Every Camera Is Good Now. So How Do You Choose?
Every camera is good now. So how do you choose?
For over 15 years, 100% of my income has come from using a camera. And in 2026 the honest truth is that every major brand — Canon, Sony, Blackmagic, RED, Nikon, Fuji — makes something that'll get you a beautiful image. Colour science, dynamic range, codecs: there's far less separating them than YouTube reviews would have you believe.
So if they're all good, how do you actually choose?
In this video I walk through how I make that decision as a working DP — and almost none of it is about the camera itself. I get into why your lens ecosystem should probably come before your camera body, why autofocus has quietly become essential on the kind of small-crew shoots most of us are doing, and the factor nobody talks about: what the people around you are shooting on, and why being the odd one out can quietly cost you work.
I also get into the stuff that has nothing to do with the tech at all — lighting, sound, directing talent, and the networking that actually brings the work in. Because there's no point owning the best camera if your lighting's bad, your audio's worse, and nobody's hiring you.
The outliers — Alexa 35, RED Raptor, Sony Venice — sit outside this conversation. For 95% of jobs, they're not what you're choosing between anyway.
Cameras mentioned: Canon C400, C80, C50, R6 Mark III, Sony FX3, FX6, RED Komodo, Nikon ZR, Blackmagic.
Shot on the Canon C400 in 6K open gate, with the RF 50mm 1.4 VCM.
Anything I missed? What comes into your thought process when you're choosing a camera? Let me know in the comments.