Here’s some stats, with prices as they appear today, all from the same high-street camera retailer:
Pro level:
5D mark II – Body only cost: £1800
Refreshed every 3-4 years.
Mid range:
60D – Body only cost: £850
Refreshed every 2 years.
Entry level:
600D – Body only cost: £650, this is fairly new so I’ll include the previous model too…
550d – Body only cost £550
Refreshed every year.
To keep up with the latest entry level camera, you’ll be paying around £600 per year.
To get the latest mid-range camera you’ll be paying around £425 per year to have enough to get the next model when it becomes available.
To have the latest and greatest pro-level camera, you would need to save around £515 per year.
Obviously these prices are likely to go up due to inflation and new technology costs, but the range gaps should still stay roughly proportional to each other.
Another consideration would be that the pro-level camera only accept the EF mount lenses. Meaning that you’ll be spending around £1400 per lens rather than £500. But lens technology doesn’t change as fast so these can be considered a good investment if you’re serious about photography, and won’t need to be changed as often as the camera body might.
Based on all of this, the mid-range level camera, although more expensive initially, looks like a much wiser purchase if you’re wanting to keep long term costs low, but still have the latest bits of kit.
