Must have accessories?

Aijay wrote in post #10059697
I put on on my XSi solely so I could have the same hand position for portait shots.

And that is a perfectly logical reason to get a grip. I was just pointing out that more often than not, many folks just get it to make their small less expensive cameras look more "pro like" for a lack of a better word. I should be more careful making generalizations it seems. I am sure many folks find some practical benefit to using a gripped body. To date, it has just eluded me personally.

I agree completely and guess I should have further explained. I have pretty severe arthritis in my right hand. With the standard grip, my pinky curls under the body and tightens my hand up so I end up with pain. This is from shooting, not supporting the camera.

I think we just have different viewpoints. I do agree that there are a lot of people out there that buy a grip for looks but I also firmly believe that they can make a substantial improvement. I think your statement just got me on a bad day and, as someone who has been positively impacted by a grip, I took offense. I think the truth probably lies somewhere between us.

Lens hoods if you don't have them. I have recently returned to a SLR and the most used accessories for me are, flashgun then remote and tripod.
Regards

dave421 wrote in post #10059511
Then again some people just have large hands and the standard Rebel bodies are just too small to hold comfortably for long periods of time. I have one and wouldn't part with it and could give a **** what it looks like.

DANATTHEROCK wrote in post #10059573
I am sure you believe that, but it is not why most folks get battery grips. I am 6'6" 310 lbs and I wouldn't even consider putting a battery grip on a camera. If I want a "real" camera, I will buy one.

Jon wrote in post #10059582
The secret is to hold the lens not the camera. That "grip" on the camera isn't to support it by, it's to steer it by. Try hanging onto the camera by your right hand for any length of time and you'll get a very fatigued arm, and shaky pictures. But rest the lens on your left hand and you'll be able to go all day with no problem.

there are times i go without a neck strap. carrying the rebel body all day will cramp my fingers. i do use proper technique and i don't have exceptionally large hands, either. with a grip it gives my fingers a bit more space and i can use the hand strap to give me some relief once in a while. it really does balance out the camera with a heavy lens, too.

i couldn't care less how i look, to be honest. it really is more of a comfort thing for me. personally, i'd rather give up a bit of weight (that's not noticeable, anyway) and be comfortable all day.

A good tripod is a must. You will notice an obvious difference, especially with a remote switch. It obviously also enables you to shoot at at much slower shutter speeds which is something you might want to experiment with.

As for the battery grip, I had one for each of my 5D2's for a while, and to be honest if you like shooting portraits there is an obvious physical benefit in how you can balance your arms, hence getting a more likely sharper shot. But to be honest one on each camera seemed like an added hassle, and it's quite nice having a 'lighter camera,' of the two. These days, you really don't need to worry about battery life to much if you have one or two spare. Ignore the malicious comments from those suggesting they are for people wishing their bodies look like 1D models; that's simply unhelpful; at every photocall in 2009 there were pro's with gripped 5D2's, and it obviously wasn't a concern to them 'how they looked.'

And as others have said, filters; they can work magic

Thanks for the replies. I'm thinking I'll get the battery grip, Neck Strap (the one it came with isn't very good), cable release, flash, filters, lens hoods, maybe a bigger bag to hold more than one lens in, and maybe a nice zoom lens. Obviously not getting all of these at once if I want to keep some money in the bank, but what brands do you think are best for these?

Grip: Canon or Zeikos (what I use) imo.
Neck Strap: I don't like neck straps so I've ordered a Black Rapid RS-7. Otherwise I use a hand strap
Cable release: I don't think there's any real advantage to one or the other here. A generic $10 one off ebay should work just as well as a Canon
Flash: I'm just starting here and currently using my old Canon 480 but plan to replace it soon
Filters: B&W for me but Hoya & Heliopan are also pretty highly recommended
Lens hoods: I have stock (non-Canon lenses), Canon, & Adorama
Bag: currently looking for a new one myself to replace my 15 year old Canon shoulder bag so I'm no help.

Jahled wrote in post #10063368
Ignore the malicious comments from those suggesting they are for people wishing their bodies look like 1D models; that's simply unhelpful

Unfortunately, the truth rarely is

blueicedj wrote in post #10064703
Thanks for the replies. I'm thinking I'll get the battery grip, Neck Strap (the one it came with isn't very good), cable release, flash, filters, lens hoods, maybe a bigger bag to hold more than one lens in, and maybe a nice zoom lens. Obviously not getting all of these at once if I want to keep some money in the bank, but what brands do you think are best for these?

Neck strap----------Canon makes a nice one. Much nicer than what came with my 40D

Cable release-----Canon

Filters------- Hoya HD for cpl and Singh Ray for grad nd

Lens hoods--------- from lens manufacturer

Bag--------Lowepro


B&H sells all this stuff