5d2 vs D700

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thesmileyone

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Yes, one of these threads.

I sold my D300s recently, as ive been wanting a change and switch to Canon for a while. I still have a Coolpix S8000 which is nice for day to day Photography.

I want to go FX DSLR so I was thinking of going down the canon route, everyone i know tells me canon > nikon but cant really give me a reason why. Infact some replies like on the overclockers uk forum are along the lines of "you shoot nikon, so your ****""

My main interest is going to different cities and photographing the architechture at night and day, and in the day photographing people to show the differences in fashion etc. I dont tell the people I am photographing them, so a lens like a 70-200mm will be needed.

What should I buy ?
 
thesmileyone said:
My main interest is going to different cities and photographing the architecture at night and day, and in the day photographing people to show the differences in fashion etc. I dont tell the people I am photographing them, so a lens like a 70-200mm will be needed.
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Well thats not true at all imo. Get a 35/50/85 prime for shooting during the day for your standard street stuff, then spend the money left over on a tilt shift for your architecture work. No tilt shift = funny looking leaning buildings.

Just shoot with what you're comfortable with, you can grab great images from either. I dont like the Nikon layout and aesthetically I find them to be lacking compared to the Canon range; aesthetics, a reason to buy a camera, what has the world become? ;)
 
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Canon make the best bodys, nikon make better lenses..... Swings and roundabouts, my 7d is the best bit of kit i have used ever so im completly biast for canon at present. Get to a camera show and try it out for your self .-)
 
I've had both a 5DII and a D3 (same image sensor as the D700) and to be honest, there's very little between them in terms of image quality, ISO and both have amazing selection of compatible lenses.

I shoot with a 70-200 on the D3 a lot and it's a great combo. I also shoot with wider lenses (the 14-24 being a favourite) which (forgetting the converging verticals - shoot smart) if a great landscape/architectural lens.

Did you like the layout of the D300s? Did you feel comfortable with buttons and how things worked? Why did you sell it? Do you think you'd use the video on the 5DII (honestly, I thought I would and never did!)?

Lots of questions to ask yourself. Both are great cameras, both have great selection of lenses and both will do exactly what you want, in exactly the same way, at similar costs.

It's up to you to decide which one feels more comfortable.


DB
 
Gregory Hicks said:
Canon make the best bodys, nikon make better lenses..... Swings and roundabouts, my 7d is the best bit of kit i have used ever so im completly biast for canon at present. Get to a camera show and try it out for your self .-)
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What? I think you have that arse about face
 
It comes down to this: if you want video and/or more megapixels then it's Canon. If you want a camera that is easier to use, more programmable, better af system then choose the Nikon.

The advantage the Canon has is the availability of lots of tilt/shift lenses.
 
Gregory Hicks said:
Canon make the best bodys, nikon make better lenses..... Swings and roundabouts, my 7d is the best bit of kit i have used ever so im completly biast for canon at present. Get to a camera show and try it out for your self .-)
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Really, you seriously need to get out more
 
if you're that picky then yeah, you can look at the best lens for the job
personally I would love a 5D2...big canon fan and love FF canons
then the D700, lovely camera. for FF and sports I was very impressed.
great camera, focusing and frames per second knock the spots off of the canon which is antiquated in comparison
so I actually think (as a canon fan) the D700 is more versatile of the two
also if you want good lines, look at 17mm tokina primes on the canon 5d2 to avoid converging lines quite a bit.
I would pick your lenses and your purpose and go for the body/menu system that feels best to you.
as for OCUK forums, great computer advice.and.........well keep it here for a balanced photography opinion :P
 
Gary Coyle said:
Really, you seriously need to get out more
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Was that needed, a simple i think you have that the wrong way round would have sufficed. :thumbsdown:
 
^^^
Tbh, I had to restrain myself to avoid infraction, although I'm not the most patient of folks but still...
 
I had this dilema when I bought my 5D2. I had sold off all my gear so could have went with any system. I went with canon purely because I prefer the way the camera handles and I know how they work.
 
MomentCapture said:
^^^
Tbh, I had to restrain myself to avoid infraction, although I'm not the most patient of folks but still...
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You do know this forum is called talkphotography rather than 'getirrationallyriledaboutcamerasontheinternet', right? In fact that may be a good new name for the place...
 
Given you do portraits and architecture...

The Nikon PC-E lenses are betther than the Canons IQ wise, but for versatility Canon wins - the have the 17, 24, 45, 90 where nikon have 24, 45, 85, and their 17 and 24 have tilt and shift fully independent, and they have the 50 1.2 and the 85 1.2. Nikon do have a sweet 24 1.4 however. On that basis (bodies notwithstanding) Canon edges it, but both will make you happy.
 
I had both at the same time - with equivalent 70-200 VR lens. I ended up with canon as a personal choice - High ISO and Autofocus was a Nikon win. For me the canon needed a little less processing effort to get an image I loved and my wife was into video so the 5D2 stayed and the D700 was sold.
 
Lets not turn it into a fanboy argument.

The best system for the OP is the one he likes the best.
 
menthel said:
You do know this forum is called talkphotography rather than 'getirrationallyriledaboutcamerasontheinternet', right? In fact that may be a good new name for the place...
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LOL:) like that one quite apt sometimes!!!
 
ausemmao said:
Given you do portraits and architecture...

The Nikon PC-E lenses are betther than the Canons IQ wise, but for versatility Canon wins - the have the 17, 24, 45, 90 where nikon have 24, 45, 85, and their 17 and 24 have tilt and shift fully independent...
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That's a fair point - though I'm not sure I'd agree about the IQ issues, given how good the new Canon 17mm and 24mm tilt-shifts are - but I'd take it a bit further.

One big big issue with Nikon's PC-E lenses is that, unless you're shooting with a D3, you have very basic metering facilities. Basically you need to shoot fully manual: you take your meter reading with the lens wide open, then you set the aperture to what you want, then you adjust the shutter speed accordingly. For example, the 24mm PC-E is f/3.5, so if you want to shoot at f/8 then you have to manually adjust the shutter speed by 2 1/3 stops from the metered value. It's a real pain.

The Canon TS-E lenses are fully automatic in this regard, as you'd expect.

ausemmao said:
... they [Canon] have the 50 1.2 and the 85 1.2. Nikon do have a sweet 24 1.4 however.
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The primes arena is one where Nikon have made great strides to catch up recently.

Canon: 24mm f/1.4, 35mm f/1.4, 50mm f/1.2, 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.2
Nikon: 24mm f/1.4 (new), 35mm f/1.4 (new), 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.4

I'm not sure there's any meaningful difference between the quality of the Canon primes and the Nikon primes. They're all good.
 
Both have strengths and weaknesses:

5D2 - great sensor - lots of pixels (helps when cropping) - average AF
D700 - great ISO performance - great AF - fewer pixels

In short both are great cameras. But if you shoot moving things I would lean towards the D700, if you shoot still things/studio I would lean towards the 5D2. But try both as one may just feel righter to you.

Nice position to be in !
 
You know what they both take great images - the gear we're talking about has nothing to do with the ability of the PHOTOGRAPHER to take great images.

Either of the above options would be a fantastic bit of kit. Don't get hung up on the Canon v Nikon argument cause there isn't one (although as you see above those who own will defend their own choice of brand). the differences are minor. Whilst one may have a small advantage over the other, the other is not bad in any. Canon's AF is a great system - maybe the 5D2 isn't as good as the 70 but still fine. Both great high ISO performance but only if that's how you shoot and you need it and if you don't need to crop a lot then you don't need 21Mp!

I've looked at switching a couple of times but then realise that the issue is not the camera - it's me!!!

Lenses are where the investment is and if you're photography requires a T&S style lens then decide what brand offers you the range you need and go there.

The good and bad things mentioned above also depend on how you shoot.
 
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StewartR said:
That's a fair point - though I'm not sure I'd agree about the IQ issues, given how good the new Canon 17mm and 24mm tilt-shifts are - but I'd take it a bit further.

One big big issue with Nikon's PC-E lenses is that, unless you're shooting with a D3, you have very basic metering facilities. Basically you need to shoot fully manual: you take your meter reading with the lens wide open, then you set the aperture to what you want, then you adjust the shutter speed accordingly. For example, the 24mm PC-E is f/3.5, so if you want to shoot at f/8 then you have to manually adjust the shutter speed by 2 1/3 stops from the metered value. It's a real pain.

The Canon TS-E lenses are fully automatic in this regard, as you'd expect.
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I should have been clearer. They're not night and day better, but the PC-Es do edge the TS-Es out IQ wise.
And you're not quite right on the metering thing. All the PC-Es will meter and auto adjust exposure on D3, D700, D300 and D7000 bodies. You don't need to manually adjust on these bodies (except when tilted, where the auto metering becomes inaccurate, and it does that on the Canons too). Nikon say so in the manuals, and my 24mm PC-E has been doing it on my D7000 :)

One area where they DO come short (aside the dual-axis tilt which if you have the cash you can eliminate by having 2 of each PC-E :lol:) is that on all the bodies but the D3, you don't get the full 11mm rise (though you do get fall so could hang the camera upside down) because the flash housing protrudes over the moving part of the lens.

The primes arena is one where Nikon have made great strides to catch up recently.

Canon: 24mm f/1.4, 35mm f/1.4, 50mm f/1.2, 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.2
Nikon: 24mm f/1.4 (new), 35mm f/1.4 (new), 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.4

I'm not sure there's any meaningful difference between the quality of the Canon primes and the Nikon primes. They're all good.
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Of course. but if you want to get to f1.2 with AF, only Canon do that. They're edge cases, and the OP's two interests seem to be where those edge cases might be worth considering, which makes a change from so many other threads where it makes none at all.
 
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StewartR said:
One big big issue with Nikon's PC-E lenses is that, unless you're shooting with a D3, you have very basic metering facilities.
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interesting - I know there are issues using them on lower end bodies (I think a D300 is the first body to support them but maybe wrong) because they can't use a mechanical leaver to close the aperture down (like most Nikon lenses do) so have to use an electromagnetic close down which only the higher end bodies support
 
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boyfalldown said:
interesting - I know there are issues using them on lower end bodies (I think a D300 is the first body to support them but maybe wrong) because they can't use a mechanical leaver to close the aperture down (like most Nikon lenses do) so have to use an electromagnetic close down which only the higher end bodies support
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See above :p
 
DizMatt said:
if you're that picky then yeah, you can look at the best lens for the job
personally I would love a 5D2...big canon fan and love FF canons
then the D700, lovely camera. for FF and sports I was very impressed.
great camera, focusing and frames per second knock the spots off of the canon which is antiquated in comparison
so I actually think (as a canon fan) the D700 is more versatile of the two
also if you want good lines, look at 17mm tokina primes on the canon 5d2 to avoid converging lines quite a bit.
I would pick your lenses and your purpose and go for the body/menu system that feels best to you.
as for OCUK forums, great computer advice.and.........well keep it here for a balanced photography opinion :P
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What does ocuk forum have to do with this thread?
 
I'm a 5dmk2 user and when looking at some of the nikon specs I do tend to get a little jealous sometimes. However I prefer the range of canon lenses and having a Epson 7890 the extra megapixels is a no-brainer for me.
 
escaperoo said:
I'm a 5dmk2 user and when looking at some of the nikon specs I do tend to get a little jealous sometimes. However I prefer the range of canon lenses and having a Epson 7890 the extra megapixels is a no-brainer for me.
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Why exactly are the "extra megapixels " a no brainer for you.

One of the images from my D300 has been printed as a n acrylic at 4 feet wide. Quality of the image is amazing to look at.

I have another being ordered at the same size from the D700
 
boyfalldown said:
thats not what Nikon say - but if you're using them on a d7000 its a while since I read the specs
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It is what they say.

https://nikoneurope-en.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/23974/~/pc-e-lens-compatibility

That page has the full compatibility matrix. PC-E lenses have full technical operation (they will do everything, though they may not do it fully due to physical constraints) on any body introduced after the D3. Nothing from before the D3 work completely properly with them though, which might be why you thought the D7000 wouldn't.

In any case, I'd suggest the OP goes to shops that have the Nikon and Canon tilt shift and wide aperture primes and tries them out on the 5D2 and D700, as they seem to be what they'll use the most. You'll probably have to go to different shops for each, as they're not the most commonly stocked of lenses :lol:
 
ausemmao said:
https://nikoneurope-en.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/23974/~/pc-e-lens-compatibility

That page has the full compatibility matrix. PC-E lenses have full technical operation (they will do everything, though they may not do it fully due to physical constraints) on any body introduced after the D3. Nothing from before the D3 work completely properly with them though, which might be why you thought the D7000 wouldn't.
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That's a useful link. Thanks. It explains why I thought only the D3 had full compatibility (though I should have included the D300 too). That's what the user manual for the lens says, and clearly the manual isn't updated every time they introduce a new body.
 
DizMatt said:
if you're that picky then yeah, you can look at the best lens for the job
personally I would love a 5D2...big canon fan and love FF canons
then the D700, lovely camera. for FF and sports I was very impressed.
great camera, focusing and frames per second knock the spots off of the canon which is antiquated in comparison
so I actually think (as a canon fan) the D700 is more versatile of the two
also if you want good lines, look at 17mm tokina primes on the canon 5d2 to avoid converging lines quite a bit.
I would pick your lenses and your purpose and go for the body/menu system that feels best to you.
as for OCUK forums, great computer advice.and.........well keep it here for a balanced photography opinion :P
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It was the motors sub-forum that the OP had issues with. He was given a hell of a lot of advice and help in the photography forum, sadly things all went a tad pear shaped! :shrug:
 
As a generally happy 5DII owner I've got to say I do look at the d700 a bit enviously sometimes! No point creating a thread about it though, each to their own.
 
PsiFox said:
Why exactly are the "extra megapixels " a no brainer for you.

One of the images from my D300 has been printed as a n acrylic at 4 feet wide. Quality of the image is amazing to look at.

I have another being ordered at the same size from the D700
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Well a 36" print from a 5dmk2 works out at 156 DPI. Same print from a D300 is 119 DPI. I know it doesnt sound like much and its fine for posters but its noticable on fine prints. Saying that I am a bit anal about my print quality :D
 
And many D700 owners look enviously on the 5DII! Swings and roundabouts :)
 
Gregory Hicks said:
Canon make the best bodys, nikon make better lenses..... Swings and roundabouts, my 7d is the best bit of kit i have used ever so im completly biast for canon at present. Get to a camera show and try it out for your self .-)
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:thinking: :gag:
 
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Hodders said:
Both have strengths and weaknesses:

5D2 - great sensor - lots of pixels (helps when cropping) - average AF
D700 - great ISO performance - great AF - fewer pixels

In short both are great cameras. But if you shoot moving things I would lean towards the D700, if you shoot still things/studio I would lean towards the 5D2. But try both as one may just feel righter to you.

Nice position to be in !
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That's about the best summary so far, apart from not mentioning the video on the 5D v none on the 700 (one of the biggest arguments for some people).


Otherwise, plus sides:

You already know the Nikon system and you may still have (but haven't mentioned) Nikon lenses. Don't underestimate the first part!

If I was starting afresh and was just after one all-round body then as things stand at the moment I'd be sorely tempted to go for the 700D.

The 5DMkIII is probably still several months away, but that might well shake the equation up a lot. I wouldn't factor that into my decisions though.
 
OP - how did you find the AF on your D300? Be prepared for a big departure if you move to a 5D2. Great camera in terms of resolution, IQ, ISO handling (etc) but its AF system is its achilles heel if you're used to plenty of AF points that are spread liberally around the frame. Mind you, there are a shedload of very, very good lenses to buy into with Canon that are a definite point of interest for prospective FF users....
 
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