Time To Buy A New Camera...Need Advice!!!

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m18nye

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Matt
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So at the moment I shoot with a Sony A700. I am looking to upgrade and need some advice mainly being do I stay with Sony and go for the A850 or A900 or move over to Canon or Nikon? Looking at spending £2800 for body, grip and a good lens for portrait!!

I've looked at the following:

Sony A850
Sony A900
Nikon D300s
Canon 5d MKII
Nikon D7000
Canon 7D
Nikon D700

What are people views on these and are there any better cameras I have missed?

I would also love wireless data transfer, are the eyefi cards any good or am I better paying out for a wireless transmitter?

Thanks
 
Hi Matt

Can't help you specifically with the list of bodies you've put up - although I know the 5D MKII is a belter and I've read both Sony bodies are very good.

What current lenses do you own, if you stay with the Sony brand, you would be able to use these ?? whereas if you changed brands, you would have to buy all new equipment.

Not sure if you were thinking of selling the A700 on to part fund this, but I don't think you'd have any issues selling it as they seem to get snapped up quickly on the classifieds here :thumbs:

Hope this is a little help .....
 
andyred said:
Hi Matt

Can't help you specifically with the list of bodies you've put up - although I know the 5D MKII is a belter and I've read both Sony bodies are very good.

What current lenses do you own, if you stay with the Sony brand, you would be able to use these ?? whereas if you changed brands, you would have to buy all new equipment.

Not sure if you were thinking of selling the A700 on to part fund this, but I don't think you'd have any issues selling it as they seem to get snapped up quickly on the classifieds here :thumbs:

Hope this is a little help .....
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I have a Sigma 24-70 f2.8, Minolta 50mm f1.7 and Sigma 70-300 F4-5.6, then the usual flashes ect ect.

Can I also add I shoot portraits and thats about it. Ill take the camera out with me on occasions to do some wildlife ect, but mainly its just all portrait work in the studio. Im looking at doing quite a few outdoor shoots in the summer too.
 
If going portrait and with that money, I think I'd be looking at full frame and 24-70 or 24-105 or an 85 or 100mm prime. For £2800 you could get a 5DmII with 24-105 kit PLUS a 2.8 prime of your choice for portrait (if you felt the 24-105 wasn't quite up to it) or a 70-200 if you wanted a bit more reach. Alternatively, you could get some studio flashes with the extra.... Not sure what the equivalent in Nikon/Sony is though.

No idea on wireless transmitters.
 
Isnt the A900 a full frame camera? will your current lenes be ok with this or will you have to sell the lot and start again? tbh a camera of that quality wont have any trouble selling on the TP forums which would give you the money to fund a Nikon or Canon you want
 
Hi Matt,
From your list, the sony's don't test up so well at higher iso's, and the A850 only 3 frames per second, these may not be an issue for your portrait work , there are only two others in your list that just fall into the professional range, the canon 7D and the nikon D700, would imagine that going nikon/canon would give your a better range of glass to chose from. Obviously you can go further up in both manufactures ranges but that would absorb your whole budget.
 
Do u need the grip? If not you can get a d700 and 24-70 f2.8 for around 2800 which is ideal for portraits. Or instead go for a 105mm dc or 85mm 1.4 as your studio lens and a cheap tamron 28-75 as a general walkabout? Athough, if low light is not an issue, nothing wrong with d300s which means you could get the 24-70 and the 85mm.
 
cambsno said:
Do u need the grip? If not you can get a d700 and 24-70 f2.8 for around 2800 which is ideal for portraits. Or instead go for a 105mm dc or 85mm 1.4 as your studio lens and a cheap tamron 28-75 as a general walkabout? Athough, if low light is not an issue, nothing wrong with d300s which means you could get the 24-70 and the 85mm.
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TBH I need the grip, more from a handling point of view I find it so much easier to handly the camera ect.

I have been looking at the Nikon D7000 with the 18-105mm VR lens, the battery grip and upgrade 2 of my studio heads at the same time for only £2500, just not sure if the camera will provide what I want.

Another quick question, will the lenses off the D7000 fit onto a D90 as I can get a D90 off my cousin at a decent price as my back-up camera.

Thanks
 
What do you need a camera to do that your current one doesn't do?

That should help deciding which to buy and which to scrub off your list.
 
RichardtheSane said:
What do you need a camera to do that your current one doesn't do?

That should help deciding which to buy and which to scrub off your list.
Click to expand...

I need a camera I feel I can grow into, good high iso capabilities, a good range of quality glass, possibly SDHC card slots so I could use EYEFI cards in it and be fast and reliable with the auto focus.
 
Seriously considering the Nikon D7000 for the following reasons...

  • Excellent reviews on the camera
  • Seems to provide me with exactly what I want
  • Leaves me with enough cash to upgrade other pieces of equipment that need to be upgraded too
  • Can buy a D90 cheaply off a family member as a second body
  • Gives me more of a range of lenses and accessories compared to the Sony I currently have.

What are peoples views on the D7000 and are there much better cameras out there for the same or not much more on the price scale?

Thanks
 
Without a doubt the D700 is a better camera than the D7000 but personally I would go with the D7000 and some pro glass which is what I have just done. The pro glass means if you want you can eventually go full frame and the glass will hold it's value much,much better than the body will. So long term it will cost you less probably.

I'd go for

D7000 for £950 (or less)
MB-D11 grip £230
70-200 F2.8 VR I second hand for £950
50 mm F1.4 G £290

The 70-200 is the old model and is slightly inferior to the newer VR II but apparently that is only really noticeable on the full frame cameras. If you did go full frame in the future you could upgrade and you won't lose much as the lens is second hand.

That set up gives you everything you need for portrait IMHO. I have the D7000 with the 50 mm but I bought the VRII and am thinking of getting the grip.
 
The D700 is a top camera, by all accounts the D7000 is very good too, personally I like the additional buttons and larger size you get with the D300/D700. But, if the 7000 feels right for you it will be a very good camera. The 18-105 is an ok walkabout lens, but not for anything serious. Take some shots with that and then with a 50mm, 24-70 or 70-200 and you will see a big difference.

So, D7000 is fine, will certainly be up for the job and good enough in 3-4 years time too. I have found the Meike grips (not that I use it often) to be excellent and many find that it is hard to tell the difference between this and the Nikon one - and its only around £50.

Go for the 24-70 lens and then decide what else you need.
 
There's also the A580. Up to 7fps and same 16mp sensor as the D7000 but will cost you £600. Noise seems well managed. Takes SD cards. The SLT A55 has GPS tagging built in and the same sensor. The sony G stuff is excellent and you could get lots of it with that budget!

Sony are also bringing out another SLT that is supposed to be 20mp+ and quite possibly full frame. Comes out in July.

The D7000 is a good choice though if you feel you have to change from sony.
 
Thanks for the advice, after speaking to a mate and then seeing another mate who has got the Nikon 300s I think the feel is nicer with the 300s and the build quality seems better. For the slight bit extra I feel this may be the camera to go for.

Keep the suggestion coming though.
 
m18nye said:
Thanks for the advice, after speaking to a mate and then seeing another mate who has got the Nikon 300s I think the feel is nicer with the 300s and the build quality seems better. For the slight bit extra I feel this may be the camera to go for.

Keep the suggestion coming though.
Click to expand...

The D300S is definitely that bit better built and feels that bit better in the hand....it's not got quite the features of the D7000 but is obviously a great camera.
 
Thats the 16-85mm kit lens like? I have a Sigma 24-70mm f2.8 on my Sony at the moment and really like the lens so was looking at getting that for the 300s if I get it, or is the Nikon version alot better?

Thanks
 
I'm surprised the Pentax K-5 hasn't been mentioned yet...apparently (might be wrong here) the same sensor as the D7000 but with the build quality of a D300s. One i'd definately look at if I was in a position to upgrade :)
 
The reason im leaning towards is the the fact I also have the opportunity to buy a D90 at a reasonable price. So I could have 300s as my main camera and the D90 as a second body.
 
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