What is the difference between a professional camera and a quasi-professional camera?

The so-called professional camera refers to the equipment provided to professional photographers, who use the best equipment to take the best quality photos, thus solving the problem of industry survival. The so-called quasi-professional camera is a kind of equipment for photographers, who use it to express their artistic feelings. The so-called family camera is the camera that ordinary families shoot this trip or party. This method of distinction is personal and not necessarily scientific and standardized. There is no strict dividing line between professional and non-professional photographic equipment, but perhaps it is just a rhetoric derived by merchants for sales. I think it will be more meaningful to know the difference between professional cameras and non-professional cameras.

1. The body and lens of professional cameras are mainly made of metal, with high texture and workmanship. The body and lens of non-professional cameras are all engineering plastics, which are not durable enough. Professional lenses should use not only optical glass, but also some expensive achromatic materials. Non-professional lenses will use some cheap resin lenses, and optical glass only accounts for a part. There are also differences in the feel of use. Professional machines are thick and heavy, while non-professional machines are exceptionally light. (as shown in the picture: a photo taken with Canon 5D2. Professional camera)

2. The important difference between a professional machine and a non-professional machine lies in the service life of the shutter. Professional cameras have a high frequency, and some photographers even take thousands of photos every day. Therefore, the camera shutter is very durable in design and manufacture, the failure rate will only appear once every100000 times, and some service lives can reach more than 500000 times. The service life of non-professional cameras is much shorter, and some household cameras will break down even after about 10 thousand times. Some friends will say: my camera has never broken down after ten years of use. This is because you haven't taken many photos for ten years, and the frequency of use is very low. (as shown in the picture: a photo taken with Canon 7D. Quasi-professional camera)

3. Professional machine functions are practical and concise, while non-professional machine functions are fancy. There are many automatic modes on non-professional cameras, such as night scene mode, sports mode, portrait mode, landscape mode and so on. These functions are invisible on professional cameras. Photographers have a high professional quality and will set various parameters according to different shooting themes. Manufacturers only use these functional models as gimmicks to sell photographic equipment. Many people have never used many functions after buying a camera. (as shown in the picture: a photo taken with Canon 600D. Home-grade camera)

"Professional camera" and "quasi-professional camera" are two established concepts, and there is no strict difference. Customarily speaking, these two concepts are mainly distinguished from the perspective of using objects:

The so-called professional camera refers to the professional shooting tool with top performance, which is mainly produced to meet the needs of professional photographers and other users. The so-called quasi-professional-grade camera refers to a mid-to high-end machine with slightly weak performance and complete functions. For photographers and other enthusiasts, there are many choices, and some professional photographers use it as a backup machine:

Compared with the two, professional models are mainly highlighted in the following aspects:

First, the top performance parameters This is the most obvious difference. For example, the parameters such as focusing system (number of focus points and focusing mode), metering system and continuous shooting times are different:

Second, there are plenty of physical buttons. Professional models mainly serve professional photographers. In order to improve shooting efficiency, many common functions are equipped with physical buttons:

Third, the fuselage material is excellent. Professional aircraft usually adopt all-metal structure to ensure excellent fuselage strength and reduce the probability of failure due to bumps:

Fourth, the shutter life is long. Professional camera has high shooting intensity (small K), large machine loss and shutter life of at least several hundred thousand times. In shooting-shadow, Xiao K has seen many professional machines that have been out of service, and there is no problem with shutter accuracy and exposure accuracy:

Five, excellent sealing performance (waterproof and dustproof)

For example, Canon 1D series, all keys, switches and fuselage connectors have been specially designed to be waterproof and dustproof, which is enough to cope with shooting tasks in special weather:

Personal Suggestions and Tips The so-called professional and quasi-professional camera specification division is not directly defined by the manufacturer, but a statement that the photography team divides itself according to the camera performance.

This kind of professional and quasi-professional is not absolute. Some quasi-professional cameras are also doing professional work, and some professional cameras are not suitable for professional use in some fields.

General professional cameras usually have the following characteristics:

1, high fuselage protection. For example, waterproof, anti-fall, dustproof protection level is relatively high, which is more suitable for use in harsh environments.

2. High speed. The response speed in control, focusing and continuous shooting speed is better than that of ordinary models, and the maximum optimization of any shooting moment will not be missed.

3. Professionalism of control. In the control design, professional models pay more attention to "people-oriented", that is, on the basis of manual control, reduce some options for active camera control.

4, high performance without reservation. Professional models are generally the flagship of the brand, which is the highest performance level among all models in the same period, and will not castrate and retain some performance, while quasi-professional models will shrink in performance.

For professional and quasi-professional models, you can give several examples. For example, the 1DX series in Canon SLR cameras is usually called the sequence of professional machines, while the 5D series is a quasi-professional model.

5D series vehicles

1D series model

In daily photography practice, in fact, the quasi-professional 5D series has a wider range of application groups, among which "professional" uses are much more. For example, many commercial portrait photography, product photography, documentary photography and so on. The 5D series model is the main force, because many overflow high-performance flagship 1D series may not be used, and the 5D series is more suitable in terms of image quality, control, compatibility and portability. 1D series will only be used for some subjects with strict requirements on machine performance, such as sports sports photography, ecological photography and so on.

Professional cameras and quasi-professional cameras belong to high-end cameras. Of course, the difference is not just a simple mid-range or high-end division! Let me analyze it in detail!

Take a digital SLR camera as an example, the differences are as follows:

1, a professional camera must deal with all kinds of harsh conditions, and a quasi-professional camera is often unnecessary. From the compactness of the fuselage, service life, adaptability to high and low temperatures, etc., professional cameras are needed. Otherwise, there will be a strike in the cold Harbin or the North and South Poles. In short, professional cameras and quasi-professional cameras have different ways to deal with harsh environments. Professional cameras must be able to work normally. As for quasi-professional cameras, there is no hard and fast requirement.

The same is true for heat dissipation performance. Professional cameras are stupid and clumsy because they are specially designed for heat dissipation, so they will not automatically shut down or even crash due to heat during shooting, while quasi-professional cameras are prone to thermal crashes or accidental blows.

Reliability of Canon Professional Camera

A well-sealed fuselage adapted to various harsh environments

Good heat dissipation, which is not a general camera need to consider.

The choice of every component, diode, triode and capacitor, is better! (Even if all series of SLR cameras use the same cpu chip, the CPU chip has the difference between good and bad physique. Isn't Xiaomi's mobile phone just like to use a CPU with poor physique? Professional cameras use the best parts! )

Absolute reliability under various harsh conditions is a hard requirement for professional cameras.

2. Professional cameras must have a viewfinder of 100%, while quasi-professional cameras, about 97% is enough. Many quasi-professional cameras have only 97% viewfinder, but they are called 100%. For this, we can find it in the manual or official parameters of the camera, and it is often reassuring to judge whether it is professional or not through this! (However, it seems that the viewfinder of a professional camera is only about 100%. )

3, shutter lag, the shutter lag of professional cameras will be very short, definitely an order of magnitude higher than that of quasi-professional cameras. (Generally speaking, manufacturers will actively disclose the shutter lag parameters of professional cameras, but for other models, they generally choose not to disclose them by default. )

4. As for the shutter speed of 1/8000 and the flash synchronization speed of 1/250 seconds, as for the focusing system and shutter life, it is often difficult to distinguish professional cameras from quasi-professional cameras.

But under the current circumstances, it is really a new question whether a machine like 5D4 or D8 10/D850 is a professional machine!

In my personal opinion, 5D4 or D8 10/D850 may not be the most professional camera in some people's eyes, but in fact it should be regarded as a professional camera in most people's eyes.

Or professional and quasi-professional, as well as household. For example, the Nikon d5 of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States has been used for space shutter up to 500,000 times, which can be achieved by every camera. Under extreme conditions, such as 40 degrees above zero and 40 degrees below zero, ordinary cameras will not work. And wind and rain. Most people are tourists, d850, such as wedding models, is rich. Let me sum up, photography investment is difficult to test, and business activities earn small money, just for entertainment.

In fact, there is no strict definition of professional camera and quasi-professional camera. The main difference should be the reliability of camera parts. Professional cameras are more reliable than quasi-professional cameras. In addition, professional cameras can be used in harsh environments, so the requirements for dustproof and waterproof are higher. Others such as higher shutter speed, faster focusing speed, etc. Of course, generally speaking, professional cameras are much more expensive than quasi-professional cameras. Take Nikon for example. Those with only one number after D are usually regarded as professional cameras, those with three numbers after D are usually regarded as quasi-professional cameras, and those with four numbers after D are usually regarded as entry-level cameras.