Quote:
Originally Posted by Caspita
I have been shooting commercially nonstop for the last 4 years, and have had this same debate numerous times. The main things I have always taken away from MF cameras outside of the high mp is the tremendous depth, sharpness, and dynamic range that cannot be matched by and DSLR in the market now. Sure the D800e may have closed the margin a bit, but one still can't come close to comparing. I have gotten a chance to play with a Hasselblad, Phase One, and Leica, and have been even more tempted to make the leap after hands on time.
What I have learned though is that clients could care less what camera you use as long as your are delivering on your final product. Most of my work is print related, and some prints exceed the size of 4'x8', and I have yet to have a client tell me they believe the image may be a little soft. Sure in a perfect world where money really wasn't an option I would love to buy into the MF world, but to be honest my clients aren't asking for it...and the print quality doesn't seem to be demanding it. With the likes of the D800e and whatever Canon is planning on unveiling at the end of this month I don't see myself moving towards the MF market for quite some time.
What kind of work do you find yourself shooting on a regular basis for your commercial clients?
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Thanks for the insight.
Right now I am working here:
www.beaugureaustudios.com
Thinking of going into business myself doing something similar as we turn away 5-10 potential clients a month because we are so busy.
Food isn't my passion but I'm getting a lot of great experience at it and in Chicago - you have to be able to do it to make money. So that - I also have done some commercial interior home shoots for Empire Carpet, I believe I would be able to shoot similar stuff for flooring places, furniture stores, and maybe even real estate or home builders as well. A lot of these jobs they only use online so a 5D is all I need there most likely. Product stuff would also be included in this so MF is really where I think the details will get that added kick in the pants shooting this type of stuff (food as well).
Lastly I do want to try and start shooting model/product stuff for boutiques or smaller companies for catalog type work.
I don't know... maybe I would be fine with a 5dmk3 or even a 1Dx but if I am going to invest tens of thousands of dollars into a market I know is there and ready for high quality images, why not also start with the MF? If they want high enough quality that my current place already delivers, I'd probably need to at least give them that - even if the file sizes are still smaller and attainable in a FF DSLR. It might also be a bit of backwards thinking but if I am contracted for a job that would benefit from MF I'd like to be comfortable using the stuff before having to shoot it and risk mediocre results with thousands of dollars on the line.
A P20 back probably isn't the way to go but I could find a Rollei 6008 AF with it and an 80mm lens for about $6500 - then get a sinar back (without the rear display - I would have to be tethered to shoot it which shouldn't be an issue) to fit for about $5k. So if I go this route I would be able to use the P20 for shooting a high end wedding or something if I wanted to, then use the higher res back when shooting the product/food/fashion stuff.