6 APS-C Cameras Used by Professional Photographers

Last Updated on 08/05/2019 by Mark Beckenbach

APS-C cameras have come a long way in a short amount of time, and some are more than good enough for professional use.

The current buzz word in a lot of photography realms is Full Frame. The reason behind this is that the big three (Sony, Canon, Nikon) have been focusing on Full-Frame Mirrorless cameras more than anything else. Only Fujifilm has been really pumping out APS-C cameras. It can be easy then to question whether APS-C cameras are indeed ‘good enough’ for photographers these days given the publicity surrounding Full Frame models. We’re here to tell you that you do not need to buy a Full Frame camera to be considered a pro. APS-C cameras are absolute powerhouses these days, and they feature all of the technology that their bigger sensor brothers do. Here we will take a quick look at six APS-C cameras that will deliver pro results without the huge price tags of their Full Frame brethren.

APS-C cameras used to be more for consumers who wanted to step up to something more substantial than a point and shoot. Now, APS-C cameras are excellent all-around performers that can be used by pros for many different genres of photography. The APS-C cameras we have chosen for the list all have incredible qualities. You can expect excellent build and high-speed autofocus systems with excellent tracking (and in some of the cameras eye AF). They can shoot up to ISO 6400 easily, have excellent lens options, and are well priced. Don’t believe all you read that says you have to use Full Frame cameras to work in the industry; these APS-C cameras are more than enough. Check out the six APS-C cameras we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend to photographers who work in the field.

 

Nikon D7500

 

Here are the pros and cons from our full review:

Pros

• Solid Build
• Incredible Battery life
• Control Wheels and Thumb ‘Multi Selector’ changes setting quickly.
• Touchscreen to preview images, and control finer settings
• Wi-fi and Bluetooth integrated
• Burst function works wonderfully
• Much more affordable than the D500

Cons

• Needed to remove the lens to carry in small messenger bags
• Probably overkill for anyone short of Semi-Professionals

Buy now ($896.95): Adorama

 

Sony a6400

 

Here are the pros and cons from our full review:

Pros

• Compact & lightweight
• Fast & accurate autofocus
• Excellent image quality
• 11 FPS continuous shooting with AF & AE tracking (mechanical shutter only)
• Improved Real-time Eye AF
• Real-time Tracking
• Real-time Animal Eye AF
• 4K video recording without 30-minute limit
• Competitively priced

Cons

• Lacks in-body image stabilization
• External battery charger not included
• Single SD card slot with support for only up to UHS-I speed cards
• The rear screen flips up into where the hot shoe is located and becomes essentially useless if you’ve got any attachments mounted onto the camera

Buy now ($898): Adorama

 

Pro Tip: APS-C cameras offer photographers fantastic performance. In fact, the price to performance ratio can be hard to beat. Just like other cameras out there though, you need to take care of them if you want them to perform at the top of their performance curve. To make this happen, you need to clean your camera regularly. Dirt, dust, grease, and other junk will happily call your camera home, so weekly cleanings are recommended. You don’t need much. A basic camera cleaning kit and a sensor cleaning kit is all you need to ensure that your camera will perform like it should for years to come.

 

Canon 7D Mk II

 

Here are the pros and cons from our full review:

Pros

• Excellent autofocus system
• Big, beautiful viewfinder
• Dual card slots enable you to shoot with some images transferring over Wifi if you use an EyeFi Card
• Fast FPS shooting at 10 frames a second
• Better ETTL transmission with Canon products
• Versatile RAW files
• Weather sealing
• Phenomenal battery life
• Tracking focusing is excellent
• Pretty decent high ISO results

Cons

• Autofocus with Sigma glass can be messy and inaccurate. This is a Canon problem, not Sigma’s
• Atrocious TTL transmission with Phottix products. Again, this is a Canon problem
• Not much of a step up beyond the original Canon 7D

Buy now ($1,399): Adorama

 

Nikon D500

 

Here are the pros and cons from our full review:

Pros

• Fast, accurate autofocus
• A dedicated thumb joystick on the back for changing AF points
• The new touchscreen is an interesting and welcome addition
• Integration of Wifi is welcome
• Top-notch build quality
• A battery that refuses to die
• Such a good camera that we honestly think that it’s overkill for a lot of people.

Cons

• Pretty big and tough to get into some messenger bags

Buy now ($1,496.95): Adorama

 

Pro Tip: Owning a great camera is one thing, but knowing how to use it to make money is another entirely. You can turn APS-C cameras into money-making machines, but you need to know what you’re doing on the business end to make it work. Fortunately, there are many resources out there that will provide the knowledge you need to be successful. This very affordable course will teach you all you need to know to get your photography business off the ground. Follow it, apply it, and make bank.

 

Fujifilm X Pro 2

 

Here are the pros and cons from our full review:

Pros

• Massively improved autofocusing
• So many new autofocus points
• Uncompressed RAW file format
• Thumb joystick for quicker AF point selection is a Godsend
• The absolute best high ISO output from an APS-C sensor camera that we’ve seen in years. It beats some full-frame cameras!
• Weather sealing
• Fujifilm Acros is fun to play within the right situations
• Nice JPEG output
• RAW file versatility is excellent
• Autofocus performance in OVF mode is even more improved than the EVF performance was.
• ISO dial built into the shutter speed dial is very nice
• The menu system is a bit easier though can still be complicated at times

Cons

• Wish that the WiFi uploading process were more fluid
• A locking button should be placed on the exposure compensation
• Autofocus could still be faster despite coming ahead. Though it’s great for candids at events, you’ll want to use zone focusing to ensure the best images for street photography

Buy now ($1,499): Adorama

 

Fujifilm X-T3

 

Here are the pros and cons from our full review:

Pro

• Brand new 26.1MP X-Trans CMOS 4 Sensor
• Brand new X-Processor 4 Image Processor
• Excellent weather sealing
• Very solid build quality
• Excellent image quality
• In body RAW processing with built-in film simulation profiles
• Versatile RAW files
• Amazing video capabilities
• Dual SD card slots (if your workflow requires it)

Con

• Battery life can use some improvement
• Lacks in-body image stabilization
• Low light performance is improved over the previous generation X-T2, but hit rates during high-speed low light situations still leave much to be desired

Buy now ($1,499): Adorama