Hypothetical £1000 photographer kit challenge

Paul Montgomery said

Could I spend the £15 a month on renting a studio every now and then to avoid spending money on lights?

You absolutely could! How many hours of studio time is an AD200? :-)

As per the first post, the vast majority of my shooting is now done on a Nikon FM with a Micro-Nikkor 55mm f/3.5.
Total cost to me: £140 for the FM2, same again for the 55mm.
Film's dear, so's processing. But you get my point.

 

Unfocussed Mike incremental is a good (key) word.

For models yes. There is a rolling cost dependent on model and how serious they are about the role.

I found the other thread frazzled my brain. Still the implication of photographers who purchase expensive gear, think their work is rubbish, but also give away their images to models who tell them it's valueless.

I read some people's posts and I'm not surprised that there's constant talk about level playing fields.

Afrofilmviewer said

Still the implication of photographers who purchase expensive gear, think their work is rubbish, but also give away their images to models who tell them it's valueless.

Right -- we've had this conversation before! 

But I think it's because tech hobbies warp the value proposition. You have to care about the work, not the things.

Afrofilmviewer said

Unfocussed Mike incremental is a good (key) word.

For models yes. There is a rolling cost dependent on model and how serious they are about the role.

I found the other thread frazzled my brain. Still the implication of photographers who purchase expensive gear, think their work is rubbish, but also give away their images to models who tell them it's valueless.

I read some people's posts and I'm not surprised that there's constant talk about level playing fields.

Well, I do the bits in bold.

Not sure what it implies though.

;)

Huw ah...but you didn't highlight some of those other bits...;)

Afrofilmviewer said

Huw ah...but you didn't highlight some of those other bits...;)

Ten years ago, I could sell a few limited edition A2 BW prints for £450.
Paid for a week shooting in Iceland that way.

Same prints might be valueless now....    Times change.
12 second attention span for a reel on Instagrem.

Huw said

Afrofilmviewer said

Huw ah...but you didn't highlight some of those other bits...;)

Ten years ago, I could sell a few limited edition A2 BW prints for £450.
Paid for a week shooting in Iceland that way.

For the record I still think it's odd spending that much time in a supermarket.

(Hey it's my thread I'm allowed this ;)

Huw I would possibly disagree to a point...

That said at least you try Instagram. Others don't.

Afrofilmviewer said

Huw I would possibly disagree to a point...

That said at least you try Instagram. Others don't.

The biggest problem with Instagram from my viewpoint is the effective monopoly it has over image display.

https://www.instagram.com/kityoung135/ markets BW film landscapes very effectively on IG.

Cost of renting a Sony A7iv for 24 hours: £102

128gb high speed memory card: £20

Cost of renting a Sony 85mm f1.4 GM lens for 24 hours: £55

Studio hire £35ph x 2 hours = £70

Model rates £40ph for nude x 2 = £80

That leaves just under £700 for laptop and editing software, and poss another lens. Or you could just export to phone and use lightroom mobile for free (with limited functionality).

If not hiring and wanting to just purchase gear, that's again easy. Sony a7ii second hand, is now only around £480. Sony 85mm f1.8 £302. Loads of room to play with :)

Edited by Baldbraveandbeautiful

Huw very nice. Now following.

Brings me on to books which is best saved for another thread.

I started shooting with a Nikon D3300 and 18-55mm lens which can be bought for £175 on eBay. That would be my go to for a basic entry level camera.

Probably then look for a budget tablet for editing.

I don't think I'd spend money on lighting as I don't from home but that would leave money in the budget for studio hire 😊

I'm waiting for a model to say how much their lingerie/shoes cost ...  :-)

Baldbraveandbeautiful said

If not hiring and wanting to just purchase gear, that's again easy. Sony a7ii second hand, is now only around £480. Sony 85mm f1.8 £302. Loads of room to play with :)

Yeah. I did notice that it's a bit tighter to do this with good Sony mirrorless than it is with e.g. good Fuji mirrorless. But it is still possible to do it, even with AF lenses. Though as a Nikon DSLR and Sony mirrorless shooter I think I'd say that my rough analysis is that this challenge is substantially easier with Canon DSLRs and Fuji mirrorless.

Gothic Image said

I'm waiting for a model to say how much their lingerie/shoes cost ...  :-)

My thinking is that modelling has a lower startup setup cost (because models start out owning some nice clothes, some makeup, getting their hair done etc.) but that once you start taking it seriously you go up into a different price bracket fast: you may want a gym membership, for a freelancer your clothes and props commitment becomes bigger, makeup is more specialised, hair needs more maintenance, for some models they might decide that specific health/beauty work becomes less avoidable as they get into the more competitive/high paid tiers. I would be shocked if it averaged out at costing all that much less than this £1000 setup cost when averaged over two years because the average non-model is spending more than that.

But mainly I'm hoping people have grasped that entirely competent digital photography kit is cheap. Even software if you want it to be. We have abundant choices, and the cost of the kit should be almost entirely irrelevant compared to the reasonable cost of a model's time.

Edited by Unfocussed Mike