced if they had... No tool can replace talent, but boy, can the right tool make talent sing!


Boy, i love a good flogging!

I must agree that with the best tools one's photography improves dramatically. You are definitely giveing yourself "the best chance" by buying pro gear and knowing how to use it. The "polish" that your photographs will have shooting with say a D700 or D800 and a 85 f1.4 or 24-70 f2.8 will definitely show over a D 5100 with a 55-200 kit lens. Guys with crap Makro gear always use the argument that equipment doesn't count, but that's because they've never shot with pro gear :)

Buy the best body and glass that you can afford...with the emphasis on the glass...

with the emphasis on the glass

I bought an 18-200 VR "Jesus" lens at the cost of three arms and 1.7 legs. I also bought an el-cheapo 50mm 1.8. I get better results with the nifty fifty!

[quote=]I get better results with the nifty fifty![/quote]
The 50mm F 1.8 is an exception to the rule with all manufacturers. A simple lens to manufacture, they are all excellent value for money and super sharp...

The 18-200 VR was a disappointment to me when I bought one years back. Great for holiday pics, but not sharp throughout the range. Sell a kidney and buy the 70-200 f2.8 or 24-70 f2.8 and you'll see the difference :)

I used to play pro paintball a couple of years ago with a lot of people coming with that whole "give a true pro a piece of rubbish equipment, and she will rule the world..." kak.

Yes, put a piece of rubbish in a pro's hands and compare it to a piece of pro in a rubbish's hands and it will look AMA-zing!!!

better gear = better results but better gear + better skills = Amazing results.

I "survive" with my 60D atm but renting a 24-70 F2.8 makes my life waaaaaaay easier than using the 17-85 f4-5.6 thats in my kitbag and paid for.

but back to the flogging, the only two reasons I harbor the idea of converting to the darkside is the bajillion AF points to my 7 and the focusing issue when light isnt on my side.
and NO, forking out R30k+ for a 5Dmkii doesnt yet justify the extra focus points

[quote=]but back to the flogging, the only two reasons I harbor the idea of converting to the darkside is the bajillion AF points to my 7 and the focusing issue when light isnt on my side.[/quote]
Then get yourself a S/H Nikon D300 for around R6 000 or a D7000 for around R 8 000 :)

[quote=]but back to the flogging, the only two reasons I harbor the idea of converting to the darkside is the bajillion AF points to my 7 and the focusing issue when light isnt on my side.[/quote]
Wrong reasons, I've had focusing issues in dark areas with my Nikons. Most of the time the quick fix is to scroll your AF point to the center which makes the other focusing points in those scenarios rather redundant. I personally think your friend has the magic touch.