Camera Bodies

[Tighearnach]

I have been reading reviews of alll the latest camera bodies that have been coming onto the market as i would like maybe 12 months down the road to upgrade from my 400D. Now i havent used any of the new bodies but from reviews I cant help getting the feeling that Nikon are quite a bit ahead of Canon. The cameras i have been looking at specifically are the Nikon D90 Canon 50D and Nikon D300 which would all fit into the price range i think i would go to for my next body. The reviews for the D90/300 seem extremely positive while i find most reviews i read for the 50D while saying the camera is very good they come across as been underwhelmed by the upgrades from the 40d.

So i dont want to start a Canon Vs Nikon thing here but what is the general consensus out there for bodies in the 800-1500dollar range. Are Nikon walking away with it at the moment?

 

[roadkill]

There's a 400D?

 

[ksmattfish]

Are Nikon walking away with it at the moment?

Yes... wait! The moment has passed; now Canon is ahead. And tomorrow it will be Nikon. And then Canon.... There have never been 2 other camera companies with such similar equipment as Nikon and Canon.

 

[tsaraleksi]

Your impression is not accurate. There are differences in cameras based on many different things, but neither company has a clear lead over the other.

 

[Village Idiot]

Your impression is not accurate. There are differences in cameras based on many different things, but neither company has a clear lead over the other.

That's false. Olympus is the clear cut winner. Soccer moms want cool looking point and shoots. 4/3 will rule the world for them.

:meh:

 

[JerryPH]

Moment passed again... Sony has it for the next 3 min... wait... by the time you read this... it's passed again back to Canon for the next 45 seconds.

 

[Kryg]

I too have been looking into upgrading my D80, and from what I've been seeing in the tech specs between the D300 and 5D the only major difference is the mega pixels, and the cost. So for my money I think I'm going to go with the D300 plus I don't have to replace my lenses.

 

[Tighearnach]

well lets look at the D300 and 50D. There 100 bucks in the difference. According to the reviews I have read the D300 is streets ahead in performance. Should I switch over to the dark side......

 

[matt-l]

Just going to jump in here and say:

You can't beat Canon's glass.

 

[goodoneian]

I too have been looking into upgrading my D80, and from what I've been seeing in the tech specs between the D300 and 5D the only major difference is the mega pixels, and the cost. So for my money I think I'm going to go with the D300 plus I don't have to replace my lenses.

well the d300 has a crop factor of 1.5x on it's sensor, where the 5d is full frame, so there's most of the price difference between the two

 

[JerryPH]

Just going to jump in here and say:
You can't beat Canon's glass.

An interesting opinion, and one that comes at an interesting time.

Let me quote letter for letter a posting that I read on the net recently... and that I verified and can vouch as being accurate because I actually went and checked all the numbers myself, just so that I could be sure:

Well, the D300 group has an apparent defector and one of their arguments for switching to Canon, was that the lenses were better and cheaper. Well, obviously they didn't do their homework very well, because with my research, lenses that are COMPARABLE feature and quality are also COMPARABLE price between the two manu's.

However, in an attempt to discover who actually makes the better lenses, I went to these 6 review sites ( Photozone, FredMiranda, LensReviews, PhotographyReview, SLRGear & Niklas Nikita ), and averaged ALL the data from ALL their lenses and here's what I found. The average evaluation of their lenses were:

Canon - 8.16/10
Nikon - 8.21/10

Obviously very close but with that amount of data, to change that outcome would actually take a fair amount of increased values for Canon, so suffice to say, Nikon has higher reveiwed lenses. The trend I noticed was that Nikon's evaluations didn't have as a great a disparity. Canon had some lenses that had amazing reviews and then some that had terrible reviews. Typically, the lenses with the absolute worst reveiws were Canon's.

Anyways, they both make great lenses, and Canon has more selection in the newer lenses and primes, but when you factor in the older lenses that are still compatible with Nikon, the number of lenses is about equal.

I had also made these assertions as well:

In my research and observation, my conclusion is that the Nikon has these things over Canon:

Better metering
Better WB control
Better construction
Better warranty
Better VR technology
Better menu navigation
Better ergonomics
Better Lighting system
Better lens coatings
Better AF system

I have just heard too many issues with Canon and quality in their bodies to even consider using them. Not only that, but anywhere I go where a business uses cameras ( especially in the tourist industry ) they all use Nikon. Perhaps because of it's superior reliability? Not only that, photojournalists ( especially those reporting in harsher environments ) overwhelmingly choose Nikon.

I wouldn't say that Canon glass is any better than Nikon... what I think is more correct to say, is that both have low and high end glass, and that if you are serious about your photography, you will move towards the higher quality glass irrespective of brand.

 

[JerryPH]

well lets look at the D300 and 50D. There 100 bucks in the difference. According to the reviews I have read the D300 is streets ahead in performance. Should I switch over to the dark side......

- How much do you have invested in lenses?
- Have you tried out the other camera?
- What direction is your photography taking and what are your needs?

Once you can answer those questions, you are 75% on the way to knowing what camera to take.

 

[Tighearnach]

To answer:

How much do you have invested in lenses?
I recently bought a Sigma 18-50 f/2.8 and a Canon 70-200mm f/4 and I have the nifty fifty of course so not a huge amount but enough to want to stay with Canon!

- Have you tried out the other camera?
Havent even seen a 40 or 50D but have messed about with a couple of different Nikon bodies. I personally dont really subsrcibe to the theory of holding a camera to see if one likes the feel of it etc. If a camera is technically better than another for the same price but doesnt feel so good i dont care. My hands will get used to it pretty quick.

- What direction is your photography taking and what are your needs?
Im just a hobbbyist and I prob dont need anything too extravagant although I would like something like a 50D of D300 for my next body so that I can hang onto it for a few years. Although I think once i havve one of them ill be looking up at the better models again. Have a feeling this hobbys gonna break my little bank account.....

I have read that Nikon is outperforming Canon in terms of ISO performance (in the 50D/D300 range). I find myself often wanting to turn up the ISO on my 400D (its dark in Ireland now all the time) but the ISO performance is not great at all on my little baby. Maybe this is the major factor that has me looking over to the other side.....

 

[anubis404]

As a previous poster said, somtimes Nikon is ahead, and sometimes Canon is ahead. However, I would like to say that the D300 is a kickin camera. There are pros that use it as their main body. Its features and price way outclass its canon competitors, in my opinion. However, there is the Canon 30D, which, not as good as the D300, is still probably one of the best buys I've seen going for around $600-700.

 

[JerryPH]

To answer:

How much do you have invested in lenses?
I recently bought a Sigma 18-50 f/2.8 and a Canon 70-200mm f/4 and I have the nifty fifty of course so not a huge amount but enough to want to stay with Canon!

- Have you tried out the other camera?
Havent even seen a 40 or 50D but have messed about with a couple of different Nikon bodies. I personally dont really subsrcibe to the theory of holding a camera to see if one likes the feel of it etc. If a camera is technically better than another for the same price but doesnt feel so good i dont care. My hands will get used to it pretty quick.

- What direction is your photography taking and what are your needs?
Im just a hobbbyist and I prob dont need anything too extravagant although I would like something like a 50D of D300 for my next body so that I can hang onto it for a few years. Although I think once i havve one of them ill be looking up at the better models again. Have a feeling this hobbys gonna break my little bank account.....

I have read that Nikon is outperforming Canon in terms of ISO performance (in the 50D/D300 range). I find myself often wanting to turn up the ISO on my 400D (its dark in Ireland now all the time) but the ISO performance is not great at all on my little baby. Maybe this is the major factor that has me looking over to the other side.....

I don't see a reason why you could justify going to Nikon. You are not 100% decided to change camps, yet you want less noise at higher ISO.

Have you done something easier like still crank up the ISO to get the shot, but use a quality noise reduction program in PS CS3 like Imagenomic's Noiseware Professional? Noise Ninja is one step below and all other applications are beneath Noise Ninja in terms of performance vs detail final results.

I'd look into at that route before investing in a new Nikon body and new lenses.

A fast note about ergonomics... many people say its not important, but they are usually the ones who have sore shoulders, sore fingers, carpal tunnel issues and miss way more shots due to not being able to get the right settings in time before the moment is past.

Nikon ergonomics work for most people much better than Canon (Canon likes to hide several important menu options a few levels down, where Nikon adds a 2nd finger wheel for faster access), but Canon feels "good" in many people's hands, better than a Nikon. Ergonomics is very important... especially since you are going to be using it for several thousand or tens of thousands of pictures. You want to test them both out, it is very important.

I personally really could not get comfortable with a Canon layout, even after practicing diligently for about 2 hours... but that's just 2 hours, not over a year like me and my D200. This was also a main reason my next camera is a D700. Ergonomically, it's like coming home for me and I could pick up the D700 and start to make changes to aperture, ISO and shutter speed without even looking at the camera or giving it any thought. There is no great learning curve for me in my soon to come upgrade.