I have been exploring since I was young, and all of the pictures I have taken were just with my phone. I have just recently thought about getting an actual camera, but have no clue what type, or brand to get. Iphone 5's don't really have that great of a camera to say the least. Anybody have any suggestions?

Depends on your budget and skill level in my opinion. You could buy a point & shoot and cheap tripod or spend thousands on a full frame DSLR and array of lenses!

I say get the best your budget allows and familiarize yourself with that particular camera until you can manipulate it with your eyes closed.

Sorry if that is too vague, but that is a rather broad question.

I am a ridiculously inexperienced photographer myself, but here's a thread that's many, many pages long on just this subject!

http://www.uer.ca/...d=1&threadid=79729

If you are going for something cheap, check out the sony alpha line, they perform great in low-light.

Posted by Lachy If you are going for something cheap, check out the sony alpha line, they perform great in low-light.

Never take advice from a guy who double posts.

I got the Canon Rebel t6 for $450 and I love it. Great video and pictures.

I haven't been in the game for long, but I trust my investments; they've treated me well.
For stills I use a Nikon D500 http://en.nikon.ca...-cameras/d500.html
For cinematic I use a DJI Zenmuse X5 & Osmo http://store.dji.com/product/osmo-pro

yes, depends on your budget.

mirrorless are smaller and more portable and do well in low light. newer models can be pricey. I agree with the other poster about the sony a line.

then there are some decent cheap dslrs..Nikon just put out the d3400. but, its basically the same as the d3300 that you may get cheaper. its pretty cheap and is on the smaller side of dslr imo. and canon dslrs are great too.


I use a Nikon d5500. Personally, I'd love to have a smaller more portable mirrorless. Especially for travel. and my first go to would either be sony or fugi. now remember, mirrorless are notorious for having poor battery life bcos they use an electronic view finder.

good luck

Depending on your budget, you could either go with a camera that does well in low light like the 5dmkiii or a7s, or just with a sturdy and cheaper DSLR like the Nikon D5500 and a tripod, so you can make longer exposures.

I personally use a Canon 80D with a 18-135 kit lens which does the job decently though its rather expensive. My other friend shoots with a Nikon D7100. I personally wouldn't actually recommend it because it scares me dragging around $1000 worth of gear in shady places, instead I would opt for something more entry level such as a T6i or a D3400.

Posted by BCKing I haven't been in the game for long, but I trust my investments; they've treated me well. For stills I use a Nikon D500 http://en.nikon.ca...-cameras/d500.html For cinematic I use a DJI Zenmuse X5 & Osmo http://store.dji.com/product/osmo-pro

D7200 here, but the D500 is godly in low light.

Like everyone has said, it all depends on budget and experience.

I have zero qualms about carrying around thousands in camera gear because I (1)go armed as I don't trespass (and bear defence is good) and (2) have years of experience with cameras.

What is good for me, might not be good for someone else. All depends on your needs and skill. Kinda hard to say what works and doesn't without knowing that.

Posted by DarkAngel D7200 here, but the D500 is godly in low light. Like everyone has said, it all depends on budget and experience. I have zero qualms about carrying around thousands in camera gear because I (1)go armed as I don't trespass (and bear defence is good) and (2) have years of experience with cameras. What is good for me, might not be good for someone else. All depends on your needs and skill. Kinda hard to say what works and doesn't without knowing that.

Agreed. I've taken a couple grand of cam gear into many a hellhole.
Tripod tipovers, bangs, and drops, in that order, are your cam's major hazards.

A pro tether attached to your shoulder with enough lead to extend the cam to arms length will help protect it and make shooting easier. Ditch the neck strap.
Alternatively a tether attaching it securely to your wrist.
An 8 inch drop on wood can cause major internal damage to a pro cam; even at home handle your cam and lens with sure hands and fingers. Always!
You need to be experienced and confident enough to handle your cam like it's part of you. Fumbling with gear will destroy it.

Stash the cam in a good bag held close/securely to your body when not shooting or when climbing.

You need to be able to securely carry it and protect it from harm. I always carried a bush towel and windex to wipe down my hands and gear as needed.
A complete clean up after each major excursion for the gear and cam.
Keep cams and lens spotless.

Sorry if someone else had already said this, I didnt read the full thread.

I use the sony alpha 580. I dont have much experience to compare it with other cameras but it workes create for me and I can oly recomend it. The camera costs around 300 to 400 Dollars on ebay. You wont have it easy to find a simmilar good full frame cammera anywhere for this price and there are a ton of lenses you can buy used for this frame.

I mainly use a sigma 10-20mm wide angel lens for ´thinks like urbex but you might bether take a more alround lens like the sigma 18-300mm 1:3.5-6.3 which is a exelent alround lens and can be used from something close to a wide angle lens to a full telle lens.

If you also pic up a sheap trypod and remote controll you will be able to create great long exposure phothographs.

Buy used.

Posted by Smash Adams Buy used.

That can be difficult for the inexperienced shooter.

Buy from where the pros buy; B&H Photo.
They are simple the best.
Find a rep there you like and form a relationship with them.

Posted by blackhawk A pro tether attached to your shoulder with enough lead to extend the cam to arms length will help protect it and make shooting easier. Ditch the neck strap. Alternatively a tether attaching it securely to your wrist. An 8 inch drop on wood can cause major internal damage to a pro cam; even at home handle your cam and lens with sure hands and fingers. Always! You need to be experienced and confident enough to handle your cam like it's part of you. Fumbling with gear will destroy it. Stash the cam in a good bag held close/securely to your body when not shooting or when climbing.

What does a pro tether look like (so i can figure out where to get one), also is the camera bag that comes free with a camera good enough? Or would you advise to invest in something proper?

Posted by Zak00 What does a pro tether look like (so i can figure out where to get one), also is the camera bag that comes free with a camera good enough? Or would you advise to invest in something proper?

I used a after market cam neck strap (the tether)that was slightly elastic with quick release connectors on both ends.
All were found/bought at B&H.
Can't recall the name brands off the top of my head.
Let me look at the one connector later to get the name as its next to impossible to find without it.

Posted by blackhawk I used a after market cam neck strap (the tether)that was slightly elastic with quick release connectors on both ends.

Why a quick release? I assume you would want to have your camera on you at all times, and you can keep the strap on when you put it on a tripod? Am i missing the obvious?

Posted by Zak00 Why a quick release? I assume you would want to have your camera on you at all times, and you can keep the strap on when you put it on a tripod? Am i missing the obvious?

Good quick releases are reliable and make shooting/tear down much easier.
I've never had one fail in use without warning or release unplanned.

I mostly shoot film these days but I just picked up an old Canon XTi (10.2 mp) with an 18-55mm lens used for $125 at a local camera shop the other day. I also bought a used Canon 10-18mm for $200. I wanted to have a quick camera again that was digital so I bought that setup. Well worth it!! My last digital camera before this was a much newer Nikon D7000. I'd pay the $125 all day long for an 11-year-old camera than the $1500 new for a D7000.

Don't buy into the megapixel craze either, it's basically a myth. Unless you are doing gallery prints at 40 x 60 inches you don't need a high megapixel camera.

This XTi and 10-18mm lens do just fine.








With that said, I honestly think Nikon makes superior cameras (as per my tastes) compared to Canon. Nonetheless, a camera is a camera is a camera. Invest in good lenses.


If you don't want a full-size dSLR, look Olympus and Fuji mirrorless cameras. They are phenomenal. I had an Olympus PEN E-P5 and it was one of the best and enjoyable digital cameras I have ever owned.


This was a self portrait taken from the live view on my iPhone controlling the Olympus camera behind me.