Nikon or Canon--or other?

[ambielee]

Hello. I've been shopping for a nice "prosumer" level digital slr for a few months now. I originally went to Best Buy looking at the Canon rebel, but was told that Nikon is better by the "nikon guy." He talked me into the d80 ($1300) which gets great reviews everywhere, it seems. But I've been back twice (just drooling until I get the money), where I've come across 2 "canon guys." This morning I was nearly persuaded into going back to the canon rebel ($800) but buying a nicer lens ($500) to go with it. So the price ends up the same. Oh, another reason he suggests the canon is that I know very little about photography. He had to explain to me about ISO and aperture and some other big words. I love photography though and plan to take a class in the spring--part of the reason I need a new camera. Anyway, he said the Canon is more user-friendly for a newbie than the Nikon.


Budget

* What budget have you allocated for buying this camera? Please be as specific as possible. $800-$1500

Size

* What size camera are you looking for? Or does size not matter at all to you?
something that fits decently in my hands (mid-twenties female)

Features

How many megapixels will suffice for you? don't know enough about it, but I will be doing a fair amount of cropping and will occasionally want to print big photos--the BB guy said between 8 and 10 there's not much difference
* What optical zoom will you need? (None, Standard = 3x-4x, Ultrazoom = 10x-12x, Other - Specify) I wish I knew.

* How important is “image quality” to you? (Rate using a scale of 1-10) I guess I don't quite understand, because I want the very best quality I can get--doesn't everyone?
Do you care for manual controls? once I learn how to use them, the more I can control the better--right?
General Usage

* What will you generally use the camera for? starting out, mostly my kids and everyday life, but I want to start experimenting with nature/outdoors, action shots, nice portraits, etc.
* Will you be making big prints of your photos or not? occasionally

Will you be shooting a lot of indoor photos or low light photos? yes

Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos? yes

Miscellaneous

Are there particular brands you like or hate? too inexperienced to tell

Are there particular models you already have in mind? those mentioned above

(If applicable) Do you need any of the following special features? (Wide Angle, Image Stabilization, Weatherproof, Hotshoe, Rotating LCD) as durable as possible, since I don't have the best record for taking care of expensive things--blame it on the kids--I guess that's why they sell protection plans.

OK, please help! I want to buy one this week, if I can get some feedback before then!
ambielee

[timmciglobal]

I'd highly consider the Pentax K10D.

10 megapixel, weather sealed body, built in anti shake, built in dust filter, big viewfinder, compatible with metrix ton of old lenses plus new USM lenses.

It's dirt cheap at 899 for body and 999 for kit for what you get.

High ISO won't be as good as canon but probably on par with nikon.

Tim

[Nexu]

Why not go for a lower priced camera since you are so new to it? Hell after a year of taking pictures you may get fairly bored with it.

Also, digital camera's have came way down in price that past several years (5+). Its not uncommon to see 5 MP camera's for $200 anymore.

I would recommend a camera with moderate manual control. The Canon A540 comes to mind. 6 MP, 4x zoom, lets you manually control some things like ISO settings and is only $200. If you insist on having a little more control the Canon S3 seems to be a favorite around here as tons of people have it and post pics with it, and I believe its $399 at best buy.

At least this way if you do some "rookie" mistakes and damage your camera in the first year, or you end up getting tired of all the picture taking, you are only out a few hundred dollars instead 1 grand +.

But then again I'm a <$300 camera user

[Texan_Eagle_Scout]

My first "real" digital was the Canon S2-IS, and I cannot praise it any higher than I do. I have gotten heavy use out of it and it has performed flawlessly. At this time for the S3-IS (the latest version) you are around $350-400. It has the following features:

• 12x zoom (equiv to something like a 35-430 in 35mm speak)
• 5MP image chip (6MP in the S3)
• The IS stands for image stabilizer built in.
• Good software package included with the camera
• SD cards are fairly inexpensive (I have seen 1GB cards on Newegg for as low as $15. (On a 512MB card I get on average 197 images at max detail)
• Very good video functions with stereo sound (limited to 1GB filesize)
• Moveable LCD display (This will make more sense when you see the review or hold one. I use it for up-angle shooting and for overhead holding with the LCD turned to face down.
• The macro function absolutely ROCKS! I have taken macro shots IN FOCUS with objects actually touching the lens.
• I cannot stress this one enough... AA batteries!!! You can get a 2500mA set of 4 rechargables and a 15min charger for less than $30, spare sets of batteries are like $15. These last a LONG time in this camera.
• Full manual control is available in addition to presets.

First and formost go to a store and check it out. The review here on this site was very helpful for me.

Here are some pics I took when I first bought the camera:

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...=2EaNGrhm5YvSg

I bought my camera the morning I got on the plane to go to San Francisco. I was literally reading the manual on the plane. I had used 35mm before but never a digital like this one, I was very impressed with the results.

[RebelRat]

For $1500 you can almost buy from B&H the following set...Canon XTi with 18-55 kit lens and EF 70-200 F4 L

or a little cheaper .....previous model Canon XT.

Great book to read...noobie and oldtimers alike...Understanding Exposures by Bryan Petersen


Also, I'd stay away from Best Buy.

[RichNY]

You will be very pleased with either the Nikon D80 or the Canon XTi. You will also have a learning curve with both, which is normal, and will be the same with either choice.

For the type of photography you are looking to shoot you will get pretty identical results from either camera- any difference you might notice will be the lens you choose.

Take a look at the pictures in this thread (click to see several of the pages). They were all taken with a $350 Canon S3IS camera which will give you image stabilization and a much greater telephoto than you would get with either the D80 or XTi and a kit lens.

While the S3IS isn't at the same level as either the D80 or XTi, you might just find that it will do everything you want and free up $750-$1000 extra that you can spend on some better purpose. http://www.dcresource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=21728

[TNB]

action shots,
indoor photos or low light photos,
sports and/or action photos

To me, it appears that you will eventually want both a FAST camera and a fast lens if you remain in this hobby or become more seriously involved. This also means more money.

Myself, I started with a lesser expensive Nikon D50, yet very capable camera body, and invested in lenses, accessories, programs, and books. The lenses and accessories actually totaled more than the camera body itself. However, this move allowed me learn camera basics and still take action shots even in low light situations.

Eventually, I wanted additional camera speed, so I upgraded to a Nikon D200. I also kept my D50 and just this past weekend for example, I carried both cameras on a photo shoot and actually used both cameras. After all, I may spot something and not have the time to change lenses. Basically, I keep one shorter VR lens on the D50 and the longer more expensive VR lens on my D200. I also own a couple of other lenses and am looking to purchase yet another lens.

My point being is that the big bucks usually ends up in the lenses and you may want to think of the initial camera body as a starting point and the lenses as a long term investment. And if you end up with two camera bodies, one can always be used as a back up or simply used with another lens.

Good luck with your decision.

[NWcityguy2]

I was in your shoe's a month ago when I ended up buying a Canon Digital Rebel XT. It is a great camera and I couldn't be more happy with it. I ended up choosing Canon over Nikon and others because I was able to find a better deal on it.

After buying it I realized that preformance for a digital slr is half the camera, and the other half the lens. I ended up not liking the kit lens and buying 2 other canon consumer lenses and am very happy with them.

I would recommend handling both and choosing whichever one feels more comfortable to you. There are a variety of good lenses for both so I wouldn't let that play a huge role in your choice.

Just curious, if you get the Canon which lense were you planing on buying?

Adam

[RebelRat]

Though the kit lens is not a great lens, it's still a good bargin for a wide angle lens. The kit lens stopped down to F8 is actually pretty good. I'd say $100 for a wide angle is a good deal.

I find 28 or 35 is not very wide at all. Quite often you find you don't have the room to move back another 10 - 20 feet to get the shot.

If you want a real good wide angle, you'd be paying much more than $100.

With the kit lens, you can learn if you need wider or longer reach in what you choose to photograph.

Just my 2 cents worth.

[Texan_Eagle_Scout]

If you check out my signiature, will see my new purchases. My wife broke her 35mm, and I convinced her to replace it with a DSLR when she saw the prices they have now - Ritz Camera=$750 for Body+2 NIKKOR lenses. While shooting some this weekend I really like the D-50 so far. Something to consider (it confuses the heck out of me) the software that comes with the camera does not allow post processing of RAW files. You will need another program for that like Photoshop. What was NIKON thinking not including something basic with a DSLR?

For $1500 you can almost buy from B&H the following set...Canon XTi with 18-55 kit lens and EF 70-200 F4 L

or a little cheaper .....previous model Canon XT.

Great book to read...noobie and oldtimers alike...Understanding Exposures by Bryan Petersen

Also, I'd stay away from Best Buy.