Before we begin, let me just point out that this is written with photographers in mind, who want to get into microstock photography or occasional work for hire. That said, let me be blunt about it: If you’re serious about selling your photos, you should invest in a DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) camera and save the point and shoot (PNS) for snapshots. There are a number of reasons for this, which I will attempt to cover in the following, but if you don’t want to read the whole thing, that was the most important point right there. Even if you only plan on doing this part-time, having the right equipment will make a huge difference in your own performance as well as your sales.
To get started, you should be able to get everything you need for $1,000 (US) or less.
The next question I hear is which camera to choose, what lenses and accessories to buy and so on. My personal standpoint is this: If you buy a Canon or Nikon DSLR, you will get a good camera – even if you buy the cheapest model. There are other good brands out there, and you may want to shop around a bit. I would, however, warn against any camera that upsamples the resolution automatically, simply because of the fact, that upsampled images go against the required standards on iStockphoto, and you may end up paying more for the camera, than it is actually worth (for more on this, see the article on upsampling over on iStockphoto). So unless you are willing to take my word for it and go with one of the two brands mentioned above, make sure you do your homework, before picking your most important tool.
Here is the top 5 reasons, why you should take the plunge and splurge on a DSLR camera.
1. Image Quality – Most PNS cameras shoot only in jpg format. And even at the largest resolution available, they tend to overcompress. This increases noise, discoloration and artifacts. Uncompressed formats may have the same problems, but less so, and you will have more leeway to edit and fix whatever problems might be there. I have seen some PNS cameras that offer uncompressed formats, but always at the cost of speed. It takes a lot longer to save an uncompressed file to the memory card. PNS cameras also often come with mediocre lenses, which cannot be upgraded and are likely to give you unwanted distortion or chromatic aberration, also known as ’purple fringing’ - discolored lines along high contrast edges in your pictures.
2. Speed – Everyone who has ever owned a point and shoot knows, that there is a delay from when you click the button to when the picture is taken. This can be extremely frustrating and cost you a lot of missed shots. DSLRs will shoot instantly, the only delay being your chosen shutterspeed. This may sound like a detail, but it is in fact a major difference.
3. Versatility – On a DSLR, you can change your lenses, attach flashes or connect strobes, use wireless remotes and so on. A PNS camera is what it is. There are models out there that offer add-ons to the built in lens, but even with that, they can never compete with the versatility you will find with DSLR.
4. Upgradability – You may not be able to upgrade the chip in your DSLR, but if you buy a bigger resolution or newer model later on, you can still use all your lenses and other accessories, provided the new camera is the same brand as your old one. PNS cameras can only be used as hand-me-downs or garbage, when they become obsolete or break.
5. Looks Matter – Let’s face it. If you want to work with models, make-up artists and maybe even do a little non-stock work for hire directly with clients, it looks a lot more professional to show up with a DSLR. After all, what would you think if at your wedding, the photographer dug out his little credit-card sized PNS? It sounds silly, I know, but the truth is that how we look, affects how others percieve us on other levels as well.
As you grow as a photographer, so will your requirements to the equipment you use. It is true that a good eye for composition and concept is more important than the camera, but wouldn’t it suck to have all your masterpieces declined by the stock agency, because they had too much compression in them? With a DSLR camera, you have a lot more room to grow. You will not be as bound by the technical limits, as you would otherwise.
Lenses and Lights
It is very easy to spend a fortune on accessories for your camera. Not only are there a ton of them, but they are also fairly expensive. For that reason, the best advice I can give a beginner is this: Be patient. Don’t go out an buy all the L-glass lenses Canon has to offer, just because they supposedly are the best of the best. You will probably not need them, at least for a while.
First step is become familiar with the camera itself and learn the basics of post processing. For this, you don’t need a top-of-the-line lens. If your camera came with a kit lens, I suggest you use that. In time, you will want to buy something better, but for starting out the kit lens is fine.
Another lens, I always recommend getting right off the bat, is the 50mm prime. Whether you shoot with a Canon, Nikon or one of the other major brands, the 50mm is a very cheap investment, and the image quality is usually fantastic.
The other reason why you shouldn’t buy a whole lot of lenses right away, has to to with your preferred subject. If you like to shoot architecture, you will want a good wide-angle lens, but for portraiture a slight tele would be preferable. If you shoot birds in far-away trees, you will need a really big tele, but if you prefer bugs, you will want a macro. And so on. Picking the right lens for the job is almost as important as picking the right camera, and when you know what kind of subject you prefer, you will be better prepared to make the right purchase.
My approach to buying lights is similar. Don’t go out and buy a huge set of strobes before you know how to shoot with one light source. Lighting theory is too big a subject to cover in this post, but I would suggest getting yourself a good, medium-sized bounce for reflecting sunlight (excellent for natural light, where harsh shadows can easily ruin an otherwise great shot) and a speedlight flash for shooting indoors (bouncing a speedlight off a wall is infinitely better than any built-in on-camera flash). With these tools, you will have enough to keep you working for a long time. And the best part is, that even as you improve and expand your arsenal of lighting equipment, those first investments will not lose their value.
As with lenses, your lighting requirements will eventually depend on your niche. A lot of still-life photographers like to work with either natural light or hotlights. If you shoot fashion-style pictures, hotlights would be murder on your models, and you will want a good set of strobes instead. For location-work and most all-round situations, the speedlight and bounce combination is awesome.
Keeping it RAW
On a final note, I always recommend shooting in RAW format. There are successful photographers out there who don’t use it, but it does offer a lot of advantages over jpg. RAW files are like a digital negative. You can mess with it all you want, but the original information, the data you captured when you took the picture, will always be there. You can always go back to the original, if you want to try alternative processes or if you simply messed up in your editing. RAW also offers other advantages, such as white balance correction, contrast adjustment and even color toning and correction, all with no loss to the original capture. In many cases, you don’t even need any further processing, if you have a good original and know how to use your RAW converter. iStock’s article ‘Shooting in he RAW‘ has a more in-depth description of RAW’s advantages.
I have touched on many different things in this post, which was supposed to just be about picking the right camera. Image processing and lighting technique has been mentioned in passing, but hopefully in a way that underlines my point: If you are serious about becoming a semi-pro (or full time) photographer, you need a DSLR.
This post is part 4 in a series about my experiences with stock photography, tips and pointers, meant to offer a little inspiration to those interested in such things. The next episode will be about collecting and using props in your photos. For a complete and chronological list of articles, check out the Microstock Photographer’s Guide.
