So after much debate I decided to have the new Camaro professionally painted and done right the first time instead of me botching the paint job. So know my question is, to save some money, I would like to do most of the body work myself which I have some experience, in no stretch of the imagination a professional, but I have some experience. I need to know what would be better since I an changing colors - Take it down to bare metal - It has a few rust spots that need some attention (I am a 3M employee so the cost of bondo, sandpaper, fiberglass etc. is of absolutely no significance sine I get a ginormous discount) or should I just sand it smooth and give the rust spots a little attention and let them take care of the rest. I do not know anyone that works at a body shop and I know times are tuff so if I ask they will say just bring it in and we will take care of it. Any help would be greatly appreciated I can post pics if they will help just let me know

You might want to check around before you start doing anything to the vehicle. Most bodyshops will not paint a vehicle unless they perform all the body/repair work themselves.

My cousin is the Mechanic at a body shop they said they would paint it even after I do the body work but they didnt give any real specifics on what I should do and its hard to get someone on the phone long enough to explain anything

Changing color is no small task. You have a lot of work to do if this is going to look nice. think about the Door jambs, and underhood areas...

Surface Preparation is 95% of the battle in making a paint job look good. Poor surface preparation can not be hidden by a coat of paint. Paint just amplifies the surface preparation flaws. Fixing bad body work just doubles the effort...

I personally would get a quote from the shop. If you figure your time + materials + mistakes + tools I bet you'll find that the body shop may be the better/cheaper solution...

As a general rule, I never bring a car to the metal if the substrate is still intact and in good shape. First you will need to wash the car completely, and then go over it with a wax and degreaser product. Then begin to mechanically etch the surface on all the paint areas that have good adhesion and no appearance of rust. A red or green scotchbrite pad is usually sufficient, use it till you see the scratches on the substrate. A DA sander can be overkill for a beginner. All you need is sufficient surface agitation to allow the primer sealer to adhere.

Any area that is rusted should be brought down to bare metal with either a wire wheel or a dual action sander, feathering the edges outwards to blend into the surrounding with finer grits. 80/150/220 grit is usually sufficient here.

Use a metal conditioner product immediately on any bare metal after sanding to protect against more rust forming. After metal conditioner you would apply putty or lightweight body filler to the area. When sanding lightweight filler always sand on the diagonal, never straight. if you look at a clock, sand on the diagonal from 10 o'clock to 4 o'clock one way, then 2 o'clock to 7o'clock the other way.

Tools:
You will need things like a 2" rubber squeegee, a soft hand sanding pad, various hand sanding blocks (longer the better, 16", 12", 8" are good, and a da sander. Air or electric as you choose. you will also need a set of putty knives for spreading plastic body filler.

Materials:
you will want to buy wax/degreasing and bare metal conditioner products and have a good supply of tack cloths and shop rags/towels. I use a 2 part glazing compound and rage lightweight body filler because they dont shrink and sand nice. For larger repair areas you might need fiberglass reinforced filler if there is significant damage. If you metal condition bare spots you can hold off priming somewhat if the area is kept dry...
Then youll need primer surfacer and possibly sealing materials. Its usually best to seal the whole car after body work is complete if you are changing the color.

Always try to prime anything you bring to the metal ASAP after metal conditioning it. Make sure you know ahead of time what kind of paint the shop you will use uses. I personally use urethane whenever possible. lacquer based products are not desirable and may not be used under some products, so be careful and check first. I usually do a days worth of body work and finish up the last half hour by spraying any bare spots at the end of the day.

That is good advise it would really suck to do all that work to save money to find out that it will actually cost me more money. I think I will just take it in and see what they will charge for everything I just hope it isn't over 2 grand that is what I am looking at spending