Thinking about moving from Canon to Nikon... at DVinfo.net

Charles Papert · June 25th, 2005, 01:52 PM

I bought a Canon 10D last year, and I've been perfectly happy with it. I bought it with a long and short zoom. It's been sort of nagging at me that I don't have any primes for use with it, primarily for the wider apertures. I do miss being able to go shallower with the depth of field when I want to.

On the shelf sits my old Nikon FE, with 4 Nikkors. Fellow DVI'er Tyler Cartner got my juices flowing a bit by mentioning the Nikon D70S and that I could use my old lenses with this camera. I did some spec shopping and now I'm getting tempted to sell my Canon and buy into the Nikon.

I'm aware that autofocus lenses are de rigeur these days, but I do occasionally put my Canons into manual focus mode for old times sake and feel like I can adequately judge focus through the viewfinder enough to consider using manual lenses for a controlled shoot (headshots, etc.)

Anyone have any thoughts one way or another on this? Experience with both cameras, likes and dislikes?

Michael Salzlechner · June 25th, 2005, 06:46 PM

Charles

Sounds like for what you are planning on doing with it it probably doesnt matter either way. There isnt much difference in the class of camera you are talking about.

Actually the D70 will be a slight upgrade from the 10D but a little below the 20D.

Canon and Nikon have very similar equipment.

If you need long telephoto lenses that is one area where canon is ahead and also a lot cheaper. Other areas are image stabilized lenses, Tilt-Shift and some specialty lenses such as the 70-200 F4.

Nikon on the other hand does a bit better with wide angle lenses and has the 200-400 F4.

I decided for canon because i had to buy a bunch of the long telephoto lenses and other pro lenses and the price difference was more than enough to be me an XL2.

If you dont have any special need then both systems will serve you well.

Forgot to add this. I dont know what focal lengths you are looking for but another option would be to get some primes for the canon. An 85 1.8 runs about $330, a 50 1.8 runs $85.

Charles Papert · June 26th, 2005, 12:40 AM

Agreed about the stabilized long zoom lens, that's a great plus. I have one of those and really like it. Got the stabilized Canon binoculars also.

Jimmy McKenzie · June 26th, 2005, 07:16 AM

Nikon has really become serious lately with their aggressive pricing of DSLRs. I trashed my 8 megapixel mini cam for the D70 and what a great device. Huge chip for the buck and straightforward menus (once you read the book) makes this a nice contender.
You just can't beat it for the value at 1500 bucks CDN.
Just add accessories ...

Bob Zimmerman · June 26th, 2005, 07:25 AM

I have a Nikon D100. I've been waiting for a D200 as a second camera. Now I hear it will be after PMA next year. The more I read about the D70 and now the D70s I think I might get one. They are being used by pro's and the price of $899 is not bad. I'm thinking about the D70s with a 17-55 2.8 lense.

Mike Teutsch · June 26th, 2005, 07:58 AM

Charles,

I can't join the debate between the Canon and the Nikon, because I just don't have the expertice the some of you have, and I am certainly so photographer. The last Canon still I owned was about 30 years ago, but, I can say that I love my Nikon D70.

Since getting the camera about 6 months ago, I have probably taken a thousand pictures with it, (some actually very good). It is just so easy to use and seems to be set up so intuitively, that I can just grab it off of a boat seat or table and start shooting. I bought several lenses for it, from a really nice 20mm, to AF zooms to 400mm. All I can say is that I am very happy with it.

Best of luck with whatever you decide!

Mike

John DeLuca · June 26th, 2005, 10:17 AM

Charles,

I own the D70, D100, and D2X. Nikon is gonna win this with the DX sensor because of DOF issues. The Nikon capure software is also the best at this point.

About the D70......The color looks alot like slides. Over saturated most of the time(skin tones glow).

John

Steven Digges · June 26th, 2005, 10:27 AM

Charles,

Keep the Canon gear and buy the D70S. Or at least buy the D70S before you sell the Canon. Unfortunately digital camera bodies have very little resale value. How much can you get for a used 10D and a couple of zooms? How valuable will it be to have the Canon system to run out the door with when you want the ease of AF and other electronic functions? Auto focus is not the only function you will lose when you screw an old Nikkor lens on to a D70S, the old lenses cannot communicate with the new body. I don’t track Nikon gear anymore but I would find out exactly what functions work with the old lenses and what doesn’t. I suspect you will find out it is like putting a Volkswagen engine in a Ferrari.

I would blow the dust off that old FE and go burn a few rolls to remind myself what a great system that was and is. Using your old lenses on a D70S may be similar to shooting with your FE except you will have a digital result.

Steve

Charles Papert · June 26th, 2005, 11:20 AM

Good points all. I should say that I do intend to replace my two Canon zooms with two Nikon zooms so that I have the same AF capabilities when needed; I would just be adding the additional possibilities of shooting with the single focal length lenses for portraiture.

Steven, the 10D seems to be commanding $6-700 on eBay, which isn't too bad--I spent $1000 on mine (factory refurb). I think it would be even more attractive with the lenses to the right person. The ones I saw for sale were body-only, presumably from folks who moved up to the 20D.

Rainer Hoffmann · June 27th, 2005, 01:33 AM

Charles,

better have a look at the Nikon site. There should be a compatability list (there is or was one on the german site). On some combinations of lenses and digital bodies not even light metering let alone automatic exposure will work!

Simply speaking, the more expensive the body the better the compatibility. Unfortunately the D100 seems to be one of the less suited bodies for the "old" lenses.

Andrew Leigh · March 26th, 2006, 12:17 PM

Hi Charles,

I have been off the forum for some time due to work pressures and only noticed your post now, have you made the change yet?

If not, the distance between the camera bodies of the Canon and Nikon are different. The Canon being shorter, this leaves space for an adaptor that will allow you to fit your Nikon primes. The adaptors are inexpensive and worth it, I would check it out if I was you.

Many have the same problem and there is a big market for the old Pentax K mount (M42) primes as many don't mind the manual focus. There is some good old glass at very affordable prices.

I have a 10D and have been given the Novoflex 400 / 600mm combination with the Nikon mount. I have two choices, the one is to buy the Nikon to Canon adaptor (cheaper) or to by the original Novoflex to Canon which is more expensive but I think better.

Cheers
Andrew

Rob Lohman · March 26th, 2006, 03:32 PM

Andrew: I think Charles is currently on dial-up and very busy with some job. I'll forward this thread again to him though. Hopefully he has some time to comment!

Meryem Ersoz · March 26th, 2006, 06:03 PM

these are just the kinds of questions which keep me up at night! even when they are someone else's questions!

so the options are:

buy Nikon body plus two telephotos to match the two canon telephotos

or

buy a couple of primes for the Canon

seems like buying a few primes will set you back less $$$, especially if you sell the Nikkors to finance the Canon primes...you could probably break even.

therefore...it depends on how badly you're drooling over the possibility of a new Nikon body.

opportunity to drool over new camera body: priceless!

Andrew Leigh · March 26th, 2006, 10:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rob Lohman

Andrew: I think Charles is currently on dial-up and very busy with some job. I'll forward this thread again to him though. Hopefully he has some time to comment!

Hi Rob,

thanks for that. Hey long time no speak, hope i find you in good spirits.

Cheers
Andrew

Andrew Leigh · March 26th, 2006, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meryem Ersoz

these are just the kinds of questions which keep me up at night! even when they are someone else's questions!

so the options are:

buy Nikon body plus two telephotos to match the two canon telephotos

or

buy a couple of primes for the Canon

seems like buying a few primes will set you back less $$$, especially if you sell the Nikkors to finance the Canon primes...you could probably break even.

therefore...it depends on how badly you're drooling over the possibility of a new Nikon body.

opportunity to drool over new camera body: priceless!

OR

buy a $30 convertor for each lens and use your Nikon primes on your Canon. That sounds like the cheapest option to me.

Cheers
Andrew

June 25th, 2005, 01:52 PM	#1
Charles Papert Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 6,810	Thinking about moving from Canon to Nikon... I bought a Canon 10D last year, and I've been perfectly happy with it. I bought it with a long and short zoom. It's been sort of nagging at me that I don't have any primes for use with it, primarily for the wider apertures. I do miss being able to go shallower with the depth of field when I want to. On the shelf sits my old Nikon FE, with 4 Nikkors. Fellow DVI'er Tyler Cartner got my juices flowing a bit by mentioning the Nikon D70S and that I could use my old lenses with this camera. I did some spec shopping and now I'm getting tempted to sell my Canon and buy into the Nikon. I'm aware that autofocus lenses are de rigeur these days, but I do occasionally put my Canons into manual focus mode for old times sake and feel like I can adequately judge focus through the viewfinder enough to consider using manual lenses for a controlled shoot (headshots, etc.) Anyone have any thoughts one way or another on this? Experience with both cameras, likes and dislikes? __________________ Charles Papert www.charlespapert.com

June 25th, 2005, 06:46 PM	#2
Michael Salzlechner Major Player Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Royal Palm Beach, FL, US Posts: 228	Charles Sounds like for what you are planning on doing with it it probably doesnt matter either way. There isnt much difference in the class of camera you are talking about. Actually the D70 will be a slight upgrade from the 10D but a little below the 20D. Canon and Nikon have very similar equipment. If you need long telephoto lenses that is one area where canon is ahead and also a lot cheaper. Other areas are image stabilized lenses, Tilt-Shift and some specialty lenses such as the 70-200 F4. Nikon on the other hand does a bit better with wide angle lenses and has the 200-400 F4. I decided for canon because i had to buy a bunch of the long telephoto lenses and other pro lenses and the price difference was more than enough to be me an XL2. If you dont have any special need then both systems will serve you well. Forgot to add this. I dont know what focal lengths you are looking for but another option would be to get some primes for the canon. An 85 1.8 runs about $330, a 50 1.8 runs $85. __________________ Michael Salzlechner

June 26th, 2005, 12:40 AM	#3
Charles Papert Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 6,810	Agreed about the stabilized long zoom lens, that's a great plus. I have one of those and really like it. Got the stabilized Canon binoculars also. __________________ Charles Papert www.charlespapert.com

June 26th, 2005, 07:58 AM	#6
Mike Teutsch Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Port St. Lucie, Florida Posts: 2,614	Nikon D70! Charles, I can't join the debate between the Canon and the Nikon, because I just don't have the expertice the some of you have, and I am certainly so photographer. The last Canon still I owned was about 30 years ago, but, I can say that I love my Nikon D70. Since getting the camera about 6 months ago, I have probably taken a thousand pictures with it, (some actually very good). It is just so easy to use and seems to be set up so intuitively, that I can just grab it off of a boat seat or table and start shooting. I bought several lenses for it, from a really nice 20mm, to AF zooms to 400mm. All I can say is that I am very happy with it. Best of luck with whatever you decide! Mike

June 26th, 2005, 10:27 AM	#8
Steven Digges Trustee Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 1,828	Charles, Keep the Canon gear and buy the D70S. Or at least buy the D70S before you sell the Canon. Unfortunately digital camera bodies have very little resale value. How much can you get for a used 10D and a couple of zooms? How valuable will it be to have the Canon system to run out the door with when you want the ease of AF and other electronic functions? Auto focus is not the only function you will lose when you screw an old Nikkor lens on to a D70S, the old lenses cannot communicate with the new body. I don’t track Nikon gear anymore but I would find out exactly what functions work with the old lenses and what doesn’t. I suspect you will find out it is like putting a Volkswagen engine in a Ferrari. I would blow the dust off that old FE and go burn a few rolls to remind myself what a great system that was and is. Using your old lenses on a D70S may be similar to shooting with your FE except you will have a digital result. Steve __________________ www.CorporateShow.com Been at this so long I'm rounding my years of experience down...not up!

June 26th, 2005, 07:16 AM	#4
Jimmy McKenzie Major Player Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Waterloo Ontario Posts: 721	Nikon has really become serious lately with their aggressive pricing of DSLRs. I trashed my 8 megapixel mini cam for the D70 and what a great device. Huge chip for the buck and straightforward menus (once you read the book) makes this a nice contender. You just can't beat it for the value at 1500 bucks CDN. Just add accessories ...

June 26th, 2005, 07:25 AM	#5
Bob Zimmerman Major Player Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Illinois Posts: 888	I have a Nikon D100. I've been waiting for a D200 as a second camera. Now I hear it will be after PMA next year. The more I read about the D70 and now the D70s I think I might get one. They are being used by pro's and the price of $899 is not bad. I'm thinking about the D70s with a 17-55 2.8 lense.

June 26th, 2005, 10:17 AM	#7
John DeLuca Major Player Join Date: May 2003 Location: Akron, Ohio Posts: 496	Charles, I own the D70, D100, and D2X. Nikon is gonna win this with the DX sensor because of DOF issues. The Nikon capure software is also the best at this point. About the D70......The color looks alot like slides. Over saturated most of the time(skin tones glow). John

June 26th, 2005, 11:20 AM	#9
Charles Papert Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 6,810	Good points all. I should say that I do intend to replace my two Canon zooms with two Nikon zooms so that I have the same AF capabilities when needed; I would just be adding the additional possibilities of shooting with the single focal length lenses for portraiture. Steven, the 10D seems to be commanding $6-700 on eBay, which isn't too bad--I spent $1000 on mine (factory refurb). I think it would be even more attractive with the lenses to the right person. The ones I saw for sale were body-only, presumably from folks who moved up to the 20D. __________________ Charles Papert www.charlespapert.com

June 27th, 2005, 01:33 AM	#10
Rainer Hoffmann Major Player Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Syke, Germany Posts: 249	Charles, better have a look at the Nikon site. There should be a compatability list (there is or was one on the german site). On some combinations of lenses and digital bodies not even light metering let alone automatic exposure will work! Simply speaking, the more expensive the body the better the compatibility. Unfortunately the D100 seems to be one of the less suited bodies for the "old" lenses. __________________ Keep rolling Rainer

March 26th, 2006, 12:17 PM	#11
Andrew Leigh Major Player Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Johannesburg, South Africa Posts: 220	Hi Charles, I have been off the forum for some time due to work pressures and only noticed your post now, have you made the change yet? If not, the distance between the camera bodies of the Canon and Nikon are different. The Canon being shorter, this leaves space for an adaptor that will allow you to fit your Nikon primes. The adaptors are inexpensive and worth it, I would check it out if I was you. Many have the same problem and there is a big market for the old Pentax K mount (M42) primes as many don't mind the manual focus. There is some good old glass at very affordable prices. I have a 10D and have been given the Novoflex 400 / 600mm combination with the Nikon mount. I have two choices, the one is to buy the Nikon to Canon adaptor (cheaper) or to by the original Novoflex to Canon which is more expensive but I think better. Cheers Andrew __________________ PAL XL-1, DV Raptor, Premiere TOTAL AMATEUR - DOING IT FOR THE FUN

March 26th, 2006, 03:32 PM	#12
Rob Lohman RED Code Chef Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Holland Posts: 12,514	Andrew: I think Charles is currently on dial-up and very busy with some job. I'll forward this thread again to him though. Hopefully he has some time to comment! __________________ Rob Lohman, visuar@iname.com DV Info Wrangler & RED Code Chef Join the DV Challenge \| Lady X Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Buy from the best: DVinfo.net sponsors

March 26th, 2006, 06:03 PM	#13
Meryem Ersoz Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 3,015	these are just the kinds of questions which keep me up at night! even when they are someone else's questions! so the options are: buy Nikon body plus two telephotos to match the two canon telephotos or buy a couple of primes for the Canon seems like buying a few primes will set you back less $$$, especially if you sell the Nikkors to finance the Canon primes...you could probably break even. therefore...it depends on how badly you're drooling over the possibility of a new Nikon body. opportunity to drool over new camera body: priceless!