If you read my Minimum Computer Equipment post, you’re probably going to assume I’m going to tell you to get the cheapest camera equipment you can. Surprise, surprise, NOT. You certainly shouldn’t be trying to use the cheapest camera gear, yet then again the most expensive is probably over-kill too.

Let’s take each item one at a time. Main camera gear is divided up into still picture and video cameras. While things are slowly starting to change, traditionally no one camera has been able to produce both quality still and video images–anything that does everything, does nothing good. Things are changing though so you might be able to make due with just one camera today or tomorrow, but this certainly wasn’t true just a year ago.

Still picture camera. Everyone is talking about pixels yet my belief is that anything 3 mega pixel and higher is more than you’ll need for still pictures. I know a photographer that uses one of the earlier 1 mega pixel SLRs and he’s able to capture amazing pictures that’ll blow away anything you’ll see. It’s not just the camera as you’ll learn, but the monkey behind the camera that makes the difference. Learning how to use the camera and proper lighting will be your keys to success. Yet, newer cameras are often more easier to use thus helping you capture better photographs as they do much of the thinking for you yet you’ll still be limited by your skills at taking photos and lighting in the end.

The prices of SLRs has dropped these past few years to the level where any consumer can afford and I do recommend a SLR. And once you cross the theashold to SLR land, just about any will do although some will do much better than others of course. However, my main reasoning for suggesting an SLR is that they generally hold their value better than cheaper cameras so even if you decide this isn’t for you, you can usually recoup a good percentage of your investment from your SLR. Furthermore, while point-and-shoot cameras quickly become dated, SLRs keep shooting quality pictures for many years as your skills improve to better utilize their abilities where as many point-and-shoots it’s just “hit the button” only and hope the camera did a good job. All the photographers I know buy a quality SLR and then hold onto that same camera for many years as they’ll able to continue to get decent shots.

Good lighting is very important. That’s the unstated reason why I’ve done so many outside shoots as it’s easier to get good lighting when God’s setting up your lights than when I’m doing it myself inside. Outside shooting has it’s challenges, not the least of which is that the color of the light actually changes throughout the day and while your eyes adjust without problem and you don’t notice it, the camera will so the longer you shoot, the more the white-balance will change. Still, outside shooting I believe to be much easier than inside.

Many photographers I know prefer inside and prefer one set location as they can master the lighting in that space and then just setup everything the same day after day to achieve decent results. So much can be said about lighting and I’m certainly not the one to talk much about that, but do be aware that lighting is very important and treat it as such. If you are shooting inside, consider professional lighting equipment. Even if shooting outside, you’ll want to give consideration to a good quality fill flash in many situations.

Lighting with video is even more important in my opinion and unfortunately MOST videos cameras suck at low light levels. This is something the video manufactures often don’t want you to understand. All the video cameras I’ve used I specifically selected because of their low light abilities. Thus allowing me to get decent results in even sucky lighting situations. So do a bit of research about “lux” ratings and make sure to select a camera with a decent (lower) lux rating otherwise you’ll have problems outside in the evenings and even inside. Ever wonder why camera stores are so brightly lit? It makes testing their cameras produce great results every time until you leave the store and try the same shot inside your house.

SD vs HD: Standard Definition vs High Definition. I’m late to the game for HD as I have very good quality SD cameras which have a few special features which aren’t available on cameras anymore so I just hold onto them. I’ve also always believed my SD video shot with my quality, low light, big CCD and 3 CCDs camera and my know-how helped me produce better footage than most people’s HD video shot without know-how and on a shitty HD camera. Yet, customers want HD so I’m making the transition. Not only that, but shooting HD video and highest quality still pictures helps to future proof your work. I remember many years ago when memory cards were expensive and the ability of a camera to process the data was slow so I instructed my staff to shoot at a lowest quality setting which was appropriate for our use at the time. How I wish I’d done things differently now as I still have some of those sets which have never seen the light of day and yet with high bandwidth and the demand for quality those sets are dated solely because of the lower settings we used. So, shoot high as you never know what the future will hold. Better to have better quality and reduce it than too low quality.

I do see a building shift though. Photographers have been pushing for better and better quality as consumers demand it, but I’ve spoken to photographers who are shifting to what could best be described as “consumer quality” as opposed to professional quality. Some are shooting with regular consumer cameras and even iPhones and customers are eating it up as the customer feels like “Hey, I have that camera” or “I have a BETTER camera than that so I can do this.” This allows the customer to relate which is important. Yet, having the equipment and knowing how to use it are 2 different things the customers don’t realize. I look at the iPhone pictures from some of my photographer friends and am truly amazed as they are far better than the stuff I’m shooting with my SLR.

Higher end cameras allow for more possibilities though. There are things you can do (if you know how) with a quality camera which just aren’t possible or are very difficult to do on the cheaper cameras. Yet, sometimes, unless you know how to use the camera, you’ll get better results from a cheaper camera as it’ll do the thinking for you–it’s just not all that smart, but might be far smarter than you if you aren’t a photographer.

There really is a lot to say about this topic, but I don’t want to go overboard. I’m also not the best person to comment as while I’ve ran large photo-studios, I’m much more a manager than a doer. I’ve trained some very talented photographers who are all far better photographers now than I am. Yet, I will leave with one more comment to consider which you might not think of. I use Nikon still cameras, yet in the studios I ran many of the photographers used Canons so I was much more familiar with Canon. Why did I select Nikon then? Many of the companies I shot for used Nikons and while their cameras were different models, when my pictures were displayed side by side on a web page mixed with theirs, they matched. Pictures they received from other photographers using different model cameras looked different when put side by side. None were really any better or worse, but they just looked different. Companies liked the fact that my pictures fit in and thus I got more work as a result. Something to think about which many might not consider–may or may not be important to your situation though.