Camera Recommendations
Camera Recommendations for Photography Courses
Fall 2023
Camera Requirements for Photography Majors & Photography Minors:
Required: Students in the B.F.A. in Photography or the B.S in Photography program, or those who are pursuing a Minor in Photography, must have a Mirrorless or DSLR camera with video capabilities. Please note that the camera industry is moving to mirrorless cameras.
The camera below is readily available at a variety of retailers. B&H Photo and Video is a recommended retailer: www.bhphotovideo.com. Canon USA offers refurbished cameras at a very good savings as well. Check their website for available models. When ordering your camera be sure that it is in stock and ready to be shipped. Full Frame Digital Cameras whether Mirrorless or DSLR have the best sensors but are expensive. While some students purchase these most choose to purchase the APS-C sensors, i.e., not full frame sensors. With Mirrorless Cameras we highly recommend purchasing a second battery.
Please note that our Photography Studio is Canon based. While you do not have to have to have a Canon camera, there is and advantage in terms of compatibility with our inventory of lenses in the Photography Studio.
Recommended Canon Cameras: (professional models are also acceptable, but not required)
- Canon EOS R8 Mirrorless Digital Camera with 24-105mm f/4-7.1 Lens
Note: While we recommend Canon due to the inventory of accessories we have to loan to students, additional camera options from such brands as Nikon, Fuji, Sony and Olympus are just as acceptable. If you already have a DSLR or Mirrorless camera you are welcome to use it as long as it has both manual controls and video capabilities.
Lenses
We recommend the standard kit zoom lenses as a starting point. An 18-55mm (for APS-C sensors) or a 24-70mm or 24-105mm (for full sized sensors) will provide better for image quality. Avoid extreme telephoto zoom lenses. Prime or fixed focal length lenses are also very fine options, depending on the focal length. We are happy to provide recommendations if this is an interest.
Memory Cards
SanDisk 32GB Extreme Pro SDHC UHS-I Memory Card (Class 10)
Required:Tripod
A tripod is requirement for photography majors. We recommend a sturdy metal, not plastic, tripod like the: Benro FTA18AB0 Travel Angel Series 1 Aluminum Tripod with B0 Ball Head
Required:Flash
We recommend the Yongnuo Speedlite YN600EX-RT II for Canons and the Yongnuo YN685 Speedlite for Nikon Cameras. B&H Photo and Video is a recommended retailer: www.bhphotovideo.com. Nikon and Canon branded flash units are also acceptable (with a guide number of 100 or more).
For further information please contact:
Michael Miller at 978-232-2611 or email: mmiller@endicott.edu
Updated: May 2023
Camera Requirements for Non-Majors taking PHT 116 Introduction to Photographic Imaging:
Any camera used for the PHT116 Introduction to Photographic Imaging class must have aperture priority, shutter priority and manual exposure controls. Cameras without these exposure controls will not be suitable for the class.
This is a digital based course where students will use their own digital cameras and edit images using Adobe software in our Mac Labs. Prints will be made using our state-of-the-art Epson printers in the Digital Print Lab.
Note: Cell phone and iPad “cameras” are not sufficient for this course.
Lenses
We recommend the standard kit zoom lenses. An 18-55mm (for APS-C sensors) or a 24-70mm or 24-105mm (for full sized sensors) will be better for image quality. Avoid extreme telephoto zoom lenses.
Memory Cards
Should range form 8GB to 32GB depending on the camera.
A tripod
We recommend a sturdy aluminum tripod.
Required Drive
A Mac compatible hard drive or solid-state drive will be required for this class. We recommend a portable hard drive or solid-state drive of at least 1 Terabyte. All hard drives may be either USB C or USB 3. Both ports are available on the iMacs in the Mac Labs.
For further information please contact:
Michael Miller at 978-232-2611 or email: mmiller@endicott.edu
Updated: May 2023