Which one should I tell to be purchased Canon 350D or Nikon D80?

[eyadnalsamman]

My friend asked me to do her a favor. She is -as am I- a beginner in digital

photography. She told that she chose two DSLRs and want to decide of one of

them. Canon Rebel XT [350D] and New Nikon D80. For me, I am tending to Canon

Rebel XT since it is cheaper and widely used among photographers. The new

Nikon D80 is more expensive and still new in the market. What about the range

of lenses for each manufacturer? Could we say that Canon lenses are more

versatile and widely used comparing to Nikkor or Nikon lenses?

I am not sure if should I tell her that or just tell her to wait to get more

information and reviews about Nikon D80. Maybe it will be better than Canon

350D regardless of its price.

[jcuknz]

I think that you should not automatically assume that becuase maybe you have used an SLR in the past that you/she needs a DSLR. Depending on how seriously she intends to take digital photography she could be better served with a top end prosumer which can be quite light and compact. This will introduce her to digital and after a year or so she will be able to make up her own mind as to what she wants.

[aaron meyer]

Personally, I would lean towards the Nikon because Zeiss has begun making lenses with the Nikon mount. Yes, you can buy an adaptor to fit an older Contax Zeiss lens to a Canon, but that's another $80 or so per lens because you need one adapter per lens.

 

Then again, what do I know about digital, I still shoot on Velvia (slides).

[john schroeder]

Buy the Nikon.<div></div>

[peter_nelson1]

I would never buy a camera as new as the D80 - modern DSLRs are very complex devices using cutting edge technology - there is a pretty nontrivial chance that a brand new product such as that will have teething problems. I'd wait a few months to discover what they are and give Nikon a change to straighten them out. Have you considered a Canon 20D - they can be had for a song and I can attest that they are excellent cameras.

[byronlawrence]

I wouldn't waste time with anything other than an SLR,, well except for my camera phone.. that is is just cool. but not for good imaging. .. an slr camera (particularly used) whether digital or film is a good investment, even with a kit lens, they tend to perform better than their point and shoot counterparts.. AND they upgrade.

 

it isn't a mistake to recommend one for your friend.

 

as far as choice goes.. Canon AND Nikon are two of the biggest manufacurers of cameras out there. as far as digital products go, Canon has an edge (IMO). but Nikon's perform just as well in the price range that you are considering. the group following for each brand is similar, there are a wide variety of lenses for both cameras.

 

the lens statement is not really true. and if it is a new product ,, so it might have a few problems.. MAYBE,, but that is what warranties are for. I doubt it will have a fatal flaw.

 

as far as price,, well you get what you pay for. you get a used canon,, it will work and it will save you money.. you buy a new nikon, it will also work, but it is new, so you get new features,, like more megapixels., the D80 is probably more comparable to the canon 20d or 30d than the digital rebel xt. if you want a more equal comparison to the rebel xt, i would think something like the nikon d50 would be more appropriate.

 

anyway,, good luck on your endeavors

 

anyway good luck.

[dmanthree]

If you're a beginner, choose the one that seems to feel right, and that is the most ituitive to use. Either camera will produce nice images, and both have a great selection of lenses and accessories, so there's little to separate the two of them. That said, I've migrated to the Canon line simly because I liked the look of their images. You can read a review of the Canon on www.dpreview.com. The Nikon hasn't been released yet, and no reviews are available.

 

And don't ignore Pentax, Sony, Olympus and Panasonic who also produce some very nice DSLRs. Take a look at the Panasonic L1. New, and more expensive, but a damned nice cam.

[byronlawrence]

I realized I put good luck twice.. so lets make that three times.

 

good luck. :)

[leicaglow]

I bought a D200 right after it came out and have had no problems after shooting thousands of images. The range of lenses is a mess right now as the digital market figures out what it's going to be. Some makers have DX and full frame 35mm they have to cover. Both makers have a wide range of lenses that should do the trick. I would add that I switched to Nikon from a pro-Canon system in the 80's because of a) lens quality between models was inconsistent, and b) they didn't have nearly the range of optical products that Nikon had/has. Also, the extraordinary investment in Canon lenses back then would be lost because they wouldn't work on the newer Canon bodies. I have Nikkor lenses from the 70's that I still use on my D200 today... that's value that's hard to put a dollar amount on. As for the notion that Nikon's ready for a change in mounts... that's just absurd. Nikon has added features to its lenses and mounts through the years without making older lenses obsolete.

[mars c]

The 350d is much cheaper today, than the d80. and would certainly get cheaper when the successor arrives.

 

Consider the lens line up when choosing between dslrs brands.

 

Or you could just wait for the successor to the 350d, if you like Canon's lens , instead of getting the d80. for all we know, the successor to the 350d might come to the market first, than the d80.

[mr._smith]

"Could we say that Canon lenses are more versatile and widely used comparing to Nikkor or Nikon lenses"

 

Nope. Nikon's new 18-135mm lens will be hard to beat. And then there's the 18-200mm with VR that's so in demand that it's backordered all over the world.

[Uhooru]

I would get the Nikon. Its a much newer camera, and the relatively inexpensive kit lenses for

it are much better than the Canons. That may not hold true for pro quality lenses where each

lead in certain focal lengths but at the low end, I would like the Nikons. If you plan a lot of

high ISO shooting or long exposures, you might want to go with the Cannon as they tend to

be better in those situations. I would wait to see what people say about that aspect of the

D80. Also the D50 and D70s are excellant choices as well.

[awindsor]

Eyad,

 

In case you haven't worked it out there is a lot of (misguided) brand loyalty out there. First your friend should go to the store and handle both. There are considerable differences in handling and viewfinders. There is no doubt that the D80 is a much better camera (it is an unfair comparison since the equivalent Nikon model would be the D50) but doubt as to whether the Nikon takes better pictures.

 

Either will do the job - very well.

 

The current speculation is that the now ageing XT will be replaced sometime this fall. Canon is making an announcement on August 14. The current scuttlebutt expects this to be a 22MP 1D camera.

[scott_eaton]

You'll still have film nitwits claiming 35mm Tri-X and Kodachrome have more resolution :-)

 

Sorry...couldn't resist.

[._._z]

I wouldn't buy yhe first iteration of any digital camera, so I'd avoid the D80 for now.

 

The person who recommended the Nikon because you can buy a $600 Zeiss 50mm lens for it, or a $1300 85mm lens for it simply was not paying attention to your note about affordability.

[bbb1]

Dear Eyad,

I have my Canon D350 only few months (since May) and I am very satisfied with it, regarding the quality of the photographs (except I have to practice more, cause it has so much options :):)) and I have no problems with Lenses, as we have Canon and Sigma Lenses for Canon or Nikon too.

 

It is cheap and great and it won the Award of best Camera in 2005 :)the big problem with those Professional cameras, is that after having bought the body, you need a great number of other lenses, e.g. if you want to shoot Macro, you have to buy the Macro lens, so now they are making even more money cause you have to buy 2 lenses if you do macro, the 50 mm normal and then the 100 mm Macro lens.

 

So, think twice and I suggest you to buy the D350 Canon is the BEST :):) and for the lenses, to wait, or to buy only a cheap Canon Lens 50mm f1,8 II for portraits :)

 

Biliana

[eyadnalsamman]

Thank you all for your kind comments are recommendations. Biliana, I do join my voice to you and I have stated above that I have advices my friend to get the Canon Rebel XT or 350D. I am sure that the new digital camera successor from Canon to the 350D will be really great and maybe we should wait for Canon to announce its new DSLR. Thank you again Biliana and for all other professional photographers in the Photo.net