vikkyvik From United States of America, joined Jul 2003, 8224 posts, RR: 28 Posted (1 year 3 weeks 4 hours ago) and read 2924 times:
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Question is fairly simple; I'm just looking for opinions.
Having seen some reasonable deals on Craigslist and such, I'm again debating upgrading my camera body.
A lot of the ads have cameras with pretty low shutter click counts (like under 10,000). However, there's one ad, for a 50D, with a count of 44,000. I was still drawn to it because the advertised price is $500. From what I read, the 50D shutter is rated to 100,000 actuations.
But in practical terms, where would you set a limit for what you would buy? Obviously it depends on price, but would you ever buy a camera that had, say, 75,000 clicks? 50,000? Etc.....
Haven't checked in the last few weeks, but I've put somewhere close to 30,000 actuations on my Rebel in a bit over 2 years.
Thanks very much for opinions and/or advice!
"Two and a Half Men" was filmed in front of a live ostrich.
darthluke12694 From United States of America, joined Jan 2009, 265 posts, RR: 0 Reply 1, posted (1 year 3 weeks 3 hours ago) and read 2911 times:
I think that the way a person takes care of a camera is just as important at the actuations. If the camera is beaten up then actuations don't matter, it is beaten up. If the person has well-maintained the camera, then the camera should go far past 100,000.
The way I think of it is as a car. Someone who doesn't keep their car well-maintained may only see 100,000 miles. But someone who does regular maintenance to a car like they are supposed to, the car will go way past 100,000 miles.
For 44,000 actuations, $500 seems good to me. Try and negotiate the price too.
If the deal was good enough, I would probably get a camera with under 50,000 actuations.
KBNA - "To most people, the sky is the limit. To those who love aviation, the sky is home."
JakTrax From United Kingdom, joined Jun 2005, 4738 posts, RR: 8 Reply 2, posted (1 year 3 weeks 3 hours ago) and read 2893 times:
Vik,
Remember that the number of actuations a camera is rated for is simply a manufactirer average. Some shutters can go after 20,000, but some clock up well over 120,000. If I remember rightly the 50D is somewhere around the 120,000 mark; in two years and two months I'm just coming up to the 4,500 mark with mine.
I think the above reply makes a lot of sense to be honest - look after a camera well and keep it dust-free and I think the mechanism will maintain itself very well. I've seen how some people treat their gear and it beggars belief! I'm overly careful (as the MAN lads would tell you!) but I'd much rather be that way than be totally careless.
vikkyvik From United States of America, joined Jul 2003, 8224 posts, RR: 28 Reply 3, posted (1 year 2 weeks 6 days 21 hours ago) and read 2797 times:
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Quoting JakTrax (Reply 2): in two years and two months I'm just coming up to the 4,500 mark with mine.
Wow! I've put 6 times more photos on my camera in about the same time. Of course, a LOT of that was (and still is) a learning process - that is, take a shot, see how badly it sucks, take another, rinse, repeat.
I haven't bought a used camera yet, but if I ever need to go FF I probably would. As has been said, a battered camera with few actuations is a worse deal than a well maintained body with 50K on it. I have no idea how many actuations I have on the 7D after a year and a half...
7D, 17-40 F4 L, 70-200 F2.8 L IS, EF 1.4x II, EF 2x III, Metz 58-AF1
megatop412 From United States of America, joined Sep 2005, 253 posts, RR: 0 Reply 5, posted (1 year 2 weeks 6 days 2 hours ago) and read 2578 times:
Shutter actuations are only one of several things to be considered in the longevity of a camera. Buttons/switches can stop working, displays can fade, etc. For example take the Nikon D70/s "CHA" error that has been extensively documented- not related to shutter clicks but an issue that seems to present itself as the CF card contacts 'age' and accumulate oxidized deposits.
And as someone noted above, a large # of clicks doesn't necessarily mean a camera is on the verge of dying. My 1998 Honda Civic has 175,000 miles on it and runs like new because I was a nut about the maintenance. My friend's 2002 Honda Civic was on its deathbed within 6 years and under 100,000 because he hardly ever changed the oil. This is a rock-solid car in terms of reliability, but you have to take care of it.
Find someone that takes care of their stuff and deal with them.
vikkyvik From United States of America, joined Jul 2003, 8224 posts, RR: 28 Reply 6, posted (1 year 2 weeks 6 days 2 hours ago) and read 2575 times:
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Quoting megatop412 (Reply 5): This is a rock-solid car in terms of reliability, but you have to take care of it.
No doubt about that (I had an '02 Civic that got to 112,000 miles with no issues before it got totaled). Same goes for anything, really (though obviously some things have quality issues from the outset).
Quoting megatop412 (Reply 5): Shutter actuations are only one of several things to be considered in the longevity of a camera.
Quoting megatop412 (Reply 5): Find someone that takes care of their stuff and deal with them.
Absolutely. I was just seeing if there was a point where it's inadvisable to buy, regarding shutter actuations specifically. But everyone's input makes sense; it's much appreciated!
I'll be looking at a couple 50Ds tonight, probably.
"Two and a Half Men" was filmed in front of a live ostrich.
vikkyvik From United States of America, joined Jul 2003, 8224 posts, RR: 28 Reply 8, posted (1 year 2 weeks 6 days ago) and read 2559 times:
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Quoting JakTrax (Reply 7): The 50D is an amazing camera. What's more amazing, however, is the amount of bad publicity it received upon release; but now everyone wants one!
Interesting - I knew the 60D had received bad publicity, but didn't know the 50D had as well (that was before I was into photography).
I'm good with either a 50D or a 7D - depends on what's available and the price, and 50Ds seem generally cheaper.
"Two and a Half Men" was filmed in front of a live ostrich.
gabik001 From Poland, joined Jun 2005, 185 posts, RR: 1 Reply 9, posted (1 year 2 weeks 4 days 23 hours ago) and read 2479 times:
Reading this thread I should be worry
My old and still good EOS350D has over 80k clicks . Shutter lifespan in this model is 50k so I'm running 30k over but feeling that everything seems fine . I shouldn't be suprised when some day my camera will stop working...
I'm looking right now for 50D body with not more than 20k clicks.
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