hi and buying a new camera, d70, 300d...or...

[kilago]

Hi all, I just registered on this forum, although I have been reading it for sometime. It's a great place, I learned a lot so far!

I'm new to SLR photography, but it's been something that I've wanted to get into for years--since sophomore year in college. It's now almost 5 years since then, such a long time , but I want to take the plunge. My friend is getting married this summer, and I'm taking a big road trip this fall...so I want to have some time to have "learned" how to use the camera a bit before then.

So, I'm hoping you all might be able to give me some direction, maybe tell me how you got started and which way to go.

Right now, I'm deciding between the Canon 300D and the Nikon D70. Both seem like great cameras. Here's what I like and don't like about both:

Canon
PROS :heart:
-More affordable
-Readily available right now in the US
-Smaller
-It has been on the market for sometime, so it's more "mature"
CONS :bheart: (at least the ones I've noticed)
-Slower startup performance (I always miss pics I want to take because my cameras are turning on!!!)
-Less manual controls

Nikon
PROS :heart:
-Better kit lense
-Fast initial power up (yea!)
-More manual controls
CONS :bheart:
-Harder to get right now
-New to market so more initial problems, less "mature"
-Firmware not user upgradeable! (Why did Nikon do this? I like being able to get the latest firmware on my products...plus for me in the US, I'd have to ship the camera to a service center)
-Bigger

As far as lenses, I'm thinking I shouldn't really be concerned with that, because both seem great. I guess I might eventually come to regret that IF I get really serious about photography, but for now, both gives me enough room to grow...

I'm planning on buying:
-Camera with kit
-Extra battery
-4GB microdrive card (or should I get a standard compact flash?)
-Camera bag
-UV Filter (for lense protection when in use)

Thanks for your help!
-kilago

PS I should also mention that I'm trying to stay under $2000 USD. So I might be able to squeeze a Canon 10D in, but that would really be pushing it.

 

[yoyo]

Hello ....

NewBie too...
Jus got the D70....
Vy happy with it.... allow me to hv a diff angle in my photo taking....

 

[mpenza]

yoyo, what sort of angle do you mean?

 

[AReality]

you're in US ?

 

[yoyo]

yoyo, what sort of angle do you mean?

Wat angle ..ah .....

I dun know how to explain leh ....

Ummm.....

Is like I view the subj in a different way.....
A building or a person .. may not b jus as it is lor....

A photo need to be all clear some part can be blur..and abstracts... lor....

But then my skill still vy inconsistance... so hv to practise more lor....

 

[yoyo]

Hi kilago,

with USD 2k wah .. can buy D70 include and vy good nikor lens if I am not wrong...
At least most of the DX lens

 

[likefunyouare]

Wat angle ..ah .....

I dun know how to explain leh ....

Ummm.....

Is like I view the subj in a different way.....
A building or a person .. may not b jus as it is lor....

A photo need to be all clear some part can be blur..and abstracts... lor....

But then my skill still vy inconsistance... so hv to practise more lor....

mpenza, i think he meant control over the depth of field...

 

[kilago]

you're in US ?

Yeah...hope that's not a bad thing ;p

I noticed there are a lot of folks from around the world on this forum...that's pretty neat!

So let's say I did go with the Nikon D70, should I get the kit or another lense? I've heard the D70 kit comes with a good lense...I've heard otherwise about the D300 kit lense...

 

[loupgarou]

the 300D is an optically good lens, its plastic mount construction leads people to think otherwise and its cheap too.

 

[zod]

just my 2 cents
the 300d kit lens is quite hot too. cos it's a cheap wide angle lens. can go to 18mm. other than that, the 300d is quite limited, mainly the lack of FEC and the inability to activate AI Servo in any mode other than sports mode. i suggest that you think about it and consider if these 2 will affect you or not. if they do not, they getting 300d is a good choice. value for money.

1 more not about canon system is that it is more common. meaning it will be easier to find someone to share lens with. like say your friends etc.

i would be getting a 2nd hand d60 soon. i find it pointless to spend a little less to get a lesser function cam.

 

[kilago]

hmmm, interesting...I think I have some good info here...I thought the Canon lens was not that good, but apparently, I was wrong...

Okay, so lens wise, the Canon and the Nikon kits come with good lens, what about my concerns with firmware updates on the Nikon? Customer support for Nikon vs. Canon?

If I bought Camera + Kit, Nikon D70 would cost me 1299.99, or Canon 300D would cost me 949.99. With the extra $350, I could buy another good lens...do you Nikon fans think it's worth it to go Nikon even if that's the case?

Thanks,
-kilago

 

[yoyo]

mpenza, i think he meant control over the depth of field...

yes yes... right on ..

heheheh..newbie dun know the technical term

 

[yoyo]

hmmm, interesting...I think I have some good info here...I thought the Canon lens was not that good, but apparently, I was wrong...

Okay, so lens wise, the Canon and the Nikon kits come with good lens, what about my concerns with firmware updates on the Nikon? Customer support for Nikon vs. Canon?

If I bought Camera + Kit, Nikon D70 would cost me 1299.99, or Canon 300D would cost me 949.99. With the extra $350, I could buy another good lens...do you Nikon fans think it's worth it to go Nikon even if that's the case?

Thanks,
-kilago

firm ware wise ..can update online.. to D/L into the D70

 

[zod]

hmmm, interesting...I think I have some good info here...I thought the Canon lens was not that good, but apparently, I was wrong...

Okay, so lens wise, the Canon and the Nikon kits come with good lens, what about my concerns with firmware updates on the Nikon? Customer support for Nikon vs. Canon?

If I bought Camera + Kit, Nikon D70 would cost me 1299.99, or Canon 300D would cost me 949.99. With the extra $350, I could buy another good lens...do you Nikon fans think it's worth it to go Nikon even if that's the case?

Thanks,
-kilago

just to pull you more to the canon side ;p
with the $350, you can buy the 50mm 1.8 lens and a 420 ex flash and still have money left over
in singapore, the 50mm 1.8 is about US$95 and flash about US$205

but then again, it depends if you will be limited by the 300d limited features. as well as if your friends around you are using mainly nikkon or canon

 

[kilago]

just to pull you more to the canon side ;p
with the $350, you can buy the 50mm 1.8 lens and a 420 ex flash and still have money left over
in singapore, the 50mm 1.8 is about US$95 and flash about US$205

but then again, it depends if you will be limited by the 300d limited features. as well as if your friends around you are using mainly nikkon or canon

haha...yeah, I do like the fact that I could buy a lens and a flash a lot! But I'm keeping my mind open...I've heard Canon might lower the price on the 300D soon too...anyone heard similar? If so, I'd definitely go Canon. I guess in reality, I'm just starting off so maybe either camera will really be fine. I guess it doesn't sound like I could make a "bad" decision...

Unfortunately, none of my friends are into photography. So I'm really learning on my own...If I know more people have Canon, and Canon has a bigger market, that may sway me towards Canon. I just did a search on ebay for "Nikon Lens" and got 2547 hits, and with "Canon Lens", I got 2997...so I guess they're about equal there...maybe Canon has a slight edge.

So what about everybody else? Seems to be a number of people voted, more for Nikon, but only 1 Nikonian has said anything...

 

[justarius]

I'm sure both are great cameras. When going into a new camera system from an initial 'clean' background, I think the most important part is to actually handle the camera and see how it feels to you. Try to get hold of both (a bit hard for the D70 considering its only starting to ship in the US), and see how you like the ergonomics of both. For me, I don't like the Canon design and feel, which is why I went with Nikon (it also helps that my dad used to shoot with a Nikon MF! )

Feature-wise, I don't think there's any doubt that the Nikon D70 wins handsdown but the Digital Rebel is still a good camera nontheless which can take great pictures. Both systems have an extensive collection of lenses, flashes etc. I'm not sure about Canon, but Nikon does have rebates on its lenses and cameras, so you can actually save quite a bit when buying gear from NikonUSA.

Whichever you choose, have fun!

 

[Poon]

Though both systems produce great cameras, I am leaned more towards the Nikon side as i simply like their users better. This is coz generally Nikonians are more concern with better photos then equipments. Then again, i am just generalising my personal opinion, so don't :flame: me k. Just don't be too caught up in the equipment chase whichever camp you choose.

 

[Poon]

btw, which state are you in?

 

[kelccm]

Hi, I'm a 300D user and I happen to have a friend with a D70. While D70 do have more functions than 300D, but the 300D is still able to produce stunning pictures equal to the D70. Don't forget that the D70 is new to the market, so of course it'll have the better functions. In another half a year or so, Canon going to launch a 300DMKII/10DMKII which will leapfrog over the D70. When that happen what will you do? Change brand?? :dunno: :dunno:

The real deal in photography is in the lenses. Both Nikon and Canon have a large range of great lenses (Canon have more variety), you'll never go wrong if you choose either. If you are really interested in developing your photography skills, you will eventually invest in a better lense. Think about the lense you'll gonna be interested with. Its an investment. If you buy Nikon, you'll be part of the Nikon world for a long time or if you buy Canon, then you'll swear by Canon. :think: :think: :sweat: :sweat:

If budget is a constraint, I suggest getting the 300D and use that USD300 you save to buy a better telephoto lense like the EF70-200mm F4.0L. You still will have some change to buy the extra battery and CF card with your budget. Maybe even a EX420 flash. Of course if the Nikon optics appeal to you more than get the D70.

BTW, I choose Canon because of their lense variety and their "L" lense

 

[Catalyst]

The real deal in photography is in the lenses. Both Nikon and Canon have a large range of great lenses (Canon have more variety), you'll never go wrong if you choose either. If you are really interested in developing your photography skills, you will eventually invest in a better lense. Think about the lense you'll gonna be interested with. Its an investment. If you buy Nikon, you'll be part of the Nikon world for a long time or if you buy Canon, then you'll swear by Canon

I agree with that...you can still upgrade to a better body in future with better functions.