Which lenses should I get to achieve these looks? I am looking at the Lumix S 28-200m and 85mm? Should I buy both or just one? or any other lenses I should consider? There is quite a few different looks I am going for so I'm trying to get the right lenses first before looking at camera settings and everything else.

I'm new to photography and I'm the kind of person who goes all in.

I played golf once, loved it, and bought the most expensive set I could find.

So I'm bringing that same energy here. I'm not a pro but I'd love my photos to look like one.

I have a Sony a7 V with the 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens. Honestly my photos look barely different from my iPhone. Is the problem the lens or my settings? Will a better lens make a big difference?

I'm eyeing the Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 GM II. Price isn't an issue. Will I see a big jump?

Also, how much of a "pro" look comes from editing? Is it 70% or less?

I'm asking for real opinions so be blunt. I can take it.

Hi, so I have my Nikon Z50II for year and half and I just found out that my Shutter release button started to spin when even touching it lightly. I can still get a picture without any problems, but Im afraid that it will interfere with it someday when Im in the middle of some photography trip. Do you have experience with the same thing? The On/Off ring is holding still without any movement.'

Thank you all for your responses!

I have Canon eos 600D, and im just a beginner, but i was asked to take pics at an event​ that is going to be mostly in the dark (like ​physically). I tried taking pics in the dark before, and its really hard to get the camera to focus on anything, really, so it just does not shoot. Is there a way to fix this problem? Like off the focusing thing or something:(

On all photos the aperture ring was set at 4.5 (minimal manual setting). No, diaphragm wouldnt move (or sometimes not in its full range?) when the lever is pressed (lens fully assembled).

Took it apart completely for the first time yesterday, assembled it - nothing changed. Bought as non-working on a flea market for a couple bucks. Going into it for the second time, what to look for? No obvious breakage/rust/stuck or missing parts.

Diaphragm itself is working if any of the two levers inside of the lens's middle part is pressed (by a screwdriver; look at the last picture). Doesnt seem like its stuck or too tough to move.

Could i have missed something while assembling it for the first time? I think i did a good job tracking down all the linkage positions and the algorithm of assembling, no "spare parts" left after assembling lol.

I took away the clicker roller thingy for the aperture ring if that matters (its kinda annoying on this specific lens, hard to turn the ring, slips in hand). Focus and focal length work as intended. Any lubricants inside of the mechanisms are left as is, though perhaps those are a little old?

Again, additional photos will be provided by request - i dont know what you might need to look at. Any repair specialists here?

(1) Budget, country, and currency: France, up to 3.5k euros (ok with buying used)

(2) What equipment, if any, you have now and why is it no longer meeting your needs? Nikon D7000 and 55-300mm lens, not enough reach/sharpness for bird photography

(3) What kinds of subjects do you intend to shoot? birds! and possibly other wildlife

(4) Is it primarily for photography, videography, or both? photography

Hi,

So apparently I'm at this stage of my life where I'm suddenly into birds. I like watching the birds, but seeing all the pretty pictures on reddit made me want to take my own.

I was never really into photography, but my dad was (although he never did wildlife) so I dusted off his old Nikon D7000 and 55-300mm lens. I took it on a trip last week and I had a blast and took some pictures that I'm pretty happy with (but I'm a beginner so my standards are low I guess). However, I do long for more reach and more sharpness, so I am thinking about upgrading my kit, but I'd like to keep the weight in check while doing so.

My current Nikon setup is 1.3kg (46oz? 2.9 pounds? dunno how y'all measure things) and I liked that I could just throw it in my backpack and I wouldn't feel the weight during long walks, bike rides, etc. Basically I'd like something that doesn't add too much weight to my suitcase and is comfortable to hike with. BUT I realize that lens weight increases with focal length and lens quality, so I need to find a compromise somewhere. Googling around I of course ran into the Micro Four Thirds format. I see the OM-1 recommended a lot, although the Lumix G9 II also seems to be an option. But I'm wondering if an APS-C with similar pixel density and similar lens wouldn't be more versatile/broader ecosystem/better bang for the buck? You lose some of the the crop factor but you can just crop at home?

Here are some combinations I'm looking at, in order of increasing weight:

• Canon EOS R7 + Canon RF 100-400mm F5.6-8 IS USM, this weighs 1247g which is actually slightly lighter than my current set up, but I'm wondering if the lens is good enough (whatever that means), in particular the f8 aperture at the long end seems light it might cause issues
• OM-1 Mk ii (or Mk i to save a few bucks?) + M.Zuiko 100-400mm f/5-6.3 IS II, 1636g, about 300g/11oz heavier than what I have but a big step up in quality/reach
• Lumix G9 Mk ii + Panasonic Leica DG Vario-Elmar 100-400mm f/4-6.3 ASPH. Power O.I.S. II (the hell is this long name), about same weight/price as the OM-1 kit, but I haven't seen it mentioned as much I think?
• Sony a6700 + 500mm F5.6 DG DN OS, weights 1863g, getting heavier but hopefully better quality, although this is a prime lens and I'm not sure I'd be comfortable using that
• Canon EOS R7 + Canon RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1L IS USM, weighs just under 2kg (4.4 pounds) and I think that's as heavy as I'm MAYBE willing to carry, seems like the quality would be the best of the list but I'm wondering if it's worth the extra weight

I guess I could look at slightly shorter lenses (300mm on MFT, or 350/400 or APS-C?) but I'm afraid of being disappointed by the reach. There's also teleconverters that I haven't looked much into. Any thoughts? Thanks!

I just had my second body die on me and won't be able to replace it for some time. I'm a student photojournalist and am mainly worried about missing shots going from my 70-200/24-70.

I remember seeing some kind of accessory used by a wedding photog that let you switch very fast, some kind of belt? If anyone has advice or experience I'd really appreciate it, thanks.

Read OG post for more info. Any thoughts/advice are welcome and appreciated.

Hi all,

I'm a hobby/amateur photographer and I'm looking to upgrade my camera body and lens setup, but I feel a little lost. I'm currently using a Nikon Coolpix 8700 for my everyday use, and, while it's serving me well, I'd imagine having a more dedicated range of lenses might give me better results. Trying to do more specialist photography feels difficult? Maybe I'd have better results with a dedicated prime lens, or something, as the zoom on the Coolpix is degrading my image quality (hands like to shake too often during low light/long exposure and it takes too long to focus for macro sometimes, at higher zoom levels).

I'm hoping to switch to a Panasonic Lumix DMC G2, and am looking for lenses that cover daytime street/architecture photography, macro photography for plants/insects, and a low-light setup for sunrise/sunset.

I'm aware of the general ideal focal lengths of each photography style, that being 12-35mm for wide angle (architecture?), 35-50mm for everyday, and most(?) lenses over 60mm leaning towards macro. But, I don't want to overspend on lenses (if that's even possible >.<), I don't feel like I can make a confident decision on what to get given my lack of specific knowledge.

I'd assume a prime macro and an adjustable "15-48mm" or something is all I need, but again, too indecisive!!!

I'm looking at the UK market, and my budget is £150-£250 for buying lenses, leaning closer to £150. I'm open to buying lenses pre-owned/used.

Thanks in advance, friends <3

I like to edit my photo while I still remember the scene. I am starting to send my photos to my phone through Wifi and just edit in Lightroom Mobile, instead of editing in front of a computer a week after when I go back home. As I am trying to get out of Adobe I will start doing that in snapseed once my current subscription ends.

Does anyone do the same? Do you have any recommendations in the workflow (both on taking the photo and post-processing)? Do you automatically exposure bracket every photo (not merging into HDR) so there may be less editing to do? What editing software do you use?

Thanks!

Hi all!

A couple of months ago I started scanning my own negatives at home and I find the whole scanning process quite enjoyable. However, I take the raw photo into darktable and there I'm pretty much at a loss. Not so much over all the features, I understand what the basic ones I'm using are doing, but I'm having a hard time knowing when I'm done editing. I can have a photo looking in a certain way and I don't like it and change it. Some time later I can come back to it and change it back to the way it was before. And there the cycle starts :) How do you guys handle this, how do you know when you're done?

(1) Budget, country, and currency: $1000 USD, though willing to go higher if I must. USA

(2) What equipment, if any, you have now and why is it no longer meeting your needs? iPhone 16 Pro. It's bad with low light, can't zoom more than 120, is kinda low res, and also a trip I'm maybe going on soon doesn't allow phones

(3) What kinds of subjects do you intend to shoot? Landscapes and some wildlife. Plus the occasional portrait or family photo

(4) Is it primarily for photography, videography, or both? Photography

I'm looking to buy my first real camera. I like nature travel a lot and mostly do casual landscape and wildlife photography with my Iphone 16 Pro. I think I take ok photos, but some shots definitely suffer from my (lack of) camera. Particularly low-light and wildlife shots (eg the last 3 I linked). I'd like to continue developing myself as a photographer, and think it's time I get a real camera.

I linked some photos I've taken to give an idea of the sort of subjects I usually shoot. I rarely have room to bring a tripod, and normally only use one if I'm trying to shoot stars.

For landscape photography, I alternate between 24mm, 48mm, and 120mm on the iPhone, though I wish I had a ~70mm lens option. I also enjoy the fake long exposure thing on the iPhone but would like to be able to do it properly

For wildlife photography, I just use the 120mm, crop, and cry when eg the dolphin I perfectly captured breaching in front of the sunset looks like a blurry mess. I'm not sure what a good level of zoom for actual entry-level wildlife photos would be, but I feel like 200-400mm would be a huge step up

One thing I really like about the iPhone is that it's very light and always at hand, so something light and portable would be ideal (I feel like my ideal would be if an iPhone were twice as thick and half of it was a camera). I also am very bad about editing, so ideally I'd want a camera with an easy edit loop that doesn't require me pulling out the laptop every time.

I don't know much about cameras, but the LLMs tell me the NikonZ50II would be a good entry level option. Do you guys concur? I'd ideally hope for ~$1k, but I'd like to use this for the next few years and am willing to go a bit higher to avoid hamstringing myself.

Thanks!

I am a long time phone photographer and decided to get a dedicated camera recently. Iv been walking around in the woods taking photos for two days now and getting my ass handed to me by this Z50ii, and I'm not really sure what I am doing wrong.

I feel like Iv got a decent handle on the principles now and Iv been shooting in aperture priority mode with AF-S for the most part. Today I was mostly taking some photos of the trail I was walking on and my dog, the light was filtering through the trees beautifully, lots of sunlit green spots with darker shadows, but no matter what I did to the aperture or where I focused or what I did to the metering it was consistently simultaneously blown out in the bright spots and super dark in the shadows.

I messed with exposure compensation, but that would just either make the dark spots too dark or the bright spots too bright.

The photos at the end which suddenly have color in them are taken with my phone for comparison.

I guess one factor is that these are JPG's from the Nikon vs heavily processed, HDR'd JPGs from the Pixel. I could theoretically take the RAWS and post process them into something that looks better. But I should be able to get a better exposed photo from the start no? Or am I misunderstanding something fundamental?

I recognize this is a very general question, I just really have no idea what I'm doing wrong. Nothing I change on the camera fixes it. The camera isn't magic, but in aperture priority my understanding is I mess with the aperture and the camera controls the shutter speed & ISO to get the correct exposure, but it evidently isn't doing that. Metering, different auto focus settings, exposure compensation don't seem to help either.

(1) Budget, country, and currency:

$400, USA, usd

(2) What equipment, if any, you have now and why is it no longer meeting your needs?

I am currently using an olympus tg-4 with a broken power button. I just miss having something with interchangeable lenses.

(3) What kinds of subjects do you intend to shoot?

Plants including macro, insects including macro, general pictures etc

(4) Is it primarily for photography, videography, or both?

Photography

I was looking at the nikon d3400. Is the autofocus (for general purpose photography) alright?

shot on nikon d5000 with 18-55mm lens

is there anything i could have done differently in this situation or is this the result to be expected when the sun is behind your subject?

i’m unhappy with my photos and will be returning the the location to re-shoot, so any advice on how to avoid this in the future would be greatly appreciated

*i learned how to adjust my aperture separately from my shutter speed in manual mode when i got home and watched a video, but idk how big of a difference it would have made here

So I’m planning on getting a budget, good CPL filter and I came across two of them from the same company (K&F) , either a Nano K or a Nano D. Has anyone tried both of them? If so, which one would you recommend?

I have a 7DII with a Sigma 150-500 which I use for high altitude plane photography like this. I heard about teleconverters and it just seems like trading aperture for focal length. So I searched on sahibinden (Turkish ebay basically) and found a Sigma 1.4x APO EX teleconverter for a reasonable price. My question is, is it worth it? The loss of aperture and AF don't bother me that much since it's pretty bright when shooting conditions are reasonable and I use manual focus anyways. The only thing I'm worried about is the image quality. Will it be worse than just cropping and post-processing?
Thanks in advance!

(1) Budget, country, and currency: £600-650, United Kingdom, GBP

(2) What equipment, if any, you have now and why is it no longer meeting your needs? i have the canon 550d, it doesn’t fulfil my needs anymore because of the autofocus and burst rate

(3) What kinds of subjects do you intend to shoot?
Cars, holiday stuff, maybe some wildlife and sports?

(4) Is it primarily for photography, videography, or both? mainly tailored to photography but i wouldn’t mind if it was decent for videography

It's a family members wedding next week, and they've asked me to photograph the reception. The couple know I'm not an experienced photographer, and I'm also not THE wedding photographer (they have an actual professional, but they aren't staying for the ceremony). They said they don't mind if the photos aren't great, and they'd like more candid style photos anyway. They just want some memories from the night, even if the photos aren't perfect.

I'm shooting on a Nikon d5300, 18-135mm lens (the lens the camera came with, haven't bought another one yet), and it'll be indoors. Most of the photography I've done so far is outdoors, and either landscapes or pets, so I've never shot any kind of event. Since they asked me I've been trying to get out with my camera at least once a week just to try learn the settings and modes enough to know what I'm doing on the day but I still feel very unprepared. I've got a week to get as good as I can for them, any tips or things to practice please?? 🙏

Edit: also editing software, currently I just upload the raw files to my phone and edit them on my phones built-in editor but idk if it's any good

i am planning to get a new camera body for xmas. i am kind of a beginner and think that i have outgrown my current camera body (i have gotten into photography around april 2026 and my camera body is the 550d) , im split between the a6000, a6400, a660 and the canon 80d.

my budget for a whole setup (i think) is around 600-650 including lenses, i do car photography, wildlife, pictures while on holiday and maybe some sports photography

i need it to be a useful camera for around 2-4 years at least, i would like an articulating screen if possible for better car pictures, but that part is negotiable, the one thing is that might trigger me is cameras like the r50's raw buffer (around 7 frames when the camera can do 15 in a second is criminal)

if anyone can help that would be extremely helpful