At the recent Japanorama Christmas bonanza a lot of us got reminiscing about our first SLR’s. It made me think just how difficult all the facts and figures can be.
The first time you walk into that camera shop, wallet in hand and ready to make that expensive decision, things can be really tough.
I decided to try and make it a bit easier for you, clear up some myths about the whole Nikon v Canon debate and even suggest some alternatives.
So here is a little list for first time buyers of what cameras and lenses to consider. But before you get reading there is one really important thing to note; in Japan second hand is basically new so don’t ever be put off buying something used. I promise you that you will be able to get a body twice as good as a new one for the same price at shops like Fujiya or Map camera.
I have tried to put this in the most basic of terms for those of you starting out but if you have any problems then please drop me a mail.
Nikon
I shoot Nikon, Alfie shoots Nikon, Irwin shoots Nikon, in fact we basically all shoot Nikon.
There are two very important reasons for this, which can be real money savers for those on a budget.
The first reason:
Nikon has kept the same camera mount for a long, long, long time. In fact so long that pretty much any lens you pick up will be able to stick straight on your body and get shooting. That is unless you own a d40 or d40x (which I would really try and steer clear of, even as a first camera)
Basically an old Nikon 50mm f1.2 Ais from the 70s is going to give you better bokeh, be sharper and cost about a 1/6 of the price that a new Canon 50mm f1.2 costs. Who cares if you have to manual focus….just pick up a katzeye focussing screen if your that fussed.
So you have got a better range of lenses at a much cheaper price across the board
The second reason:
Flash. Nikon’s flashes from the SB600 upwards all have a little ‘eye’ which is set off by the flash on the top of your camera.
This means you can fire you flash wirelessly using just whatever flash you have on the camera itself, avoiding the need for Canon’s expensive wireless/infra-red remote-control gear.
Ok enough rambling and Nikon-bumming.
Here are the two cameras you should go for.
For the price, there are few cameras that can top what the d90 can do. A 12 megapixel sensor, 720p movie capability (which by the way we film all our podcasts with, to give you an idea of quality) and a nice big live-view enabled 3 inch screen.
These facts and figures however are the things that camera companies use to sell their gear. They are not necessarily as important as they seem.
When it comes to buying a camera things like feel, weight and build quality are also terribly important. The d90 is a sturdy little camera and in no way does it feel flimsy like some of Canon’s cheaper offerings. It is also extremely well laid out as camera bodies go, with the af-point selector being easy to use and the viewfinder nice and bright.
The d90 responds well to high-iso’s, has a nice frame rate and focussing system and above all is not too complex for someone starting out shooting. It will act as a camera to learn on as well as one which wont limit you as your photography gets better. This is something extremely important as you want to hang on to your camera body for as long as possible, investing in lenses as time goes on and eventually bumping the body up when you have reason to.
At the time of writing this, the d90 is available second hand all over Tokyo. Map for example has got loads, all of which will be of good quality and sold with the service that Map is famous for.
I could list a whole heap of tech-specs and things for you to geek over, but I am sure if you are looking at this then you already know them. What you really need to know is that this camera won’t restrict your photography, it won’t irritate you when you learn its limitations and will also enable you to take your photography further and quicker than if you were to buy an expensive complex body.
Lets say you don’t have, or don’t want to spend that kind of money. Or perhaps just dabble in the world of the SLR to see if you like it.
Take a look at the Nikon D70….
This is a great camera, so great in fact that I learnt on it. I switched to a 30D and ended up missing my Nikon pretty quickly. This camera feels right and is a great alternative if you aren’t bothered by the big shiny screen on the D90.
But the best bit about this camera is its price. Second hand ones inn Tokyo are practically free. You are getting a totally capable and qulity SLR for less than 40000…
Right so you have picked up your camera body
Now for the fun part, lenses…….yes lenses are the fun part…
Without a doubt the single most important investment you can make in your photography is a good quality prime. Having a prime in your arsenal is vital, it will push your compositional skill as well as your general photographic technique much much faster than a cheapo do itall zoom.
So which prime to buy
You probably regularly see both myself and Alfie ranting and raving about how awesome our 85mm f1.4 lenses are. Yes they are indeed awesome, but the cost of them is also awesome. So don’t bother investing until you really really feel that photography is your thing.
Much better is to go for the nice DX format Nikon 35mm f1.8, I have written a full review of it here.
The other option is the 50mm f1.8 or if you can stretch to it the 50mm f1.4 I reviewed the 1.4 of those here also. The 1.8 is a fantastic lens for its price. Its not exactly built well but it performs fantastically. A lot better than the horiffic canon 1.8 which has build quality that is a total joke.
Then again there is one more option, that is to invest in some good ol manual focus primes. If thats what you want to do, go to Fujiya or Map camera and have a look at 50mm f1.2 AIS or 35mm f2 AIS both of which are a solid investment.
Zooms
A good zoom is really expensive. Im not going to lie, you need to spend plenty of money to get something nice. The 24-70 or 17-55 are great but they will cost you three of your starter bodies. So don’t bother, yet….
Nikon makes and 18-200mm VR lens which is basically a do it all. It shipped as a kit lens with the D300 and a lot of Nikons newer models. You can get hold of one used pretty cheap but the results it produces are nothing on what your prime can do that cost half as much. However, ithat is not to say it is useless. It enables you to have pretty much every focal length covered and will tide you over until you have more money or a want to take photography further and invest in a better lens.
The Nikon versus Canon debate
Nikon and Canon have been competing for years over technology but everything they produce is pretty much the same. Down the low end of the spectrum Canon-wise you have The Kiss X or the 500d. Or even a used #0d or 40D. All of these will behave just the same as the Nikon equivalent. But as I said earlier, forget putting any old lenses on them, it wont work.
This is a matter of personal opinion, but I think you get more for what you pay down the lower end of Nikon’s products. The build and feel of Nikon is just nicer and that is precisely why I own one. However what it really boils down to is you. Go to a camera shop, pick up Nikons and pick up Canons and see which one feels best in your hands. That is ulitmately the one you should go for.
If you want my advice, choose Nikon.
So thats it. The beginners guide to camera shopping….Get your credit cards warmed up and go shopping. Give yourself a few days, its like buing a car, don’t choose straight away. Try everything.
Also give me, Alfie or Irwin an email. We will come with you and apply all our technical knowledge and advice, plus if you are buying second hand we will check gear for you.
Good luck guys!!
Hx
January 5th, 2010 at 1:17 pm
One more reason I shoot Nikon is the ergonomics; aperture and speed dials on the D300, D90, D700 etc are much easier for someone like me – who has slightly small hands – to use especially when I am using the camera for a long time in one stretch.
The large dial on the back of the Canons like the 40D, 50D and 5D is just too far for me to stretch my grip and I generally find the metallic build of the D300 and D700 far superior to the 5D.
The camera has to fit in your hand comfortably if you intend to enjoy using it. The Canons I tried when I was deciding to go fully digital for work didnt feel good in my hands.
January 5th, 2010 at 2:51 pm
Although Nikon’s mount hasn’t changed much over the years some decisions by Nikon’s management has made their lens compatibility a nightmare. Using an AIS lens on either body you mentioned above, the D90 or D70 means it won’t meter, in any mode. You have to use either an external meter or the sunny 16 rule. I’m not sure either one is something a first time DSLR buyer would want to deal with. You need to move up to at least the D200 to get metering on AIS lenses. A Nikon lens mounted via an adapter on my $150 Olympus will meter just fine in manual or aperture priority. Why Nikon decided to cripple the low and mid range models in beyond me.
As much as you might laugh at Ken Rockwell he does have a great chart to make sense of Nikon’s lens compatibility issues: http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/compatibility-lens.htm
January 5th, 2010 at 3:10 pm
Was just about to link to that chart of Ken’s as well Charles. I don’t laugh at the man all the time. Between his opinions and those of Thom Hogan there lies a path most can follow.
And I agree, the Ai/AiS compatibility is a daft thing. It’s one thing not to be able to use the D series AF lenses on certain bodies, because the body requires a lens with the motor inside. But to screw the metering capabilities of all the superb manual glass was daft. You mention your Olympus adaptor, Canon also have one which allows mounting of different lenses including Nikon. Once you get to D200/D300 territory [and Ken Rockwell calls the D300 an 'amateur' camera, which I do disagree with], then the choice of lenses is vast. But only the Nikon F4 film body can take every F -mount lens Nikon ever made, i.e. since 1959. I would regard the ergonomics and remote flash capabilities to be two more significant questions for potential buyers of a system. It also depends on what you want to shoot with your new camera, as to whether you need to take dynamic range into the equation as well. There are, in fact, a million potential questions for any first-time buyer. I take a lot of people shopping for cameras. A lot of often comes down to how the thing feels in their hands.
January 5th, 2010 at 3:19 pm
Charles raises a good point – as always. In my opinion Nikon and Canon both produce excellent pieces of equipment, but their fierce rivalry and habit of only trying to leapfrog each other has left holes in the market for other camera companies to exploit. The new Panasonic GF-1 is actually quite a nice piece of kit, as well as the Olympus PEN. These two cameras have just exploded in popularity and have shown how much the public was waiting for a compact shooter with image quality rivaling larger SLRs. These companies now have a considerable headstart in this market – wait for Nikon, Canon and Sony to scramble in their wake to try and claim their share.
It won’t be a two-horse race anymore for the prosumer/enthusiast dollar (which is where the money is). As people have started to realize that mega-pixels aren’t everything, companies are going to have to figure out new ways to attract interest, and the compact micro 4/3rds camera is an answer to that dilemma. It will be interesting to see how it all pans out.
This has all led to a very interesting array of choices for first time camera buyers. I always say you can never go wrong with a Nikon or Canon SLR (especially the D90 or 5D), but only if you are serious about taking advantage of their large and established lens line-up; the biggest advantage of going with the large companies. This usually means you spending more money though. The advent of micro 4/3rds cameras is just another way to jump into semi-serious photography without the weight and price of getting sucked into the never-ending spiral of spending money on lenses.
Feel free to disagree guys!
January 5th, 2010 at 4:05 pm
time for some canon love!
i started out shooting digital (slr) on the canon 350D digital kiss and was perfect to start learning with. previous to that my first slr was a canon (can’t remember the model number!!)
the 350D, even in my big hands, was easy to use, fun, lightweight and put on one of those “total joke” 50mm 1.8 lenses and i was all go! great, cheap combination but i like to think that i got some great images!
i upgraded to the 50D a year ago (bought at the AWESOME Map Camera) and that was a joy to use! the spinny wheel is sweet! i would recommend this camera not for a first time buyer, but someone who is a bit more experience/keen amateur.
i recommended a friend of mine to get a used 40D (dslr virgin) and he’s loving it! and that “total joke” that is the 50mm 1.8 suits him well for around Y10,000 (c’mon guys!! even though its made like a kids toy, it still produces some pretty nice results!!!)
my 2 cents.
January 5th, 2010 at 5:58 pm
Couldnt agree more mate. In fact, everyone who comes to me, as a student, using Canon [or, in fact, any Canon user I know who doesnt have one] gets the recommendation of that 50mm f/1.8 lens. For 9800Yen, it’s a steal. Most Canon pro shooters I know have one in their bag too. Great for those occasions when the concept of getting their f/1.2 L series 50mm damaged would be too much to bear; the beach in particular being the place they resort to the 1.8.
I am not partisan about cameras. I’ve used most of the brands [Olympus, Canon, Nikon, Pentax et al] and apart from a few features that stand out to each user, they are all prety much the same. Jesus, even the iPhone should get a look-in: great shirt-pocket camera for anyone and I even did a lesson the other day with someone of which the first 30mins were based on the iPhone, its QuadCam app and the ability of that to tell stories in one eyeful.
January 6th, 2010 at 1:35 am
I seem to have opened up a can o worms here…
Firstly I totally agree with everything Irwin says. Choices are impossible and canon and nikons battle has left all sorts of gaps for other people to exploit.
But when it comes down to it, for me, you are the photographer, the camera is the instrument. If it doesn’t feel right then it will get in the way of you producing the best results. Simple as.
I shot canon for a long time, all the way up to a 30D, had two other canon bodies before that.
Had some decentish glass as well. But when I picked up Alfie’s d300 it felt right and has done ever since. The fact that I can stick whatever glass I want on it and my flash fires wirelessly is just a bonus. They were not deal-breakers for me in anyway.
Charles is right tho. A lot of Nikon is the illusion of expense. Take the recent capture NX2 disaster, It is a joke that the D3s is not bundled with that. However, when it boils down to it. An adapter is gonna play with the lens distance from the film plane, that is gonna mess up the lenses quality. So lucky me with my d300 is laughing. However its a down-right rip-off that they didn’t stick that on the d90 (I bet you its because they had the arrogance to presume few prosumer photographers knew about the mount thing)…
Anyway guys, I was expecting a bit of a battle after this one but lets show each other some love…and then bow down to James’s D3s…who is gonna be the first to get the 1d Mk IV….
January 6th, 2010 at 11:56 pm
When I bought my first DSLR a few year ago the deciding factor was the fit and feel of the camera in my hand. I was almost ready to buy a Canon but picked up a D80 and it just felt right in my hand size wise. And the layout of the dials/buttons seemed to make sense to me. It also just seemed better built. Those kind of first impressions and feelings are important since you want to feel comfortable with a new camera. You want to enjoy holding it in your hand and taking pictures with it every day.
My bit of advice is to spend plenty of time in the store playing with the cameras to try to get a feel for which one’s feel comfortable in your hand. Which one’s controls seem to be set out in places that make sense to you. Basically for most beginners just about any and new Canon or Nikon (or Pentax or Olympus) will be more camera than they know what to do with. Finding a camera that just “fits right” as Hunter mentioned is important.
I might also suggest that if you have a bunch of friends with Nikons or Canons you think seriously about using the same brand they do. Having friends who can help you with the overwhelming number of menu paths and options (because I doubt many beginners will actually want to read the manual and even if they did probably wouldn’t be able to digest much of it) can be a great advantage. A friend of mine got a Canon – and while I can explain about the basic concepts of what aperture, ISO, etc. are for the life of me I could never figure out how to change the settings on his camera as I’m a Nikon user.
Finally, if you’ve got the cash – just buy a Nikon D3s. Awesome freaking camera
January 19th, 2010 at 11:12 am
or just go and buy an old rollei, mamiya, etc for about half the price of a decent canon or nikon lens and enjoy the, in my opinion, superior results.
January 20th, 2010 at 8:16 am
Yep, if film is the way you want to go, I couldnt agree more… with the value for money and quality aspects. However, with film developing and printing costs you’d be up to that price of the Nikon possibly within just a few months. Something to bear in mind.
January 20th, 2010 at 10:57 am
Can always do the developing by yourself. Kits cost next to nothing. You’d need to buy a hell of a lot of film to make it a more expensive option.
You should send this page to Nikon. Free advertising!!!
One thing that was not pointed out is that Canon (apparently) has a wider range of lenses and they tend to be faster.
January 20th, 2010 at 11:01 am
also – do dx lenses work on a full frame camera? if that’s the case then you might want to warn people.
February 10th, 2010 at 3:33 pm
Great article Hunter.
I often get asked what do buy first from new slr user, and I always tell them to buy a prime lens first for the exact reasons that guy gave. Every time someone buy their first DSLR with a zoom, they end up producing pictures than they would with a point and shoot. That why I would never advice someone to grab the 18-200, especially if they want to get good at photography. For the same price ( or even cheaper ) I would suggest them to get a super wide zoom, or a good tele, depending on what they prefer.
I know someone who started with a 50mm, then bought the 18-55 and told me he never used he’s prime since then and was thinking about selling it, I was like “sigh…”
February 15th, 2010 at 1:45 pm
There are many good points to the Nikon system, but any of the leading brands – Nikon, Canon, Olympus,Sony and Pentax – all have their good points.
There is something for everyone.
As it’s a bit of a “first-time buyer’s” article, the DSLR newbie would be hard-pressed to know technical detail from one brand to another.
Canon and Nikon make that choice a little easier, as they’re more in-your-face than Pentax, Sony and Olympus.
Brand recognition can go a long way, especially in choosing equipment for the first time.
Canon and Nikon is the choice of pros,that there is no debate.
They make excellent “pro” setups. That could also be a gentle nudge in the influence for a potential buyer to choose one of the top two makers.
Could be seen as “well, if the pros use it, it must be good…and so will I”.
Still doesn’t mean they’re for everyone though.
I recommend looking hard into a total system before investing into it with a body and kit lens, then upgrading with more lenses,flash, another body…and so on.
I run two systems, Nikon and Pentax.
IMO, Pentax has the better(debatable) choice of old glass,
-the best in-body stablisation which keeps lenses cheaper,
-the best ergonomics (for me). This is also debatable,as it varies from person to person. Kind of a moot point.
-compact bodies, if weight and size is a factor…it might be.
-excellent weather sealing on most of its bodies. Although you really need the weather sealed lenses to take advantage of it.
Just a few points.
I bought the Pentax K-x recently. I wanted a compact DSLR with good features to use some primes and older lenses that I have from my film days.
It’s a good system.
I have a Nikon D300, too.
This remains my main main camera. A great camera.
Flash system is better than Pentax and the auto-focus is slightly faster.
A friend of mine has a Milota and more recently a Sony to use his old lenses on.
He’s content with it.
I don’t intend to cause any controversy.
I just think it varies from person to person what camera is best.
From novice to enthusiast to pro.
If someone were to ask me “what DSLR should I buy to upgrade from Point and Shoot cameras?”, I’d think long and hard before recommending only one brand.
They might be content with only using the kit lens.
I wouldn’t want to be at fault for any comments like “it’s too big and heavy”
“I can’t get on with this menu sytem”, “It still doesn’t feel right in my hand”…and so on…
Good article, but very biased towards Nikon.
I understand why, myself being a Nikon user and I see you all are.
I have seen Alfie’s pics, and they are excellent.
However, I’m sure he could produce that standard on any system.
Know what I’m saying?