Ok guys and gals, I could really use your input. I am upgrading to a full frame camera for my wedding photography and I could use some input. Since I launched my wedding business this year I already have 4 weddings booked. I just sold my Canon 7d and I am about to purchase a full frame camera so that I don't have to keep renting one. I do not want to go in debt since my business is in its infancy. The three cameras that I am looking at in my price range are the Canon 6D, Nikon D800, and the Sony A7ii. The two that I am really looking at is the Nikon d800 and the Sony A7ii. I am really leaning towards the Sony but I know it has its drawbacks and weaknesses. If any one has any experience with these cameras please let me know your thoughts.
Just a side note, I am not already invested in any system so that will not factor in to my decision.
Thanks in advance for your comments!
I have lots of entirely irrational biases against Sony cameras that I wouldn't attempt to justify in an argument. I just don't like using them on a practical level.
My main objective reason for not wanting an A7II for wedding work is the battery life. A battery rated for 350 shots is just a deal-breaker. I've seen threads where users were surprised and delighted that they got 5 or 600 shots out of a charge with careful power management. I can take that many shots in 2 hours on a wedding day. I get 4 times that out of a Canon battery, and I assume the same for Nikon. Anything that just adds one more variable to be managed at a wedding shoot, to me, is bad news.
Whatever you choose, though, is your choice based on your preferences, so feel confident in that. Good luck and welcome to the circus.
Thanks so much Graham! I would definitely have to consider multiple battery changes and only one card slot were I to go with the A7ii.
Didn't know that about the Sony. That really is horrible. I have the D810 now and used to have the D800e. Both are awesome cameras. I've never even come close to draining the battery. Over 2500 shots in one day and I can still work more if needed. And only 350 shots with the Sony? If you're really looking for a wedding photography workhorse, I don't think the Sony is it.
Admittedly, Sony is at least aware of the problem. The A7rII comes packaged with two batteries (yay?) and you can shut off the rear LCD, which was always on with the earlier model. But after practically getting "all day" use out of one battery for the last, I don't know, 7 years (?), I would really hate going backwards on any level.
It just seems like the more technology that gets crammed into the actual, hands-on operation of a camera, when less power-intensive options work really well, this could be a lingering problem, or at least a comparative disadvantage for at least a while longer. It's not that I'm some kind of "analog feel" purist, but my brief time with Sony cameras felt like I was playing a videogame.
In my opinion, mirrorless cameras still need to catch up on battery life and autofocus speed, which are important if you are looking to capture something without having to change 10 - 15 batteries during a wedding and sometimes follow-focus. Here is one team who decided to jump to the Nikon D750. I own it now and use my Nikon D5100 as a backup. I found an fstoppers article: https://fstoppers.com/originals/why-i-traded-my-sony-a7ii-nikon-d800-95262
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4ATBKQxIZc
I'll add another voice to the D750 camp. I'm shooting D750's at the moment and just love them for wedding work.
Nice! I'll be second shooting a wedding this July. I got the 85mm 1.8 this January.
The big advantage with the Nikon system is the superior flash exposure accuracy. I shot with pro Canon gear and the exposures were generally OK but in tough situations with backlighting or high ceilings the Canon exposures were good 90% of the time but shooting in the exact same situations with Nikon cameras and speedlights the exposures were dead on 100% of the time.
I use the 14-24mm f2.8 and the 24-70mm f2.8 and when I shot with Canon cameras I used the 16-35mm f2.8 II and the 24-70mm f2.8 L lenses and the Nikons were much better. With Canon I ended up buying 3 prime lenses to get around the deficiencies of the Canon zoom lenses.
The best setup I have found is shooting with one full frame camera and one APS-C camera. I use the full frame with focal lengths of 14mm to 105mm and the crop camera with the 70-200mm f2.8 lens.
The D800e is a very good camera though its low light autofocus is not nearly as good as that of the D750 full frame and the D7200 (crop) cameras. Where is it valuable is when you have a shot that needs to be cropped to eliminate distracting elements from the scene or to show only the bride and groom or when doing the group shots. 36MP is overkill but a 24MP image area would be advantageous in these situations.
Something else I love about the Nikon cameras is the 5:4 crop mode that they introduced in 2007 with the D3 camera. I can shoot the group shots that are likely to end up as 8x10 or 16 x20 prints and know that there will be no cropping needed and I can batch process the pictures. A standard full frame sensor is designed to produce a 8x12 ratio print and with group photos with most cameras this means leaving plenty of space at the ends to crop later, and of course the need to manually crop each picture.
My husband has just bought me the Canon 5D mark 111, i haven't had a chance to use it yet for a wedding, that will come on Saturday, we have a church wedding coming up, I am not the main photographer though, but keen to see the results, I have a 7D at the moment also and have worked with the Cannon 1D full frame which is very old and is as heavy I think as these two together!!
Thanks for all the input everyone! I just did my first engagement shoot yesterday and I rented a D800 for it. I really enjoyed the D800 but I want to get my hands on a D750. I think that will be my wedding camera and maybe a D800 as a backup.
I just picked up a 6D. I'm going to be using it at two weddings in June and July. Looking forward to creating some lovely images with it. I was shooting with the Canon 70D before which was great. I'm keeping it as my backup and will use it for my 70-200mm lens.
I got this shot with the 70D f4 1/50 ISO 800 @ 170mm.