Canon or Nikon

elvisrally

elvisrally

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Name
Lee
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It's time to buy my first SLR camera. I've been enjoying photography for the last few years. I pretty much shoot anything but do mainly motorsport or landscape. My current Camera is a Kodak Z740. It does the job and has good zoom and some manual functions but time to upgrade.

PROBLEM:thinking:

Which camera would I be best buying. I don't want to spend silly money. upto about £700 would be the budget. I just don't know wether to get Nikon D40 or D60 or Canon 400D or 450D. They seem so much similar and the only difference that makes sense to me is that the Canon autofocuses with the body and the Nikon through the lens. Other than that they seem the same.:bang:

Any suggestions or recommendations?????:help:

Elvis
 
Go to a shop and try them out.
Look at how they fit in your hand and how intuitive they are for you to use. Motorsport and landscape is a tall order as you will be operating at both ends of the scale when it comes to focal lengths but there is little to choose between the two brands. Sigma make a cracker of a wide angle and it is available for both.

Consider how you see your photography developing and have a look at the availability and prices of the lenses in that sector. That might nudge you one way or the other.

Other than that it's personal! lol.
 
My first and current SLR is the 40D. I had this problem briefly of Nikon/Canon. Ultimately, there's not much in it. Like AliB said, it's a personal thing. Take your time to try a few out. The 40D can be had for well under 700 with lens. Common consensus is that it's a darn good camera. No way you'll be disappointed. Main thing it feels right in your hands though.
 
do any of your friends have cameras? If so find out which type, maybe you can borrow lenses etc :)
 
Another vote for the 40D here, with the cash back Canon offer at the moment there isn't much price difference between the 40D and the 450D, there are a few threads on this at the moment.

But as mentioned above go to a camera shop and have a play and see what fits in your hands.
 
My fuji broke a couple of weeks ago and I had the same dilema. Check out http://www.steves-digicams.com/ for reviews on the cameras your looking at purchasing.

On a personal note.. I'd rather spend more money on a good lens than a body. Most SLR's give professional results and money spent on a good lens will definitely help. As for Nikon/Canon I reckon you need to drop into your local store and hold them for yourself. The Canon 400d I've just purchased might not work for those with big hands!

Don't get too involved with numbers on paper, just make it enjoyable.
 
I'd go with a second had purchase, maybe a 400D or 30D and save the rest of you budget for glass and toys.
 
I'd say go for a 30D (great camera) and a decent lens - 70-200 F/4L maybe.
 
hi there
i think levihaynes has it right "quote" (Don't get too involved with numbers on paper, just make it enjoyable.)
mickytwoknives
 
Canon 400d with kit lens, OK for everyday walk about, lens isnt brill but not that bad. Then get Canon EF-s 55-250mm IS lens for your motorsport. Had a grip and some filters and a case.

400d & kit lens - £350ish with cashback
55-250mm IS zoom - £200ish
grip - £100 or less secondhand
case & filters £50

Should be able to pick it all up and on budget. Out of the cameras you mention only the 450d as live view thats if you want it. I would'nt buy second hand unless I new were it came from and how its been used and they'll be no warrenty or not much but its your shout.
 
A bit of advice from the Nikon camp here, just in case you forget!
First, as has been said, get to a shop and hold them. The Nikons D40 and D60 are quite small, the D80 and D200 are larger, might suit your hands better if they are bigger.
Going for a good lens first may be a good idea, but only spend a lot on a lens when you know which one you will use most. Best to get a good kit, get used to the camera then start trading lenses.
Nikon D80 with the 18-135 lens is a great starter. Lots of range in that lens and it will sell well if you decide to upgrade. Of course, the D80 has the auto focus motor built in so you are not restricted on lenses as you would be with the D40 /60 range.
Heres a link to a nice looking D80 kit.
Well within budget too. I had a D80 for almost a year and loved it. I only sold it to upgrade to a D200.

Allan
 
Its about time we had some Nikon input really!

With a budget of £700, i would forget the D40/D60 and look at either a D80 or second hand D200.

Both autofocus in the body, both have more AF points than the D40/D60 and you get a whole lot more bang for your buck.

I use a D80 i got mine brand new with the 18-135 for under £700, they are even cheaper than that now.

the main thing to remeber is that the Lenses are the most important factor, As with most peoples advice, you really need to go and hold a few to see how they feel in your hands...
 
elvisrally said:
Which camera would I be best buying.
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I think you are asking the wrong question.

In the long run, cameras are cheap and disposable.

The big money and the long term investment is in glass.

The question is:

Do you want to invest in Canon, Nikkor or Sigma?

If the answer is Cannon or Nikkor, then your decision is made.

If it is Sigma, then we are back round the circle and you need to choose between bodies.

Andrew
 
To be honest I doubt you'll go wrong with either Nikon or Canon. A couple of things to consider

1) Do you have any friends or family into photography with alot of kit? If you do get the same make as them (AKA the borrow factor)

2) Consider a low use (under 5000frames) second hand model e.g. Canon 30D or Nikon D200, both are better built than any of the camera you've listed.

3) Ignore megapixel counts - you won't notice the difference unless you are printing very big

4) A camera that feels right will be used more often than one that doesn't, the higher up the range the bigger the cameras tend to be.

5) Invest in good lenses (e.g. f2.8 zooms) rather than fancy camera features
 
SimonTALM said:
To be honest I doubt you'll go wrong with either Nikon or Canon. A couple of things to consider

1) Do you have any friends or family into photography with alot of kit? If you do get the same make as them (AKA the borrow factor)

2) Consider a low use (under 5000frames) second hand model e.g. Canon 30D or Nikon D200, both are better built than any of the camera you've listed.

3) Ignore megapixel counts - you won't notice the difference unless you are printing very big

4) A camera that feels right will be used more often than one that doesn't, the higher up the range the bigger the cameras tend to be.

5) Invest in good lenses (e.g. f2.8 zooms) rather than fancy camera features
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:agree: x5

Simon talks a lot of sense, as usual.
 
I'd go for a secondhand D200 for around £500, there are loads of barely used examples about as rich togs get upgraditus

Add a Sigma 70-200mm F2.8 for around £300

add a 1.4xx Teleconvertor on for another £70 or so and you have a 280mm F4 which still delivers very good results with a max aperture of F4

The Canon 30D is also a very capable camera and can be bought for around £350 S/H so would be within your second hand budget of £700 with the sigma 70-200mm

as said above the body isn't really the important bit, a 12 MP body looking through a £70 lens will only bring disappointment,better to spend more on the lens.

Noting i've ever bought has been new and when i've sold it on the losses have been minimal, admittedly you get the benefit of warranty when something is new but it's very unlikely to break down within the warranty period, if at all, DSLRs are very reliable
 
Cheers for the advice peeps.

I'm gonna go to a shop and try and have a play to see which feels better.

I hadn't thought too much yet about lenses but have started looking up and reading about some.

Thanks again

Elvis
 
Don't forget to consider the Olympus E-510 or even the E-420, or if your budget will allow, the E-3... certainly not to be discounted, and by far the best kit lenses available with any manufacturer. Your value of feature per pound will be well spent.

In the long term, you need to feel what is right in your hands... just don't let the number of 'I love Nikon' or 'I love Canon' emoticons in a post be used to determine which manufacturer to go for. Try them all... you will be suprised. All manufacturers do great cameras, you need to feel which one is right for you.
 
blinkerz said:
nikon all the way if you can afford it
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Sorry blinkerz - that's about the most misinformed advice anyone can provide, and does nothing to help anyone looking for a new camera.

Sure, you like and use Nikon, and that's fine, but it doesn't make it fine when offering advice to someone who is asking for it.

People need to try cameras themselves to see what feels good, and what they will most likely stick with in the long term. That could be Nikon, Canon, Olympus or any other manufacturer; saying what you did is just plain daft and I make no apologies for saying so either.
 
If you shoot portraits Pentax have a fine dSLR range and the K20D has a bucket load of features for a very good price. Their recently released * (star) lenses are very nice and the primes are simply superb for portraits as many of them are specifically designed for that genre.

If you are purely long range wildlife the Olympus system has a 2x crop factor. The new 50-200 SWD (effectively 100-400) has a very versatile max aperture and the Zuiko Digital lenses are hard beat in terms of image quality. Wide angle work will be a bit harder to cover.

Then you have the Sigma SD14. A Foveon based sensor that can reproduce what I would consider the best color. A great benefit to the sensor is that it naturally produces sharper images compared to the bayer pattern CCD/CMOS sensors (all other dSLR manufactures). The downside is that the SD14 itself isnt the fastest dSLR around. The read & write speeds are slow and can be cumbersome. The lens range is vast too.

Then you have Sony, dont know much about them.

Then the typical Nikon v Canon argument. Both systems are very similar now, both have a great lens range. To me it just depends on how the camera operates / feels when choosing between these two.

Hope this helps because there is a lot more to consider when choosing a brand, its not just a name you buy its the features, certain specifications, image reproduction requirements and many other factors that should influence your decision.
 
Nikon v Canon v Olympus v Fuji v Pentax....who cares?

Use what works for you..............(y)

It isn`t the gear, its the person looking through the gear.

If that makes sense.....:cautious:
 
I've been happy with the Nikon D80. Nice camera, especially now, the prices are quite good. I bought the 18-200 VR lens to go with it. Makes for a very versatile kit, and allows you to try many different photographic styles...portraits, landscapes, architecture, even some zoo and park photos. (Just a bit too short for most wildlife shots.)

I like the D80 over the D40/40x/60 because it has a much nicer viewfinder. Also, the in-camera focus motor is a plus. Finally, there are two command wheels, which I find very quick for making adjustments on the fly.

My sister and brother both have Canons (EOS Rebels) and really like them. They just don't feel as "good" in my hands. Purely personal preference!
 
theMusicMan said:
Sorry blinkerz - that's about the most misinformed advice anyone can provide, and does nothing to help anyone looking for a new camera.

Sure, you like and use Nikon, and that's fine, but it doesn't make it fine when offering advice to someone who is asking for it.
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i dont use nikon,lol, i said it as sarcasm really, cause as someone who said above 'Nikon v Canon who cares? , use what works for you'


you really take things seriously musicman:), well done i got my laugh for today..
 
blinkerz said:
i dont use nikon,lol, i said it cause as someone who said above 'Nikon v Canon who cares? , use what works for you'


you really take things seriously musicman:), well done i got my laugh for today..
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That's weird, as the post to which you refer is post #25, which was made after your ill advised comments in post #22. Some chronology weirdness there.

If I do take things seriously, then it is simply in an attempt to offer some additional advice to those who are looking for it. I just enjoy my photography, and enjoy my camera. I certainly don't ever contribute to threads from people asking which camera they should consider with comments such as "Olympus all the way" or "go Olympus". Neither do I post any daft "I love Olympus" smilies to influence a new purchasers decisions.

I do advise new purchasers who are asking for advice to perhaps take a look at certain Olympus kit, because very rarely do I see anyone else on tP suggesting this - 99% of the time it's the same old same as... 'get a Canon or get a Nikon' - which on its own is just plain daft as there are many other good camera manufacturers out there worthy of looking into. I also strongly advise people to try cameras out for themselves, in their hands, and see what works, what feels right and what's good for them.

Anyway, glad I gave you your laugh for today, have a good one.:D
 
As as been pointed out by King and Musicman, there are more than just Nikon and Canon onthe market, but most people are 'sheep' and follow the crowd (Not meant as a put down in any way, but you cannot base your buying decision on that of others).

All camera SYSTEMS have there flaws, and advantages. In the case of Canon / Nikon it has to be the choice of lenses (albeit a lot of them are complete dross - i would rather have fewer choices, but better quality), Nikon, in the D3 and D300 have the fantastic Hi-ISO quality, Pentax has the vast array of Legacy Glass, Sony has a lot of innovative features on board, and Olympus has the Size advantage in the E-410 & E-420 and the quality of the Zuiko Glass.

It all depends on where your photography path is going to take you. Some find the relative lack of shallow DOF on the 4/3rd system a disadvantage, but macro shooters and landscaper shooters are always after more DOF. Wedding photographers want hi-ISO peformance so the Nikon kit is the one to go for. Want cheap lenses irrespective of the quality go for canon, want excellant colour rendition for portraits, go for the Sigma.

It all about choices and not falling into the trap of trying to fit a square peg into a round hole just because somebody said "XXXXXXX are the best!"

All the best in your search matey and dont be a sheep! :D
 
Got to agree with Musicman, I had the E-410 twin lens kit which can be had now for around £330ish mark and thats with the 14-42mm & 40-150mm ED lenses. Very nice and compact and lightwieght and both lenses give excellent image quality. At this kind of price it can't be touched and in my hands it felt quite nice did'nt miss the grip must say as others have said the VF is abit narrow but you'll get use to it and no others offer live view at this price ( if needed/wanted ). Also the E-510 can be had for around £400ish twin lens kit. As others have said you got to try before you buy and see what suits you.

Good luck with you choice and enjoy it.
 
whose got what brand of lenses you can borrow. Several people around me had Canon so I was able to borrow/try out lenses, get advice etc.

Having said that - I went on a photocourse and I was the only canon user.
 
Gotta go to a shop and try 'em out. I really didn't like the Nikon bodies... the interface and styling really didn't suit me, so I went for the 350D. Haven't even considered switching as I'm totally happy with Canon.

At the end of the day, they're both very good camera manufacturers, you just have to find the camera you're happy with. Everything else will pretty much fall into place.
 
Having now gone for a really good look, hold and play I've ordered a Canon 400d. I am now waiting for it to arrive and then will start shooting.:woot: Now the problem is which lenses,:thinking: but I think I'll get used to the camera first.

Thanks all for advice :ty:

Elvis
 
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