Ok Canon vs Nikon.

tracybradbury

tracybradbury

Suspended / Banned
Messages
908
Name
Tracy
Edit My Images
No
Sorry I have asked questions before on this forum about what camera to buy and had my heart set on a Nikon (mostly from reviews etc) but am now not so sure?? :shrug:

My sister recently bought (2nd hand) a Canon Eos 350 and after holding and seeing the phots was impressed with the quality of the pics!

Ive held both the Nikon D80 and as above and both feel good, solid cameras.

Im starting a photography course next week and would like at some point to go semi-pro so this is a BIG choice for me!

I enjoy mainly taking kids, widlife and macro photos and have small hands(dont know if that makes any diff, lol) and have approx. £850 to spend?

Any advice would be welcomed have been considering both the D90 and Eos 40D at the moment but an open to suggestions :thinking:

Thanks :)
 
To be honest, both are capable of exactly the same...(although Canon do it better ;)). Other than the feel of the bodies in your hands...you are best making your choice on the availability and prices of lenses, and other accessories for what it is you want to shoot :)
 
Both do good cameras and both will get you good pics, but one thing to think of now is that if your sister already has a Canon then if you get one as well it could give you both access to more lenses if you are happy to swap with each other.
 
I know one professional tog that has both canon and Nikon. He uses the canon during the day and Nikon at night, simply because they excel better in those conditions. Nikon has better flash for night, while canon is better during the day where no flash is required. But it depends on what you shot. My experience is that canon handles white better, while Nikon handles blacks better.
 
susie said:
Both do good cameras and both will get you good pics, but one thing to think of now is that if your sister already has a Canon then if you get one as well it could give you both access to more lenses if you are happy to swap with each other.
Click to expand...
:agree:
natjag said:
I know one professional tog that has both canon and Nikon. He uses the canon during the day and Nikon at night, simply because they excel better in those conditions. Nikon has better flash for night, while canon is better during the day where no flash is required.
Click to expand...
I can see the sense in this. Canon gives you a better range of telephotos if you're interested in wildlife, but Nikon's flash system is better.
 
All I can say is that whatever you go for spend less on a bells and whistles camera and more on the lenses. Whatever system you opt for the glass is the most important bit.
 
Buy a Canon D20 or D30 used. Brilliant cameras. Spend more on lenses.
 
I've an entry-level Nikon - a D40x - and as far as I'm concerned it's the dogs doodads. Great camera - does all I need it to do and more. With the sole exception of high ISO shooting which, when I bought it, no camera was really doing well.

That said, if I'd known how inconvenient it would be to have a camera that only works fully with AF-S lenses I'd have bought a Canon. The range, particularly on the secondhand market, is more accessible to beginners and enthusiastic amateurs it seems to me.
 
Wow, it's a Sunday and I have a little time so here's an essay!

I shoot with both Canon & Nikon systems, they both indeed do a grand job.

Definitely spend the majority of your budget on a good lens. A high grade lens on a budget body can and will produce very fine results, a bad lens on a high grade body produces sub standard results that you will most likely grow out of quickly.

The biggest hurdle, at least on the early stages is that you have varied needs in terms of focal ranges with lenses, you mentioned kids portraits, wildlife and macro for instance.

Each category can require different ranges, all the below info is purely for example and from my opinion. You'll find that everyone does things a little differently.

For portraits, prime lenses such as an 85mm, a 50mm or 105mm are great choices but you may want the versatility of a zoom lens such as a 24-70mm or a 24-105mm. All these aren't really going to assist greatly with macro or wildlife photography.

Wildlife photography can warrant something like a 70-200mm, 100-400mm in the zoom lens ranges and anything from 200mm, 300mm, 400, 500+ primes.

A 70-200mm can and is used for portraits too but not so much the longer telephoto kinds as you'd be yelling instructions to your subject.
There are quite a few talented photographers out there that use 300mm f\2.8 lenses for macro but 300mm lenses are very :eek: expensive.

Macro can be done expensively with dedicated macro lenses ranging from 60mm, 105mm, 150mm and 180mm but also inexpensively with a 50mm prime lens and a reverse ring, a more difficult set up for a beginner but much, much cheaper. A Nikon reverse ring for example is around £20 and below.
We have a member by the name of Alby, check him out for macro also check this guy out, visit his blog and go to the information section for details.

I used to use a Sigma 150mm f\2.8 macro lens for the occasional portrait despite it being a touch long but a dedicated macro lens is really just that - a macro lens- for small details and the like. I found that shooting far away subjects with the 150mm macro, such as landscapes, the image quality was very unimpressive.

As you can see, these categories are quite varied and it maybe more beneficial to start with a good standard zoom, say 24-70mm perhaps, either that or a 50mm prime lens.

There are plenty of arguments out there on the prime lenses being better than zooms for consistent quality. I think I would have to agree but I rely heavily on a 24-70mm zoom for many of my portrait jobs.

Being as you mentioned that you have small hands, I would seriously advise to go and handle both Canon and Nikon camera bodies before making an investment.
Both systems have very different ergonomics, I describe the basic differences like this, Canon camera's have a combination of buttons and lots of menu's for the different controls. Nikon systems have a button for nearly everything.

Both are fantastic systems but the point really is getting the system to suit your needs best.
Concentrate on the lenses more than the body.
Good lenses will stay in your inventory while bodies have a life cycle.

Hope this helps some.

T
 
I have a Canon EOS 350D which I have had for 3 years, and am delighted with it.

I would agree about lenses being more important than the camera - provided you have a good camera to start with.

Shortly after getting the camera I decided to go for a 75-300mm USM Canon telephoto lens which I got at a good price at my local Jessops store.

However I found that at 300mm it was not very good.

I returned the lens for a replacement, but that lens was also the same.

In the end I decided that it was still a pretty good lens up to 200mm and kept it, mainly because my budget at that time was very limited.

But this year, after reading a lot of reviews I bought a Sigma telephoto 28-300mm with macro capability, but was EXTREMELY disappointed in it, so much so that I wrote to Sigma who admitted it could be faulty.

I finally decided that I had better bite the bullet and spend more on a REALLY decent lens and exchanged it for a Canon 70-300mm IS USM lens which cost me over £400.

And I will say that this is a SUPERB lens, sharp all the way up to 300mm and the IS facility is equally superb.

Personally I doubt if I would ever consider getting anything other than a Canon lens for my camera and spend more money on them because in the end you are never going to be satisfied with less than a really good lens.

However I must add that I was a professional photographer years ago and so may be more finicky than others.
 
I was expecting an all-out flame war! This is remarkably civilised so far :)

I invested in a Canon 5D and lenses this year, but prior to that I used Nikon film cameras for many years. (The only reason I switched to Canon was that I wanted a full-frame sensor, and at the time the only choices were the Canon 1Ds mk III, Canon 5D, and (I think) Nikon D3.)

Both makes will do the business for you. Otherwise pro's wouldn't use them.

A.
 
It makes no difference which you choose, go for the one that feels best/easiest for you to use.
 
I've read so many biased reviews over the years, if I had a pound for each one I would be wallowing in L glass. :)

As others have said, go and spend some time with the different models. Make a little list for yourself with your "Must Have's" in terms of specifications. How many MP do you need? What range of lenses do you think you may need, not just now but in the future? Will you require flash systems? What are your main subjects likely to be? If it's sports you may want some speed in terms of fps but if it's portrait you may want to prioritise skin tones.

It's a very individual choice. Two years ago there would only have been one way to go but now it's a much more level playing field. So go and try both but make sure you try them with equivalent glass on the front.

Good luck.
 
Flash In The Pan said:
It makes no difference which you choose, go for the one that feels best/easiest for you to use.
Click to expand...

+ That fits in with your budget and chosen lens.

Don't rule out used gear as it helps you get more for your money.
 
Its all there on the interwebz in print for anyone to read, the other brands can huff and bluster about why their brand is best, but they're only ever talking about increments of microscopy/specific circumstances and fanboism.
Doesn't matter which you buy, it will be expensive if you want the best.
Having said that, I don't think comparing a 350d only, with the competition is fair on Canon.
On the other hand, you liked it.....:shrug:.....one of the better reasons to buy one I reckon.
 
Anorakus said:
I was expecting an all-out flame war! This is remarkably civilised so far :)

I invested in a Canon 5D and lenses this year, but prior to that I used Nikon film cameras for many years. (The only reason I switched to Canon was that I wanted a full-frame sensor, and at the time the only choices were the Canon 1Ds mk III, Canon 5D, and (I think) Nikon D3.)

Both makes will do the business for you. Otherwise pro's wouldn't use them.

A.
Click to expand...

Lol, yes, I also wondered if I would cause a HUGE war with this question :lol:
I have just come back from Jessops and had a long conversation with one of the staff in there and he was surprisingly unbiased and gave me both good and bad points for both cameras, but I found the Canon EOS 40D VERY heavy and am slightly worried that this could have an impact on how much use I would get out of it :thinking:

But at the same time was impressed with the Nikon D80 not D90, which I feel that im paying for the video and know that im never going to use!!!

So im now thinking that because of weight issues it must be the D80 unless another camera that is similar weight and size comes into the picture.

But many, many thanks for all the informative answers that I have received :thumbs:
 
No war here.. owned a 350D and eventually jumped over to a Nikon D80 for the 18-200VR, a lens which IMHO Canon still don't compete against [their latest 18-200 doesn't have USM]..

Of those two, the D80 is a clearly superior camera - no flames intended, but they sit [sat, I guess, they've both been replaced] in different sectors of the market. The D80 carries a far better set of on-body controls and ergonomics, better AF module, better flash capability and has two camera control dials rather than one.

However, if you compare the D80 to the 40D, then again the Canon outclasses the Nikon. Better build, more robust. The new D90 sits somewhere between the '500D' and the '50D' - so has no direct comparison.

Nikon and Canon lenses are 'six of one, half a dozen of the other'. Canon's f/4 lineup has no Nikon equivalent. Canon's 300mm f/4 has IS, Canon's 100-400 has USM; both lacking in their Nikkor counterparts. Both make excellent 50's; both make excellent 2.8 zooms. Nikon's legendary 85mm 1.4 is better than the Canon equivalent, but in each lens class it's an alternating 'win' for C+N.

Better to pick your ideal lenses, then go with the body that meets your need. Am I pro Nikon? NO. I'm a D80 owner who wants a long fast prime. The 300mm f/4 has IS; the 24-105L was my favourite lens bar none. I'm ready to go back...
 
Just remember that whichever you choose, you (or most of us) will never fully exploit the full potential of the kit.

Anthony.
 
I opted for Nikon...a D80 and, later, a D300. I like the cameras' feel in my hand, and have been happy with the firmware as I've grown to know it. I suspect that if I had chosen Canon I would be equally pleased. (I really went with Nikon because my brother has Canon...and it's fun to tweak him. LOL)

Honestly...either camera will do the job. Every model has it strengths and weaknesses. As others have said, pay more for glass...and if you have a bit of money left for some post processing software, all the better.
 
Don't just consider the camera, no one as far as I can see has mentioned balance between camera and lens. When choosing a camera try putting on a heavy lens in the shop and see if the weight of the lens pulls the angle of the camera down. May seem a silly point until you start using this combination on an all day shoot. For me I find the heavier the camera and lens the steadier the setup becomes, especially when hand holding.

Realspeed
 
realspeed said:
Don't just consider the camera, no one as far as I can see has mentioned balance between camera and lens. When choosing a camera try putting on a heavy lens in the shop and see if the weight of the lens pulls the angle of the camera down. May seem a silly point until you start using this combination on an all day shoot. For me I find the heavier the camera and lens the steadier the setup becomes, especially when hand holding.

Realspeed
Click to expand...

Hi!

I feel the reason your point hasn't been mentioned is that most of us have no choice when it comes to a 'well balanced outfit', if you wish to photograph wildlife you will have to adapt to using longer lenses, if you shoot sports/motorsports you will also have to adapt to holding or supporting long lenses, whether it's handheld or with monopod/tripod the fundamentals remain the same = it comes with the territory.
Making a purchase based on weight and balance is not IMO always possible and in light of the OP queries, not applicable.
 
TW

Point taken, it was just something else that I thought was worth taking into consideration.

Realspeed
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top