Need help deciding on my first camera

[Josh66]

Sony does offer something that neither Nikon or Canon do, and that is the ability to use Carl Ziess Lenses, which In my opinion are the best lenses you can acquire.
And this , for me, was big. Huge.

My baloney meter responded to this statement too so I went to the Zeiss website. Guess what, they have SLR lenses for Canon and Nikon!

LOL, they actually make more lenses for the EF (Canon) and F (Nikon) mount than they do for Sony...

Because of the way their website is, if I link to it, it just goes to the main page...

But, I count 5 for Sony, 8 for Canon, and 9 for Nikon.

I would type out which one for which mount, but that's a lot of typing - if you're that interested, go see for your self...

 

[I X L R 8]

My baloney meter responded to this statement too so I went to the Zeiss website. Guess what, they have SLR lenses for Canon and Nikon!

Retraction, you are correct as of April 16th 2010 Ziess HAS introduced lenses for both Canon and Nikon.

I handled the d5000 and the t1i, and neither felt nearly as robust as the Sony a550.
To be a bit more clear.

Additionally, every review I've read on the three cameras within this debate rate Sony's live view auto focus much higher than either of the other two cameras involved in this debate.

At any rate..........and some of you won't like this........I can buy anything I want.
If the A550 doesn't suit me, I may step up to the A900, or Nikons finest offering, and keep them all just to piss everyone off like that Dirrel guy does.

By no means am I as professional at photography as many of you here.
In fact I'm not professional at all.
In time you'll gather this, evidenced by some of my novice questions.
My first DSLR will be the Sony and if it doesn't suit me, as stated, I'm well within means to obtain something else that does.

Now, having said this, I do not expect to be treated like a prick, and certainly will respond in kind should this be the case.

 

[KmH]

My baloney meter responded to this statement too so I went to the Zeiss website. Guess what, they have SLR lenses for Canon and Nikon!

Retraction, you are correct as of April 16th 2010 Ziess HAS introduced lenses for both Canon and Nikon.

I handled the d5000 and the t1i, and neither felt nearly as robust as the Sony a550.
To be a bit more clear.

"neither felt nearly as robust " is totally subjective.

 

[Idahophoto]

There button set up is by far the worst in the industry and I have found there AF systme slow noisy compared to the other brands, Canon, Nikon, Pentax and Olympus. There image quality is not to bad, but I have found them to be a bit noisy at later ISO settings this may have been the model I was using but have heard this come up in a number of reviews for other models as well, so I believe it to be a common thing with them. Plus let's face it, they have not proved themselves anywhere near Pentax, let alone Canon or Nikon. If this was not reason enough look at thirs party support and that will tell you the same thing. I have also used a few of there lenses, a couple of them I consider Key ones at that such as the 50/1.4 Sony's version lacks behind that of Canon and Nikons own in terms of performance and image quality. Even Sigma's was rated higher by Digital Photography magazine for Sony shooters.

I am not saying Sony is bad, but they have some major weaknesses in there system that is not going to be fixed anytime soon. There still learning how to do it. Why invest in hit and miss when you have brands that can smack it home all the time?
From what I have seen of them so far, I would buy a Pentax or Olympus before I would a Sony.

 

[Francis E. Marchiona]

I appreciate the responses overnight.

I ruled out pretty much everything but Sony, Canon and Nikon from the start just based on what features I was looking for - Pentax/Olympus didn't have what I wanted.

And I went with the Sony in the end, after seeing the Canon in person. I really didn't like the Canon :/

 

[subscuck]

Now, having said this, I do not expect to be treated like a prick, and certainly will respond in kind should this be the case.

Making speculative, subjective or flat out wrong statements about gear will always get you the responses you got. This holds true on any forum of any type. You are entitled to your opinion, but you need to have hard facts to back them up. If someone calls you on it by presenting the facts, sack up and admit you were wrong. Statements made to newbies looking for advice need to contain factual info, not bias or prejudice.

 

[Taylor510ce]

Why does everyone resort to the " feel in my hand" argument. Are we abunch if lepers with nubs for hands? Canon andnikon have way more of a track record in photography and have way more accessories and lenses and also it is much easier to find quality used gear for them. That being said...if you like the Sony, go for it. Its not like its terrible or anything.

 

[Idahophoto]

Why does everyone resort to the " feel in my hand" argument. Are we abunch if lepers with nubs for hands? Canon andnikon have way more of a track record in photography and have way more accessories and lenses and also it is much easier to find quality used gear for them. That being said...if you like the Sony, go for it. Its not like its terrible or anything.

I could not agree more

 

[misstwinklytoes]

I am SO glad I decided on my camera before I joined the forums!

I def would have been more torn after reading stuff like all of this!

And btw what is up with all the this or that camera threads over the last few days?

 

[Fatback]

I appreciate the responses overnight.

I ruled out pretty much everything but Sony, Canon and Nikon from the start just based on what features I was looking for - Pentax/Olympus didn't have what I wanted.

And I went with the Sony in the end, after seeing the Canon in person. I really didn't like the Canon :/

I did the same thing when I was looking for my DSLR. I ruled Canon and Nikon out from the start. Olympus didn't have what I wanted. I narrowed it down to Pentax and Sony. I found the A230 on sale, and got it. I personally couldn't be happier with it. I also like the fact that I can use the older Minolta AF lens with it. You can get some really nice used Minolta glass on eBay for super cheap.

 

[Vinny]

It actually comes down to what you like and all in all brand doesn't matter.

I am SO glad I decided on my camera before I joined the forums!

I def would have been more torn after reading stuff like all of this!

And btw what is up with all the this or that camera threads over the last few days?

 

[Gaerek]

Why does everyone resort to the " feel in my hand" argument. Are we abunch if lepers with nubs for hands? Canon andnikon have way more of a track record in photography and have way more accessories and lenses and also it is much easier to find quality used gear for them. That being said...if you like the Sony, go for it. Its not like its terrible or anything.

If a camera doesn't feel good in your hands, you aren't going to hold it as well, you may have to make compromises in how you hold it to make it comfortable, and you might be envious of the person who purchased a better feeling camera. This really is as important as any other individual aspect of comparing cameras. Is it the only one? Certainly not. But together with everything else, it is something to consider. Since he was torn, and had obviously done some research, I told him to use another aspect to help tip the scales.

Having said that, I've shot Canon, Nikon, Pentax, and Sony dSLR's, and I can say that, although the Sony feel pretty nice in my hand, the button placement makes absolutely no sense, and it's almost like someone loaded a button shotgun with buttons and shot it at the back of their camera. That alone is enough for me to never buy one, regardless of anything else.

 

[Josh66]

I think, with a little time, you could learn to love the feel of any camera.

BUT, Where the buttons are, and what they do - that's different.

That's not really something that you would be thinking about as a 'noob' though...
Without the knowledge of what you would use those buttons for, and when to use then - it doesn't mean much.


That's why I say - go with the one that looks the coolest.

They're all pretty good. After you have more experience under your belt (and before you have a large lens collection), you will have a better idea of what a good upgrade will be.

With enough experience, you won't even have to ask on the message boards - you'll be able to decide on your own.

If you have to ask, it doesn't really matter - my opinion.

Just get something and quit waiting for the next model.

 

[hallowdmachine]

For my part, I picked up and fiddled with a Sony (A300, I believe), a Nikon D3000, and a Canon Rebel XSi. The Nikon and the Canon were the exact same price, the Sony a hundred bucks or so cheaper. I ended up going with the Nikon.

Why? Because my grandfather shot Nikon years ago, and that was my first introduction to cameras. I did as much research online as I could before buying a camera. Across the board, those three cameras were pretty much equal from what I could tell. This one was better at one thing, but that one was better at another thing, and that other one was better at a third. Blah blah blah. That first impression made years ago stuck with me and in my head, Nikon was the way to go. I wouldn't presume to impose my opinion on anyone else. Want a Sony? Get a Sony. Want a Canon? Get a Canon. Want a box camera with silver halide plates? Well, go ahead, but that's dedication.

In the end, if you're happy with your camera and you take photos that you enjoy, have fun, and damn the haters.

 

[iAstonish]

.....Sony's auto focus seems to be head and heels above the other two competitors.....

Could you be more specific than "seems to be", and define "head and heels above" a bit more technically?

From the Sony A550 Specs : Focus System - TTL phase detection system (9 focus points)
DSLR-A550L | Sony α550 DSLR Camera Body | Sony | Sony Style USA

From the Canon T2i specs : Type - TTL-CT-SIR AF-dedicated CMOS sensor (9 focus points/1 cross-type)....... My note → (a phase detection system)
Canon U.S.A. : Consumer & Home Office : EOS Rebel T2i EF-S 18-55mm IS Kit

From the Nikon D90 specs: Autofocus System - Nikon Multi-CAM 1000 autofocus module with TTL phase detection, 11 focus points (including 1 cross-type sensor)
D90 from Nikon

sure i'll explain what he means. He shoots with a Sony : )