Next Step to Upgrading My Camera!

C

C.A.V.

Active member
Hey ns,

i have a canon t2i and canon 17-40mm WA L lens.

i am going to continue using it for the rest of the winter and summer untill i master it. once the summers near a end im goinjg off to college and im going to upgrade to a better camera, im not sure what to get. I have magic lantren on my camera so its similair to canon 7d? not sure what my next step is, i have about 2,000$ right now and im working untill the end of summer so ill have alot of money, but let me know what you think a apporiate upgrade is! +k to help!
 
what i was saying was i am going to continue working with it untill end of summer even though i feel i mastered it, i just want to upgrade before college so i have something new to work with. sorry for the confusion.
 
so it sounds like you have a t2i with one zoom lense and you are concerned about getting a new camera....what in the actual fuck?
 
Why do you want to upgrade? For video the t2i is the same as the 7d so you want benefit from that upgrade. If its for photo and you actually feel that the t2i holds you back I would say go for a used 5d or something, the upgrade to a 7d wont really be that big.

For video you could move to something like the gh2/gh3, but I seriously doubt that the t2i really holds you back and that you actually use it to its fully potential. And if you only have one lens you should not even be thinking about upgrading your body, use your money on some more lenses instead!

 
i had 3 other lens but i sold them to get money i needed, id rather have a nicer body and a sold filming lens for edits then have a okay body and a few okay lens.. make sense? kinda? haha
 
this is exactly wehat i was looking for, screw everyone else if you dont have anything good to say in a thread dont say shit makes you look like a puss. i dont even care how much more you know then me, you were in my stage at some point, jeeze.

+k to you, i am deff waiting till college next year but just so i can keep watch on the gear i want to upgrade to , and over time before college i am deffiantly going to be adding some new glass to my collection. I was deff thinking 7d or 5d mrk iis
 
If you don't have any reasoning to back up your desire to upgrade, then don't upgrade and listen to those that know better. It's called learning.
 
i wasnt saying you should have mediocre lenses. i was saying you should buy some more good lenses and then later, when you have a good glass collection and have outgrown your t2i, you should get a new camera. it sounds like you already decided so why the hell are you asking for advice????
 
No, that don't make much sense. The t2i is a great camera for filming and you should use your money on lenses instead, lenses are the most important piece of your gear and if you don't cheap out on theme you are going to have theme for a long time. Use your money and buy a Canon 70-200mm, Tokina 11-16mm and maybe a Sigma/Canon 50mm f1.4 before thinking about a new body. Also make sure to have things like a ND filter, microphone, nice tripod and a glidecam before using money on a new body. And I am pretty sure the 5d mk2 don't even shoot 50/60fps so for filming skiing the t2i will be a better choice.

You seem really set on getting a new camera so I don't really understand why I bother trying to help you, its your money and if you want go ahead and buy whatever camera cost the most and look awesome.
 
haha stfu jamie, you are the last person that should be talking about unnecessary upgrades
 
haha well i have a wide angle lens right now, i am getting a glide cam for xmass, 2000hd, i want a 50mm and a zoom lens. but i dont feel its necessary yet for a zoom, ill just be filmimg park and skate and parkour for now which involves being close, eventually when i goto colorado for college ill want a zoom for photography, so once go out there im thinkinh buying aa 7d body and a zoom maybe? then additional lens as the days go on out ther
 
Also, your camera body is probably the least important part of your kit. 7D footage will look identical to t2i footage, and not far off from 5D footage.

If you are set on upgrading, upgrade the stuff that actually matters, like audio, lenses, support, or lighting.
 
interested in what you would reccomend for those, i am getting a glide cam for xmass, i have a okay tripod, i am getting a rode mic for xmass as well, what about lighting for filming park? and i dont know what other lens i need... i have a WA for park what else would you reccomend +k
 
Whatever you do just dont waste the $2000 you have on a new body, unless you could upgrade to maybe a 5d but even still for video only that wont be much of a difference. Maybe a 70-200? Or a 11-16? A new body will be a total waste of money, unless you're doing stills.
 
Lens: you said the only lens you have is the 17-40? Do you own any sort of long lens? You can find awesome vintage portrait lenses for dirt cheap.

Support: If you don't want your videos to become monotonous glidecam porn then I suggest getting setup with a tripod so you can use a long lens for action, portraits, and establishing shots. Try to at least find a decent one; your bank account will thank you later.

Lighting: not as practical in nature, but some things that are handy when not shooting action are reflectors and diffusers. They can make such a huge difference and are inexpensive. You can make them yourself even for next to nothing.
 
Also, don't feel that you need to upgrade and spend all of your $2000... If I were you I'd swap the 17-40 with a 17-50 2.8 OS/VR/IS and then get a long lens and some primes (maybe a 85 1.4 rokinon? Or a canon 85mm 1.8, or some old vintages stuff)
 
With that kind of money, he should buy a Sachtler Ace and a portrait lens, and save the rest until he knows enough about what TOOLS he needs not to ask a bunch of goombas on the internet. With those two things alone, his videos will take on a completely different shape, and he'll still have $1,400 to spare...
 
Cheap, lots of very high quality glass, and some seriously strong lenses, pretty much unbreakable.
 
Modern DSLR lenses use newer technology in their design and require more tedious engineering. They often come with features like multi-coated elements, auto focus, or IS, none of which you need.

Vintage lenses are hailed because:

A) they are no-frills, bare bones work horses

B) the lens housing is almost always far superior; made of metal with a smooth focus ring, C) Tend to have a more visceral, dreamy look while still being every bit as sharp as modern glass

D) Cheap

Modern DSLR lenses are designed for still photography, and they are great for that. But for video, IS and AF are generally useless, and these lenses tend to have crappy focus rings. So hypothetically 70% of what you're paying is for features that you, as a video shooter, have no use for, and that includes the shiny logo and red or gold ring.

I used to shoot 7Ds and 5Ds with L glass but now I use a GH2 with $100 vintage primes. It blows away any of the Canon stuff I've used.

There's also a fairly long-winded economic explanation to why modern lenses are disproportionately priced compared to vintage lenses, but I won't get into that.
 
Definitely, someone who knows how to use a T2i with a kit lens is going to be much better off than someone who doesn't know how to use their 5d and L glass.
 
Get a 50mm or 85mm portait lens. (F1.8 or faster). You can get a vintage 50mm 1.4 for pretty cheap.
 
Ya get this lens, the new canon 17-270 2.8. I heard its super good and comes with a new camera body attached.
 
definitely do not upgrade from a t2i to a 7d in regards to video. the 7d is old school compared to dslr filming nowadays. they are basically the same exact thing hardware wise. i don't see how you think you have mastered your camera either. there is always something to learn and ways to make your videos much much better without upgrading the camera. things like better lighting, better compositions, good audio, better camera movement (ie tripod, glidecam, jibs, sliders), and it sounds like you have one good lens. you should get some variety in your lenses, focus on other things that make a good video and you will be surprised at the results you get.

its not the technology that makes something look good, its the person operating it. the t2i can produce great images if used to its full potential. and like mentioned already, you should only upgrade if you feel like you are being limited constantly. for what you will be shooting, a t2i is perfect. just get some more good glass and support/audio upgrades
 
this x100000

with that kind of money you could get both the 70-200 and the 11-16....... even if you do a lot of stills.

i do only stills and i have a T3 with a 70-200 f4l, and a few old pentax screw mounts. Learn your shit first. Then get good lenses... then when youve mastered ALL of that, upgrade bodies.
 
listen to landis and other saying upgrade glass and tripod.

Get a new tripod first. Glidecams are nice, but edits that are 100 percent glidecam are boring and a dime a dozen. The best edits have a mix of different angles, focal lengths and movements that are all for a purpose rather than just having follow cam on follow cam because it's fast and easy.

Old glass and adapters are the way to go. learn how to find good focus and composition with old primes, maybe move on to a longer lens like the 70-200 f4 at some point in time.

Don't waste your money on a new body. I've had the same body for 4 years now, it's falling apart. But it still WORKS and not worrying about body upgrades has allowed me to purchase a ton of glass and plenty of lighting gear, which is helping me to produce better images than a new body without that glass ever could.
 
Now that I think about it, a 7d could actually make a pretty big difference for some people, but not the image quality, the build quality. From what I've seen, its practically indestructible (digital rev 7d durability test). But yeah upgrade your tripod and lenses first. And remember you don't need to spend all your money and get the highest end $2000 L lenses and body to get good image, learn how to use the gear you have.
 
yeah the build quality is good and so are the ergonomics but not worth another grand that you could spend on glass and stabilization
 
definitely. I kind of wish I had bought one as my first body though, since my 3.7fps is pretty slow for sequencing. Though I would much rather have $1000 for better glass and tropods and such
 
1dc will do you some good,

Probably wise to buy a 400mm to, just go all out.

...

On a serious note, dont buy a new body, buy new glass, new tripod, etc.
 
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