Currently a Canon T3i user: Looking at a Sony a77?

[robbins.photo]

Your T3I shoots at roughly 3.7 FPS, the D5200 does 5 FPS - so it's faster than your T3I but not as fast as the A77 which I think does a 12 FPS burst. I do recommend a fast memory card - I use a 95 mps Sandisk Extreme pro with my 5200 and it does an excellent job, it's fast enough for what I need.

On paper. In actual practice, over more than 3-5 shots, and assuming RAW (or at least HQ JPEG), the experiments I've seen tend to favor the canon.

Looking at the D7100 vs 70D, the D7100 doesn't manage a full second of continuous shooting in raw before the buffer fills; while the 70D managed several seconds. On JPEG, the 70D could shoot indefinately while the D7100 only managed a few seconds before buffer fill (and something like 1/sec after that).

I am guessing to extrapolate to the D5200 and T3i; but I don't think it's unreasonable to not trust stated shooting speeds.

Depends a lot on factors such as the speed of the memory card and camera settings, also how long of a burst your firing and whether your using RAW or JPG. Canon's generally have a larger buffer and when compared to as similarly priced nikon they often have smaller image sizes because their sensor offers fewer MP, so with the same write speed memory card you have to give them an advantage for longer bursts when shooting RAW, but of course a lot depends on just how long of a burst you want to shoot. In JPG mode it generally doesn't make a difference, both will shoot extremely long bursts of JPG without overloading the buffer unless you are using a slow memory card and even then they tend to recover pretty quickly.

So really it sort of depends on what your after, if the better image quality is the most important goal I recommend Nikon, If shooting speed is your primary concern Canon or perhaps even Pentax/Sony depending on what other features rate highly on your list. But when you look at the OP's listed budget the 70d is going to eat up most if not all of it just for the body which is why I scratched it of my "recommend" list. Anything less than the 70d wouldn't really be an improvement over the T3I in image quality, pretty much the same sensor all the way around - so really not going to accomplish the OP's goal.

I really do try to recommend stuff based on the best features to meet a person's needs rather than on brand name.

 

[JacaRanda]

Colour not so much a concern as clarity is. I can tweek color through the styles like you are saying or in editing. If the Nikon is going to be a quieter camera along with taking quality photos I'm willing to see if I like how the Nikon works. Again, I am happy with the photos I shoot with my t3i but I'm one that likes to change things up after awhile and check out something new.

Well good luck and have fun buying and selling lenses if you also like changing brands.

Sounds like you should go to a camera store and check out lots of models to help make up your mind. Go to Flickr or 500px among other websites and browse the 100's of 1000's of pictures and see if you can tell the difference between a T this and a D that.

I suggest making a list of your deal breaker features. Write them down in order of importance. Go check cameras out at the store if you can. Go back home, find internet photos of the camera and lens combo, decide, wash, rinse, and start the entire process all over again.

Hopefully you will get a picture or two to share on FB or Flickr.

 

[ASImages2011]

View attachment 66638


This is a photo I took yesterday in the studio with my T3i.. I really started thinking things over and what I really wanted. After a good lens cleaning I really don't any issue with the quality of this photo. I have been satisfied with my t3i but I have used other cameras such as a sony that is much quieter (is nice when it comes to weddings..parties and what not) I also liked how the sony auto focused much faster. Reviews say that the Nikon D5200 has better image quality and color depth (same goes for the sony).. After thinking about it .. is that a good enough reason to buying one? I can enhance the color in the editing process. All I know is when I used the sony a77 the camera seemed much smoother and it had a completely different feel. Thats what made me want to look into the sony and nikons. I've never 'shopped around' before so I'm just now learning about what else is out there. My husband has always used Canon so when I purchased this t3i there was no reason to look anywhere else other than buying a canon.. since that is what we have been happy with. Maybe I should stick with what I have since with my budget right now I can not improve it as much to make it worth it? If I would make any purchase right now it would be the Nikon D5200.

Also, I use to shoot in RAW. I had some issues with the program I was using to convert my files so during that time I was shooting in HQ jpeg. I couldn't see much of a difference other than file size (which does make a difference if your wanting to crop or edit the photo much) but other than that.. what are the reasons you shoot in RAW? Thanks again for everyones input.. I wish I would have joined the TPF sooner! :thumbup:

 

[JerryLove]

After a good lens cleaning I really don't any issue with the quality of this photo. I have been satisfied with my t3i but I have used other cameras such as a sony that is much quieter (is nice when it comes to weddings..parties and what not) I also liked how the sony auto focused much faster.

Auto focus speeds are heavily affected by the lens. I could be wrong: but I'd place more emphasis there than on the body.

The mirror-retract noise does vary by body (the 5D has a quiet mode) and I cannot comment on that; but the IS and AF noise, again, is lens.

Reviews say that the Nikon D5200 has better image quality and color depth (same goes for the sony).. After thinking about it .. is that a good enough reason to buying one? I can enhance the color in the editing process. All I know is when I used the sony a77 the camera seemed much smoother and it had a completely different feel.

There is a 60% price difference between those two bodies. That might be some of the difference in feel.

But Sony historically makes some excellent products. Resolution is clearly higher on the Sony or Nikon. Whether that makes a useful difference is something only you can decide.

Maybe I should stick with what I have since with my budget right now I can not improve it as much to make it worth it? If I would make any purchase right now it would be the Nikon D5200.

What happens to your lenses at that point? The margins between Nikon and Canon are small enough that, unless I had some specific case I needed to address, and given the budget involved, I'd focus on where I can put the best glass.

Also, I use to shoot in RAW. I had some issues with the program I was using to convert my files so during that time I was shooting in HQ jpeg. I couldn't see much of a difference other than file size (which does make a difference if your wanting to crop or edit the photo much) but other than that.. what are the reasons you shoot in RAW? Thanks again for everyones input.. I wish I would have joined the TPF sooner! :thumbup:

The RAW stores more information that the JPEG. Especially useful for setting white-balance. If the JPEG makes exactly the decisions you would have manually: fine, but if not; you are re-editing with the JPEG and so have less ability to make changes before they become visually obvious.

There are some threads recently here dedicated to that question if you look.

 

[JacaRanda]

View attachment 66638


This is a photo I took yesterday in the studio with my T3i.. I really started thinking things over and what I really wanted. After a good lens cleaning I really don't any issue with the quality of this photo. I have been satisfied with my t3i but I have used other cameras such as a sony that is much quieter (is nice when it comes to weddings..parties and what not) I also liked how the sony auto focused much faster. Reviews say that the Nikon D5200 has better image quality and color depth (same goes for the sony).. After thinking about it .. is that a good enough reason to buying one? I can enhance the color in the editing process. All I know is when I used the sony a77 the camera seemed much smoother and it had a completely different feel. Thats what made me want to look into the sony and nikons. I've never 'shopped around' before so I'm just now learning about what else is out there. My husband has always used Canon so when I purchased this t3i there was no reason to look anywhere else other than buying a canon.. since that is what we have been happy with. Maybe I should stick with what I have since with my budget right now I can not improve it as much to make it worth it? If I would make any purchase right now it would be the Nikon D5200.

Also, I use to shoot in RAW. I had some issues with the program I was using to convert my files so during that time I was shooting in HQ jpeg. I couldn't see much of a difference other than file size (which does make a difference if your wanting to crop or edit the photo much) but other than that.. what are the reasons you shoot in RAW? Thanks again for everyones input.. I wish I would have joined the TPF sooner! :thumbup:

What camera and lenses does your husband have already? What lens did you use for this shot?

I know what it's like when money is burning a hole in your pocket or plastic . Unless you are in a super rush to get something new and different (again I know exactly what that is like), I suggest working with what you have until you get a much clearer idea what you want and need.

I don't see anything wrong with this picture other than maybe some white balance issues. Is her shirt pink or white?

Very cute little model you have!!!

 

[ASImages2011]

That was years ago and he took landscape photos for pleasure. He no longer takes photos anymore. I have canon EF 35 mm 1:2 ; canon zoom lens ef 70-300mm 1:4 - 5:6 IS ; canon zoom lens ef-s 55-250mm ; also an 18-55mm

 

[JacaRanda]

I have all of those except for the 35 mm. The 70-300 got the most use and performed will for our first non kit lens. It was used primarily for capturing wildlife.

You may find this an interesting read A Concise Guide to Choosing a New Lens.

 

[ASImages2011]

I have all of those except for the 35 mm. The 70-300 got the most use and performed will for our first non kit lens. It was used primarily for capturing wildlife.

You may find this an interesting read A Concise Guide to Choosing a New Lens.

Thank you for pointing out the shirt! You are right about having white balance issues.. her shirt is white.. I still havent been very good at figuring out how to correct white balance!

 

[robbins.photo]

That was years ago and he took landscape photos for pleasure. He no longer takes photos anymore. I have canon EF 35 mm 1:2 ; canon zoom lens ef 70-300mm 1:4 - 5:6 IS ; canon zoom lens ef-s 55-250mm ; also an 18-55mm

Ok, couple of quick thoughts here.. when we were originally discussing this I didn't realize you already had so many lenses for Canon - so one thing to consider is that if you are going to switch then most likely you'll have to take a bit of time selling off your old gear and then buying replacement lenses for the Nikon/Sony or whatever brand you end up switching too - so really the easiest thing to do would be to stick with Canon.

On the subject of resolution, megapixels, et al - It does make a difference in final image quality but really the biggest practical difference your going to see will be when your shooting telephoto and need to crop. For images that are taken at 50-70mm or so your close enough that you can compose your shot in camera and you generally don't need to do much in the way of cropping the photo. But when your shooting stuff like wildlife the higher MP, larger image size gives you a lot more options when you go to crop the photo. It will also make a difference of course if your going for larger prints, but if that isn't something that you really do then it wouldn't be something to worry about.

So really if shooting speed is a primary concern, then a 50d or 60d would be worth looking into, they shoot quite a bit faster than your T3I, will work with all your current lenses, and they have some great deals going on them right now since the 70d was released. That way you can keep your T3I as a backup and it can still use all the lenses you already have.

If the T3I shoots fast enough for your liking, a good lens would probably be a better investment than a new body. If your really set on looking at switching to another brand I'd highly recommend you actually go to a camera store and test one if at all possible, because your looking at a pretty big time investment switching over and replacing all those lenses.