Nikon D40 vs. Canon xT vs. Pentax K100D

[madge]

I think I need help. Well, I know I do. LOL.

Anyway, I've been looking at some of the day-after-Thanksgiving ads, and there are some attractive prices on some of the dSLR cameras. I've compared those prices with the cost of the Pentax K100D and think I might be ready to take the dSLR plunge. Maybe. LOL

I own a film Canon Rebel 2000, a Powershot A60, and a S3 ... but, I'm not specifically brand-loyal to Canon. I'm halfway through a 2-part Introduction to Photography class at my local community college, so I've got a very little bit of understanding about f-stops, exposure, ISO, etc.

Things I take pictures of: my kids - doing activities inside and outside. My youngest DD plays soccer and tee ball, my older boys do academic team competitions, so I'm in a variety of settings. I do some low-light shooting, but not a lot. The more I learn, the more pictures I want to take.

On top of trying to figure out what camera to maybe buy ...I go back and forth about why to make the jump from the S3 to a dSLR and I'm really kicking myself for buying the S3 in May and looking to spend more $$ now. I'd probably sell the S3 to offset the cost of the new camera, and that makes me a little sad. I'm hopeless. LOL.

Any suggestions? Advice? Help!!

 

[YEKCIM]

Here is a feature comparison of the three models you listed. All have their strengths and weaknesses.

Keep in mind that a DSLR's reason for existence is the lenses that can be used in combination with it. You may want to give some serious thought to what your lens needs will be, near term as well as down the road, and which manufacturer's lens offerings best suit your anticipated needs.

~YEKCIM

 

[Master Mason]

I think you need to go and have each one of them in your hand. One of them will just feel better to you, because of size, where the controls are etc. Each of them have plusses and minuses compared to the others, so unless one particular feature is deal breaker or deal maker, then it comes down to which one you would feel most comfortable using.

 

[madge]

I think you need to go and have each one of them in your hand. One of them will just feel better to you, because of size, where the controls are etc. Each of them have plusses and minuses compared to the others, so unless one particular feature is deal breaker or deal maker, then it comes down to which one you would feel most comfortable using.

I've held the Canon and the Nikon, but not the Pentax. I've seen a lot of pictures taken by the Pentax, and my son's friend has one.. but I've not had my hands on it. And I like the Canon, but I wasn't sure if it was because it was "familiar" to me, or if it's the right one. Does that make sense?

I'm going to read the comparisons and look at the lens info. I appreciate all the advice! I'm also going to talk to my instructor, but his answer will be to learn to use & appreciate the camera I have and then buy a new one. I'm not so good at that part.

 

[Master Mason]

I've held the Canon and the Nikon, but not the Pentax. I've seen a lot of pictures taken by the Pentax, and my son's friend has one.. but I've not had my hands on it. And I like the Canon, but I wasn't sure if it was because it was "familiar" to me, or if it's the right one. Does that make sense?

Actually that makes perfect sense, people tend to be creatures of habit, and while they are different cameras, the S3 and the XTi will have a similar "feel" when working the controls, and navagating the menus. This is something you need to concider in your decision.

I have found that for most people one of the brands just seams to be right for them, because of the feel, the ease of controls whatever it is... But if your comfortable with it in your hands, your more likely to use it.

 

[MICKEY88]

how many lenses do you have for the film rebel, that's something to factor in, your lenses will work with the digital rebel as well...

 

[madge]

how many lenses do you have for the film rebel, that's something to factor in, your lenses will work with the digital rebel as well...

I don't think my lenses will work - they aren't Canon lenses. I have 2 Sigma lenses, and according to this forum they both need to be rechipped. I'm not sure how much trouble & expense is involved with that. Once I learned I couldn't use them on a new Canon dSLR, I didn't pursue it any further.

 

[KrazyPete]

I believe there's a rule that you can't have a thread which discusses the D40 and doesn't contain the phrase "no focusing motor." This thread is now in compliance.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

All three are great cameras. If you intend to use primes rather than or in addition to zooms, the lack of a D40 focus motor makes it a poor choice. If in-body image stabilization is a high priority, the obvious choice is the K100D (or include Sony's entry level DSLR on your list as well). Outside of those two caveats, I think the choice is very much a personal one.

Remember that you are buying into a system. You will accumulate lens, accessories, and knowledge applicable to that system and so switching systems in the future will be painful. Get the system that you are most comfortable with. If you never intend to move beyond this camera and a couple of zooms, that's no big deal. If you intend to make photography a serious hobby, it's pretty important.

If you have friends that are already going down this path, there are benefits to sticking with the same system that they are using. You'll be able to share some of that investment in lenses, accessories, and knowledge.

A few other items that get raised in almost every one of these discussions - Canon's kit lens is not well thought of, it is difficult to use a polarizer on the kit lens of all but the Pentax, Canon has the largest share of the market by far with Nikon second, the Canon feels cheap to many people. Am I missing any of the regular comments?

 

[madge]

All three are great cameras. If you intend to use primes rather than or in addition to zooms, the lack of a D40 focus motor makes it a poor choice. If in-body image stabilization is a high priority, the obvious choice is the K100D (or include Sony's entry level DSLR on your list as well). Outside of those two caveats, I think the choice is very much a personal one.

Remember that you are buying into a system. You will accumulate lens, accessories, and knowledge applicable to that system and so switching systems in the future will be painful. Get the system that you are most comfortable with. If you never intend to move beyond this camera and a couple of zooms, that's no big deal. If you intend to make photography a serious hobby, it's pretty important.

If you have friends that are already going down this path, there are benefits to sticking with the same system that they are using. You'll be able to share some of that investment in lenses, accessories, and knowledge.

A few other items that get raised in almost every one of these discussions - Canon's kit lens is not well thought of, it is difficult to use a polarizer on the kit lens of all but the Pentax, Canon has the largest share of the market by far with Nikon second, the Canon feels cheap to many people. Am I missing any of the regular comments?

Your comments are very helpful, Mark ... and everyone else. I really appreciate it! I think I've ruled out the Nikon, probably. Especially when factoring in the "friend" factor - everyone I know with a dSLR has a Canon. I shot off an e-mail to my instructor, and he suggests that I ask our sub teachers on Tuesday. According to Ryan (my teacher), they have a lot of knowledge about consumer market dSLRs.

I'm going to keep researching and make an informed decision. Thanks again, everyone!

 

[Master Mason]

One other thing to possibly concider is the 30D is coming down in price, yes it is an older model, but it is still a fantastic camera, and it will give you a little more funtionality than the rebel line, it will also feel more like the pentax as it is a slightly larger camera.... Just something to concider

 

[gokenin]

I just bought an pentax dslr a few months after buying the S3 as well and I have to admit that I think the pentax k100 is a great camera, but i have to admit that you may want to wait since hoya has just bought pentax but I am not sure if it will effect the camera division at all. The thing that helped me with the decision is that the pentax uses the same memory card as the S3 and I liked the feel of the camera when I handled it. The roleout of lenses is a little slower compared to the others but again this may change with Hoya taking over. I hope this doesnt scare you from the pentax it is a very camera as far as I am concerned

 

[Groucho]

One of the big things that is sometimes overlooked (though Mark did mention it) in that C/N don't offer image stabilization in the body. You can only get it in the lens, and at a sometimes significant cost premium, and many lenses don't have it available. The Pentax and Sony (and the current top Olympus model) will do IS with every lens you can attach to the camera, for free. Some might debate that in-lens is superior, but that's only at long focal lengths and even then it's not that much better - as as I said, you certainly pay for it, and you won't find an IS 50mm prime with C/N. The IS in the body is a pretty significant feature in my mind.

In optical performance, the three are all very close. Actually, Pop Photo just posted a review of the K100D Super and compares it to those:

Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT ($550, street, with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 lens): The older, 8MP Rebel enjoys the advantage of more megapixels: Excellent resolution. Plus, the Reb's color accuracy is a hair better. But it loses on noise -- Unacceptable by ISO 1600 -- and lacks ISO 3200 outright.

• Nikon D40 ($525, street, with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G lens): The littlest Nikon has slightly less tested resolution and about the same color accuracy as the Pentax, but it's the noise champ -- Extremely Low at ISO 1600. It has a faster but more rudimentary 3-point AF system

FWIW, Beach Camera's price has gone up on the K100D Super since last time I checked - it's currently an attractive $368 w/o lens, but $450 w/lens. (After rebate for both.) A couple weeks ago, the kit was $50 cheaper.

Ergonomics-wise, the Pentax is probably fairly similar to the Nikon. I remember comparing my first Pentax DSLR with a friend's D50, and they were virtually identical except that the Nikon was a hair larger. The K100D is the only entry-level DSLR still offering a top LCD, also, which is quite handy.

They certainly are all great cameras and will be a big step up in image quality from the S3.

Oh, and as for Hoya/Pentax, from what I've been reading from some folks in the know, is that they've been convinced that Hoya is completely behind Pentax, Pentax's DSLR division has been making very good money the past couple years, and they're working hard to make the upcoming high-end DSLR really something amazing. Besides, the K10D has been out for a while now and is an extremely nice step up from the K100D (especially if you ignore the FUD from a certain review website about jpg quality, which owners have not found to be true.)

Good luck, I'm sure you'll be happy whichever way you choose!

 

[Master Mason]

Remember they reduced the size on the Nikon d40, it is now about the same size or smaller than the rebel....