LocalNavy433 Photography

Hello and how the hell are you?  If this is your first time here thanks for stopping by.  In this blog we are going to talk about what it is like to shoot with a DSLR in a modern Mirrorless world.  The question that is on most peoples minds when they are looking for a new camera is will that old thing still be worth it compared to the newer more modern features that a Mirrorless camera offers you.  That is what I was thinking when I decided to go back to shooting with a older DSLR.  I shot with a more modern Mirrorless body for a year and I loved the time that I had with that system.

The actual experience of shooting on either system was and is the same in my opinion and I have to state that because you might have a different experience.  The fact is the system really only matter to you not the others.  Yes I will admit it the Mirrorless system is better for the long run and that is great if that is what you are looking for.  Me I wanted something that I didn’t have to worry about if it broke I wouldn’t have the money to replace the body.  I wanted a system that if something happened I would be able to replace it on the cheap.  Lets face it the cost of photography is real expensive and that is the stopping gate for most people.  For a really good Modern camera you are looking at starting at 1500 bucks and that is not cheap to a lot of people.  

I shoot with two bodies and two lenses that cost the same amount of money.  If my main body was to break to the point that it no longer works I can go out and get another one for the same 250 bucks.  I have a set price for my gear and that is 300 dollars to replace any part of my gear.  That is something that will pay off in the long run.  The reason it will pay off is 300 dollars is something that is easier to reach than 1500 dollars.  I have lived my with the thought to live within my means.  This is the way I treat my gear if I cannot easily replace the item then I am not living within my means.  This thought process keeps me shooting when others will struggle to get a new body if something happens to it.  

Shooting with a DSLR means that you will get a body that lasts a long time and it is built to withstand the weather that you will face when out shooting.  When I was shooting with the Mirrorless body I was always worried that it was going to get damaged from the rain because I knew that the weather sealing was not the best.  The bodies that I am shooting now I don’t care if they get wet because the price that I paid for them was so cheap that I can just get another one if something happens to them.  That brings me to the next reason for shooting a DSLR in a Mirrorless world and that is battery life.  Yes the battery life is getting to the point that I may end up switching back to a Mirrorless body but the price of entry has to be much lower for me to get there.  

Right now the body that I am looking at just hit the 700 shutter actuations mark for battery life and that is the Canon R7 non of the full frame offerings hit that mark for battery life that I know of.  The older Canon 5D2 that I am using as my main body right now is rated for around 850 clicks before the battery is done.  If there was a Mirrorless body that ever reaches that level it will be the one that I save up for to buy.  Even with that being said I will still wait until it is around the 300 dollar mark which means I will be waiting for another 15 years for me to get that body.  Right now the body that I am looking at is the Canon 5D4 which is down to around 1800 bucks used and to me I just have to wait another ten years for it to get to y price range haha.  

The next reason that I want to share with you on why I shoot with a DSLR in a Mirrorless world is something that will blow your mind.  It slows me down and I have to make the image not the camera making the image for me.  I have to input the settings and build the comp around the body that I am using. Yes you can still do that with a Mirrorless body but its AF is so much faster you can focus stack an image in a matter of seconds vs minutes like on an older DSLR.  The light weight of the Mirrorless bodies makes it so much easier when out hiking and the tilting screens make life so much easier its not funny.  The fact that you have to take your time to get the photo plus getting down into the environment when taking the photo helps you connect to the shot that yo are taking. I love the fact that I have to actually work to get an image now.  

The last reason that I am going to talk about what it like shooting a DSLR in today’s Mirrorless world is simply I want to.  I know right you thought it was going to be this huge reason and it comes down to they are what I like to shoot with so why change it if I am still getting the shots that I want out of them.  The old saying is if its not broken don’t fix it rings true for me when it comes to this.  I try to shoot on the cheap because I don’t make that much money and trying to save up 1500 dollars is not something that is achieved on short notice for me.  I want the ability to shoot what I want how I want and I don’t want money to get in the way of that experience.  Yes I have two bodies and they are both so cheap that you would not think that they would even be worth it but they are in my book.  

The whole point to the post was to prove to some of you out there that are just starting out you do not need the latest and greatest camera setup to get amazing images.  I use a camera body that came out in 2009 and my backup camera body came out in 2016.  My Lenses and I mean all of them are from 10-20 years old.  The gear that I use is used and has marks all over it but can you tell that when you look at my images that answer is no.  you never would have known what I shot my photos with if I had never told you that.  Most people think that I have this expensive gear and truth be told yes is it around 2000 dollars worth of gear but it has been purchased over time and not one piece has costed me over 700 dollars for a one time purchase.