PhotoGear

I get these questions everyday. What’s best for me? Which camera should I buy? So let me take a moment to set my stance. I don’t know why but I’m a Nikon guy. I could as well have been into Canon but it’s a pointless debate – I had to pick one. Both are respectable companies and have been into the profession for a long time so don’t waste your time fighting for Nikon or Canon. Now Sony is in too – that gives you more choice.

What is the best camera for me?

Depends on what you need it for. Don’t run after megapixels – anything beyond 6MP is enough unless you shoot landscapes. But then you’d rather look for a medium-format camera in that case.

Which camera should I buy?

There are a lot of options. If you are just entering the field there will be greater confusion. But as long as you are buying a DSLR you’re safe. I see this spending as an investment. I don’t want to be eyeing another higher-end cameras just six months after my first DSLR. So invest wisely. Additionally the full-frame format is the in-thing today if you can afford it. Look for things like lens compatibility, vibration reduction (Nikon has it inbuilt in the lens, other manufacturers may sell it as an in-camera feature). Look for low-light performance – night scenes are beautiful and you want to shoot in the available light at high ISOs hand-held. Rest is all tech-banter.

Here’s my short preference list. You can purchase them from out Trusted Sponsor B&H Photo-Video, satisfying millions of customers since 1973. Also check out some hot deals from B&H on our hot deals page.

  • Cameras

    1. Nikon D700

      PhotoGear
      PhotoGearPhotoGearMy top choice. It does almost everything that the D3 does, comes with a built-in sensor cleaner and is an FX (or full-format) camera. This gives it the edge over the DX format in low-light photography. It has ADR or Adaptive Dynamic Range which means you shoot (almost) HDR in-camera. The more you read the more good you discover about this thing. This one has 12.1MP. This came out after the D3 and D3x so Nikon added quite some features while taking out little to bring down the price. If there’s one camera I’d like to buy it is this.

    2. Nikon D3x

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      PhotoGearPhotoGear
      At 24.5MP this is the big brother of D3. This was released after the D3. The picture quality is the same, you are buying more pixels with the extra money.

    3. Nikon D90

      PhotoGear
      PhotoGearPhotoGearThe entry-level DSLR. Don’t get distracted by the term “entry-level”. The D90 is from the same generation of Nikon cameras that the D3, D3x and D700 belong to. The only downside is that this is a DX format camera as Nikon terms it (also known as APS-C format). You loose full-frame advantage the low light performance. This one is 12.3MP.

    4. Canon EOS 5D Mark II

      PhotoGearEOS 5D MarkII is an excellent full frame DSLR. This 21.1 megapixel camera, was the first digital camera to be used for an official U.S. Presidential portrait. Ranging somewhere between $2,398.00 to $5,919.00, this professional camera supports plethora of features for a pro photographer.

    5. Nikon D5000

      PhotoGearNikon D5000 is an awesome DX frame DSLR. This 12.3 megapixel camera comes with automatic correction feature for lateral chromatic aberration. This mid-range DSLR costs $629.95 approx. It offers an electronic rangefinder which can be used to manually adjust focus with any kind of lenses.

    6. Canon EOS 550D

      PhotoGearCanon EOS 550D features a new wide-screen (3:2) LCD panel and has an improved button design. This 18 megapixel camera and costs around $800.

    7. Canon EOS 7D

      PhotoGearCanon EOS 7D provides the real high definition image quality. This 18 megapixel camera is unique as it provides an optical penta-prism viewfinder with 100% coverage and electronic live preview. This low cost camera is simply irresistible.

  • Lens

    • Nikon 85mm f/1.4D AF Nikkor

      PhotoGear
      PhotoGearPhotoGearThe dream lens of every portrait photographer. Has a beautiful beautiful bokeh. You will fall in love with the results and will never want to take it off.

    • Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED-IF AF-S VR DX

      PhotoGear
      PhotoGearPhotoGearThat’s the other name for my favorite all-in-one lens. This thing let’s you shoot as wide as your eyes can see to as far as you zoom (unless you are trying to shoot Venus). This do-it-all lens is better than any third-party lenses that sell cheap but do not live up to the image quality.