Old camera for a new approach?
It's no shock to anyone who reads this blog on even a semi-regular basis that I'm something of a gearhead where photography (oh heck all electronics) is concerned. Recently I've felt as though I was getting somewhat complacent in my work due to the practically idiot-proof autofocus performance of the Sony camera bodies. Oh yeah, I'd switched back to an all-Sony system not too long ago as I'd become somewhat frustrated with some of the performance of the Canon mirrorless system (did I mention being a gearhead?). In related news Canon has released a few new bodies which largely address those complaints so I'm sure I won't give those a try at any point in the future (heavy sarcasm usage in effect). Well, anyways now being over a year in to this global pandemic thingy I found myself feeling kinda "meh" about my recent work and I was looking for a change. The more I thought about it I began to wonder if by going with something a bit more "basic" I could force myself to learn and be better. I set off on a quest to find gear to allow me to that- and as I was scrolling through various online auctions (as I frequently do) I found a used Canon 6D (and a few lenses) for a really solid price so I pulled the trigger.
This is a camera that I'm quite familiar with and have shot at various points in the past. Released in 2012 it was the first really "affordable" full frame DSLR and offered really great low-light performance, excellent ergonomics, light weight, and built in Wi-Fi control. It's not uncommon to be able to find one of these guys for well under $500 today (mine's well "used" so I paid less than $350) and at that price it's an absolute steal. Granted, for not much more cash (well, relatively) there are cameras that will run circles around this in sensor performance and autofocus (think Sony A7Rii or Nikon D750). I also find that this body has a nearly magical quality to it when shooting black and white or matte finish images- I can't explain how or why that it feels that way. Another really cool thing about the 6D is that you can load an aftermarket, open-source, firmware known as Magic Lantern which allows you to have functionalities not previously available in the stock software like focus peaking, intervalometer, focus stacking, exposure zebras, and about 6,000 other really cool things. I've been playing with the focus stacking to do some product work and macro imagery.
So, over the past few months I've been challenging myself to shoot with this "dinosaur" more often which requires me to slow down a bit and be more deliberate about what I'm shooting as the viewfinder doesn't do WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) like a mirrorless system, the live view is pretty archaic, and the sensor's dynamic range is at least two stops less than my Sony A7iii. I've found myself leaning towards long-exposure, night time shots with this body and I think in that capacity it works pretty great. Would I suggest this camera (in 2021) for paid work where things move quickly or there are people in the shot? Probably not. Would I suggest this as a really affordable way to experience full frame digital photography? Absolutely!
