Nikon vs Canon--what's your preference and WHY?

[ukcatfan]

Mark,

Please do not be offended by this. You are a great contributor to this board and we love your pictures, but I believe that you have more money tied up in gear than most of us have in our cars. Your experiences may not be the best examples for some people on this board b/c they will never be able to get what you have. I am sure that there are some that spend as much as you, but I would say that the majority do not spend even $1,000. The big camera spenders tend to hang out over at the DPReview boards.

That said, some of the non- C or N brands are much more affordable. I am getting quite a bit for the money with my Pentax. I actually prefer Canon, but I know that I could never afford a decent setup with them. Even if I could afford it, my DW would never allow it.

Kevin

 

[MassJester]

Mark,

A few things:

a) I don't know how you put that 12/2006 show together -- but it's brilliant

b) the kids are adorable -- congratulations

c) the pictures at the Lion King show...it's like the posed for you...however did you manage that?

d) I think I'm missing more than your impressive roster of equipment

 

[MarkBarbieri]

Please do not be offended by this.

I'm generally only offended by people that try hard to do so, and rarely even then.

he big camera spenders tend to hang out over at the DPReview boards.

I hung out on DPReview years ago and finally left when I got tired of endless posts on trivial equipment details. I'm here because I like the greater emphasis on photography rather than gear. Well, I also got started here looking for ideas for shots for my WDW trip last month.

I believe that you have more money tied up in gear than most of us have in our cars.

When I throw my camera bag in my car, it easily triples the value of the car. I'm in my 40s and on only my third car. The first two were retired well after they passed 200,000 miles. Only one was bought new and not one has had an automatic transmission, power windows, or cruise control. I'm not rich, I just have unusual spending priorities.

That said, some of the non- C or N brands are much more affordable. I am getting quite a bit for the money with my Pentax. I actually prefer Canon, but I know that I could never afford a decent setup with them. Even if I could afford it, my DW would never allow it.

I don't deny that Pentax offers a lot of value for the money. If I knew I was going to stay in the K100D/Rebel XTi/Nikon D50, I'd be tempted by it. The only reason that I a few of the people I know that start with a DSLR get completely hooked on photography and start moving upscale. That scale goes higher with the C/N lines. Of course, you can start over again and switch brands, so it's not like you've made a permanent commitment. To me, it's just something that people should consider when they start down the DSLR path.

I don't know how you put that 12/2006 show together -- but it's brilliant

I used a program called Pictures2Exe from www.wnsoft.com. There are a lot of good slideshow programs out there. That just happens to be the one I use.

the kids are adorable -- congratulations

The kids and wife are awesome. They are great photo subjects and lots and lots of fun.

the pictures at the Lion King show...it's like the posed for you...however did you manage that?

When you have a huge, white lens, they sometimes stare in surprise. I'm not sure if it's because they have equipment lust or they're just stunned that someone would be insane enough to lug something like that around all day. Also, taking a bazillion shots in hopes of getting a few good ones helps.

I think I'm missing more than your impressive roster of equipment

Don't be too sure. If you've been around these forums for a while, you know that there are many that get better pictures with less impressive equipment (some even with that Pentax stuff ). I have put a lot of effort into learning good technique and my wife, who has done no study, takes pictures that are just as good in most situations.

With a name like "MassJester", I hope that you've checked out my attempts at humorous trip reports: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1312524 and http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1317160

 

[MassJester]

With a name like "MassJester", I hope that you've checked out my attempts at humorous trip reports: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1312524 and http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1317160

ha! brilliant!

 

[handicap18]

I'm a Nikonian. Even though I learned on a Canon I went right for a Nikon in the beginning for myself. I don't recall exactly why. I know that the camera store I bought my first real camera was more of a Nikon store than a Canon store. I was more drawn to the Nikon I guess. Andre Agasi was promoting Canon all the time back then and I really wasn't a fan of his. I liked what Nikon was offering more so than Canon. I wanted the N8008, but could only afford the N6006. That went with me everywhere till it was stolen in '96. I had to start all over again and stuck with Nikon, this time the N70. Still have that one, so when it came time for a dSLR it was only a matter of which model Nikon I would get. I could not be happier with my current setup (though I'm always looking at more lenses )

There are pros and cons with Nikon and Canon. I like Nikon lens offerings a bit more than Canon's. Those that in the know, the "experts" say that the flash system that Nikon offers is better. I can't say for sure as I've never use Canon. When comparing models, generally Nikon's Auto white balance is better and Canon is slightly ahead in IQ. Most reviews say the lay out of Nikon is better than Canon. But everyone has their favorites. I've played around with the digital Rebel series and find the body to be way to small for me.

Because of this board I've gotten to know a lot more about the Pentax line and it is impressive. I think they'll be around a lot longer than the Sony line and will make their way in the dSLR market better. Nikon and Canon will always be at the top. But just like all the other comparisons it comes done in the end to personal choice. You really can't go wrong, especially if your happy with your choice.

 

[ukcatfan]

The first two were retired well after they passed 200,000 miles. Only one was bought new and not one has had an automatic transmission, power windows, or cruise control. I'm not rich, I just have unusual spending priorities.

Must be Japanese cars, b/c I have had a number of American cars and not one could possibly have lasted that long. I am on my 8th car and I am 31. I am not really a big spender on cars though. The first five were paid for by parents (one totaled at 3 months old by an idiot running a light in a Ryder truck). Also, of the four I paid for, one was only $750 and I sold it for $700 six months later

All my $$$ now seems to go towards my DDs.

Kevin

 

[MassJester]

I am interested that no one has mentioned the dust removal feature in the Canon -- does anyone have any experience with that. It's one of the real concerns about purchasing a DSLR.

 

[Gdad]

I hung out on DPReview years ago and finally left when I got tired of endless posts on trivial equipment details.

Ditto here - That's why I cant figure out why I keep reading this thread.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

Must be Japanese cars, b/c I have had a number of American cars and not one could possibly have lasted that long.

An '82 Honda Civic, a '92 Honda Accord DX, and a '00 Honda Accord DX. The first one I bought using scholarship money. The last one I got from my wife when she upgraded to a minivan.

I was impressed enough with Honda's products and strategy in the mid-90's to buy some of their stock. I took some heat from friends for buying one of the highest p/e stocks in the auto industry, but it has done well for me. If the next five years are as good as the last (a big if), my next car will be paid for by the stock gains alone. And I might even get one with cruise control and an automatic transmission.

 

[ukcatfan]

And I might even get one with cruise control and an automatic transmission.

Don't go automatic!!! I had to b/c my last car was gifted to me by my grandmother and I had no choice. You will miss it. You have so much less feel with auto.

Ditto here - That's why I cant figure out why I keep reading this thread.

I still read DPReview, but pretty much never post there. Too much anger over there.

Kevin

 

[Groucho]

I am interested that no one has mentioned the dust removal feature in the Canon -- does anyone have any experience with that. It's one of the real concerns about purchasing a DSLR.

This is also a feature of the Olympus, Sony, and Pentax K10D.

I have to admit that I was a bit of a skeptic about the whole "dust" situation but the WDW trip definitely convinced me - going over the photos, I had some dust from before we even left town, and when I returned, blue-sky photos clearly showed dust spots (I ended up Photoshopping a few that were painfully obvious in some shots.) A couple days ago, my kit of sensor cleaning stuff arrived. Just the Giottos rocket blower helped, and doing the full Pec-Pad swab seems to have cleared up everything (though I still haven't fully examined it afterwards.)

I love swapping lenses, and I did notice on the trip that my focusing screen seemed to attract dust and tiny hairs like crazy. Several times, I found myself (against my better judgment) wiping it down with my microfiber cloth. I hope to have a K10D before my next Disney park trip (probably Disneyland) so I'll see then how it compares.

As for DPReview forums... I can't stand their software so I only occasionally lurk there (although it can deal with oversize photos.) I do hang out in the Pentax SLR area of Steve's Forums occasionally, it's pretty laid-back, outside of one or two rabblerousers.

And c'mon, automatic transmissions are for wimps - nay, scratch that, they're even worse - they're for point-n-shoot users!!! (That is a valid comparison, if you think about it!)

I've never owned an automatic, hopefully never will... in fact, both of my cars were available exclusively as stick shifts from the factory.

As for money, photography is a classic example of diminishing returns. The first $500 or so for an entry-level DSLR shows dramatic improvement over PnS cameras... but a $1,000 DSLR is certainly not going to take twice as good photos as a $500 one, and a $25k Hasselblad is certainly not going to take 25x better photos than a $1k DSLR! The same goes for lenses, if you have two lenses that are the same focal length and speed, the one that costs twice as much will not take photos that as twice as good.

As long as your gear mostly holds its value (which lenses generally do, and the bodies aren't doing too badly), switching systems in the future shouldn't be too awful from a financial point of view. I could sell everything I've got today for probably more than I paid for it. I don't see that happening any time soon as there's still plenty of headroom in my system of choice, but it would be straightforward to switch - although if I ever really outgrew the offerings, I think it'd make a lot more sense to go with a medium-format DSLR.

But again - even the cheapest DSLR gives you more functionality than nearly any 35mm film camera, the kind that professionals have used for decades.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

I've never owned an automatic, hopefully never will

You don't drive in Houston every day. My current commute isn't bad because it is entirely within a suburban master planned community. When I worked downtown, I spent an hour in stop and go traffic coming home every night. My clutch leg got really tired of that. My next car is an automatic. I don't ask my cars to be fun, just get me where I'm going with a minimum of hassle.

As for money, photography is a classic example of diminishing returns. The first $500 or so for an entry-level DSLR shows dramatic improvement over PnS cameras... but a $1,000 DSLR is certainly not going to take twice as good photos as a $500 one, and a $25k Hasselblad is certainly not going to take 25x better photos than a $1k DSLR! The same goes for lenses, if you have two lenses that are the same focal length and speed, the one that costs twice as much will not take photos that as twice as good.

I couldn't agree more. The further you move up the price chain, the more you have to spend to see small improvements in functionality and quality. Just comparing my 10D to my 1D, where the latter cost more than 3x the former, 90% of the shots I take could be from either and look essentially the same. All that extra money goes for that last 10% (or maybe even just 5%) of shots that I couldn't get with the 10D or that wouldn't look quite as good.

One other oft heard piece of good advice is to spend money on lenses rather than the body. The bodies have been dropping rapidly in price and improving rapidly in quality. Not quite as much as a couple of years ago, but the trend is still there. Lenses don't lose their value nearly as fast.

 

[handicap18]

I'm a stick shift guy myself, however, when I got the Corolla I had to get automatic. Not by my choice. They had 2 they were selling at a great deal, but were automatic. If I wanted standard it would have cost a few thousand more because I would have had to have gotten the car new instead of slightly used. When your on a budget you have to cut some corners. Plus I do hit a lot of traffic on the ride home, especially on Fridays. Just the other day I got stuck in about 8 or so miles of stop and go traffic, never going above 20MPH. That really would have sucked driving a standard.

As for the dust removal system,,, I was more in favor of it when I was first using my camera. The first 8 months or so using the camera I cleaned the sensor 3 or 4 times. Since then I've gotten much more careful in changing lenses and in the last 4 or 5 months (knock on wood) I've had no dust issues. I've come to believe that if you practice good "technique" and take the proper care when changing lenses, you really shouldn't have much dust issues at all.

 

[Groucho]

I'm pretty hardcore about the transmission thing. I'd get a stick if I was living in San Francisco and having to do the hills every day. Besides, as I said, both my cars were never built with automatics, so it's not like I had a choice anyway.

And yes, I do demand that my cars be fun! Photography ain't got nuthin' on cars for being a pricey hobby!

 

[Geoff_M]

I have a rather original reason... My Dad worked for Nikon when I was a kid!

However, the reason I stick when them today are: the glass they offer, the egronomics of their SLR body design, their control layouts, and their TTL flash system.

 

[lap3]

Ok, I have another, possibly less quantifiable question for you: Why do you prefer Nikon over Canon or Canon over Nikon?

There's something about Nikon color that I love, but I'm not certain I could in any way "measure" it. So, what are you preferences based upon? Both are excellent and have loyal fans, but since I'm in my research phase of buying a DSLR (sold my D70 because I rarely used it, but realize now that was a mistake) I'd like to know what people think.

I think the first 2 responses from Anewmand and gruZ were right on the mark. Both are top notch performers and both offer great glass. One thing I've noticed is that the Canon colors are much more vivid whereas the Nikon images are more realistic. Your choice will depend on what you prefer. Honestly, you really can't go wrong with either one. For me, I like my Nikon D200.

 

[YEKCIM]

An '82 Honda Civic, a '92 Honda Accord DX, and a '00 Honda Accord DX.

Mark,

You and I have a similar "upgrade path". I've been driving Honda's since the '86 model year, and have yet to get a lemon. Mrs. YEKCIM drives an '01 Accord with about 93K on it; still drives and looks (except for a couple door dings) like new. Just had the catalytic converter and timing belt replaced; other'n that, basically maintenance free. A year and a half ago, I sold the '93 Civic I inherited from Mrs. YEKCIM when we married, and bought a brand new '05 Civic. The '93 needed a new A/C Compressor (A/C is a "must have" in Alabama), new tires, and possibly clutch facing; otherwise it was in good shape. Mileage? 244K. The Accord is 5 spd and the Civic is an Auto.

Where we part company, I guess, is on cameras, since I am a newly-minted Nikon driver. My excuse, as stated before, is that Mrs. YEKCIM *told* me to buy Nikon, so I could consider no other options. Having played around with the D50 and assorted lenses this past weekend, however, I can truthfully say that I'm quite pleased with the camera and am considering adding another D50 body in the foreseeable future.

~Ed

 

[kmadams]

... Well, I was fortunate enough to get the lens last Jan right before our trip for only $680

Gasp! How did you manage to find that lens for $680???

 

[garris3404]

Gasp! How did you manage to find that lens for $680???

I called 17th Street Photo because they had the lowest price (at the time) to see if they had a waiting list. They didn't have a list, but they had just gotten an order in that morning. He asked if I wanted one, and I snagged it!

 

[ktulu]

My two photog friends shoot Nikons, but I wanted to shoot canon's, a good pirate would! I went with the XTi as my intro to the dslr world because eventually I want to work up to a full sensor body. I just do, I don't have a valid reason as to why I also liked the idea of dust removal, I'm already paranoid about touching the lenses with my microfiber cloth!

As far as vehicles go (just to keep this slightly off topic), I drive a 2001 Jeep Wrangler, it's yellow and a stick. I drive in Dallas traffic every day, I just put it in 2nd and cruise along. Unless we're stopping, I can usually keep myself from using the clutch. It also has advantages when you need to get off the freeway due to traffic

darren