The best professional camera in 2024: which pro camera system is best?

What's the best professional camera? Well, it depends on your profession! My professional work is built around portraiture, so I need a camera with high resolution and good face and eye detection. 

But a camera for sports photography will prioritize burst rates over megapixels, a camera for landscape photography will require robust weather sealing, and a camera for video will be more about codecs and compression than anything else. So check out those specific guides for your specific requirements. 

However, the best professional cameras are "unicorns" that can do everything – though they usually come with a price tag that reflects their all-around proficiency, since you can take them on almost any pro job and have the bases covered. If you want the best bang-for-buck jack of all trades, I recommend the Nikon Z8. 

Otherwise, for premium pro performance, here's my roundup of the best you can buy right now…

A 10-year commercial and editorial pro

A 10-year commercial and editorial pro

James Artaius

I started my professional photography career in 2014, shooting for clients such as Olympus (OM System), Elinchrom, L'Oréal and Aston Martin Racing, in addition to musical artists and private commissions. I'm lucky enough to have used every pro camera released since 2018, so I have a good feel for the tools of the trade!

Top Picks: Best professional camera

Best professional camera in 2024

Best camera for professional photography beginners

If you've just turned pro, or are just about to, I think the R6 Mark II is a fantastic place to begin. I believe that Canon's R system is the best platform (and the one I have personally invested in), but its top-tier cameras are very expensive. 

The R6 Mark II enables you to get started in the R system with a great jack-of-all-trades camera, and begin building your arsenal of Canon RF lenses – then, when you have the need or the finances, you can upgrade to a camera with more firepower that serves your specific needs. 

However, such are the R6 Mark II's specs, you may never need to! The 24.2MP resolution is more than enough for most needs (I've shot plenty of two-page magazine spreads, for instance), and the blistering 40fps burst shooting outclasses some of the best cameras for wildlife photography! 

The 4K HQ video is oversampled from 6K for glorious crispness, and the phenomenal Dual Pixel CMOS AF is ungodly accurate – as powerful as it is for stills shooting, it locks onto your subject and holds focus like you've got a dedicated focus puller. Throw in the incredible in-body stabilization (up to 8 stops) and you get phenomenal performance for the price.

The only asterisks are that the camera still uses SD cards (though this may be a plus, given that they're cheaper than CFexpress – but they're slower and less reliable) and there are no options for third-party autofocus lenses.  

Read my full Canon EOS R6 Mark II review

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Best Canon camera for professional photography

I was so impressed by the R5's performance that I bought one with my own money – and it's the one that I take on my professional jobs. I don't know what higher recommendation I can give than that!

So why did I buy it? First and foremost, the autofocus – it's simply the best in the business. Some people swear by Sony's AF, but Canon's system has never let me down while Sony's has. I've used it to photograph portraiture, wildlife, sports, macro… it's the most reliable AF I've ever used.

Then there's the resolution. As the first 8K camera, this changed the game for video shooting – though it does have recording limits for hi-res video (look to the Canon EOS R5C for longer record times). It also has a great party trick, as it enables you to take 35MP 8K frame grabs that are absolutely pristine. 

There are more resolution tricks, as not only does the R5 take native 45MP images – it can also take 400MP photographs using pixel shift (though you'll need a completely still scene). And it offers full-fat RAW + JPEG shooting at 20fps, something that even the amazing Nikon Z8 / Z9 can't do. 

As someone who uses Micro Four Thirds cameras, which have the most robust in-body image stabilization (thanks to the sensors being so small), I was blown away by how good the IBIS is on this camera – offering up to 8 stops of shake compensation for stills and video.

The camera has a split SD / CFexpress B memory card setup. While this makes the camera more accessible, as it can be used without investing in expensive CFexpress cards, it does mean that you can't shoot at full speed / resolution to both cards simultaneously. 

Otherwise, though, there's nothing not to love about the R5, which for my money (literally) is the best camera Canon has ever made.

Read my full Canon EOS R5 review

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Best DSLR camera for professional photography

While I can think of better DSLRs for specific purposes (the Canon EOS-1D X Mark III is superior for pure sports, for example), there's no better all-purpose DSLR than the mighty Nikon D850.

A resolution beast, offering 45.7MP stills, it's still relatively fast for a DSLR with a continuous shooting speed of 7fps (or 9fps if you purchase the optional battery grip), meaning this still a capable performer for fast action like wildlife.

The autofocus system is primitive, compared to the AI-informed AF of its mirrorless rivals (that feature cutting-edge subject detection and tracking), but what it lacks in intelligence it makes up for in robustness. The D850 may not automatically recognize every species of wildlife, but I know I can trust it once I tell it where to focus. 

While mirrorless cameras are technologically more advanced, there are advantages to DSLRs – the big one, for me, being the much better battery life. I've never had this camera run out of puff during a shoot!

It may be bigger and bulkier, but it's also more rugged and robust than mirrorless bodies – and being chunkier means that it balances better with big pro lenses, too. 

Perhaps the biggest plus is that Nikon's F mount is fully matured, meaning that every lens you could ever need already exists – and is going to be available cheaper than the mirrorless equivalent, especially on the second-hand market.

Read our full Nikon D850 review

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Best camera for professional videography

Just about any modern camera can handle a bit of video these days – and in fact, your camera phone is probably the best device for spontaneous day-to-day capture. However, if I need professional-quality video capture, the Panasonic Lumix S5 IIX is the best camera for the job. 

The fact that it offers open gate recording makes it incredibly versatile, giving you the ability to output in any number of aspect ratios as the brief dictates. Panasonic has also made an interesting choice in not getting behind 8K in the same way that its rivals have, and I can see the thinking here as 6K really is the sweet spot. 

Whether you're oversampling your 4K, or shooting with the extra resolution in order to crop in to create different compositions or digital camera moves, 6K gives you the extra pixels without the extra processing (and storage) headaches of 8K. 

The S5 IIX is also unsurpassed when it comes to compression, codecs and other output options. From Apple ProRes RAW to Blackmagic B-RAW, 4:2:2 10-bit All-Intra and LongGOP at all resolutions up to Cinema 4K, HDMI RAW output and SSD recording, as well as streaming at up to 4K 60p (via LAN, or FullHD 60P via WiFi), you won't get better unless you look at dedicated cinema cameras. 

Crucially, Panasonic has finally got the autofocus monkey off its back. This is its first camera to adopt phase detect AF – and I can't put into words just how transformative it is. Previously I could never trust a Lumix camera to reliably focus for me, but now this is a camera I can use on a shoot without having to worry about the recordings. 

Throw in dual native ISO for ultra-clean capture, and unlimited recording at all resolutions, and video doesn't get better than this.

Read our full Panasonic Lumix S5 IIX review

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Best Sony camera for professional photography

Sony has four categories of Alpha cameras, each dedicated to different needs: in addition to the A7 series targeted at enthusiasts, the A7R is for resolution (with the Sony A7R V delivering 61MP), the A7S is for video and the A9 is for speed (the Sony A9 III achieving an incredible 120fps burst rate). 

As the company's flagship camera, the Sony A1 attempts to tick all the boxes. And with its 50.1MP sensor, 8K video and 30fps bursts, I think it does an incredible job at offering all-round pro performance.

Not only does it have the richest resolution on this list, it also offers 199MP photos via the magic of pixel shift (though, like the Canon EOS R5, it requires everything to be completely still in order for the mode to work). 

It also promises 30fps shooting at full 50.1MP resolution, though there are quite a few caveats in order to achieve this (from the lens you're using to the AF mode to the file type), and in real-world use I was generally getting 15-20fps. Still impressive, just not quite what was advertised. 

Likewise, the promised 5.5 stops of in-body stabilization don't feel quite there to me. Sony has the weakest IBIS system, in my experience, and while you'll experience better performance than a completely unstabilized system, don't expect it to be on par with other manufacturers. 

There are still plenty of positives, though – such as the 8K 30p and 4K 120p video, and the hybrid CFexpress A / SD card slots, enabling you to get mirrored memory card performance whichever format you're working with. 

Sony also holds a distinct advantage over other mirrorless manufacturers in that the E-mount is the most well-established and widely supported on the market – giving you a rich range of native Sony glass, as well as bountiful options of more affordable and exotic third-party options.

Read our full Sony A1 review

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Best Nikon camera for professional photography

Nikon's most capable camera ever, there's nothing the Z9 can't do. It offers 45.7MP stills, and it can rattle them off at up to 20fps in RAW or 30fps in JPEG. And, if you're happy with 11MP images, it can also machine-gun frames at an amazing 120fps – though it should be noted that the Sony A9 III takes full-resolution 24.1MP stills at 120fps. 

What other cameras can't do, however, is give you 8K 60p video – and in fact, the Z9 is an incredible video performer all-round, offering 8- or 10-bit H.265, 10-bit Apple ProRes 4:2:2 HQ or 12-bit in-camera ProRes RAW HQ, 24-bit PCM audio, 4K 120p… and it boasts up to 2½ hours of 8K video, being largely immune to the recording constraints that hamstring its rivals.

The image stabilization is rock-solid, offering up to 6 stops of compensation with certain lenses, and it goes all-out with dual CFexpress B slots (rather than the split-formats offered by the likes of the R5) for unrestrained performance.

The integrated vertical grip is the main reason I've chosen the Z9 over the smaller, cheaper, but otherwise almost-identical Z8. In addition to the grip being far more practical for extended shooting in both horizontal and vertical orientation, it also offers better battery life – and on top of that, the larger body is also responsible for the better heat dissipation that delivers longer video recording times. 

There are cameras that exceed it in specific departments, but as al all-round professional camera there is nothing else like the Z9. 

Read my full Nikon Z9 review

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FAQs

How to choose a professional camera

Picking the best professional camera is not just about picking the one with the best or most enticing specifications. You have to look at the system as a whole, its lenses, its other models, and what is set to be released in the future. Before making a choice, it's worth asking yourself a series of questions: 

1) Are you switching from a different system? If this is the case, it's well worth looking into whether there's any potential for compatibility between your existing and new system (i.e. using lens mount adapters). ‘Migrating’ an existing system is much simpler and cheaper than starting again with a whole new setup.

2) What lenses will you need? Think about the kind of work you need and the lenses you need for it, and check whether the system you're considering can meet those needs. Lens guides can be useful here, such as our guides to the best Canon lenses or the best Nikon lenses.

3) DSLR or mirrorless? While it does sometimes feel like mirrorless is taking over the world, the best DSLR cameras do still have their advantages and some, like the Canon EOS-1D X Mark III, are breaking new ground. Read our guide to DSLR vs mirrorless cameras if you're still not sure.

4) Video vs stills? Are you shooting videos as well as stills? While both DSLRs and mirrorless cameras can and do produce excellent video, mirrorless currently has the edge here, so if the video is part of your portfolio then it's worth factoring this into consideration.

How we test cameras

I test every camera by using it in real-world shooting situations – often on professional jobs and paid commissions. When I evaluate a professional camera, I'm much stricter than I am with entry-level or intermediate models; pro cameras have to get the job done, and they have to do it quickly and to the highest standard. 

I torture test autofocus, push low light capabilities to their limits, fire frames until every last drop of charge is gone from the battery… I need to know that a professional camera won't let me down. That extends to things like general operability, ergonomics and handling, flexibility of files in post-production – every aspect of using a camera, from charging the battery before shooting to transferring the last file from a memory car afterwards.  

One my hands-on testing is complete, I pass the camera to our lab manager Ben Andrews to undergo a slew of dedicated lab tests. He evaluates camera resolution, dynamic range, and noise under scientifically controlled conditions using two key testing tools: Imatest Master and DxO Analyzer. All DSLRs and mirrorless cameras are subjected to these tests:

1. Resolution (ISO-12233): We use a resolution chart based on ISO-12233 from Applied Image inc to indicate the limit of the camera’s vertical resolution at the centre of the frame. The higher the value, the better the detail resolution.

2. Dynamic range (DxO Analyzer): This is a measure of a camera’s ability to capture detail in the highlights and shadows. We use DxO’s transmissive chart, which enables us to test a dynamic range of 13.3 stops.

3. Noise (DxO Analyzer): We use the dynamic range transmissive chart to analyze the signal-to-noise ratio for RAW and JPG files at every sensitivity setting using DxO Analyzer. A higher value means the signal is cleaner.