Should I upgrade from a Canon XTi as soon as I can? (Page 3): Refurbished or used will be less expensive. Comparisons - Read comparisons and specs, and decide what features are...

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

SeaPig wrote:

I'm relatively new at photography and bought a Canon XTi for my first camera. I want to start doing a lot more photography and freelance work etc. And I was wondering if maybe it was time for an upgrade. Also can anyone recommend me a DSLR that won't destroy my bank account?

Refurbished or used will be less expensive.

Comparisons -
Read comparisons and specs, and decide what features are important to you.
(Reviews) https://www.youtube.com/user/TheCameraStoreTV/videos
http://www.cameradecision.com/
http://cameras.reviewed.com/
http://camerasize.com/
http://www.imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP/COMPS01.HTM
http://snapsort.com/compare
http://www.dpreview.com/products/compare/cameras?utm_campaign=internal-link&utm_source=mainmenu&utm_medium=text&ref=mainmenu

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

If you know your camera well and it is limiting your photography my advise is to get something better. If you do not know your camera yet read the instructions manual and learn its different functions.
If you have not learned basic photography, learn basic photography. Any camera should do well when the basics are known.

Zooman 1

Decide what you need in a camera body, and what lenses you have, want, or will obtain. I have used several different Canon bodies, all crop sensor. Currently use the 7D Mark II and the 80D, which is a fine camera body. Most of my work is nature photos, plus some zoo stuff. Not much people photography or more commercial projects. Try to find a place where you can actually hold the camera, find one that feels good. If you have big hands (I do) small cameras like the mirrorless, may not work for you. Also, keep in mind new cameras are coming out all the time, hard and expensive to try and keep up with all the up graded versions. Get one you like and learn it in and out. Have fun! Good luck.

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

SeaPig wrote:

I'm relatively new at photography and bought a Canon XTi for my first camera. I want to start doing a lot more photography and freelance work etc. And I was wondering if maybe it was time for an upgrade. Also can anyone recommend me a DSLR that won't destroy my bank account?

Yes, time to upgrade. T6i, t7i, 77D, and 80d in that order......

Ted H. Funk

If "a pro can make a salable pic with a phone", he should be shot (with a gun, not a camera) at
sunrise or sunset, whichever comes first after this highly unlikely sale would happen! And then
forget about calling himself a "pro"---laughable!

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

SeaPig wrote:

...I go around asking if anyone needs photography done for cheap because I'm looking for experience.

This is very dangerous!

You're best "advertising" will be word-of-mouth... happy customers telling their friends and acquaintances who to hire for photography jobs.

If you continue to "do it cheap for the experience", you seriously risk being permanently labelled as the "cheap photographer" and will find it difficult or impossible to ever increase your fees to a profitable level. As a result, you'll be "feeding your business" rather than it feeding you, which is a good way to go broke and be out of business in short order. I don't know where you're located, but last time I counted them on my local Craigslist there were some 700 photographer ads offering "cheap or even free for experience". I can pretty much guarantee you that those folks were out of business in a year or so, as soon as their camera failed and they couldn't afford to replace it, or they just got discouraged because they weren't seeing any profit from their business. After they went out of biz, they probably thought their photography just wasn't good enough.... Actually it was their business sense that was lacking.

Rather than spend money on camera gear, you'd be wise to get books, take classes, etc. on running a small business. Learn as much as you can as fast as you can! For example you need do a survey of local competition and their prices to see if it even makes sense to start a photo business, calculate your cost-of-doing business, design a reasonable price structure that will not break you, develop a marketing plan and navigate the legal stuff like licenses, insurance, liability, contracts, copyright, model releases, etc.

You can still offer "introductory special" discounts from your usual fees or find other ways to encourage customers to want to use you.... without "doing photography for cheap".

But there are also clients who are so cheap, you don't really want them as clients.... Pretty much anyone who looks for photo services on Craigslist, for example. All too often, clients who start out looking for the cheapest photographer they can find will turn out to be the ones who are the most demanding, real nightmares to work with, and the most likely to bounce a check, or violate the terms of a contract, or not respect your copyright, etc.

There are a lot of great photographers with a kit of expensive, premium gear who fail as "pros" because they've not paid proper attention to the business side.

At the same time there are very successful pros who do unspectacular but solid photography work, take care to keep their costs in line by only investing in the gear they actually need to do the work, and by establishing and following a careful, sensible business plan. "Plans" aren't rigid... they evolve and change over time. But planning is important to give the business person sense of direction and focus their energies and efforts.

In fact, a lot of professional photography... Photography as a business... is probably 75% business acumen, 15% photo gear and 10% skill as a photographer.

Generally speaking, a difference is that amateurs get to shoot what they like, whenever they like, however they want to shoot it. Pros, on the other hand, have to shoot what their client wants, on time to meet the client's schedule and the way the client wants it done. In a sense, a lot of the time a pro photographer is a "problem solver" more than they're a photographer.

Still sound appealing? If so, get books, take classes, study and learn how to run a business... and don't just start buying photo gear willy nilly until you know you need things... And even then, unless the job is one that pays enuf to purchase the gear for you or you know you'll need it for future jobs, consider renting the gear rather than buying it. A wise business person is continually looking for ways to keep their costs down, in order to keep their fees reasonable while still making a fair profit. There are online rental sources, as well as pro-oriented brick and mortar stores in most major markets. You also should get to know a good local service and repair shop, since you will likely need them! Meanwhile you can look for jobs that fit your gear, rather than gear to fit your jobs. A 10MP camera is plenty good for a lot of things. Heck, not that many years ago I shot a lot of jobs with several 8MP DSLRs, and before that with a 6MP.... even used a 1.5MP digital camera for some work back in the late 1990s. More recently, for a full five years I used the same pair of 18MP cameras for the bulk of my work, before "updating" became necessary (which is different than "upgrading"). Another DSLR I use for some other purposes I've used even longer and still don't have the "need" to update.

Good luck!

wishaw

did you get the camera software with the camera.
I have an xti and the current version of the utility download software does not work. I also have a 70D and all of the software is up to date.
I asked canon and they said it is no longer supported. to fix it I would need to be running windows version from 10 years ago and whatever version of the utility I had with the camera. they did not reply to DPP can edit cr2 files from both cameras.
they also suggested buying a card reader and taking the card out of the camera every time I needed to move pictures to the computer.
I am posting this because the xti is working fine but canon is not. Just a word of warning when purchasing older cameras

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

SeaPig wrote:

I'm relatively new at photography and bought a Canon XTi for my first camera. I want to start doing a lot more photography and freelance work etc. And I was wondering if maybe it was time for an upgrade. Also can anyone recommend me a DSLR that won't destroy my bank account?

You might want to wait a bit. There appears to be some new cameras coming out this year from Canon that will be worth waiting for.

Notorious T.O.D. Loc: Harrisburg, North Carolina

amfoto1 wrote:

This is very dangerous!

You're best "advertising" will be word-of-mouth... happy customers telling their friends and acquaintances who to hire for photography jobs.

If you continue to "do it cheap for the experience", you seriously risk being permanently labelled as the "cheap photographer" and will find it difficult or impossible to ever increase your fees to a profitable level. As a result, you'll be "feeding your business" rather than it feeding you, which is a good way to go broke and be out of business in short order. I don't know where you're located, but last time I counted them on my local Craigslist there were some 700 photographer ads offering "cheap or even free for experience". I can pretty much guarantee you that those folks were out of business in a year or so, as soon as their camera failed and they couldn't afford to replace it, or they just got discouraged because they weren't seeing any profit from their business. After they went out of biz, they probably thought their photography just wasn't good enough.... Actually it was their business sense that was lacking.

Rather than spend money on camera gear, you'd be wise to get books, take classes, etc. on running a small business. Learn as much as you can as fast as you can! For example you need do a survey of local competition and their prices to see if it even makes sense to start a photo business, calculate your cost-of-doing business, design a reasonable price structure that will not break you, develop a marketing plan and navigate the legal stuff like licenses, insurance, liability, contracts, copyright, model releases, etc.

You can still offer "introductory special" discounts from your usual fees or find other ways to encourage customers to want to use you.... without "doing photography for cheap".

But there are also clients who are so cheap, you don't really want them as clients.... Pretty much anyone who looks for photo services on Craigslist, for example. All too often, clients who start out looking for the cheapest photographer they can find will turn out to be the ones who are the most demanding, real nightmares to work with, and the most likely to bounce a check, or violate the terms of a contract, or not respect your copyright, etc.

There are a lot of great photographers with a kit of expensive, premium gear who fail as "pros" because they've not paid proper attention to the business side.

At the same time there are very successful pros who do unspectacular but solid photography work, take care to keep their costs in line by only investing in the gear they actually need to do the work, and by establishing and following a careful, sensible business plan. "Plans" aren't rigid... they evolve and change over time. But planning is important to give the business person sense of direction and focus their energies and efforts.

In fact, a lot of professional photography... Photography as a business... is probably 75% business acumen, 15% photo gear and 10% skill as a photographer.

Generally speaking, a difference is that amateurs get to shoot what they like, whenever they like, however they want to shoot it. Pros, on the other hand, have to shoot what their client wants, on time to meet the client's schedule and the way the client wants it done. In a sense, a lot of the time a pro photographer is a "problem solver" more than they're a photographer.

Still sound appealing? If so, get books, take classes, study and learn how to run a business... and don't just start buying photo gear willy nilly until you know you need things... And even then, unless the job is one that pays enuf to purchase the gear for you or you know you'll need it for future jobs, consider renting the gear rather than buying it. A wise business person is continually looking for ways to keep their costs down, in order to keep their fees reasonable while still making a fair profit. There are online rental sources, as well as pro-oriented brick and mortar stores in most major markets. You also should get to know a good local service and repair shop, since you will likely need them! Meanwhile you can look for jobs that fit your gear, rather than gear to fit your jobs. A 10MP camera is plenty good for a lot of things. Heck, not that many years ago I shot a lot of jobs with several 8MP DSLRs, and before that with a 6MP.... even used a 1.5MP digital camera for some work back in the late 1990s. More recently, for a full five years I used the same pair of 18MP cameras for the bulk of my work, before "updating" became necessary (which is different than "upgrading"). Another DSLR I use for some other purposes I've used even longer and still don't have the "need" to update.

Good luck!

This is very dangerous! br br You're best "a... (show quote)

Great information too... I bet you can buy a nice Canon 1D MkIII for $500 that will make nice photos and last a long time too...

bwana Loc: Bergen, Alberta, Canada

SeaPig wrote:

I'm relatively new at photography and bought a Canon XTi for my first camera. I want to start doing a lot more photography and freelance work etc. And I was wondering if maybe it was time for an upgrade. Also can anyone recommend me a DSLR that won't destroy my bank account?

I think it might be time to upgrade? I have an XTi on my antique shelf...

If you want to stay with Canon, take a look at the 6D.

bwa

dsmeltz Loc: Philadelphia

SeaPig wrote:

Thanks for all the replies, I think I'll keep it for now and try to hone my skills before doing a lot of work. Since I am keeping it for now, are there some lenses that I should invest in? Also I didn't mean pro photography, more of just doing photos for my local newspaper and businesses. (Im still in highschool and only make around 300-400$ a month, I'd be willing to save up and get a camera around 700$)

This is a rational approach. Befroe you buy anything else decide what you want to photograph, try to do it, and look at the photos. Is there anything about the photos you are not happy with? Are these problems ones that can be solved by more skills or only by better equipment. (Hint, they are usually solved best by improving skills)

Go on line and search for articles where professional photogs are challenged to shoot with limited equipment. I see one of these articles pop up every month or so. Sometimes they are given what amount to children's toys or sub 4MP cameras. The results they get are quite impressive.

Kuzano

SeaPig wrote:

I'm relatively new at photography and bought a Canon XTi for my first camera. I want to start doing a lot more photography and freelance work etc. And I was wondering if maybe it was time for an upgrade. Also can anyone recommend me a DSLR that won't destroy my bank account?

We must both be in the same boat. I also have far too much money in the bank and am just looking for ways to spend it. Don't let the spoil sports convince you to learn all about your current camera before you upgrade. And remember...."He who dies with the most toys wins!"

dsmeltz Loc: Philadelphia

For photo challenges see this link https://petapixel.com/tag/cheapcamerachallenge/

Petapixel is a very useful source BTW

Shutterbugsailer Loc: Staten Island NY (AKA Cincinnati by the Sea)

SeaPig wrote:

Currently the only paid freelance work I've done is taking photos of a shoe collector's collection. He was willing to pay 25$ per hour and I heavily enjoyed the work and the outcome of the photos were pretty good. That being said I'm not about to go around saying I'm an amazing photographer because one job went really well. I'm mediocre at best but I truly want to improve and pursue this as my career.

Good luck with your new career. Based on your user name, I suspect that your previous occupation was in marine law enforcement

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

SeaPig wrote:

Thanks for all the replies, I think I'll keep it for now and try to hone my skills before doing a lot of work. Since I am keeping it for now, are there some lenses that I should invest in? Also I didn't mean pro photography, more of just doing photos for my local newspaper and businesses. (Im still in highschool and only make around 300-400$ a month, I'd be willing to save up and get a camera around 700$)

What lenses do you have now?

Specifically what do you want to photograph?

In what way has your current system let you down?