Switching from Nikon to Canon

GatoAzul1968

GatoAzul1968

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Had anyone ever switch from Nikon to Canon or vice versa? If so, why and was it easy to make the switch?

I'm considering switching from Nikon to Canon. There is nothing wrong with my Nikon camera. I simply want to switch from Nikon to Canon mainly for Film-making purpose and therefore wish to learn with ease. I still have my Nikon but I did not use it very much anyway
 
GatoAzul1968 said:
but I did not use it very much anyway
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If so, are you going to use the canon more?
Why spend the money? Maybe you should
get busy first and see later! :cool:
 
GatoAzul1968 said:
I simply want to switch from Nikon to Canon mainly for Film-making purpose and therefore wish to learn with ease.
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Do you mean video here? If so the 50D doesn't have video natively iirc, you may be able to get video on it using magic lantern ... but there will be better choices I think. Although I shoot Nikon, I quite liked the 50D, was nice to use.

However you are looking at a camera several generations old. In terms of low light performance the Nikon will beat it quite comfortably so for that reason it would be a bad move imo.
 
Why would you switch brands? How much do you have invested in Nikon lenses, flash etc. Surely all you need is a nikon body with movie capabilities of which there are many
 
I did it (in a roundabout way).

Canons have nicer colours (especially skin tones and grass/foliage).

Nikons have way better sensors IMO (especially if you're pulling detail out of shadows or want the latitude for astrophotography).

If I had my time again would I switch again?


Possibly not.
 
People do switch brands and there may well be particular advantages/disadvantages from one system versus the other, but in general either Canon or Nikon would serve well enough.
Unless there is a compelling reason to change, why bother?

As the others have already said, a lot depends on how heavily invested you are into Nikon.

I have several Canon lenses and currently shoot with an EOS 7DII or an EOS M. The Missus has an EOS 80D and a couple of decent Canon lenses. We can swap/share lenses, SD cards, and batteries. The menus systems are similar and we can use the same software. So for us changing to Nikon would require a very strong set of reasons and no small amount of financial and time investments. Can't see us doing that to be honest.

If on the other hand, I only had one camera and kit lens and fancied a change to Nikon, I'd do it.
 
Many do make the switch, but if you don't know why then it would be a completely pointless endeavour for you. Bad case of the GAS I think.
 
I switched from Canon to Nikon, and although I like my Nikon gear it didn't make as much real world difference as I thought it would image quality wise. I know people have their favourite brand but I would be equally comfortable with either.

If I had to buy an entry level DSLR again though and start from scratch I'd go for a Canon purely for the button layout.
 
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jerry12953 said:
Surely Canon has a much wider range of lenses?

I'm considering making the switch the other way to get hold of a Nikon d850. It looks like it's in another league to most Canon bodies, but the (relative) lack of lenses for it concerns me.
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Really? What Canon lenses do you have (or plan to acquire) for which there aren't comparable ones available for Nikon?

Off the top of my head:
  • 11-24mm f/4 L - but who really need 11mm?
  • MP-E 65mm f/2.8 - the only 5x macro out there
  • 200mm f/2.8 L - vastly under-rated
  • 400mm f/5.6 L - probably the ultimate birds-in-flight lens
That's about it really, I think. What do you want?
 
jerry12953 said:
You'll be the expert on that but doesn't Canon have a full rangle of f2.8 and f4 zooms at most focal lengths?
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Well, yes, but so does Nikon. To be honest if this was the justification for switching systems I'd say it was pretty thin.
  • Canon:
    • Wide angle - 16-35mm f/2.8 and f/4 IS
    • Mid range - 24-70mm f/2.8 and f/4 IS, 24-105mm f/4 IS
    • Telephoto - 70-200mm f/2.8 and f/2.8 IS and f/4 and f/4 IS
    • Super-tele - 200-400mm f/4 IS, 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS
  • Nikon:
    • Wide angle - 14-24mm f/2.8 and 16-35mm f/4 VR and 17-35mm f/2.8
    • Mid range - 24-70mm f/2.8 and f/2.8 VR, 24-120mm f/4 VR
    • Telephoto - 70-200mm f/2.8 VR and f/4 VR
    • Super-tele - 200-400mm f/4 VR, 200-500mm f/5.6 VR, 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR
 
Canon are known as a poor mans film camera because you put a free software called magic lantern into the camera and instantly there are tons of new advanced features, mainly for video making.

However it can break the camera although I have done it 3 times and everything was ok.

Plus the other downside is the features are not user friendly for beginners, they are more advanced and take some research and study etc
 
StewartR said:
Really? What Canon lenses do you have (or plan to acquire) for which there aren't comparable ones available for Nikon?

Off the top of my head:
  • 11-24mm f/4 L - but who really need 11mm?
  • MP-E 65mm f/2.8 - the only 5x macro out there
  • 200mm f/2.8 L - vastly under-rated
  • 400mm f/5.6 L - probably the ultimate birds-in-flight lens
That's about it really, I think. What do you want?
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Depends on cost I guess, canon have a full range of cheaper lenses as well as the expensive L?
 
StewartR said:
Well, yes, but so does Nikon. To be honest if this was the justification for switching systems I'd say it was pretty thin.
  • Canon:
    • Wide angle - 16-35mm f/2.8 and f/4 IS
    • Mid range - 24-70mm f/2.8 and f/4 IS, 24-105mm f/4 IS
    • Telephoto - 70-200mm f/2.8 and f/2.8 IS and f/4 and f/4 IS
    • Super-tele - 200-400mm f/4 IS, 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS
  • Nikon:
    • Wide angle - 14-24mm f/2.8 and 16-35mm f/4 VR and 17-35mm f/2.8
    • Mid range - 24-70mm f/2.8 and f/2.8 VR, 24-120mm f/4 VR
    • Telephoto - 70-200mm f/2.8 VR and f/4 VR
    • Super-tele - 200-400mm f/4 VR, 200-500mm f/5.6 VR, 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR
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OK, I stand corrected. (Never did know much about gear........;))
 
IIRC a key lens difference is that the Nikon 70-210 f2.8 suffers focus breathing and the Canon equivalent does not - important if doing portrait work. Outside of that, there's probably little to choose between them for lenses.
 
Which canon camera? for the best film making options I would presume that you'd be looking for full frame to get the most out of those nice primes.
Then there is the 5Diii which is great, but comparing to the 7Dii, the dual pixel tech is very handy indeed for auto focusing, so that leaves the newer 5Div I think.
However, to also get the most out of film making IS is handy, so personally I would suggest that you look at Sony instead with IS built into the body.
Although sigma are coming out with some stabilised primes which is nice.
For more serious film making, what about a C300?
 
I think I'm with Twist on this one, unless you're moving over for something very specific, like the Magic Lantern firmware or the 135L or MPE 65 lenses, just stick with it, for me the D750 was better than the 5D III, but in the end I went Fuji - mostly for portability.
 
I made the switch from Canon to Nikon in the summer. 5d3 and 7d2 about 10 lenses, flashes, triggers etc. I shoot mostly landscapes and waited on the 5d4 hoping for better dynamic range. When they came out I made the switch. I wheeled and dealed and was patient both buying and selling. Made a profit on some switches I've got 300 more for my Canon 70-200mm than I paid for its Nikon replacement. Most importantly the catalyst was a great deal on a D810 with 3 lenses that made the initial decision.

Most of my purchases were second hand and some direct swaps. Canon 300mm F2.8 for Nikon 200mm F2. I imported a d500 too. On the end I pretty much ended up with what I started but with a bit less kit that I determined I didn't need
 
The swivel/flip-out screen on my other half's EOS 80D would come in very handy for video where the camera is tripod mounted at waist height. It also IIRC has the dual pixel focusing in live view/video that the 7DII has and together with other lenses, can take the silent and fast focusing USM Nano lenses. A least one of these (EF-S 18-135mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Nano) is compatible with Canon's Power-Zoom adaptor.
 
I thought about moving from Nikon to Canon when I bought a 600mm f4 lens ......... I was very impressed with the performance of the Canon 600mm
 
wookie6262 said:
I made the switch from Canon to Nikon in the summer. 5d3 and 7d2 about 10 lenses, flashes, triggers etc. I shoot mostly landscapes and waited on the 5d4 hoping for better dynamic range. When they came out I made the switch. I wheeled and dealed and was patient both buying and selling. Made a profit on some switches I've got 300 more for my Canon 70-200mm than I paid for its Nikon replacement. Most importantly the catalyst was a great deal on a D810 with 3 lenses that made the initial decision.

Most of my purchases were second hand and some direct swaps. Canon 300mm F2.8 for Nikon 200mm F2. I imported a d500 too. On the end I pretty much ended up with what I started but with a bit less kit that I determined I didn't need
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I loved the Nikon 200mm f2.0 VR even with converters fitted it still produce the goods :) Im envious
 
If you are interested in video then the Sony is by far the best option. Neither Canon nor Nikon can match Sony in the video space. Dare I say that video is one of the major reasons that Sony has made such inroads into the top end camera market.
 
Canon vs Nikon has always been six of one, half dozen of the other and overall really nothing to choose between them. You have to look moire closely, to individual features on particular models (eg video, articulating LCD, that kind of thing) or maybe a specific lens.
 
Went from canon to nikon.

I was disappointed by the way canon layout of button was moved on the body due to addition of the flip screen, all the button have moved to the center of the camera which i find really awkward. Nikon don't have flip screen but only tilt screen and has kept the button along the left edge which i much prefer, much easier to it the review but for exemple. Also the wheel to select focus point has been moved too low on the canon while on the Nikon it is higher and easier to reach while the camera is up to the eye. Overall i would prefer a joystick like on canon 7dii or 5diii, or nikon d500 or d850 but these where out of my budget at the time i bought my last camera. Overall I prefer the layout of the nikon only regrets is i prefered the canon top display of the xxd series to the nikon.

When i bought my last camera it was a choice between the canon 7dii and the nikon d750 has i could get the nikon for cheaper it really was a no brainer. Sensorwise i find canon was bad in the shadow and pulling exposure resutling in a lot of coloured noise. The nikon is miles ahead but then i went from canon cropped to nikon full framed so it is a bit biased, i wonder if a 6d would have been a great improvement to the 70d.

Also the canon was better at liveview focusing compare to my nikon and that is maybe something important for you to take videos? Maybe a deal breaker. I think canon face tracking is better that the nikon???
 
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ancient_mariner said:
IIRC a key lens difference is that the Nikon 70-210 f2.8 suffers focus breathing and the Canon equivalent does not - important if doing portrait work. Outside of that, there's probably little to choose between them for lenses.
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The current Nikon 70-200 2.8 doesn’t seem to have any focus breathing issues. Bit pricey though.
 
My switch was Pentax to Nikon.

Priority for me was autofocus performance specifically for moving wildlife, after my first test with the D500 a decades worth of Pentax kit was on the market.

As a bonus of the switch there were a lot more lens options to choose from, my 400mm f/2.8 just doesn't have an equivalent in K-mount.

The switch was relatively easy to do, just sell everything and buy new stuff!
 
Done canon to Nikon as I thought the I.q was better ,then when I had two failures with brand new bodies switched back to canon .nikon has slightly better bodies ,canon has better lenses if you take the lenses out of the equation and use sigma or Tamron there really isn’t enough in it to matter ,I very neatly changed again a few weeks ago as having to buy a new body meant I had the choice between a canon 80D or a Nikon D7500 after trying the Nikon and then weighing up the specs side by side which are virtually identical btw I went for the canon purely on price ,as h.dew was the best trusted deal to be had that’s what I went for
 
the black fox said:
Done canon to Nikon as I thought the I.q was better ,then when I had two failures with brand new bodies switched back to canon .nikon has slightly better bodies ,canon has better lenses if you take the lenses out of the equation and use sigma or Tamron there really isn’t enough in it to matter ,I very neatly changed again a few weeks ago as having to buy a new body meant I had the choice between a canon 80D or a Nikon D7500 after trying the Nikon and then weighing up the specs side by side which are virtually identical btw I went for the canon purely on price ,as h.dew was the best trusted deal to be had that’s what I went for
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As a bit of a sidebar and FWIW, I think the 80D is an excellent camera body.
 
Brazo said:
Very good ;)
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HoppyUK makes a good point!

Which system is better depends VERY much on your/my personal needs. Were I a landscaper then (with the possible exception of the 5D4) I do not think Canon is the best choice despite my wonderful 24-70 F2.8 L Mk2. On the other hand my primary interest is wildlife/birds and AF is No1 priority to me. Unfortunately I have been disappointed with Nikon AF performance on the sort of lenses that I use (300mm +). Please note that I have not (yet) tried the D500) but the D5 did not impress on their 800mm which is my primary focal length, I mostly use a Canon 800 F5.6 L IS + a 1DX Mk1.

Both systems are great and represent some of the best gear going - but which is best depends on what one is trying to achieve.

Whatever one decides it will all change in 2 - 5 years!
 
Got to add that if you do change the only real winner is the used camera dealer or e.bay with its fees ,that was the main factor in me staying with canon the potential loss of 50% in value of my gear /lenses ,to then buy something that might or might not be slightly better but you won’t know till you use it
 
Define film-making and how buying a canon will make you "learn with ease"

GatoAzul1968 said:
I agree with you, but I want to do BOTH photography & filmmaking instead of "only" filmaking.
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Mmm last time I checked Sony and Panasonic took photos. Unlike Canon they don't tend to hold video capabilities back to segregate their markets.

Honestly it doesn't sound like you know what you want. You say you don't use the Nikon very much, why?

What is your budget and what was you thinking of buying?
 
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ancient_mariner said:
IIRC a key lens difference is that the Nikon 70-210 f2.8 suffers focus breathing and the Canon equivalent does not - important if doing portrait work. Outside of that, there's probably little to choose between them for lenses.
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I think you may be a little out of date with that, as reviews for the current Nikon 70-200 f2.8 (released October 2016) that I've read, suggest the focus breathing problem of the previous version is no longer a problem.
 
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