Canon Vs Nikon

I hoped this wasn't going to be the standard Canon v Nikon thread but I keep seeing from the Canon fan boys that L lenses are better value...... :razz:. As a Nikon man looking at some top draw lenses 24-70 2.8, 70-200 2.8, 300 2.8 the prices compared to the Canon(Warehouseexpress) don't show that at all.


Lets keep it simple and stick to why you chose unless you are one of the very few who have experience of both.
 
Flash In The Pan said:
Not really, Nikon ergonomics are widely acknowledged to be superior to Canon's. You can't really compare a prosumer D700 with a pro 1Ds and anyway you seem to be confusing ergonomics with what feels "natural" to you, as someone who shoots only Canon....
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It's not about it feeling natural it's the fact that after a mere 30 seconds of holding and using it my hand felt uncomfortable. My boss's D60 also feels weird in my hands. I have not held a Canon yet that made me feel like that, even the consumer body 450D which I used to own.

It's the positioning of the dials that bothers me most. The nikon rear jog wheel, in order to use it, puts my thumb in a really awkward place. My thumb rests naturally on the rear jog wheel of a Canon, and on the front jog wheel nicely too.

There is nothing ergonomical about using a camera that is uncomfortable to hold for me, and you're the first person to tell me that Nikon ergonomics are widely regarded superior to Canon :shrug: Surely if that was the case, anyone who advises people to 'feel' different cameras is wrong and should just be saying 'buy a Nikon'?
 
In the days of film I had a Pentax my better half bought me. When changing to digital I decided to go with Nikon and bought a two lens D40 kit. Unfortunately it died after a few months and I was lucky enough to get a full refund. At the time you could get some great deals on a Canon 40D and as I hadn't invested too much in Nikon kit I changed to Canon, persuaded partly by the problems with my Nikon and partly by the very encouraging salesman in the shop.

To be honest I think it's all down to personal preference and I couldn't say one brand is better overall than the other. Every model and every lens, by all the manufacturers, has it's pros and cons. For me it's whatever you feel happiest with.
 
tpd said:
I am not looking for a Canon Vs Nikon debate but am very curious to find out why people choose the make of camera they use.
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Hi,

If you would rather not have a Canon VS Nikon debate then I'd recommend changing your thread title 'Canon VS Nikon'. :)

Maybe something like 'What Brand & Why?', 'What's Yer Poison?' or 'Which Camera System?' etc.

It probably won't stop the folk who won't accept differing opinions but it might help to keep the topic on the tracks you originally intended it to follow. :)
 
I opted for canon when the 300d come out and been with them ever since and never found a good reason the change.
 
Started of with Minolta....

Moved to Canon but seem to always let me down and malfunction..
Tried Nikon but was never completely comfortable with them....

Now with Sony as I still have glass from my Minolta days and they just work better for me...
 
Zenith, Cosina, then I was asked to contribute to a specialist hobby magazine . . . In those day, Nikon were tops, so it was an F601, I did look at others, but as a spectacle wearer, Nikon had the better view finder. That was back in the early 90's.

So one has been loyal to the brand . . . Frankly, for my simple basic usage these days, anything would do? At my level, its got little to do with the camera, and more about who is behind it, lens choice, and cost. No need to spend 'zillions', I have no desire to impress anyone with the hardware. I'm very happy with my D5000, Nikon 18-70, Nikon f1.8 50mm and a Sigma APO HSM 70-300.

In a 'Nutshell', "I choose Nikon for always having served me well".

CJS
 
I bought Canon when I moved to autofocus back in 1996. Before then I had used Olympus SLRs but Olympus did not have an AF option so it was a straight choice between Canon and Nikon.

I acquired some reasonable (although not stunning lenses) so when the time came to switch to digital, the EOS 10D was the obvious choice. At that time (and this isn't a dig but my opinion at the time) the Canons were significantly better value for money than the Nikons in digital.

I've then moved through 10D-1DII-5D-1DsII-1DIV and stayed with Canon all the way through. Before investing in the 1DIV, I did look at swapping to Nikon and get quotes but the costs, with 2 big primes, were too much. Plus, there is no equivalent Nikon to the lightweight and versatile 400 f/4DO from Canon.

So, I'm still here and think I made the right choice for what I shoot and for what I want.
 
I'd say I chose Canon mostly based on price and reviews of the time. My first dslr was a 40D and most of the reviews I read favoured it over the competition.

I'm not a pro but if I were chosing now I'd base my decision on glass as nikon & canon seem to play a game of leapfrog with their camera bodies.
 
Well we have just had a Mac v PC debate........

I think that Badger Cameras are the best :thumbs:
 
You know how '***' and '***' come up in *'s can we have canon vs nikon as ***** ** ***** ?!
 
Flash In The Pan said:
Ergonomics - Nikon know how to do them, Canon don't. Doesn't matter how many mega-pixies the camera has or how cheap it is, if it doesn't feel comfortable to use then it'll just sit in a drawer gathering dust.....
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Handling is a bit subjective though. In contrast to yourself I much preferred the handling of the Canon 350D over the Nikon (D50 if I recall correctly). One of the main reasons I bought into Canon.
 
trencheel303 said:
It's not about it feeling natural it's the fact that after a mere 30 seconds of holding and using it my hand felt uncomfortable. My boss's D60 also feels weird in my hands. I have not held a Canon yet that made me feel like that, even the consumer body 450D which I used to own.

It's the positioning of the dials that bothers me most. The nikon rear jog wheel, in order to use it, puts my thumb in a really awkward place. My thumb rests naturally on the rear jog wheel of a Canon, and on the front jog wheel nicely too.
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To be honest I used to say that too but it did not stop me buying 2 D700's. :thinking: I've just had to learn how to use them and yes they ARE different at first. I've had to think where things are but actually now I've settled down with them I'm quite liking that I can change most things on the fly without having to press two buttons at once or delve into menus. Most of the functions you will ever need on a Nikon are on a dial or button somewhere on the body. That can certainly feel a little odd for a while but once you get used to them there are certain advantages in being able to change parameters quickly. I'm just loving the build quality of the D700's too. Coming from 1Ds I was expecting them to feel somehow less robust but they are chunky little monsters and I'm certainly not disappointed.
 
AliB said:
To be honest I used to say that too but it did not stop me buying 2 D700's. :thinking: I've just had to learn how to use them and yes they ARE different at first. I've had to think where things are but actually now I've settled down with them I'm quite liking that I can change most things on the fly without having to press two buttons at once or delve into menus. Most of the functions you will ever need on a Nikon are on a dial or button somewhere on the body. That can certainly feel a little odd for a while but once you get used to them there are certain advantages in being able to change parameters quickly. I'm just loving the build quality of the D700's too. Coming from 1Ds I was expecting them to feel somehow less robust but they are chunky little monsters and I'm certainly not disappointed.
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I will give you grace in that simple things like changing ISO on my 1Ds is a bit of a sprackle as I have to press two buttons... also it is the original 1Ds from 2003 so I suspect Canon have improved it somewhat in recent times... if not oh well :lol: Having said that, using two buttons is a bit of a sprackle but it doesn't make the camera feel uncomfortable in my hands like the Nikon did.

If there was a D3 in the shop I would have tried it too so perhaps I would have thought differently. As far as I know though, the rear dial is in the same position and my thumb says 'no' to that...
 
Changing from Canon to Nikon the bloody lens mounting is a nightmare:bang:

For me Canon are now to plasticy
 
Canon and Nikon have been supplying the needs of pro photoraphers - and producing flasgship models specifically to cater for pros- longer than any other manufacturers out there. Thats not a dig at other makes, it's a simple fact and it's reflected in the huge range of lenses and specialist equipment which both provide It's a fiercely competitive market in which both Nikon and Canon take feedback from pro users very seriously and are constantly incorporating this feedback into improvemnents in camera handling. This feedback results in improvements to top end bodies which also finds it's way into lesser bodies in their respective ranges.

The result is a superb handling camera whichever you go for despite minor differences in the way each maker chooses to do certain things.

I shot with Nikon film gear for years before making the swap to digital. At that time the Canon 10D and later the 20D were the bodies to go for and that's the direction I went, but I could easily have gone with either. There's no denying that at around that time Nikon had taken their eye off the ball and allowed Canon to steal a huge advantage in terms of low noise. They've since put that right with a vengeance and it's good to see because the continued competition between these two giants is to all our benefits.

I can understand newbies asking 'Canon or Nikon' but anyone with any experience at all knows full well, or should do, that they'd be just as well served by either marque, and if you really think that a change of brand is going to improve your photography then you need some serious help because your whole approach is wrong from the outset. ;)
 
CT said:
I can understand newbies asking 'Canon or Nikon' but anyone with any experience at all knows full well, or should do, that they'd be just as well served by either marque, and if you really think that a change of brand is going to improve your photography then you need some serious help because your whole approach is wrong from the outset. ;)
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:thumbs:
 
I agree at the more consumer end of the market CT but there are some differences with some genres where one brand is stronger than the other. If I were shooting wildlife I'd be shooting it on a Canon. For what I do shoot, I can shoot it better on the Nikon's, that's why I changed, not because I think there is some magic involved that is going to make my photography better but because I found exactly the performance I wanted in a camera and it happened to have a Nikon badge on it. The change has done me a lot of good although it has also been painful having to go back to checking and double checking what I'm doing rather than just doing it almost unconciously. I now have complete confidence that my kit can cope with whatever gets thrown at us which I did not have last year, now the limiting factor is me! ;)
 
I used Canon from the early 80s when I saved up holiday money to buy a Canon AE-1 and progressed to digital in 2003 with a used Canon D30 then 20D and 1D, but switched to Nikon in 2006 when I used a D2X and realised it and the 17-55mm f2.8 was the best combo I'd ever used and suited my needs better than the Canon line-up. I've been fully invested in Nikon ever since and prefer the ergonomics of the Nikon bodies to the Canon ones.
 
AliB said:
I agree at the more consumer end of the market CT but there are some differences with some genres where one brand is stronger than the other. If I were shooting wildlife I'd be shooting it on a Canon. For what I do shoot, I can shoot it better on the Nikon's, that's why I changed, not because I think there is some magic involved that is going to make my photography better but because I found exactly the performance I wanted in a camera and it happened to have a Nikon badge on it. The change has done me a lot of good although it has also been painful having to go back to checking and double checking what I'm doing rather than just doing it almost unconciously. I now have complete confidence that my kit can cope with whatever gets thrown at us which I did not have last year, now the limiting factor is me! ;)
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If high ISO and noise is your prime consideration Ali, then I accept you've probably made the right choice for you with the present state of play. Whether the present situation stays the same even over the next couple of years though, only time will tell. Are you going to change horses again if that happens?

The limiting factor with my photography has always been me. :D
 
I went with Nikon for loads of reasons! Happy to share:

- Nikon have been at or near the top of the SLR game for a good deal longer. They have a lot of experience doing this.
- Nikon's design aesthetic is more appealing to me - less bulges/curves and more clean lines.
- Canon just can't design a camera that feels as sturdy and comfortable in my hand as Nikon can. My entry-level D60 feels more ergonomically designed than the best Canons I have handled.
- When looking at entry-level DSLR reviews a year and a half ago, there were a lot of very positive reviews of Nikon's D60, and it was in my price range (£350-400).
- F-mount compatibility. So many options.
- The best photographer I know in person has been with Nikon for 30+ years.
- Nikon aren't quite as concerned about/can't afford as much mass marketing as Canon. This is an advantage to me because I don't like to think of myself as buying into advertising, rather than deciding on merit (silly one, but we all have our neuroticisms!).

That's about it I think, without going into the specific features of Nikon cameras I would like to upgrade to. Hope this thread can continue relatively flame-free.
 
started with a zenit, then got a yashica. then a canon eos 50e(hated it), then a nikon 501 which i loved, then on to digital and started with a D50, now have a D300.:love: so i have owned both nikon and canon, but had more success with nikon, and i like the menu layout which i now know inside out so changing to another system would just frustrate me.:thumbs:
 
The best thing about Canon, is Nikon. Nikon keeps them honest, and the competition is vital really. Nikon nearly lost the plot with digital before the amazing D3, they really were playing second fiddle, and now that's changed for everyone's benefit. Some folks even think Nikon are better! :lol:

I just wish that Sony would get in on the act, as I don't think any of the others count for much at the top end. Sony made a promising start in DSLRs but they don't seem to have built on it significantly. I used to recommend entry level Sonys, on price if nothing else, but not any more - their system is pretty feeble, some of it far from cheap, and used stuff is very thin on the ground.

A third major player would be very good all round, but it wouldn't surprise my if Sony goes back to its consumer roots and concentrates on the new NEX range. Which probably makes good business sense but is a long way from a pro-spec product.
 
CT said:
If high ISO and noise is your prime consideration Ali, then I accept you've probably made the right choice for you with the present state of play. Whether the present situation stays the same even over the next couple of years though, only time will tell. Are you going to change horses again if that happens?

The limiting factor with my photography has always been me. :D
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I'd happily have stuck with Canon if I could have had the AF and High ISO in one body and it had not cost as much as a 1D4 :) As it was I could afford to change absolutely everything for around £2K, less than the price of one 1D4. So it was ecomically driven too (Well I AM Scottish!)

There is so much headroom in the D700 at high ISO (even at 4000 the images are as clean as a whistle) and I still have several stops to go that I've not yet found a situation where I can't just ramp it up and shoot. I have had a play with a D3s and it's insane! Until I find I need more performance I'll be more than happy with what I have :)

Now where is that black cat and the coal bunker :D
 
I went with Canon, simply because my first training was on a Canon body. And by the time I knew enough to make an educated decision, I didn't really look into it anymore, as I already had a few lenses.

Am very happy with Canon though and I quite like the curves and bulges ;-)
 
At the time I bought my Nikon D200 there was no similar product on the market offered by Canon or others. The only competition was either the 30D (I think) or the 5D. The D200 had better AF, weather sealing and all round build quality than both. The decision came down to better IQ of the 5D but at the expense of weather sealing, AF speed and at the time wildlife photography was my interest so I backed the crop sensor of the D200. I'm still happy with that choice.

If I was buying into an DSLR system again Canon have now made a direct competitor to the D300 in the 7D however now my lust is for full-frame and my interest moved away from needing the longest focal length possible. That would take me down a 5D mkII vs. D700 route and I'd go for the Nikon because again it has better AF, weather sealing, build quality and pips it with high ISO performance.

My next upgrade will be to a full frame Nikon but I'm waiting until one comes along with HD video (yes, my mind has been changed) that's a little cheaper than the D3s.

I don't have particular brand allegiance. If Canon produced something I wanted that Nikon couldn't substitute sufficiently then I'd justify the expense of jumping ship and I'd happily do so.
 
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