Photographically speaking anyway. If you have ever attended any of our classes you have heard me say this at one point or another. What does it mean?
In today's world of digital photography the DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera is king. Unfortunately, those that purchase one of these modern marvels will see it replaced with the latest greatest model in about 18 months or so. Cameras like computers are advancing very quickly. Remember when computers had 386 processors? Then 486 then Pentium. . . today you can't even give a 386 machine away.So goes it with the digital cameras. Remember the Sony 1.4 megapixel floppy disk camera that every real estate agent owned. It cost $1500 when it was released. Today they are nothing more than paperweights on that same real estate agents desk.
In a few years that new camera you just bought will have the same problem. Don't believe it's true? Well consider this; in 2002 our company invested $1500 in a 3 mega pixel camera that had software which interpolated the image to a 6 mega pixel image. It was the latest greatest DSLR on the market. Today 6 years later or just 3, 18 month cycles later Canon has a 22 mega pixel DSLR and Nikon has a rumored 24+ on the way. If you are a pro, just keeping up with the camera bodies being offered is a full time job.
Lenses on the other hand, stand the test of time. Let's say you run out and buy one of the latest greatest cameras and it costs you 2 or 3 or even $7000. If you put a low end lens on that camera, you will get low end pictures. If you reverse this example however, you images will be just a ton better. Why? Well if you think about it, putting a low end lens on your high end camera is like putting a pair of $20 magnifying glasses on a fighter pilot. The glasses might have the same basic skills as a pair of high quality prescription glasses but without being able to see their instrument or the runway, I don't think I would fly with em'. 
When we first entered the digital world, we used the Nikon lenses we had used on our film cameras. One of our lenses was made in 1972, well before the digital age of photography. We retired that lens in 2005 when we replaced it with the "new fangled" auto focus digital lens of the same focal length. The only reason we replaced it was that it had finally stopped working. After 33 yrs. of service!
The moral to the last story is that beyond a doubt, the investment in the higher end lenses early on was worth it. When we bought our new replacement lens it cost us nearly $1000, we know though that we will get great quality images out of it for years to come. When you break down the cost of our new lens and put it on a potential 33yr schedule, the cost of the lens is just $ .08 cents per day.Try getting that from your old Sony digtial camera.
In that same amount of time we changed camera bodies 7 times. If that isn’t enough to convince you to buy the best glass possible, I don't know what is.
There is one unanswered question out there though. Can't you get 3rd party lenses that are just as good as the manufacturers? The answer is almost as good. Companies like Sigma and Tamron, make lenses that fit a variety of camera models. These lenses will fit your camera and have the same lengths and similar aperture settings etc. They will in most cases though, have limited differences that will not be up to the standard of the manufacturer. Just because the lens fits, it doesn't mean it is the same.
Manufacturers like Nikon & Canon hold back certain functionality when they allow 3rd party compatibility with their products. Generally the manufacturer’s lenses will have advanced features you won't find on the 3rd party brands. Features like, the ability to access specialized functions relating to coordinated exposure compensation by the camera. In addition a 3rd party vendor will not have tested their lens as thoroughly with all of the potential camera combinations the way a manufacturer will either. Leading to that "one lens for all" sense with their products. They may also be using a lower quality of glass and plastic casings and moving parts as opposed to metal or carbon composites like the manufacturer.
When it comes to 3rd party lenses and the lower cost you will pay for them... well you get what you pay for. Frankly for our money, we will stick with the manufacturer lenses for functionality and durability.The bottom line here is this; if you want the best possible results you should do the same. Camera's will come and go, especially when it comes to digital photography remember Glass is God.
-Aloha
