Photography vs Videography - Which is more expensive?

Who is more costly?


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duskman

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Dec 24, 2012
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Bo liao ask ask, going into photography or videography, who usually spends more?

On the photography side, people pay alot for lenses, a full frame sensor, 10fps, expensive studio strobes

Whereas on the videography side, all you really need is a camera that can shoot 1080p or 4k, lenses which have aperture rings,microphone light panels, but then again, those rigs(glide cam etc.) are also just as costly.

In a battle between Photographers vs Videographers, who will brag to spend the most on equipment? :cool:
 

Definitely video cameras cost more. Just visit Cathay Photo and ask for some high end video cameras.
 

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Buy an IMAX Camera : Value is USD $1 Million to Priceless depending on your source.

Ive been lucky to see and touch one first hand... even assist in assembly.

;)



Yeah... photography is cheap !! :)
 

In a battle between Photographers vs Videographers, who will brag to spend the most on equipment? :cool:

Hmm, depends on how far you wanna go doesn't it? If you're talking about the average person enjoying a hobby, or running a small business, I think they're pretty even. You can usually get where you want even on a tight budget, there're always alternatives. E.g. Instead of using X, you can try to use Y. But if you really wanna splurge on equipment for the sake of it, the sky's the limit for capturing moving images for sure... E.g., Arri/Zeiss Prime cine lenses – between US$20,000 - $40,000K each. Arri Alexa body - US$40,000 - $80,000. Stuff like lighting/audio, usually in multiples, depending on the complexity of your scene... E.g., One Arri 12KW/18KW HMI Fresnel - US$30,000... Schoeps CMIT5U Shotgun mic US$2000... Throw in a Steadicam system - US$25,000 - $50,000...
 

Woah. You have to climb on top your roof top to shoot your Imax camera. :)

Huh mine ?? I wish bro...... nope sorry IMAX Cameras can only be leased ( rented ) out... there is a 3+ year waiting list as far as i know.

Some basic math if you want to shoot a basic standard IMAX project.

- There are just a few IMAX cameras available. Camera rental is about $12,000 – $16,000 a week.
- Film stock will run $2 to $3 a foot to buy, process and reduce for viewing/editing. You will likely shoot 150,000 to 250,000 feet (double that for 3D). Yeah, that’s half a million bucks in film stock, processing and work prints.
 

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Huh mine ?? I wish bro...... nope sorry IMAX Cameras can only be leased ( rented ) out... there is a 3+ year waiting list as far as i know.

Some basic math if you want to shoot a basic standard IMAX project.

- There are just a few IMAX cameras available. Camera rental is about $12,000 – $16,000 a week.
- Film stock will run $2 to $3 a foot to buy, process and reduce for viewing/editing. You will likely shoot 150,000 to 250,000 feet (double that for 3D). Yeah, that’s half a million bucks in film stock, processing and work prints.

IMAX camera uses film? Cool never knew that
 

IMAX camera uses film? Cool never knew that

IMAX uses 70mm film format. While conventional motion picture uses 35mm film format.

IMAX-Comparison.png


That's why just the film stock alone will costs you dearly.
 

Anyway, back to the question. If we compare apple to apple, just look at the lower end consumer level equipment cost. A simple decent compact digital camera with around 8mp or more will probably cost you just a couple of hundred, while a simple decent compact digital video camera capable of full HD will probably cost you around 1k? So my answer will be, in general, videography will costs more than photography.
 

If for professional use, then videography will cost more. The camera support system alone (like steadicam or tripod/rail/crane) cost thousands of dollars
 

Compare the price of Sony a99 and vg900, you will know the answer. ;p
 

On weddings, the cost is almost there for the pros if we compare someone charging $4k for photo and another charging $4k for video.

I would expect no less than 1Dx for photo and C100 for video. Both is around the same price.

Video allows you to save on lens as u can go for older manual lens. Photos, those charging above 4k usually has these few lens. 14mm 2.8, 50mm 1.2, 24-70, 70-200 IS and the macro king 100mm or 85mm 1.2.
With a spare 5d3 body, these would be around $20k excluding flash and misc stuff.

Video's range can differ quite abit if u go for only Kessler, Cinevate, Steadicam, sachtler range which are more expensive compared to a varavon, manfrotto, glidecam.

But I do expect both of them to have at least $25k worth of arsenal if they are doing wedding on that price range.

Both sides have their cheaper $5k startup cost potential too so if u are looking at starting up, it's roughly there. But the ceiling of video (as mentioned by the guys here) is much much higher.
 

On weddings, the cost is almost there for the pros if we compare someone charging $4k for photo and another charging $4k for video.

I would expect no less than 1Dx for photo and C100 for video. Both is around the same price.

Video allows you to save on lens as u can go for older manual lens. Photos, those charging above 4k usually has these few lens. 14mm 2.8, 50mm 1.2, 24-70, 70-200 IS and the macro king 100mm or 85mm 1.2.
With a spare 5d3 body, these would be around $20k excluding flash and misc stuff.

Video's range can differ quite abit if u go for only Kessler, Cinevate, Steadicam, sachtler range which are more expensive compared to a varavon, manfrotto, glidecam.

But I do expect both of them to have at least $25k worth of arsenal if they are doing wedding on that price range.

Both sides have their cheaper $5k startup cost potential too so if u are looking at starting up, it's roughly there. But the ceiling of video (as mentioned by the guys here) is much much higher.

bAHHHHH... Save money.... Use iPhone 4S or 5 !! ;) ;)