The Top 3 Camera Systems

First of all, let me start with a confession: I don’t come up with all the topics for the articles I write here on the Best Buy Plugin blog. So when I got today’s topic I kind of scratched my head for a minute wondering what I was going to do with it. Thankfully inspiration wasn’t long in coming. I’m going to put all considerations of budget aside and pick the three cameras (or body and lens combinations) that I hope Best Buy will send me for my upcoming 40th birthday, as a sign of gratitude for all my toil and late nights.

A Camera To Carry

First I need a camera that can create beautiful images, but still fit in my pocket. I want a camera that I can have with me at all times so that I’m always ready for the unexpected. The Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark II fits the bill nicely. It’s perfectly compact, but packed with features, like a big 1.5″ sensor,  dual (customizable) control rings, and a tiltable LCD screen. It has a nice focal length range, from 24mm to 112mm to let you shoot wide-angle or tightly zoomed-in. And it has great wi-fi capabilities too, which not only allow you to share your images, but also to shoot remotely from your smart device.

A Go-Anywhere Camera

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of Fujifilm’s mirrorless cameras. I love the design, the functionality and above all, the image quality. So of course I’m going to include a Fujifilm camera; the X-T1. This is a tough camera, which will stand up to some pretty demanding situations. It’s got a huge electronic viewfinder too, which is really comfortable to use. You also get those remote shooting capabilities via wi-fi, and some really cool focussing modes. I’m going to pair the X-T1 with the Fujinon XF 35mm f/1.4 lens, which is the equivalent of a 50mm lens on a full-frame camera. If I could only shoot with one lens, I would go with a 50mm (or equivalent). Having the ability to shoot at f/1.4 means you can get that nice shallow depth-of-field and those wonderfully blurred-out backgrounds that portrait photographers love.

A Money Maker

Finally, I’m going to need a full-frame camera for professional shoots. Full-frame sensors give you a better low-light performance and a much bigger file, which gives more options for post-processing and making big prints. I think I’ll go with the Nikon D810, which carries an impressive 36.3 megapixel sensor. And to go with that I’ll take the Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 lens, which has a focal length range that gives fantastic flexibility to shoot anything from portraits to architecture to landscapes. This lens has received some great reviews from Best Buy customers who have raved about the sharpness. With that high resolution sensor coupled with a super sharp lens, you are going to see some mind-blowing detail!

What’s your dream camera set-up? Leave a comment and let me know.