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Switching from Nikon to Canon, a good idea?

E

eastcolo

Guest
I have always shot Nikon, and am pretty comfortable with everything. I had a professional business for 3 years, and now have spent 2 years out of it since I became a stay at home mom. 2 years ago it looked like Canon was kicking Nikon's butt in the digital world, and I was thinking I would probably sell all of my equipment, and then switch to Canon, making a slight downgrade in quality of body, since I won't be using them nearly as much, but would still like to stay "sharp". My reasoning was to get rid of my D1x body while it was still worth something, and try to stay somewhat current so I could jump back into photography if I wanted to.

So, I finally have my equipment for sale, and have started the research on my future purchase. As I have done the research though, I am starting to have a little concern over comments about Canon's auto-focus abilities. While I want to work on my manual focusing abilities, the reality is that I will be primarily photographing my 3 year old, my family and our vacations. I want things to work quickly and accurately. Am I making a mistake making this move, or is it really that big of a deal? The equipment I had kind of decided on was the Canon 7D with kit lens, and an additional 85 mm f 1.8 lens.
 
Jorgen Udvang

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Switching from one brand to another because "Brand A kicks Brand B's but" is the worst reason you can find for switching. Next year, it may be the other way around, and you would have to switch again, and every switch will cost you a lot of money. Unless the 7D offers you something that you need, and the D300s doesn't have, you are mostly causing problems and extra costs for yourself: you have to get used to the ergonomics of a different camera (Canon and Nikon are different in that area), you have to buy new lenses and again, what do you gain?

If, on the other side, you need 1080p and/or 60fps video, or you have a lot of lenses that will fit on a Canon body and not on a Nikon, or you print so large that 18MP vs. 12 really makes a difference... then, it may be worth a consideration. But then, what do you do if Nikon launches a D400 with a zillion megapixels, 3D video and built in coffeemaker? Switch back?

Find out why it would be an advantage to switch. Then, weigh that towards the cost.
 
T

tokengirl

Guest
Jorgen Udvang said:
Find out why it would be an advantage to switch. Then, weigh that towards the cost.
Click to expand...
I agree. The current line-ups from Canon and Nikon are both excellent, notwithstanding all the whining on some of the gear forums that shall remain unnamed.

What exactly do you hope to gain by switching? What do you think Canon is offering that Nikon is not?
 
E

eastcolo

Guest
I think you all might be right. When I started thinking about this, it was when the Mark cameras first came out and my D1x was still top of the line or close to top of the line for Nikon...there was a pretty big difference in image quality and what you could get from a camera. Life happened in the meantime, and like I said, as I started researching now, 3 years later, I was a little surprised by what I found. I am a little concerned about getting used to a new body style, menus, etc. I guess I also still was in the mindset that I was going to keep my light kit, so I wouldn't have any additional revenue from equipment sale to go toward the purchase of a new camera. I have since decided to sell the light kit, and that should give me plenty of revenue to move forward with a new body, and I can keep the two lenses I love.
I'm sure my whole post seems a little silly, I really was hoping to get feedback like this to help me think through the process, especially since I have been out of the game for 3 years.
Thanks again for your help!
 
TRSmith

TRSmith

Subscriber Member
Someone once told me that fish have a thin strip along their sides that picks up minute changes in electromagnetic energy (or was it pressure?). Like the pressure that might be generated by a slight movement of water. This supposedly explains how an entire school of fish can seem to change direction at the same instant, almost as if they were one organism instead of a collection of individuals. I honestly don't know if any of that is even a little true. But I like the theory and sometimes see a similar effect being played out on shore with other types of organisms.

I think Jorgen nailed it and would suggest that if you have some Nikon glass, stick with Nikon. Besides, in the 3 years since you started to consider the move to Canon, Nikon has made some tremendous changes. It's a pretty cool time to be a Nikon fan.

Best of luck with your decision.
Tim
 
W

wayne_s

New member
Eastcolo,

I just wanted to address your concern about the AF of the 7D.
I have used the 7D for a couple of months now for bird and wildlife photography and am very happy with the AF funtionality of this camera which is a new redesigned system from the 1d3 which had the reported AF problems. I also have 1ds3,5D and 1d2n cameras. The 7D is easily the best APS-C camera that Canon has ever made and is a new performance and price point as it it is between the 50D line and the pro 1D line with fast 8 fps speed and fast AF with full HD video for only $1799.
I agree you need to weigh the pros and cons of both systems looking at lens lineups of both for the kind of shooting you do. Try out both cameras and figure out what works the best for you and has the price/performance that you seek.
Good luck with you new camera shopping and if you have any more questions about the 7D pls. feel free to ask.
 
E

eastcolo

Guest
Thanks so much to all of you for the replies. I really think the gap in time between making my initial decision and now is the main factor in my indecisiveness. A lot of strides have been made in Nikon, and frankly my D1x feels like a dinosaur. I have been checking out the Nikon bodies this afternoon (which I hadn't done yet) and really feel that the D300s is probably the way to go for my situation.
 
V

Vlad

Member
For what it's worth, I have made nearly a complete switch from N to C. Reason was the fast L glass (24/1.4, 35/1.4, 85/1.2, 135/2) that Nikon can't offer. Also, by selling my Nikon gear, I could transition to Canon without it costing a lot (as N is more expensive) and I liked the idea of a high resolution, FF camera in a small'ish body (5dmkII compared to my D3).

I still have my D3 with 85/1.4, 24-70/2.8 and 50/1.4. The rest was sold.

I will probably sell the D3 body and hang on to the glass for future body releases. The lenses are just too freaking sweet to let them go.
 
M

Mark K

New member
It does not make too much sense unless you are keeping all your Nikon gears. Both are very good systems while Nikon are in fact making bodies which have better build quality, faster AF etc.
 
P

Paratom

Well-known member
I am releasing myself from some gear right now and since I use MF for "ultimate IQ" and also Leica M my DSLR-system shal be reduced on just a few lenses.
I need it mainly for those times when I want fast AF and when I want Tele (since the Leica M and MF are not good for that).
I admit I too have the thought to switch from Nikon to Canon since the 7D seems to offer some 6MP more pixels, HD video, IS in the standard zoom compared to the D300s.
And then Canon offers some nice primes like the 24/35/50/85/135L lenses, plus Canon offers more choices for Telelenses at f4.0.
Canon offers a 17mmT/S lens, Nikon does not.
The downside I would see is that Canon has probably nothing that compares to the Nikon 14-24/2.8 lens.
 
Jack

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
I would say at this point in time, if you purchase comparable systems from each manufacturer, you would have a difficult time with a functionality comparison --- they're both pretty great within the respective price-points. I'd add the Sony to that mix too.

I think the best reasons to choose one DSLR over the other are ergonomics, comfort with the control layout and menus, and any specialized lens choices. Generally speaking though, I would give the edge to Canon Pro bodies for AF, while Nikon Pro systems get the tic for best metering and flash integration.
 
S

s.agar

Member
I also made the change from D700 to 5DII. I'm very happy with the Canon body. But I miss my Nikon WA zoom lenses. Especially the 28/1.4, 14-24mm and 24-70mm lenses.
 
simonclivehughes

simonclivehughes

Active member
FWIW, I've been back and forth a couple of times, having grown up with Nikon. I had the 10D and then a couple of the 1D bodies (1D and 1D Mk2) and I have to say that I never felt as comfortable with the Canons' user interface as I do with the Nikon. The Nikons just seem to fit my hand better and all the controls fall naturally, whereas with the Canons, regardless of the time I had used them, I was never as "at home" as with the Nikons.

Cheers,
 
W

wayne_s

New member
s.agar said:
I also made the change from D700 to 5DII. I'm very happy with the Canon body. But I miss my Nikon WA zoom lenses. Especially the 28/1.4, 14-24mm and 24-70mm lenses.
Click to expand...
You can buy a special adapter from Mark at 16-9 which allows use of the 14-24G on Canon with manual focus.
I love this lens on my 1ds3.
You can use the 28/1.4 with a nikon-eos adapter on your 5d-2.
 
E

eastcolo

Guest
Wow! I am glad I'm not the only one who has considered this switch, and I really do thank you for all of your input. I am now just waiting to sell my profoto light kit or my D1x to cover or help cover the cost of a new body. I am having a really hard time being patient, as I really would like to get out there and start shooting...something I haven't done in a long, long time. The video feature on the new bodies intrigues me a little. At first I didn't think I would ever use it, but the video camera we have now is mini-dv, and we have been talking about biting the bullet and buying a new digital video camera. It is my hope that the body will cover both my husband and my wants. What is everyone's feelings about the video on something like the 7d or the D300s? Sufficient quality? Easy to use? Would love to hear what people think and in what applications do you use it for?
 
Lars

Lars

Active member
I haven't switched from Nikon. Too much money in glass, and no bodies out there that would dramatically change my images. In a way, the camera is just a lens accessory, the lens makes the image. No point in switching based on what bodies are on the market at a certain time.
 
P

Paratom

Well-known member
I dont have experience with a 7d/d300s for video but with a gh1.
The shallow dof compared toconsumer video cams does give a nice look, however it also means focus is more critical when you shoot video with larger sensors.
The D300 and 7d areeven bigger than the gh1, so focus should be even more critical.
The other thing is the swivel display which is nice for video, the d300s and 7d dont have one.
I think it is a nice to have movie in a DSLR but I doubt it can fully subsitute a "real" small video camera with designated user interface.
 
E

eastcolo

Guest
t_streng, Thanks for the input! I am excited to try it out.
 
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