dSLR choices... help me choose! Canon/Nikon

Which camera would you buy. Then post why!

  • Nikon D70

    Votes: 9 19.1%

  • Nikon D50

    Votes: 9 19.1%

  • Canon Digital Rebel XT

    Votes: 8 17.0%

  • Canon Digital Rebel XTi

    Votes: 19 40.4%

  • Other (explain in post, please)

    Votes: 2 4.3%
  • Total voters
    47
E

Eulogy

2[H]4U
Joined
Nov 9, 2005
Messages
3,124
Hey all,
As the title suggests, I've been lookg around at dSLRs. I used to have a Minolta 35mm. I lent that to a friend, only to never see it again :(. As much as I know I'm going to miss film, I'm goingto jump to dSLR. Cheaper in the long run, and just all around benefits - that is outside of this thread.
What I'm looking for, is your input. Given $900 max, what would you buy?
Here's what I've been looking at:
Nikon D70
Nikon D50
Canon Digital Rebel XT
Canon Digital Rebel XTi

I'd prefer to stay with Canon or Nikon... I've used both of their products in the past, and quite enjoyed my expirence with them. BUT, if there is suitable reason to look else where, I'm very willing to.
I'm going to probably be buying near the new year, when I have enough funds saved up. I'm planning on saving $900 in total.
When I used my minolta, I did landscaping, cityscaping, macro, vehicle (standing and fast-motion) and band shoots. So, that's my criteria. I know I'll only start with one lens... so probably in the ball park of a 17-60mm.
I'd like to buy new, as that's just how I am.

I'll leave the discussion open beyond that :).

-Ray
 
I think you'll find that the Canon people will tell you to go Canon, the Nikon people will tell you to go Nikon. I'm a Canon guy, and have experience with the 350D, so I say go for the XT/XTi. With a $900 budget, you'll have more than enough for a XT, and possibly a 430ex and 50mm f/1.8 lens.
 
I'm a Nikon fan and would personally go for the either of the D series units but both Nikon and Canon are excellent brands. As MJC said though - it's really a personal preference and a fan of one will reccomend the brand they like. I'd read up on some reviews and more importantly go to a camera store and see which one feels best to you. You want it to be comfortable for your hands, and comfortable using it. Some of the review sites also give real picture examples and excellent unbiased reviews. My dream would be this though

http://www.hasselblad.se/promotion/h3d.aspx

It's only around 40 grand for 39 megapixels of goodness. :eek:
 
Nikon D80, but that's still $1000 body only. :D

I'll be honest, I am biased towards Nikon since that's what I shoot, I liked the fact they were larger. However, I gripe about not having a 70-200/4 like the Canon users do.

Go to the local camera store and ask to hold and shoot with the cams you are looking at. It will help with the decision.
 
OK, can I have this done, since there's people that love each brand?
What do you like most about Nikon/Canon? What do you like least about them?

To be quite honest, I'm going to have to buy sight unseen, and base it off of others' impressions and uses, as the closest camera store that carries dSLRs is roughly 2 hours away :eek:!
Normally, I would go out, test, ask to "rent" or borrow, try around, etc etc., but this is one of the two things I can't do that with (2nd being music instruments, which is just as bad!!).
So, if I could please, get all approprite info, links to as un-biased reviews as possible, direct A-B comparisons, etc.
I hate to do that, as I know this is a "user preference" orientated topic, but I'm left with little choice :(.

-Ray
 
While I am no photography expert, I have played around with the Rebel XT and the D50, and by my own eye, the pictures shot with the rebel XT looked better than the D50.

Before I get flamed, YES the cameras were used, so quality may have been an issue, YES, the lenses were not the same, YES I do not know that much about photography, and YES, I used a tripod for both cameras when shooting.

Now on a matter of what camera I would buy, at the moment, I would have to vote for the Rebel XTi, since the image quality seems to be very high, it comes with a decent lense, and the self-cleaning image sensor is a feature that I definitely need, since my dorm room is quite dusty and when I am home, we have cats and dogs that can wreak havoc on things.
 
I voted Nikon ofcourse. But my suggestion to you is this. Go to the local cmera store and, hold the prospective units in your hands. See which you like the feel of the best. Both companies are putting out great equipment and, accessories for them so, you can not go wrong with either. What it comes down to is what feels best for you. :D
 
Chalk up another for Nikon. Again, another Nikon owner. I picked D50 due to its low light ability and faster autofocus but, honestly, if it were me, I would probably go for D70 due to its size. I owned a D70 once and it was a nice little camera. Better handling, IMO, than D50 and has front and rear control dials (unlike D50).

That said however, I just bought my mother a D50 for xmas. She is used to a tiny little P&S so this is going to be a major step up for her.
 
Having a store over 2 hours away makes this a pretty tough choice if you have to buy sight unseen.

The one thing I really like about the Nikons is that the body size is larger. Look at a D70 compared to a Rebel XT - the D70 is larger and to me, more comfortable to hold. However, I don't like how cramped the viewfinder on my D70 is, but the problem exists with the Rebel XT as well.

Lenses are the real draw, and both companies make some great stuff. Here is where Canon has a step up because a lot of its lenses are USM (ultrasonic motor?) which means fast and quiet autofocus. Nikon, however, is still transitioning their line to AF-S (silentwave autofocus), though I think most of the common lenses in use already use AF-S.

However, Nikon lacks a modern 70-200/F4 lens on par with the Canon 70-200/F4L, so I had to go one step up and buy the 2.5 pound behemoth 80-200/F2.8 ED, which is a great lens, but does make my arm a little tired during a long period of shooting. ;) A third party maker probably manufactures one, but I haven't really researched it.

Also, comparing the D50/70/70s/80 to the XT/XTi, the Canon Rebels have one feature I sorely want - pre-shot mirror lockup. A minor gripe is that the D50/70/70s don't have ISO100 (D80 does), but the MLU is the main sticking point. ;)

As for reviews, well, there's always http://dpreview.com/
 
I would say go into a camera store and try them all. I am a ex-Nikon guy and went to Canon, and enjoy the change. I like the XTi over my old D70. Big difference, should be interesting to see what Nikon puts out next. I am getting the 30D, my wife gave me the okay since she hogs my XT.....
 
darktiger said:
I like the XTi over my old D70. Big difference, should be interesting to see what Nikon puts out next.
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Oh yeah, well I used to be a Canon guy and now I've got a D50. It's darktiger vs. Mattman all over again. :p

If I had the choice, I'd probably still pick the D50 over the new D80 since it's a little spendy and I just don't care that much...and the Canons feel kind of cheap to me.
 
For $900 I would prob look for a used 20D :), you can find them for around $775-800.
 
darktiger said:
I would say go into a camera store and try them all. I am a ex-Nikon guy and went to Canon, and enjoy the change. I like the XTi over my old D70. Big difference, should be interesting to see what Nikon puts out next. I am getting the 30D, my wife gave me the okay since she hogs my XT.....
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Well the gossip is the D40 will be next on the entry level. It will no doubt have the 10MP sensor or, an 8. But ofcourse a neutered version of the D80.
 
I have a suggestion/question. I have been digging around the DSLR scene for a little bit now and I have read a ton of good stuff on the Olympus E500. It is comparable to the other cameras mentioned in this thread and tends to get great reviews on all sites I have seen. Is there a reason to avoid it and go with the the Canon/Nikon instead? Here is the one I am referring to:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16830111169
 
Even though it's on a per-camera basis, I personally would say any Canon over the equivalent Nikon; this is because I am a Canon guy, granted, but i'm a Canon guy from my experiences with both.
 
like the above poster posted...there are the canon people and teh nikon people. again i;m a canon people. one taht i would recomend is Canon 30D...it's around your price range...maybe a little bit higher, still i would stay away from a Rebel (don't know why...i have never liked them) i would go with one of the nikons.
 
i am in the same boat about getting a dSLR, i am also looking at the pentax k100d. from what i been reading i like it over the nikon d70s and the canon rebel xt. only draw backs are slower then normal AF and slower and less burst shots. but you get built in shake reductions. i love to shoot at night/dusk and currently carry around tripod for all that and if i can do less of that i would love it.

i am coming from a full manual canon ftb, so i think any dSLR listed above would knock my socks off.
 
When I was trying to decide the same thing back in Feb I went to the local Inkley's and wandered around with the Nikon D50 and then the Canon XT, snapping shots and getting a feel for the cameras. I walked out with the Nikon because it felt more comfortable. The D50 was bigger, easier to hand hold, and the controls were easier to reach.

You will be able to get great photos with any of your choices. I know in my case the quality of my photos are limited by me - not by my equipment.
 
I recently bought myself a Pentax K100D, and I'm VERY satisfied thus far. Quality is amazing (then again, that's true for ALL modern DSLRs), and it's a fair bit cheaper than the other cameras you've looked at. Additionally, the kit lens of the Pentax is supposedly vastly superior to the kit lenses of other DSLRs in the same price range.

As for slow bursts, it is worse than either of the others, but it's not really that bad. And if you want to improve it, just buy a faster SD card.

Anti-shake helps. It won't really save a bad shot, but it does help. Don't expect blur-free images at half a second exposures, though...



Edit: The Pentax does have one disadvantage. Pentax lenses are nowhere near as commonplace as Nikons and Canons, so finding good deals on Ebay won't be as easy. On the other hand, most Pentax lenses made in the past I don't know how long will work with a modern Pentax DSLR, so it does give you a nice set of options.
 
spend more money on the optics rather than the camera. what good will two extra megapixels do when you can only take a picture of limited objects?
 
I'm looking for a DSLR camera too and have my eyes looking on the D50. D50 since it's affordable, SLR, digital, Nikon, comprable to a higher end model D70. I'm not looking for something über like what Rage has (I wouldn't begin to know how to use it). I'm looking for a "learner model": something to learn with that's not P&S.
 
I would actually recommend the Sony αDSLR-A100H. Now before all the photography buffs jump on me for liking Sony cameras, let me explain. I will happily admit that the camera/optical quality is not as good as the Canons or Nikons, but Sony does the electronics much better. I've never used a Nikon, but I've used several Canon DSLRs (D10, D30), and I still stick with my Sony. Basically I see it as a trade off, the Canons have better optics, the Sony has a better electronics. In my experience, this usually means that the two come out looking slightly different, with the canon looking sharper/more defined and the Sony having slightly better colors. The other thing I've found about the sony is that its indestructible. I've dropped it down stairs, into lakes, etc... and it still works fine. For me, that's the big issue, since I only do nature type photography.

Out of the ones listed, I'd recommend Canon. The National Parks service photographers swear by them.
 
doh said:
I'm looking for a DSLR camera too and have my eyes looking on the D50. D50 since it's affordable, SLR, digital, Nikon, comprable to a higher end model D70. I'm not looking for something über like what Rage has (I wouldn't begin to know how to use it). I'm looking for a "learner model": something to learn with that's not P&S.
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If you really want inexpensive. Then the D40 is out and, it is a fine started camera now and, it will leave you plenty of money to get more lenses.
 
I've shot on both and I prefer Nikon. The camera's built more solidly, it doesn't have moisture issues like canons sometimes do (some of the canon digis have been known to die if you shoot in humid conditions), and even the stock el-cheapo lenses that cameras are always packaged with are better on the nikon side - - the focus rings on some of the inexpensive canon lenses is very twitchy, making it nearly impossible to manually focus, especially when you're on a tight shot.

If you can find a D70 in your price range, certainly get it. It's discontinued now so that can be difficult. It's got some advantages over the D50 that IMO make it worthwhile.

I was excited about the D40 until I read up on the specs. The LCD is larger than the D50, but it takes away a lot of the manual functions that the D50 has. I like a camera that can go fully manual if I'm in this price range - and even if you're not worried about that now, as your photography skills improve you will eventually be taking shots that you'll want control over at least some aspects of the image.

Canon has the advantage of having better optics on their lenses, but to really see a difference between them you have to get into the ungodly-expensive stuff. We're talking several grand for one lens. Unless you're about to open a newspaper or a magazine, I highly doubt you'll be looking to buy those lenses ;) In the cheap to midrange prices the optics are quite close, and the decision should fall to lens ergonomics which, as I've already said, I think Nikon wins by a lot.
 
I don't know why people keep saying "Canon has better glass". What Canon has is a greater variety and more IS available on the telephotos (eg. 400 f/2.8L IS, 400 f/4 IS, 400 f/5.6L).
 
PS-RagE said:
I don't know why people keep saying "Canon has better glass". What Canon has is a greater variety and more IS available on the telephotos (eg. 400 f/2.8L IS, 400 f/4 IS, 400 f/5.6L).
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It is the usual !!!!!! response to me. As I see it both manufacturers are paushing each other to make better and, better cameras and, accessories. Both make great cameras and, lenses. What it boils down to is which one feels good to you, in hand and, which has the features you need. We as photofreaks are going to reap the benefits of the competition. Makes me happy as, a pig in the mud. :D
 
I voted for the d70 since thats what I ended up getting for my fiance last summer. She's a nikon person though so I was only comparing within their line. I went for it primarily because it took CF cards like the higher end nikons, unlike the d50. She's shot around 2000 images on it so far and we've been very impressed with the results.
 
It all comes down to lenses. Find out if you want Canon or Nikon lenses because once you buy the body, you'll be stuck buying from that company (and a couple third-parties). Canon lenses only work on Canon bodies and the same for Nikon. I am looking to get a dslr too, but I feel that nikon lenses are slightly better and give a nice vibrant punch compared to canon. I also think Nikon has better, cheaper lenses. Canon's "L" series is outstanding, but cost at least $950 per lens, while Nikon has lenses like the 18-200VR for $750, which is very versatile and sharp as a tack. Canon's cheaper lenses like the 28-135IS are *ok*, but not the best, and with that zoom, you will at least need a second, wider lens and possibly something with a bit more reach. I also like Nikon's 50mm F/1.8D.
 
IMO I think canon has better Glass soultions. Nikon ha s good stuff too but its a 3rd party, not too much on the nikon lineup
 
Well, there's no doubt about the quality of build and image when it comes to the "L" series, but other than that, how do the canon lenses stack up against nikkor glass? As a college student, I can't go and spend $1K on a single lens, much less two. :eek:
 
I(illa Bee said:
IMO I think canon has better Glass soultions. Nikon ha s good stuff too but its a 3rd party, not too much on the nikon lineup
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?
Nikon's lenses aren't third party...? NIkon designs and manufactures them.

unless you meant Nikon doesn't have that much variety and that the third party companies fill the gaps, your right...I need me a cheaper Nikon 70-200 f/4 or 2.8. I don't need the IS/VR!
 
4b5eN+EE said:
?
Nikon's lenses aren't third party...? NIkon designs and manufactures them.

unless you meant Nikon doesn't have that much variety and that the third party companies fill the gaps, your right...I need me a cheaper Nikon 70-200 f/4 or 2.8. I don't need the IS/VR!
Click to expand...

I still wish for an updated Nikkor ED 70-200/4 like the Canoners have.

However, you can get an 80-200/2.8 for about $900 or so (cheaper if rebate). That's my main zoom lens now. :D

And there are Canon Ls cheaper than $1000, the aforementioned 70-200/4 is about $600.
 
4b5eN+EE said:
?
unless you meant Nikon doesn't have that much variety and that the third party companies fill the gaps, your right...I need me a cheaper Nikon 70-200 f/4 or 2.8. I don't need the IS/VR!
Click to expand...

that what i meant
 
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