B&H and Adorama usually hold back their heaviest rebates until the actual holiday week, so I would suggest monitoring the manufacturer direct outlets instead. I have noticed that Canon and Nikon tend to refresh their refurbished inventory with steep discounts right about now, which might be a better use of your $2500 budget than waiting for a pre-sale that wont happen. Make sure to prioritize these technical specs for that December wedding:

• Dual UHS-II card slots for immediate data redundancy
• Effective Eye-AF tracking with at least 80 percent sensor coverage
• Log profiles with 10-bit depth if the client expects video Be careful with those too good to be true bundles on eBay or third-party Amazon storefronts. They often swap out legitimate manufacturer batteries for generic cells that might fail during a long reception. I would suggest looking into the Sony Alpha a7 IV 33MP Full-Frame Mirrorless or the Canon EOS R6 Mark II 24.2MP Full-Frame Mirrorless tho. Honestly, the R6 II has been hitting the $2000 mark lately, leaving you room for a decent lens. If you buy from a reputable site like KEH or MPB, you can often find a professional body with a shutter count under 5k for way less than retail. Just make sure to test the sensor for hot pixels immediately upon arrival... dont wait until the day before the gig to find a dead pixel in your shadows.

What mount are you on tho? If youre switching systems entirely, check these for value:

• Sony Alpha a7 IV Mirrorless
• Panasonic LUMIX S5II 24.2MP Amazon usually beats the big shops on kit bundles for under $2500.

Like someone mentioned, these pre-sales have been a huge letdown this year. Honestly, I am pretty disappointed with what the big retailers are calling deals lately. Most of it is just clearing out old inventory with mediocre autofocus. If you are shooting a wedding in December, dont waste that $2500 on a basic kit bundle just because its on sale. Here is a better way to look at it from a technical standpoint:

• Prioritize bodies with dual slots and good thermals. A lot of the discounted models overheat during long ceremonies.
• Check out the Nikon Z6 II Mirrorless Body. The autofocus is significantly more reliable than the first gen and it handles high ISO noise better than most in this price bracket.
• Consider the Panasonic LUMIX S5IIX Mirrorless Camera. The phase-detect is finally top-tier and it has better video specs than anything Sony offers for the same price.
• Look for a used Sony Alpha a7R III Mirrorless. Even tho its older, the 42MP sensor is still insane for wedding portraits and you can spend the leftover cash on better glass. Skip the Amazon kit lenses. They are usually slow and will hunt for focus the second the reception lights go down. Better to build your own kit by grabbing a solid body and one fast prime like a 35mm or 50mm f/1.8 rather than relying on a slow f/4 zoom.

This ^

Adding my two cents here since I went through this same transition recently. I was totally stressed about the cost but honestly, I am so satisfied with the jump in quality for my paid work. My current setup just works and I have no complaints about the reliability even during long shooting days. Before I can point you toward the right deals tho, what lenses are you planning to use? Are you sticking with your current brand or switching everything over? A couple things I found out the hard way during my switch:

• Having a setup you can trust is way more important than saving an extra hundred bucks.
• I actually had a better experience buying from a smaller authorized dealer than the huge sites because they had better stock during the holiday rush.
• Double check the battery life because full frame mirrorless can be a bit of a hog compared to old crop sensor DSLRs. Im happy to dig around for you once I know what mount you are looking for... weddings are stressful enough without gear worries.

Lol I was literally about to post the same thing. Glad someone else brought it up.

> Most of it is just clearing out old inventory with mediocre autofocus. To add to the point above: be careful about rushing into a purchase just because the calendar says its Black Friday. Everyone here is hitting the nail on the head—the big retailers are mostly pushing leftovers right now. I have seen this play out a dozen times over the years. I remember when I finally made the jump to full-frame for a high-stakes gig. I grabbed a deal that looked amazing on paper, but I didnt account for how different the ergonomics felt compared to my old crop sensor. I ended up struggling through that first shoot because the autofocus wasnt as snappy as the marketing claimed. It was a massive stress headache and I almost missed the kiss because I was menu diving. Whatever you pick, make sure its something you actually want to own for the long haul. A cheap body isnt a deal if it lets you down during a ceremony. Stick to the advice about dual slots and maybe look at those manufacturer direct outlets instead of the big box stores. You might want to consider looking at some older professional series gear that still holds up better than a new entry-level kit. Good luck with the wedding... those December dates can be tricky with lighting.