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

submitted 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) by [email protected] to c/photography

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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?

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[–] Zak 3 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

In terms of image quality, the lens matters more than the body. If you're able to get the shots you want, but you want them to look better, get better lenses.

For some situations, especially fast action and low light, the body can have a more significant role to play. Fast action benefits from high burst rates and fancy autofocus algorithms. Low light benefits from IBIS (if nothing is moving in the shot) and a less noisy sensor.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago

I like how you broke that down. Faster autofocus might help with shooting birds, but a longer focal distance is what I really need right now. Guess I need to spend some time researching lenses...