Questions to ask yourself before asking "What lens/camera should I get?"

[Tom]

1. What is my budget?
2. What are my primary and secondary uses for my next lens or camrea?
3. What gear do I already have?
4. How is the gear I aleady have limiting me?
5. Would I consider buying used if the equipment was in great condition?
6. Would I consider buying a 3rd party brand? (Sigma, Tamron, Tokina, etc)

For instance:

1: My budget is $1000
2. My primary use is my kid plays little league and I want something that can take great pictures of him. All the games are during the day on Saturdays and Sundays. No real secondary use for the lens.
3. Right now, I have a Canon 50D, a Tamron 28-75 and a 50mm 1.8.
4. My Tamron doesn't zoom in far enough for me to take good pictures.
5. I would be happy to buy used if it was well taken care of.
6. I'm not against 3rd party, but I would rather buy from Canon if I can afford it.

Answer:
Well, get a used Canon 100-400 for 1000-1100 or grab a Sigma 50-500 new or used.

Reply:
Yay! You are so knowledgeable and good looking. Thank you.


------------------------------------

1. My budget is 1500
2. I want to shoot weddings and portraits, soon full-time professional. I want to get a newer, better camera to take better pictures.
3. I have a D80, a 18-55 and a 55-200.
4. I don't like the noise my camera has, and I want to take better pictures.
5. Used is fine.
6. I want a camera, it doesn't apply.

Answer:
You need better lenses. Your camera is fine. Use the budget to improve your lenses and to get an off-camera strobist-type setup for portraits. You may want to try the 24mm 2.8, 50mm 1.8 or 1.4 or the 85mm 1.8 for a good budget portrait lens. Before you shoot weddings professionally, you will want to get at least 1 extra body in case something happens to the first one. Also, you will probably want your main lenses to be 2.8 or faster. This will require an investment more substantial than your previously budgeted. Nikon makes a great 24-70mm 2.8 and a great 70-200mm 2.8 VR. Your D80 will make a fine second camera, whenever you decide to upgrade your first body. But for now, get a good portrait lens and a strobist setup and practice. Try to tagalong with someone else and go through strobist.com Lighting 101.

Reply:
Thank you kind sir! That previous poster was right, you are handsome!

[midlight21]

Trying to boost that self-esteem, I see! :) I think this should be stickied.

[venchka]

1. Where is the Search feature and how do I use it?

[Tom]

Originally Posted by venchka

7. Why isn't this part of a FAQ Sticky?
8. Do these questions apply to tripods?
9. Which is more important: fancy tipod legs or a sturdy head that is easy to use and holds my camera still?
10. Where is the Search feature and how do I use it?

Instead of the two polls that are the only stickies?

Wayne, the tripod stuff really doesn't apply to most of photography. If a thought process buying guide to tripods is something you are interested in, why don't you do that separately?

[venchka]

Will do.

[ldelacruz]

What is a tripod? I think my kids have one but I am not that big into music!

[tukaniray]

Ooo ... I want some advice ... I'll answer these questions ... and you give me guidance.

1 - What is my budget? - under 2K -
2 - What are my primary and secondary uses for my next lens or camera? - Sports, live bands and creative portraits -
3 - What gear do I already have? - D80 and D60 and borrow a D90 - Lens: Tamron 18-270, Nikon 70-300, Nikon 35, Nikon 55-80 - Flash: SB600 - SB800 - SC-17 Cord - Gary Fong, Lights: Arri light kit, and Lowel light kit, and generic light kit from tubetape -
4 - How is the gear I aleady have limiting me? - Not to great on low light situations or not satisfying for indoor sports -
5 - Would I consider buying used if the equipment was in great condition? - Of course. Many Savings all the way -
6 - Would I consider buying a 3rd party brand? (Sigma, Tamron, Tokina, etc) - Yup already have ... and tried other brands ... still good in my eyes. As long as I do the research to match -

What is your verdict ... oh wise ones ...

-Ray-

[Tom]

Sports requirements really vary by type of sport. Are we talking gym sports (basketball/gymnastics) or field sports (soccer, baseball, football?)

The Tamron 18-270 and Nikon 70-300 both do pretty much the same thing. Slow glass with a big zoom range with questionable IQ.

In any event, I would think about selling the 18-270 and 70-300 and get a 70-200mm 2.8 lens of some sort. A used VR one would be great, now that VR II is out. That will be great for concerts and sports. You will want more range on some sports, and an 80-400 would work great in daytime for long field sports.

The 70-200 2.8 is also a great lens for portraits. Great bokeh and shallow DOF.

It may not be fast enough for some concerts. An 85mm 1.8 is a very good lens for gym sports, portraits and concerts.

So:
80-400 for daytime field sports only.
70-200mm 2.8 of some variety for concerts/close (within 20-30 yards) field sports and gym sports/creative portraits
85mm 1.8 or portraits/gym sports/concerts

[tukaniray]

^^ Thanks ...

Ive been fighting that decision for a while.

-Ray-

[Tom]

I forgot to mention that the Sigma 50-500 may be a decent daytime sports lens.

I would find someone and borrow the 80-400 or 50-500 to test it if you could.

[Jim Victory]

In addition to what Thomas has mentioned about the Sigma 50-500 they are introducing an OS model that should be available soon.

[tukaniray]

Well ... I might just rent the lenses and try them out ... and if some gig comes up that I need those ... and low on budget ... I'll just go and rent them. Of course I would love them in my arsenal ... but if rent is all I can ... then rent I will.

Thanks.

-Ray-

[Dobick]

Originally Posted by Thomas Campbell

1. What is my budget?
2. What are my primary and secondary uses for my next lens or camrea?
3. What gear do I already have?
4. How is the gear I aleady have limiting me?
5. Would I consider buying used if the equipment was in great condition?
6. Would I consider buying a 3rd party brand? (Sigma, Tamron, Tokina, etc)

Thomas only one nit I would have with this list is that

"How is the gear I aleady have limiting me?"

should be first and foremost a standalone question. If the answer to that question is anything but a clear and concise detailed description of the problems that the current gear has, then the resultant answer of what to buy next should be lessons or an instructional book or video.

I was in the local camera store one day this fall when a lady was standing there frustrated as hell after having bought a brand new 7d as an upgrade to her 1 year old 40d. Someone told her it was a better camera and would improve the photography of her son playing football. All of this could very well be true if it wasn't for one thing -- she had never taken the 40d out of the program modes, and when she upgraded to the 7d it no longer had the program modes, and she did not have the first clue about how to make any of the manual mode settings work. She went from getting 10 or 12 images that she might want to put in a scrap book per game (not great images but as a mom she was happy), to none for 2 weeks straight.

So while budget is important as are the uses and current gear lists, the most important question in my mind is the 4th one. Strangely enough, if they answer the 4th question, then the decision gets narrowed down really quickly.

[Daniel W.]

I agree with Kent, from listening to the TWIP podcast, they often note that an upgrade is not needed until you have used (or discovered) each and every function of the camera you have. (Discovered because Canon makes it very difficult to "use" mirror lock up easily.)

That being said, Thomas just secured his grand master seat in the TPF dojo.

[Tom]

Thomas only one nit I would have with this list is that

"How is the gear I aleady have limiting me?"

should be first and foremost a standalone question. If the answer to that question is anything but a clear and concise detailed description of the problems that the current gear has, then the resultant answer of what to buy next should be lessons or an instructional book or video.

I get that and thought about doing it that way, but I think the most responsible thing to do is to have someone set a budget that they want to work with first before they get into the details of a camera.

Then you have some parameters that you have set for all the rest of the questions. For many questions, people will see that their budget isn't adequate for their intentions. But photography is a big investment, and I think that we need to address the budgetary aspect of it first and foremost.



I am actually working on a formula to figure out what gear is making you money, what gear is wasting away and what you could upgrade and get the most use out of. It is a take off of something I use for myself.



Also, you need to identify everything you have before you detail how that gear is limiting you. It is possible that in some cases, someone will have the gear to work for a goal, they just haven't utilized that gear for the right thing.

Likewise, before listing your gear, I think it is important to lay out exactly what you want to do.

1. This is what want to do.
2. These are the tools.
3. I feel these tools are limiting me by__________.
4. I would accept these tools as substitutes __________.

Budget is independent of all these thing, but as I think it is often over looked (this is America) so I placed it first.

I agree with Kent, from listening to the TWIP podcast, they often note that an upgrade is not needed until you have used (or discovered) each and every function of the camera you have.

I disagree with this. Possibly good for some people and beginners, I simply don't need every tool on a camera. I had never used the bulb mode on my 50D before I upgraded to a 1D3, 1D2, 1Ds2, 5D2 and 7D. I don't think that was a rash decision. In fact, I'm not sure if I have used the bulb setting on any digital camera.