Canon 20D or Nikon D60?

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Pietrach

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I am currently using Fuji S9600 and want to make a step into DSLR world.
Very very limited budget allows me to consider only the cheapest cameras, but I am not willing to compromise on picture quality too much.
My research resulted in two following options:
-Canon 20D
-Nikon D60
-anything else?

Similar prices but which would you choose?
8m pixels in 20D should be enough for me so this is not a problem.

Lens... not going for a kit lens so probably would buy tamron or sigme general use lens.

Thanks for advice.
 
Pietrach said:
My research resulted in two following options:
-Canon 20D
-Nikon D60
Click to expand...
Chalk and cheese.

The Canon 20D is a semi-pro body with rugged build quality. Originally released back in 2004, so it doesn't have modern features like live view, focus micro-adjustment or video, and the LCD is small.

The Nikon D60 is an entry-level camera. It's much newer (2008), but if you're on a budget it's worth noting that it only accepts Nikon AF-S lenses, not the older (and often cheaper) AF lenses.
 
StewartR said:
Chalk and cheese.


The Nikon D60 is an entry-level camera. It's much newer (2008), but if you're on a budget it's worth noting that it only accepts Nikon AF-S lenses, not the older (and often cheaper) AF lenses.
Click to expand...

Stewart that is not quite correct, it will accept any F mount Nikon lens, however it will only auto focus with the AF-S ones.
 
The 20D is a cracking camera, some of my favourite shots have been taken with mine. FWIW You don't really need all the gimmicks.

Have you got any mates who shoot either Nikon or Canon? As if you can borrow/share lenses etc that may influence your decision.
 
I'd suggest you get them in your hand, whatever you choose.
I chose a Sony A200 first time because it fitted my hand, the Nikon and the Canon that were in my price bracket at the time felt wrong. I just decided to upgrade the other day, however the new Sony felt too small and so did the Nikon, so I went with the Canon. It means changing everything, but I'm prepared to do that so I guess I'm lucky in that regard.

If it doesn't sit right you'll probably not enjoy it as much as you otherwise would. Go with what fits.
 
Handle them, go get your hands on a an Canon xxD series camera as it will be similar to a 20D

Then forget the Nikon, its just an expensive paperweight :lol:
 
Martyn... said:
Stewart that is not quite correct, it will accept any F mount Nikon lens, however it will only auto focus with the AF-S ones.
Click to expand...
Yes, that's right, I was using a lazy (and unhelpful) shorthand.
 
My 20D never missed a beat and sits in the cupboard, just in case I ever need it....

My regular photobuddy at that time had a D70. There was nothing between the cameras in terms of image quality but the D70 was a sod to drive. she carried the manual with her full-time and we often took breaks from photographing to work out how to change fairly basic settings. My Canon was so intuitive to use I've never carried the manual and has already been pointed out if you pick up a modern Canon it hasn't really changed.

Nikon has come on a long way since then.
The D60 is a lot newer model than the 20D, but Wikipedia describes it as Lower Mid-Range.
So it'll have more features than the 20D because it is newer and less features because it is low down in the Nikon pecking order.
We need a Nikon enthusiast to tell us if there any important features the D60 leaves out.
 
I still use my 20D on many occasions when 2 bodies are useful. I would not be with out mine. Sorry I Know nothing of the Nikon's
 
Just sold my 20D as I am getting a 50D as a 2nd body but I kind of regret it, great camera, fast(5fps), reliable, well build.
Only thing I was missing was a screen larger than the 20Ds 1.8 inch one
 
D60, owned one and its an alright camera but the software gets very annoying very quickly, id have a look at the d70 or even a d80 instead
 
I get the feeling you'd outgrow the D60 pretty quickly, so I'd be tempted to look at the D80 or D200 instead of a D60, if I were you.
 
I use a 20D as my main (and only) camera.

It's brilliant, never misses a beat. If you are interested in seeing photo quality from a 20 then all the photos on my Flickr are from the 20 :)
 
i love my 20D to bits. im going to upgrade to a 1D at some point next year but will keep the 20D as a backup/gf camera.. its a proper trooper. most of my shots on my flickr are 20D.
 
I'd rather get a slightly older, but higher up in the range camera. They tend to have better construction and a bigger size overall (although some people may prefer a smaller camera) plus the 20D has a second control wheel on the back which is great.

One thing to be aware of, as the 20D is an older camera, most would have been used quite a lot, and the shutter is rated to 50,000 (if I remember correctly) so try to find one with low 'mileage.'

Image quality and ISO performance of the 20D is apparently pretty similar to the 40D (my current camera) and 8 megapixels should be plenty for most uses. I'm quite tempted to pick up a 20D as a backup if I could afford to!
 
i have had bot, and would suggest you go with the canon, the nikon feels like a toy compared, the canon feels solid, handles noise better (still not overly well), and focuses much much better, i simply missed too many rallying shots with the d60!

20d and tamron 17-50 2.8 (£300) should see you with a great starter set up!
 
Just to follow on from c_robinson, another lens you could consider is the Sigma 18-50mm f2.8, I picked mine up for around £200 used and it's on my camera most of the time. Didn't bother with a kit lens, I thought I'd buy something decent and fast (f2.8 constant) from the start!
 
If you're looking at buying a body only first then I must agree with the people who have said try out a d70 rather than a d60, I know the d70 is only 6mp but I managed to pick one up off of ebay quite recently for around £170 as a back up to my d80 (which cost £350 from ebay about a year ago) and have found it to be easy to use and handle iso better than the d80 due to the less cramped image sensor.
 
The Canon 20D has a better build, more mega pixels, more features, lenses are cheaper, more fps, the lists goes on. Theres only 2 cons with the camera. One, its quite old so its would of been used more and had more things wrong with it. Two, The LCD is very small. Theres a few more but I think there the main 2.
 
Thanks for all your help and comments.
I thing 20D is the way to go for me...if I can find a 'low mileage' for a decent money :)
 
Get the Nikon, never settle for 2nd best...:naughty:
 
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