My Landscape Gear – Camera Body
Could you guarantee a good DSLR camera to shoot a good photo?
It’s a stupid idea but very popular in the Amateur photographers.
But a good camera body can give you a stable working environment and make sure you can shoot what you want to shoot.
I start my landscape photography from a Canon EOS 60D APS-C about half year and I upgrade it to 5d mark ii. After another half year I continue upgrade to 5d mark iii. Now I use the flagship Canon EOS 1dx, it is the best camera body in Canon world.
This is my upgrade line of the camera body in the last 3 years, it is not a usual photographer should be. I am a strange man and please don’t do it like me, waste money.
Let’s do a test, here is a 4 photo use these 4 camera body shooting, could you try to find what camera take the photo.
No.1 Bayan Har Mountains Sunset
http://www.flickr.com/photos/inkjetcity/12418969914/
No.2 Hallet Cove Cliff Wave
http://www.flickr.com/photos/inkjetcity/7636657616/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/inkjetcity/6562864213/
No.4 O'sullivans beach sunrise
http://www.flickr.com/photos/inkjetcity/11493860284/
Could find any difference between these four photos? To be honest, even myself it is really hard to find the difference of the image quality in this small size photo or after retouch etc. You can find the answer on my Flickr image’s EXIF information, I know it is really stupid test, but a lot of people keen on this.
Use the eye behind the camera is more important than the camera itself.
In that way, you can’t see the difference but you upgrade you camera body frequently.
Answer a: I have enough budget let me upgrade it, I earn money from wedding photography and use the money back to camera gear. I always like to buy the most expensive gear which I can afford, I upgrade from 5d mark ii to 1dx because I need them in my wedding photography not in landscape photography.
Answer b: The flagship will make you like a PRO even you are not a PRO.
Answer c: Better camera body will give you more chance to focus on shoot. Waterproof or very cold place etc.
Answer d: Higher ISO performance or better noise control, and photo big ddynamic range etc.
I believe a full frame camera is good enough for normal photography tours, EOS 6d, 5d mark iii or Nikon D600 D800 all will be fine. Full frame provide you a wide angle to see the world, off-course you can use APS-C wide angle lens to shoot landscape but Canon or Nikon best lens is design for the full frame, you can use the luxury lens on a APS-C camera body but you will lose a lot of by time 1.6 or 1.5.
Do I need a second camera body for backup or fitting with other lens for energy use?
I don’t think so, now the process quality of the camera body is all good. It is rarely to have trouble, on the other hand, landscape is not an Olympic game final match, we can wait and enjoy the landscape even we don’t have a camera on hand. I have this situation but it is cause by out of the battery, so buy a backup battery is more important than a camera.
I only have one tripod with a ball head, so I can control other camera at the same time. When I found some very beautiful landscape, I’d like to focus to think how to do it in my mind, when I have some idea then I will take shoot, I don’t like to shoot landscape photo as quick as I shoot in a wedding. I believe landscape is a slow photography, more slow you will get better image.
My conclusion is that up to 15-20% of you camera budget to buy a camera body.
To be continued.
Please check my website for my landscape portfolio | 500px | Facebook Page | Flickr
