Best Camera for Car Photography: 11 Top Picks in 2024 (2024)

Looking for the best camera for car photography? Then you’ve come to the right place!

With so many cameras to choose from, it’s easy to lose track and buy the wrong camera, something you certainly want to avoid.

With years of experience in the industry, I have concluded that the Canon R6 II is the best camera for car photography, partly due to the price and image quality.

Of course, I will also recommend beginner cameras. The Canon R50 is the best affordable camera for car photography, for example.

If you don’t know exactly what to look for, this buyer’s guide (at the bottom of this article) will help you on your way.

Let’s dive right into it!

My top picks

All cameras listed

1. Canon R6 II – Best mirrorless
2. Sony A7 IV – Best for photo & video
3. Canon R8 – Best affordable
4. Sony FX30 – Best for video
5. Canon R50 – Best for beginners
6. Fujifilm X-S20 – Best hybrid
7. Sony A6400 – Best budget
8. Sony A7R V – Best Sony
9. Canon R5 – Best Canon
10. Sony RX10 IV – Best compact
11. DJI Mini 4 Pro – Best drone

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you purchase after clicking my links. You can support me without any additional fees. Rankings are not changed because of this.

What is the best camera for car photography in 2024?

When I first started with car photography I didn’t have much of a budget, I had no less than 150 dollars to buy a camera.

I photographed with a Canon Rebel XSi for the first few years, which shows that you don’t need an expensive camera to get good at car photography.

Ultimately I looked for a new one and because I knew which kind of camera suited me (mirrorless), the choice was made quite easily.

By the way, do you know what’s worse than buying the wrong camera? That’s right, buying the wrong lens. I recommend a few car photography lenses for each camera.

These tips will help you immediately become better at car photography, and take advantage of them if you can.

Let’s get straight to the first best camera!

1. Canon R6 II

Best mirrorless camera for car photography

Outstanding features

• 24MP sensor
• 4K60p video
• Autofocus that recognizes cars
• Built-in stabilization
• 40 fps burst mode

Pros

• First, the R6 II has a 40fps burst mode and great autofocus. That means you will get sharp photos of moving cars (rolling shots), even when you just shoot for a few seconds.
• When I held the camera it was comfortable. I use big lenses (the ones I recommend), and I never felt like it was unbalanced. When you get home, your wrist won’t hurt.
• Of course, the image quality is great. I think your clients would really like the photos taken with the R6 II. The colors seem accurate and the dynamic range is also not bad (recovering shadows was easy).
• Last but not least, the pricing doesn’t seem too bad. You can spend your money on this camera AND invest in lenses, which might even be more important to good photos!

Cons

• One drawback of the R6 II is the smaller buffer. I could only shoot for 2 seconds before the buffer was full. Fortunately, using the stabilization and your steady arm, you will have plenty of sharp rolling shots!

What makes the R6 II the best?

Yes, that’s a good question to ask! Compared to the Sony A7 IV (biggest competitor), the R6 II has a much faster burst mode. That means you will get more sharp rolling shots, which ultimately are the coolest photos, don’t you think? There just aren’t many cameras that can keep up with the Canon R6 II.

The R6 II isn’t cheap, but overall, it’s the best camera for car photography. If you want a reliable camera that will create great photos for years to come, your search is over. Make sure to get the Canon R6 II now, you’ll never regret it.

Get the Canon R6 II now and get a $200 discount!

Canon lenses I recommend

I’ve owned dozens of lenses and have a few preferences for when I photograph cars. These are the lenses I recommend for the R6 II!

• Canon RF 24-70mm: Best lens for general car photography, from wide-angle to detail shots (My favorite).
• Canon RF 24-105mm: A cheaper alternative to the 24-70mm, just with a smaller aperture.
• Canon RF 50mm: Cheapest lens but offers great quality, I use it for blurry backgrounds (Also good if you want to sell a car!).

Want to know more? Read the Canon R6 II review!

2. Sony A7 IV

Best camera for car photography and video

Outstanding features

• 33 MP full-frame sensor
• 4K60p video (super35)
• 4K30p oversampled video
• 10 fps burst mode
• Built-in stabilization

Pros

• Let’s start with theimage quality, one of the most important aspects. The photos look very good, with good sharpness of course. The dynamic range is approximately 14 stops, allowing you to push the shadows and highlights in the edit.
• Unfortunately, the autofocus does not recognize cars, but you can click on the car so the camera follows it. The remarkable thing is that the A7 IVautomatically focuses on the caragain if it has been out of view for a moment.
• Ergonomically it’s not bad either, you now have anextra dialat the top to which you can link a function. Speaking of functions, the menu to adjust this has been updated, now it looks organized and more accessible.
• Finally, the A7 IV hasbuilt-in stabilization, and if you shoot videos, it also has gyro stabilization. The camera did crop with the latter, but I must say that the result is pretty good.

Cons

• I cannot only mention good aspects, that would not be fair. When you use the 10fps burst mode, you can only photograph incompressed lossy RAW, which is of lower quality thanlossless RAW.
• Personally, I don’t like thesharp cornersof the Sony A7 IV, it damages a lot faster. I prefer the design of the Canon cameras, but that is of course personal preference.

Get the Sony A7 IV now, you’ll never regret it!

Best Sony lenses for car photography

I’ve owned dozens of lenses and have a few preferences for when I photograph cars. These are the Sony lenses I recommend for the A7 IV!

• Sony FE 24-70mm: Best lens for general car photography, from wide-angle to detail shots (My favorite).
• Sony FE 24-105mm: A cheaper alternative to the 24-70mm, just with a smaller aperture.
• Sony FE 50mm: Cheapest lens but offers great quality, I use it for blurry backgrounds (Perfect for Insta!).

3. Canon R8

Best affordable camera for car photography

Outstanding features

• 24 MP full-frame sensor
• 4K60p video
• 40fps burst mode
• Deep learning autofocus
• Small & compact

Pros

• Now, I’ve already mentioned the EOS R6 II, the R8 has the same sensor. That means that theimage qualityis excellent, and you can capture loads ofdetails. Shooting a car with lots of carbon fiber? No problem, you will see the details.
• Itscompact sizeandlightweightmake it easy to carry around. It fits in my camera bag without any problem and I didn’t have any problems shooting with the R8 for hours. For me, weight is an essential aspect of a camera for car photography, so the R8 scores lots of points here.
• All thebuttonsare pretty much in theright place, it’s easy to change the settings and I didn’t need to search for any buttons or dials. One thing I would change is the AF-on button which is placed in an awkward position.
• Last but not least, the40fps burst modeis more than fast enough to capture some rollers. I have shot rollers with 5fps, so this aspect is also one of the best for cars.

Cons

• As it’s the best budget camera for car photography, there are somedownsides. I can’t only mention positive things. Firstly, thebuffer fills up rather quicklywhen shooting at the 40fps mode. You can shoot 70 images before the camera starts to slow down. With the 6fps mode, you don’t have any problem.
• The R8 alsodoesn’t have in-body stabilization, which the R6 II does have. I found the IBIS to be extremely helpful when shooting rollers, so take this into account.

Get the Sony A7 IV now, you’ll never regret it!

Canon lenses I recommend

I’ve owned dozens of lenses and have a few preferences for when I photograph cars. These are the Canon lenses I recommend for the R8!

• Canon RF 24-70mm: Best lens for general car photography, from wide-angle to detail shots (My favorite).
• Canon RF 24-105mm: A cheaper alternative to the 24-70mm, just with a smaller aperture.
• Canon RF 50mm: Cheapest lens but offers great quality, I use it for blurry backgrounds (Perfect for Insta!).

4. Sony FX30

Best camera for car videography

Outstanding features

• 26 MP sensor
• 4K120p
• 4K24/30/60 oversampled
• Built-in stabilization
• 10fps burst mode
• Fast & reliable autofocus

Pros

• So firstly, theimage qualityis great. The colors are popping and if you’re shooting in S-Log3 or S-Cinetone, you will get cinematic results. I have to say that the videos out of camera arenot a finished product, you will need to refine and edit them.
• As already mentioned, you can shoot up to 4K120p which means you’re guaranteed to get somebuttery smooth videosof cars. I like to shoot slow-motion when the car isn’t moving, as the motion blur doesn’t matter too much.
• When you decide to shoot at 4K24p, 30p, or 60p, the FX30 willoversample from 7K video. That means the quality will be even better, with improved sharpness and less noise. I like to shoot 24p when taking rollers, as the motion blur is the most natural that way.
• It’s alightweightandcompactcamera, but not too small. You can comfortably handheld the FX30 and putting it on a gimbal will be a piece of cake.

Cons

• There isn’t a camera withoutdownsides, as does the FX30. When you’re shooting at 4K120p, the camera will crop. Your (already) 1.5x crop will get a 1.19x crop op top. Something to be aware of.

Get the Sony FX30 now, you’ll never regret it!

Sony lenses I recommend

I’ve owned dozens of lenses and have a few preferences for when I film cars. These are the Sony lenses I recommend for the FX30!

• Sony FE 24-70mm: Best lens for general car videography, from wide-angle to detail shots (My favorite).
• Sony FE 24-105mm: A cheaper alternative to the 24-70mm, just with a smaller aperture.
• Sony FE 50mm: Cheapest lens but offers great quality, I use it for blurry backgrounds (Perfect for Insta!).

5. Canon R50

Best beginner camera for car photography

Outstanding features

• 24MP APS-C sensor
• 4K30p video
• 15fps burst mode
• Deep learning autofocus
• Smallest RF camera

Pros

• So this is actually the best beginner camera, as I mentioned. Theimage qualityis great, in 2024 almost all cameras have acceptable quality and the R50 is no different. The colors seem vibrant and even straight out of the camera the images are fine.
• It’s thesmallest Canon RF camera, which is a huge pro for me. I like smaller cameras, as I don’t want to be tired after one hour of shooting. My pinky doesn’t hold the camera, which is also a bit annoying to me, but that is to be expected.
• For rolling shots, theburstshould be relatively fast. On the R50, it is fast. With a 15fps burst you can capture any action, like rolling shots. Even without stabilization, you will have keepers.
• Theuser interfaceis aimed at the beginner, which means it shows you how certain settings change the image. If you’ve never shot with a mirrorless camera, this one is for you!

Cons

• If you like taking rolling shots or moving car photos, keep in mind that thebuffer is small. You can take about 7 RAW photos or 40 JPEG images. The latter is perfectly usable for rolling shots of cars.
• Unfortunately, Canon doesn’t allow third-party manufacturers to make lenses, which means some alternatives are cheaper.

Get the Canon R50 now and get a $100 discount!

Canon lenses I recommend

I’ve owned dozens of lenses and have a few preferences for when I photograph cars. These are the Canon lenses I recommend for the R50!

• Canon RF 24-70mm: Best lens for general car photography, from wide-angle to detail shots (My favorite).
• Canon RF 24-105mm: A cheaper alternative to the 24-70mm, just with a smaller aperture.
• Canon RF 50mm: Cheapest lens but offers great quality, I use it for blurry backgrounds (Perfect for Insta!).

6. Fujifilm X-S20

Best hybrid camera for car photography

Outstanding features

• 26MP sensor
• 6.2K video
• Built-in stabilization
• 30fps burst mode
• FHD240p slow motion

Pros

• I would say that thesensor is slightly betterthan most cameras on the list, at least APS-C sensors. With the 26 MP resolution, you can capture even more details than the competition.
• Fujifilm took a step forward inautofocuscapabilities, with all the AI features in other cameras, they couldn’t stay behind. It can recognize cars, and as you’re looking for the best car photography camera, that is an important aspect.
• The XS20 is a hybrid camera, so it’s not only photo-side first, but thevideo specs are great as well. You can shoot up to 6.2K30p, which I would be using almost all the time. It allows you to crop certain videos so it better fits Instagram Reels or TikTok. Just keep this feature in mind as you’re choosing a camera.
• As one of the few APS-C cameras, the XS20 does havein-body stabilizationwhich will help tremendously when shooting or filming videos of moving cars.
• Last but not least, the XS20 is a prettyaffordable camerafor car photography. It is not as cheap as the R50, but for the specs, I would even consider this camera myself.

Cons

• There is one downside of the XS20 that I want to mention, it is the fact that it’s not as good inlow lightas the full-frame competitors (R8). If you’re planning to shoot car meets late at night, you might want to consider a full-frame body.

Get the Fujifilm X-S20 now, you’ll never regret it!

Fujifilm lenses I recommend

I’ve owned dozens of lenses and have a few preferences for when I photograph cars. These are the Fujifilm lenses I recommend for the X-S20!

• Fujifilm 16-55mm: Best lens for general car photography, from wide-angle to detail shots (My favorite).
• Fujifilm 16-80mm: A cheaper alternative to the 16-55mm, just with a smaller aperture.
• Fujifilm 35mm: Cheapest lens but offers great quality, I use it for blurry backgrounds (Perfect for Insta!).

7. Sony A6400

Best budget camera for car photography

Outstanding features

• 24MP sensor
• 4K30p video
• 11 fps burst mode
• Small and lightweight
• Lots of affordable lenses

Pros

• The A6400 is an immensely popular camera, as I already expected. It isaffordable, costing less than $1000, and most people can grab one. Thelenses are also cheap, with hundreds of Sony lenses and third-party lenses available.
• It has agreat sensor, while it is an APS-C-sized sensor, it provides great detail and accurate colors. This is one of the reasons the A6400 is so popular, for the price it over-delivers.
• With asmall bodylike that, you can practically always take it with you and shoot for hours. If I use heavy cameras, my arm gets tired a lot quicker. Didn’t have any problem with lighter and smaller cameras, so that’s why I think it’s important.

Cons

• If you like to shoot in darker conditions, like a car meet or anything like that,you will see noisequickly. So you have to either invest in expensive glass or choose a better camera, which is much more expensive.

Get the Sony A6400 now and get a $150 discount!

Sony lenses I recommend

I’ve owned dozens of lenses and have a few preferences for when I photograph cars. These are the Sony A6000 lenses I recommend!

• Sony E 16-55mm: Best lens for general car photography, from wide-angle to detail shots (My favorite).
• Sony E 18-105mm: A cheaper alternative to the 16-55mm, just with a smaller aperture.
• Sony FE 50mm: Cheapest lens but offers great quality, I use it for blurry backgrounds (Perfect for Insta!).

8. Sony A7R V

Best Sony camera for car photography

Outstanding features

• 61MP sensor
• 8K24p video
• AI processing unit
• Deep learning autofocus
• 10 fps burst mode
• Built-in stabilization

Pros

• What is there to not like about the A7R V? I mean, it is the best Sony camera after all. I will share some of the main aspects that make it a great choice for car photography. First, thesensor is outstanding, with 61 million pixels, you will be able to see all the spots of dust on the paint, wait that’s not too positive…
• Next up, this is the first Sony camera with adedicated AI unit, which can recognize many subjects, including cars. It works perfectly fine, we’re not shooting some crazy action movie, but it’s nice to have.
• You’re not limited byvideo specs, as you can shoot up to 8K internally, it’s hard to even comprehend the file sizes it would produce, so you better get some goodCF-Express cards.

Cons

• Although the resolution is high,you will see all the dust spotson any surface, which doesn’t come to mind when you buy the camera.Storagefor the A7R V isexpensive, especially since you need a lot of storage. CF-Express type A can be hundreds of dollars,this one for example.

Get the Sony A7R V now and get a $60 discount!

Sony lenses I recommend

I’ve owned dozens of lenses and have a few preferences for when I photograph cars. These are the Sony lenses I recommend for the A7R V!

• Sony FE 24-70mm: Best lens for general car photography, from wide-angle to detail shots (My favorite).
• Sony FE 24-105mm: A cheaper alternative to the 24-70mm, just with a smaller aperture.
• Sony FE 50mm: Cheapest lens but offers great quality, I use it for blurry backgrounds (Perfect for Insta!).

9. Canon R5

Best Canon camera for car photography

Outstanding features

• 45 MP full-frame sensor
• 8K RAW video
• 4K120p slow motion
• 20fps burst mode
• Deep learning autofocus

Pros

• I talked a bit aboutergonomics, the R5 feels a lot like the Canon R6 II. In fact, they’re so similar, that I didn’t notice a difference apart from the top screen. Buttons are well-placed and it feels like a camera you would pay a lot for. Funny enough, you do pay a lot for it.
• Image quality-wise, it’s even better than all of the cameras mentioned above. If you’re planning to print anything, the R5 is worth it. If you have a photo you’re proud of, make sure to print that one. It’s not nearly the same as viewing it on a screen.
• Getting back to the essence of the article, theautofocus is the bestI’ve experienced. Even though we’re not shooting sports, the R5 recognizes cars and flawlessly keeps them in focus.
• Have I mentioned theburst mode? I don’t think so. The R5 can shoot up to 20 frames a second, but I prefer to use the mechanical shutter to prevent any rolling shutter. For rollers, you can shoot up to 12 fps that way!

Cons

• There is one major downside to the R5, which is the video side. It says 8K RAW and so forth, but that mode is barely usable asthe camera overheats quickly. Make sure to use anexternal recorderor just deal with the overheating.

Get the Canon R5 now and get a $400 discount!

Canon lenses I recommend

I’ve owned dozens of lenses and have a few preferences for when I photograph cars. These are the Canon lenses I recommend for the R5!

• Canon RF 24-70mm: Best lens for general car photography, from wide-angle to detail shots (My favorite).
• Canon RF 24-105mm: A cheaper alternative to the 24-70mm, just with a smaller aperture.
• Canon RF 50mm: Cheapest lens but offers great quality, I use it for blurry backgrounds (Perfect for Insta!).

10. Sony RX10 IV

Best compact camera for car photography

Outstanding features

• 20 MP sensor
• 4K30p video
• Stabilization
• 0.03 seconds autofocus
• 24 fps burst mode

Pros

• I’ve mentioned some of the aspects of the RX10 IV, but I didn’t mention thesensor and resolution. It has a 20 MP sensor, which doesn’t seem like much on the surface, but you don’t need any higher if you’re shooting for Instagram.
• Autofocus-wise, it is incredibly fast, perhaps faster than most cameras on the list. Unfortunately, the RX10 IV does not have any fancy tracking, but by using the center point, you will have sharp photos.
• Theimages are tack-sharpif you have focused correctly. It has a Zeiss lens, we know Zeiss creates high-quality glass. From 24mm all the way to 600mm, you have great contrast and sharpness.
• With the 24-600mm zoom range, you can get bothwide shotsof multiple cars, for example, anddetail shotsfrom a logo of carbon fiber pattern.

Cons

• You shouldn’t compare the RX10 IV with any full-frame sensor camera, because the quality isn’t nearly as crisp. If you shoot in dark environments, the RX10 IV is not for you. It generates quitea lot of noiseat higher ISOs.

Get the Sony RX10 IV now, you’ll never regret it!

11. DJI Mini 4 Pro

Best drone for car photography

Outstanding features

• 48 MP RAW photos
• 4K60p HDR video
• FHD100fps slow-motion
• 3x digital zoom in 4K
• 10-bit D-Log
• Activetrack

Pros

• There are again countless things I could talk about, it is something different than usual, so I find it exciting. The sensor is a 1/1.3 inch, which is not the largest, but for a drone for this price, it is great. It providesgood image qualityin both photo and video, with vivid colors and a high dynamic range.
• With a weight of249 grams, you don’t need any license and you can just fly straight away. Although it is lightweight, the Mini 4 pro doesn’t struggle with strong winds and it fits in my camera bag without hassle.
• The special thing about this drone is theresolution, I don’t recommend any other Mini drone, other than the Mini 3 Pro, because these two are48 MP. All the others are 12 MP, which isn’t enough for my liking.
• If you get theFly Morecombo kit, you can fly up to1.5 hours, provided you swap out the battery every so often. Time flies, just like the drone, when you’re playing around, speaking from personal experience. So I think this is an essential kit to have with the Mini 4 Pro.

Cons

• It is a 1/1.3-inch sensor, which isn’t the largest. Add to the fact that it has a 48 MP resolution and you would know that it isn’t perfect in dark conditions. If you’re taking photos, you can use a longer shutter, but for video, I wouldn’t shoot in the dark.

Get the DJI Mini 4 Pro now, you’ll never regret it!

Buyer’s guide: Car photography camera

Image quality

Autofocus

Dynamic range

Built-in stabilization

Burst mode & Buffer

This is also an essential point to be able to work quickly. Especially during rolling shots, you want to take as many photos as possible in a short time, so you have the best chance of sharp photos. It wouldn’t be helpful if your buffer is full after two seconds, so make sure the burst mode is fast enough (5+ fps) and you have a large buffer (75+ photos) for car photography.

Design

Best camera for car photography – FAQ

What kind of cameras are best for car photography?

What is the best camera mode for shooting cars?

What lens should I use for car photography?

Is a mirrorless camera better than DLSR for car photography?

Overall,mirrorless cameras tend to be better for car photography than DSLR cameras. They are smaller, lighter, and have many more features. Older DSLRs seem to lack a lot of autofocus and video features, they don’t have 4K video (most of them) and lack intelligent autofocus algorithms.

What is the best autofocus mode for car photography?

How many megapixels is enough for car photography?

Is a tripod necessary for car photography?

A tripod is not necessary for car photography, but it can help to get better images. Most of the time I use my tripod in conditions when there is little light. I also use my tripod when I want to use two exposures with the CPL twisted.Here is an explanation for that technique.

Conclusion

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Who is Sebastiaan?

Hi! I am Sebastiaan, the writer of this blog. With years of experience as a professional photographer, I want to share my expertise with you. From recommending cameras and lenses to giving tips that make a world of difference, that’s what I enjoy doing most.

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