Which Landscape Photography Camera Should You Buy? [video]

A Post By: Caz Nowaczyk

In this video by Mark Denney, he looks at 8 questions you should ask yourself before choosing your new camera for Landscape Photography.

8 questions to ask yourself:

1. What are you solving? What’s broken that you are trying to fix?

The main problem he was having was that he was trying to use his main photography camera, the Sony A7RII for video too, which was fine but it was an inconvenience for him.

So he wanted two separate cameras – one for stills, and one for video.

2. What’s Your Budget?

Set your budget in the beginning (before you start shopping), so you know what to look for.

3. Do you want to go mirrorless or DSLR?

There are pros and cons to both. While DSLRs have great image quality, and good battery life, they are heavier.

Many mirrorless cameras also have excellent image quality but not always great battery life (editor-though this is always being improved upon). They are lighter in weight, but you may have to carry extra batteries.

4. What sensor size do you want?

Think about the sensor size you want. Do you want to go for full-frame, crop sensor or Micro four thirds? Full frame is the most expensive sensor size to go for. Think about the type of photography you will be doing. If you are going to be doing a lot of Astro photography, for example, you may want to go for full-frame as it will allow you to capture the most light.

5. Image Quality

What camera has the best image quality in the brand that you are interested in?

Pixel size – Think about megapixels. Many cameras now have large megapixels. Are you printing your images in large format or just sharing them on the web and social media?

Dynamic Range – the tonality of an image. The difference between the brightest brights and the darkest darks.
The human eye can detect 20-stops of dynamic range. Dynamic range is measured in stops. Mark says the best cameras on the market at the moment in terms of dynamic range are the Nikon D850 and the Sony A7RIII with around 15-stops of dynamic range. Average DSLRs are around 12-stops of dynamic range. The more dynamic range, the better results you get when bringing out shadows in editing.

ISO – Again, it depends on what you are shooting. If you are shooting night skies, you may want to choose a camera that works better at high ISOs with less noise. If you are shooting landscapes during daylight hours or blue hour, most cameras will work fine in these conditions.

6. Overall Lens Ecosystem

You aren’t just investing in the camera, but also the brands’ lens ecosystem. While there are adapters, you may want to still look at the lenses.

7. Video specs

If you are planning to shoot video too, then look at the video specs. For example, do you want 4K, or are you happy with just HD?

8. User interface/User experience

Do some research about the user interface. Is the camera intuitive and easy to use and navigate? Are the ergonomics good? Does it feel good in your hand?
If you are unsure about any of these things, renting a camera is a good way to try it out before buying.

Mark decided that the Fuji X-T3 was the perfect camera for his needs. What will yours be?