Videos

It’s the age-old question that typically comes from non-photographers: does an expensive camera shoot better photos? As anyone who knows anything about photography will tell you: it’s the photographer, not the gear, that’s the key to great photos!

But how much does the camera help or hurt image quality? Or, in other words, how much does the gear really make a difference? Those are the questions the folks at Mango Street try to answer again in the below video titled “Pro vs. Amateur Photographer.”

“In this video, we shoot with an ultra-cheap point and shoot camera from Polaroid along with our Canon 1DX II,” Mango Street says. “Our friend Justin (who is not a photographer) also gives both cameras a try.”

The video is a followup to one of their most popular videos ever, in which amateur photographer Justin used a Canon 5D Mark IV, while pros Daniel and Rachel from Mango Street used a Canon Rebel T3i to capture and compare photos they shot of a model.  

In the new video, the rules were a little different: the cheap camera, a Polaroid iS048, was even cheaper ($32), while the Canon EOS-1D X Mark II is even more expensive ($7200) than previously. Also different: in the new video all three shoot with both cameras, and not only in a controlled studio environment with a model, but also outdoors where lighting conditions were more variable.

How do you think they all did? No spoilers, so go check it out below for yourself and then visit their YouTube channel for more great videos.