How much do you spend on lenses vs camera body? (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by Ajen@sh.itjust.works to c/photography@lemmy.world

31 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Hey everyone, I'm new to photography and wondering how much people spend on lenses compared to the camera body they're mounted on? Does it make sense to buy a higher end lens for a mid range camera, or would you be better off getting a slightly cheaper lens and spending some of the money on a nicer camera? Mainly wondering about used gear...

Currently shooting with my SO's D3500 when she isn't using it, and thinking of buying my own. Considering a used Pentax since weather resistant lenses seem easier to find for them than other brands...

Edit: how practical is it to use a Pentax lens on a Nikon with an adapter, and vice versa? I assume the electronics like AF and VR won't work?

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[-] wjs018@piefed.social 4 points 1 month ago

I guess it depends what you want to do with it. I do lots of product photography, so I know exactly what lens I need for my studio and the type of product I am shooting. So, I spent about as much on a lens as I did a body. Getting a better sensor with more accurate colors saves me time in the post-processing step.

When I was starting out, I just used a kit zoom lens, but realized that most of my shots were around the same focal length. So that is when I invested in a faster, nicer prime lens at that focal length.

[-] Ajen@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 month ago

Both me and my SO like shooting wildlife and nature, so her 70-300 zoom lens is getting a lot more use than the 18-55. I'm thinking about getting a Pentax with either a similar zoom lens or a prime telephoto, hopefully that would complement the D3500 and not overlap too much. The Nikon seems too fragile for a kayak trip, for example.

this post was submitted on 22 Jan 2025

21 points (100.0% liked)

Photography

4920 readers

7 users here now

A community to post about photography:

We allow a wide range of topics here including; your own images, technical questions, gear talk, photography blogs etc. Please be respectful and don't spam.

founded 2 years ago

MODERATORS

Photographer@lemmy.world