Let me start this blog by saying that I won’t be selling my Fujifilm or Ricoh cameras, these cameras are fantastic and perfect for street photography, no this is about the fact I’m shooting more events and unfortunately the 2 cameras I have been letting me down. You might be asking why a DSLR and not a mirrorless full-frame or medium format, most mirrorless cameras like the Sony’s have image stabilisation which I don’t get on with and as I’ve said many times in the past a camera is a very personal thing and what works for one person might not work for another.
So why the decision to move back to a DSLR, this came about after the last event I shot, this event which I will write about in another blog was at night and I struggled with not only the lack of light but with the autofocus. The low light is something I can work around, the autofocus on the other hand is something that I need to be able to keep up with me and what I’m shooting and during this past event I ended up with over 70% of the photos being out of focus, the subjects I was photographing were moving so fast that the autofocus just couldn’t keep up with them, I know this was down to a few factors, the lens I was using doesn’t have the fastest autofocus, but the biggest problem was the lack of light. When I would shoot events at night with the Nikon I never had any problems with autofocus or the focus working accurately in low light, coming home from the last few events has had me thinking more and more about picking up a Nikon for shooting events, I don’t want to be shooting street photography with these cameras as they are just too heavy and big, not what I need when I’m on the streets wanting to be discreet and this is why I won’t be selling my Fujifilm or Ricoh GR.
I know a Nikon D800e will be perfect for all weather and lighting conditions, the price is also playing a big part in my decision as I can pick up 2 Nikon D800’s for about £1000 which is crazy cheap, mix the camera body’s with 2 sigma art lenses and for under £2000 I’d have the perfect kit for shooting events. When you compare this to the cost of the latest Sony cameras you can see why I’d choose the Nikon, I think for me it makes more sense to go the DLSR route, the cameras will more than likely outlast me. I did look at the mirrorless Nikon cameras but to be honest I don’t think those will be any better than the Fujifilm I already own, again I’m looking at the price and I know that my pocket (and wife) will be happier with the D800 option.
Let me take this time to wish all my readers a Merry Christmas.