Canon t5 vs Nikon D5300

[sondrapage]

I am looking to purchase a new camera. This will be my first DSLR camera. I found a used Nikon D5300 with Nikon 70-300 mm DX VR telephoto lens for $450. This has 4800 actuations used. Is this a good deal? Would I be better buying the Canon Rebel t5 bundle brand new for $500?

I currently am using the Sony nex 3N and Sony nex 5 bodies along with a macro lens and a telephoto lens. I love this camera but I am ready to upgrade. I had issues with photographing indoors in low lit areas so I thought getting a better camera would help with this. Any advice is appreciated.

 

[robbins.photo]

Sondra, the Nikon D5300 with a 70-300mm VR is a really fantastic deal, the lens alone normally goes for around $300 used assuming it is the VR version. 4800 actuations is very low, the camera has barely been used.

Nothing against the T5 mind you, but when it comes to buying new I generally advise people to avoid bundle deals. The bundle is usually filled with a lot of cheaply made stuff that really isn't worth having, and that's where the folks selling the bundle make most of their profit.

 

[Dave Colangelo]

Ill second the Nikon, and its a solid deal, I have the 3300 which is a great camera (very similar to the 5300). I have had it for a bit over 3 years and am at 26,000 actuations with not a single issue thus far. I am thus a Nikon fan but to each his own honestly. My brother and sister have the Canon (t3 I think) and they are both very happy with it as well.

I don't have the 70-300 so ill refrain from commenting, but I have heard good things about it.

Just a note, the 70-300 is considered a Tele lens, while a good place to start but you may find your self wanting a bit more standard lens as well (this is true if you go nikon or cannon). Nikon offers both a 35mm and 50mm 1.8 for that camera at a VERY reasonable price (under 200 typically new, around 100 used) and its a great lens. You can also pick up a Nikon kit lens (18-55) for very cheap second hand as a result of how many are out there.

Nikons are the best!

Regards
Dave

 

[fmw]

For your information, Sondra, Canon has the T5 with 18-55 kit lens for $399 on their website. You can probably save $10 or $20 by shopping on Amazon. The Nikon is a great deal as has been mentioned above but the 70-300 is pretty long as a normal lens. You would probably have to buy something shorter like the 18-55 to add to the mix. While I am a lifelong Nikon user and fan, I think I would go with the T5 (but not the bundle) unless you want to adopt the Nikon system. Both Canon and Nikon have excellent systems so it would be pretty easy to win either way.

 

[sondrapage]

Sondra, the Nikon D5300 with a 70-300mm VR is a really fantastic deal, the lens alone normally goes for around $300 used assuming it is the VR version. 4800 actuations is very low, the camera has barely been used.

Nothing against the T5 mind you, but when it comes to buying new I generally advise people to avoid bundle deals. The bundle is usually filled with a lot of cheaply made stuff that really isn't worth having, and that's where the folks selling the bundle make most of their profit.

I appreciate your feedback. The whole idea to actuations is new yo me, as I have always just had a basic digital camera.

 

[sondrapage]

Ill second the Nikon, and its a solid deal, I have the 3300 which is a great camera (very similar to the 5300). I have had it for a bit over 3 years and am at 26,000 actuations with not a single issue thus far. I am thus a Nikon fan but to each his own honestly. My brother and sister have the Canon (t3 I think) and they are both very happy with it as well.

I don't have the 70-200 so ill refrain from commenting, but I have heard good things about it.

Just a note, the 70-200 is considered a Tele lens, while a good place to start but you may find your self wanting a bit more standard lens as well (this is true if you go nikon or cannon). Nikon offers both a 35mm and 50mm 1.8 for that camera at a VERY reasonable price (under 200 typically new, around 100 used) and its a great lens. You can also pick up a Nikon kit lens (18-55) for very cheap second hand as a result of how many are out there.

Nikons are the best!

Regards
Dave

Thank you for responding. The Nikon camera did come with another lens but I cannot remember exactly which one off the top of my head. I want a more sophisticated camera at this point.

 

[sondrapage]

For your information, Sondra, Canon has the T5 with 18-55 kit lens for $399 on their website. You can probably save $10 or $20 by shopping on Amazon. The Nikon is a great deal as has been mentioned above but the 70-300 is pretty long as a normal lens. You would probably have to buy something shorter like the 18-55 to add to the mix. While I am a lifelong Nikon user and fan, I think I would go with the T5 (but not the bundle) unless you want to adopt the Nikon system. Both Canon and Nikon have excellent systems so it would be pretty easy to win either way.

Thanks for your feedback. I noticed that Wal-Mart also carries the t5 for $399, so the option is there.

 

[Dave Colangelo]

Thank you for responding. The Nikon camera did come with another lens but I cannot remember exactly which one off the top of my head. I want a more sophisticated camera at this point.

More than likely its the 18-55 which is the standard lens that camera comes with (generally). The cannon will have a similar lens as well.

In the end of the day both cameras are capable of producing great images and you will be happy either way.

Regards
Dave

 

[snowbear]

Go to Walmart or Best Buy and actually handle both cameras - "test drive" so to speak. That may make a difference (it did for me)

 

[gckless]

I'm voting the Nikon as well. The 70-300 VR is a good lens for that price, and as said you can turn around and sell it for $300 if you want to, making that D5300 $150.

 

[goodguy]

Nikon D5300 with the Nikon 70-300mm VR and assuming 18-55mm gives you a very nice focal cover from close to far, a very nice start.
4800 actuation is nothing for such a camera assuming its in good shape.

Here are few advantages of the Nikon D5300 vs the Canon T5

First most important the sensor, the one on the D5300 is more modern, it has better low light performance, better dynamic range, the AA filter was removed so potentially can produce sharper images with the right lenses, and have more resolution.
Also the auto focus system is better.
The T5 only advantage is the fact its new, other then that its a basic camera that direct competition was the Nikon D3300 and not the D5300 which is located above the D3300 with more features, better AF system and swivel screen.

Bottom line, I would get the D5300 even without its extra lenses, these extra lenses just make this whole deal even better and sweeter so for me a no brainer decision to get the D5300.

 

[sondrapage]

Okay so here is an update. I was able to check the Nikon D5300 camera out, as the own brought it over. I checked everything that was listed in this video (sorry for the vulgar language):

One thing I noticed that seemed a little iffy was a spec of something located on the lens. We were unable to remove it. It was about the size of the tip of lead on pencils. It was a white color.
It had fingerprints on the lens that we had to clean away.
There wasn't any rust, any wear/scratches/dents on it, no physical damage, the battery terminals were clean, etc.

I am a little hesitant with this transaction though. I am a first time DSLR user so I have some learning to do. However, this camera had issues with focusing inside. The 70-300 mm DX VR telephoto lens would only focus when outside. My house was lit in one area but darker in another. Both areas were giving the red "box" indicating that it would not focus. This was even an issue with using back button focus.

Another issue was the fact that this guy did talk as if he had knowledge about using different lenses and cameras but for some reason brought the 50mm NIKOR lens. This snapped onto the camera body but again would not come into focus at all. He said that it might be the fact that it was not a DX lens like the other one. My main issue is if he was trying to sell it, why wouldn't he have the knowledge of which kit lens it had? He told me that he had a 35mm lens that was a DX at home and he would get back to me on whether or not this worked. Am I just not knowledgeable enough to get this into focus easily? If they both are AF lenses, shouldn't it focus on their own? I just want to make sure I cover all bases because this is a lot of money for our family's overall income.

Last but not least, he put the camera in it's bag loosely, when there were dividers present. This really bothers me. I personally take good care of my electronics and want to respect them to make them last as long as possible. He didn't fully put them in gently either. I am not talking a full on slam but he slightly just dropped the body in with the 70-300mm lens on it, and set it on top of the 50mm lens as well. Is this enough to just pass on the deal? My gut is telling me to just pass and keep looking. The price is right but too much is telling me to keep looking.

Thank you so much for the advice and helping me through this!

 

[robbins.photo]

Using a slow telephoto zoom lens like that indoors... well without enough light sometimes you wouldn't be able to get it autofocus indoors. But from the sounds of things I'm really wondering it that is actually the VR version or an older version without VR....

The 50mm Nikkor, well it depends on the model of the Nikor. No, the gentleman was completely off base when he told you that the reason it wouldn't focus is that it is a DX lens. However if it was an older D model it may not have been able to focus on the D5300, it doesn't have a focus motor built into the camera body so only lenses that have a motor built into the lens will be able to autofocus with it. So the newer G model will autofocus on a D5300, the older D models will not.

However if he was using a D model of the 50mm lens, and didn't know that.. well I'd really start to have some questions about this transaction. I'd want to make sure that the 70-300mm was actually the VR version, for example. the older, non-vr versions of the lens really aren't that great and not worth nearly as much. I'd also want to verify the shutter count myself, sounds like this guy knows pretty much jack about cameras.

So yes, if your gut is telling you to pass.. .pass.

 

[waday]

Using a slow telephoto zoom lens like that indoors... well without enough light sometimes you wouldn't be able to get it autofocus indoors. But from the sounds of things I'm really wondering it that is actually the VR version or an older version without VR....

The 50mm Nikkor, well it depends on the model of the Nikor. No, the gentleman was completely off base when he told you that the reason it wouldn't focus is that it is a DX lens. However if it was an older D model it may not have been able to focus on the D5300, it doesn't have a focus motor built into the camera body so only lenses that have a motor built into the lens will be able to autofocus with it. So the newer G model will autofocus on a D5300, the older D models will not.

However if he was using a D model of the 50mm lens, and didn't know that.. well I'd really start to have some questions about this transaction. I'd want to make sure that the 70-300mm was actually the VR version, for example. the older, non-vr versions of the lens really aren't that great and not worth nearly as much. I'd also want to verify the shutter count myself, sounds like this guy knows pretty much jack about cameras.

So yes, if your gut is telling you to pass.. .pass.

Totally agree with this.

It sounds like you'll be happier buying new. If the guy was not treating the equipment well in front of a potential customer, I'd pass.

 

[sondrapage]

I also forgot to mention that the 35mm lens that he had at home is a fixed lens. This changes the whole deal to me because the bundle is different than I expected. This wouldn't allow me to zoom, which I like to have that option. Does any of this change the bundle deals value?

How do I verify that the 70-300mm lens is the VR version? It did say DX on it, like the man stated.

I believe that the 50mm lens was a D model. It did not have the AF button on it like the other lens offered.