Camera Recommendations for Photography Courses
Camera Requirements for Photography Majors and Photography Minors Fall 2024
Required: Students in the B.F.A. in Photography or the B.S in Photography program, or those who are pursuing a Minor in Photography, must have a mirrorless or DSLR camera with video capabilities. Please note that the camera industry is moving to mirrorless cameras.
The recommended camera below is readily available at a variety of retailers. is a recommended retailer. Canon USA offers refurbished cameras at a very good savings as well. Check their website for available models. We highly recommend purchasing a second battery for either Mirrorless or DSLRs.
Please note that our Photography Studio is Canon based. While you do not have to have to have a Canon camera, there is and advantage in terms of compatibility with our inventory of lenses in the Photography Studio.
Recommended Canon Cameras
- Canon EOS R8 Mirrorless Digital Camera with Canon RF 24-105mm f/4-7.1 IS STM Lens.
Recommended Nikon Cameras
- Nikon Z5 Mirrorless Camera with 24-70mm f/4 Lens and Accessories Kit.
Note: While we recommend Canon due to the inventory of accessories we have to loan to students, additional camera options from such brands as Nikon, Fuji, Sony and Olympus are just as acceptable. If you already have a DSLR or Mirrorless camera you are welcome to use it as long as it has both manual controls and video capabilities.
Lenses
We recommend the standard kit zoom lenses as a starting point. A 24-70mm or 24-105mm (for full sized sensors) or an 18-55mm (for APS-C sensors).
Memory Cards
SanDisk 32GB Extreme Pro SDHC UHS-I Memory Card (Class 10).
Required: Tripod
A tripod is requirement for photography majors. We recommend a sturdy aluminum or carbon fiber tripod like the: Manfrotto Befree Advanced Travel Aluminum Tripod with 494 Ball Head.
Required: Flash
- For Canon we specifically recommend the Yongnuo Speedlite YN600EX-RT II and a Yongnuo YN-E3-RT II Wireless Speedlite Transmitter.
- For Nikon we specifically recommend the Yongnuo YN685 Speedlite and Yongnuo YN-622N-TX i-TTL Wireless Flash Controller.
- If you have a different camera brand then we suggest you contact us for recommendations.
- is a recommended retailer. Nikon and Canon branded flash units are also acceptable (with a guide number of 100 or more).
For further information please contact:
Professor Michael Miller at 978-232-2611 or email: mmiller@endicott.edu
Professor Larry Volk at 978-232-2369 or email: lvolk@endicott.edu
Updated: May 2024
Camera Requirements for Non-Majors taking PHT 116 Introduction to Photographic Imaging
Any camera used for the PHT116 Introduction to Photographic Imaging class must have aperture priority, shutter priority and manual exposure controls. Cameras without these exposure controls will not be suitable for the class.
This is a digital based course where students will use their own digital cameras and edit images using Adobe software in our Mac Labs. Prints will be made using our state-of-the-art Epson printers in the Digital Print Lab.
Note: Cell phone and iPad “cameras” are not sufficient for this course.
Lenses
We recommend the standard kit zoom lenses. An 18-55mm (for APS-C sensors) or a 24-70mm or 24-105mm (for full sized sensors). Avoid extreme telephoto zoom lenses.
Memory Cards
Should range form 8GB to 32GB depending on the camera.
A tripod
We recommend a sturdy aluminum tripod such as the Manfrotto Befree Advanced Travel Aluminum Tripod with 494 Ball Head.
Required Drive
A Mac compatible solid-state drive or hard drive will be required for this class. We recommend a portable hard drive or solid-state drive of at least 1 Terabyte. If your computer has USB C ports then we recommend a solid-state drive with a USB C port.
For further information please contact:
Professor Michael Miller at 978-232-2611 or email: mmiller@endicott.edu
Professor Larry Volk at 978-232-2369 or email: lvolk@endicott.edu
Updated: May 2024