i am so incredibly done with my current setup honestly. my old canon rebel t3i is literally falling apart at the seams and it keeps overheating every single time i try to record more than five minutes of video which is just great when i have a wedding shoot coming up in mid december. like i am actually panicking here because i cant show up with gear that might just die on me mid-ceremony. its so frustrating trying to find a straight answer on where the actual good black friday deals are because every site just looks like an ad or some fake review blog nowadays. i need to find a solid mirrorless setup and i need to find it like yesterday or i'm totally screwed.
here is what im looking for:
- budget is strictly under 1800 for everything including a lens
- needs to be mirrorless because i cant deal with the heavy dslr weight anymore
- good autofocus is a must because my current one is basically blind
- looking at a sony a7iii or maybe a fujifilm if the price drops enough
- i live in a small town so i have to buy online
does anyone know if bh photo or adorama usually have the best bundles or should i just hawk eye amazon for those lightning deals? i keep hearing mixed things about where to actually spend my money and i dont want to get scammed by some weird gray market site just to save fifty bucks. where are you guys actually seeing the real discounts this year...
> it keeps overheating every single time i try to record more than five minutes of video I used to have that T3i overheating issue constantly. I upgraded to a Sony A7 III with 28-70mm Lens during a sale and it saved my wedding gigs. Use the CamelCamelCamel site to track Amazon prices because those lightning deals are often misleading. Honestly, the B&H Deal Zone is way more reliable for pro kits like the Fujifilm X-T4 Mirrorless Digital Camera.
honestly those amazon lightning deals were a letdown last year. i missed the window by like two minutes and it was just frustrating. i ended up with a Canon EOS R8 with 24-50mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM Lens from b&h. the lens was a bit disappointing for the price tbh, but at least it works. stick to major retailers like adorama so you dont get scammed by some gray market site.
man i totally feel your pain with that t3i... it was a tank but weddings are way too stressful for gear that might die on you. sticking to the main retailers for black friday is usually the move because they actually compete on price and their shipping is solid even for those of us in the middle of nowhere.
- check out b&h photo for those bundle deals
- adorama usually has better freebies like bags or cards
- ignore the amazon lightning deals unless its a legit store selling them honestly just go with sony if you need that reliable autofocus. you cant go wrong with any of their mirrorless stuff from the last few years... fujifilm is nice but for weddings sony is just a safer bet imo. grabbing a bundle with a standard zoom lens should keep you under budget. stay away from those sketchy gray market sites tho its never worth the headache.
Regarding what #2 said about "> it keeps overheating every single time i..." - man, that is the absolute worst feeling during a shoot! If you want absolute reliability so you can stop panicking about that wedding, you gotta check these two out because they are fantastic deals right now.
- Panasonic LUMIX S5II with 20-60mm Lens: This is honestly a video king. It has an internal fan hidden in the viewfinder area so it basically never shuts down on you. The phase detect autofocus is finally amazing too!
- Nikon Z6 II with 24-70mm f/4 S Lens: Super reliable build and it has dual card slots! For a wedding, having that backup recording is everything. It handles like a dream compared to that old Rebel. Keep an eye on the Adorama bundles specifically for these two. They usually throw in some extra batteries or a fast V60 card which you're totally gonna need. You've got this!
TIL! Thanks for sharing
coming back to this... unfortunately i had some issues with fuji in the past where the autofocus just wasnt as good as i expected during ceremonies. it was a real letdown honestly. compared to what i experienced with sony, the fuji hunted way more in low light which is a total nightmare when you are shooting a wedding. my biggest warning tho is to watch out for those gray market sellers that pop up during sales. i almost got burned once. they list international versions for cheap but you get zero manufacturer warranty. if that camera bricks on you, you are basically out of luck. honestly, a solid alternative to fighting for black friday stock is checking the used sections at b&h or adorama. you can usually find way better bodies for the same price as a new entry-level kit. tl;dr: avoid gray market sellers at all costs and maybe look at reputable used gear if the new prices are still too high. peace of mind and a real warranty is worth more than saving a few bucks on a sketchy site.
