Which Dslr?

HardHat · October 12, 2009

I've seen that there are a few avid photograpohers in the forum

Need your help guys. I'm going to buy a new DSLR. By now I've narrowed my options down to the Nikon D90 and Canon 500D.

Which one should I buy and why?

And what lenses should I buy with either to cover the butterflys in the garden to the birthday party to that leopard on the other side of the lake at Yala

Ripper · October 12, 2009

the d90 shoots faster than the 500d on continuous ... the 500d has a larger ISO range

the d90 also has a slight edge over the 500d in video recording...

so it's a tough battle even when i'm from the canon camp

on lenses...

butterflies and the likes is ideally great with a dedicated macro lens... i've shot a few of em with my al-cheapo ef-s 55-250is with ok results... especially when i use the same lens for shooting portraits to snapping sporting events

for the general home use IMHO a 50mm sorta lens is fine... an 18-55 would give you lot more versatility on the fly in some situs..

In my case my general walk about lens is the 55-250

for wildlife, if you need a proper tele lens... best is to go for a prime...say a 400mm and up but those cost bucks... quite a lot of them

HardHat · October 12, 2009

yo thanks Rips, I was hoping you would spot this thread.

It is noted that D90 is a metal body and 500D is plastic. What is your take on the pros and cons of either type?

500D is 15.5MP whereas D90 is 12.1MP or somewhere approx. Not that I will be using more than 5MP in most cases.

and do you have any praise on the "Sigma" lenses?

Pericles · October 12, 2009

Generally, if you wanna do all that, your better off getting an advanced P&S like the Canon SX20 IS. SLRs and SLR lens tend to be specialized for certain functions. See what Ripper said? Macro for butterflies, long prime for far wildlife, 18-55 for general indoor use (birthday parties), 55-250 for general zoom.

Tho those are the cheap options

Ripper · October 12, 2009

HardHat said:
yo thanks Rips, I was hoping you would spot this thread.
It is noted that D90 is a metal body and 500D is plastic. What is your take on the pros and cons of either type?

500D is 15.5MP whereas D90 is 12.1MP or somewhere approx. Not that I will be using more than 5MP in most cases.

and do you have any praise on the "Sigma" lenses?

metal body has it's obvious benefits but it feels heavy if you use it like for a half a day or so...

when i was through with the sigiriya races held recently, my right hand was pretty much numb... that's after about 5hrs of running about and shooting with the 55-250 lens attached to the 50d....

I do like the heavier body compared to my bro's 400d's plastic body cos mines easier to steady but the weight can be a factor for some people...depending on usage

On MP count....i think the 500d shares the 50d's sensor...which is 15.1MP. I am not an MP whore but it's always good to have higher MP count especially when it's difficult to crop properly while shooting... Motorsports is a good example where you might not be able to crop on the fly cos everything happens really fast... so having more MP on your side is good for enlargements... This too has a lot to do with the stuff you will be shooting the most..

On lenses...I've only used cheaper canon lenses so can't really comment on other brands mate

i'm sure more experienced Peri and Dilesh can share a bit more light into this

Ripper · October 12, 2009

Pericles said:
Generally, if you wanna do all that, your better off getting an advanced P&S like the Canon SX20 IS. SLRs and SLR lens tend to be specialized for certain functions. See what Ripper said? Macro for butterflies, long prime for far wildlife, 18-55 for general indoor use (birthday parties), 55-250 for general zoom.
Tho those are the cheap options

yep...very true!

a friend bought a 400d last year with the kit lens and an EF-300mm...

he was shooting a bit at the time but now he rarely use the camera...

too much of hassle to be taking around cos it needs for TLC etc...

So if you're not too serious about photography and are the type to loose interest in stuff soon, best bet might be an advanced P&S like Peri says cos those darn things can do a bit of everything

A DSLR is a bigger commitment IMHO

HardHat · October 12, 2009

well I've already got a couple of P&S and they work quite well for everyday use and while travelling. But sometimes their limitations are quite frustrating

the SLR is for special occasions, creative stuff and of course for the versatility of interchangeable lenses. It's been long while since my Nikon FM10 and now I want to re-ignite the old passion with a digital twist

Watchman · October 12, 2009

When choosing the brand, I would say personal preference plays a big role too. Canon users generally tell you how good Canon is and Nikon users do the same for Nikon. And Sony user will tell you how good Sony is and what a good alternative it is to the common brands...

As for the sensor size, how big do you normally print? if you dont print anything more than say 8x12 either should be ok, even with cropping. Besides that I agree with Ripper on the lenses etc, the lenses you need really depend on the subject. And i hear the 100mm F2.8 is an awesome Canon lense for your butterflies and other macro stuff. And besides that its usage would be limited.

Maybe a semi-pro camera would be a good choice too... gives a lot more than the average P&S without the pricetag of a SLR.

But if you think you're unsure on taking it up seriously, you should reconsider consider the SLR.

Ripper · October 13, 2009

Dilesh said:
When choosing the brand, I would say personal preference plays a big role too. Canon users generally tell you how good Canon is and Nikon users do the same for Nikon. And Sony user will tell you how good Sony is and what a good alternative it is to the common brands...
As for the sensor size, how big do you normally print? if you dont print anything more than say 8x12 either should be ok, even with cropping. Besides that I agree with Ripper on the lenses etc, the lenses you need really depend on the subject. And i hear the 100mm F2.8 is an awesome Canon lense for your butterflies and other macro stuff. And besides that its usage would be limited.

Maybe a semi-pro camera would be a good choice too... gives a lot more than the average P&S without the pricetag of a SLR.

But if you think you're unsure on taking it up seriously, you should reconsider consider the SLR.

true true... but personally i don't like fanboys

that's why i was trying to see the D90's benefits over the 500d though i own a canon

i think it's a lil lame to be stuck to a "brand" if logic doesn't justify it...

Saw a leaf digital back in action recently and i'm in love with it

too bad i will never EVER get to own something like that... 56MP

Watchman · October 13, 2009

Ripper said:
true true... but personally i don't like fanboys
that's why i was trying to see the D90's benefits over the 500d though i own a canon

looks like you and i counter-weigh the scale... when most people ask me on what to get as a 1st entry level SLR, i tell them to go Canon, cos the whole AF-motor complication would be too hard to comprehend/handle if you're not familiar with the issue and the related lenses etc. But in this case since HardHat is thinking of the D90, so to me, it boils down to budget and personal preference.

And yeah 56 MP is just crazy, you can chop that sensor into 4 pieces and even one of those would still be bigger than mine

MkX · October 13, 2009

I use Rebel XS (1000D) with 18-55mm stock lens.

You can get top quality photos with normal maximum enlargement range with 6 - 8 MP. If you still better to have lttle over go for 10MP. Any thing above will deliver you nothing.

Save those bucks and go for good quality lens lens quality will determine 50% - 80% of the overall quality of your photo.

Following figures will give you an understanding of Mega pixels Vs maximum print size without loosing the image quality (distortion)

6MP - 20.05" x 13.34"

8MP - 21.76" x 16.32"

10MP - 25.81" x 17.28"

12MP - 28.60" x 18.67"

So you need to deside how many photos you gonna print and at what size. Always better to save money on MP and go for a Good lens. You can get these information in internet.

Ripper · October 13, 2009

Quote
You can get top quality photos with normal maximum enlargement range with 6 - 8 MP. If you still better to have lttle over go for 10MP. Any thing above will deliver you nothing.

Sorry mate... this statement IMHO is rubbish!!!

I have 15.1MP on mine and there have been countless times where that has helped a lot to "have" a decent pic where had i been on a smaller MP count it wouldn't have been a keeper...

Motorsports photography is a very good example where MP count can come handy...

I shoot high speed burst when i shoot races on a 55-250mm lens on my 50d... It's tough to have proper focus on fast moving cars, on dusty tracks etc so every single of those shots count... having faster shooting speed helps a lot and having a faster camera processor too helps a lot...

and all those are camera body features so i don't buy the argument that it's ok to have no-so-advanced body with a not-so-big sensor is ok while anything over 10MP with get you nothing!

I've saved so many shots that had to be taken from far away with my limited zoom capacity thanks to the larger MP count...

and those MP count to print size you've given applies if you haven't cropped your pics!

I'm all for the better lens argument... dreaming of the day when i can get to proper L series stuff...

But to say that it's mostly the lens and not the MP is no accurate...

At least not to me

HardHat · October 13, 2009

guys, thank a lot for your inputs

for the time being I would leave choosing additional lenses to a lot more thought and careful consideration

where I'm located right now, the 500D and D90 with the stock 18-55 lense go almost head to head price wise.

So if we leave the lenses aside, and forget about price, what would be the best buy out of these two?

Edited October 13, 2009 by HardHat

Ripper · October 13, 2009

HardHat said:
guys, thank a lot for your inputs
yeah, it's true that a lot of thought and careful consideration has to go behind choosing lenses

where I'm located right now, the 500D and D90 with the stock 18-55 lense go almost head to head price wise.

So if we leave the lenses aside, and forget about price, what would be the best buy out of these two?

for my type of shooting... i would by the D90

but a good plus for the canon would be it's super range of high end lenses in the L series...

but those cost a lot moolah

Good news for you IMHO is that you wont go wrong with either of them

Pericles · October 13, 2009

D90 I think. We generally consider that the D90 is supposed to compete with the xxD range, not the xxxD ##### like the 500D. Hence you might wanna look into comparing the D90 with the 40D or 50D.

Check this out.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_po...90&show=all

The way I see it, the D90 is right between the 500D and 50D. Keeping with my feeling that SLRs are for photos, not movies. But the D90 with metal body and pentaprism viewfinder should compete with the similar 50D, not the plastic body and pentamirror viewfinder 500D. The 500D is a marvel low range camera that compares so favorably with the higher range that ppl often compare them, even tho the 500D is supposed to be one range lower. It was released waay after the D90 hence the tech has advanced to put features that compete with the D90 into the lower range, but its still the lower range.

Ripper · October 13, 2009

Pericles said:
D90 I think. We generally consider that the D90 is supposed to compete with the xxD range, not the xxxD ##### like the 500D. Hence you might wanna look into comparing the D90 with the 40D or 50D.
Check this out.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_po...90&show=all

The way I see it, the D90 is right between the 500D and 50D. Keeping with my feeling that SLRs are for photos, not movies. But the D90 with metal body and pentaprism viewfinder should compete with the similar 50D, not the plastic body and pentamirror viewfinder 500D. The 500D is a marvel low range camera that compares so favorably with the higher range that ppl often compare them, even tho the 500D is supposed to be one range lower. It was released waay after the D90 hence the tech has advanced to put features that compete with the D90 into the lower range, but its still the lower range.

great stuff peri... in that case i would opt for the 40D or the 50D

HardHat · October 13, 2009

again thank all for your views and hey Peri, that's a geat site and the 'head to head' feature really helps

I'm a lot wiser now but still torn between the two. Sadly 50D is prohibitively expensive.

Does the fact that Canon body is made in Japan and Nikon in Thailand play any part on my deicision?

Kavvz · October 13, 2009

Another DSLR thread AWESOME !! lolz.

HardHat: While not as being as experienced as most on the forum; I might be able to help out a bit as I went through the same process a couple of months ago. I ended up treating myself to a 500D. The Nkion D90 was a close runner-up and at that price point I thought it might be the better Camera but I went with Canon as everyone I spoke to raved about the quality of L-series lenses and their inherent durability (photojournalists out in hard terrain allegedly favor EOS 1's and weather sealed L lenses specifically for that reason). Now I'm not sure how this all extends down towards the cheaper DSLR's and the kit lenses they are sold with; but its something that I took into consideration as I know somewhere down the line I'd want to grab myself one of these mythical "L" series lenses

Cameras die, get swapped around etc, but generally lenses last a lifetime lu, and apparently the trick is to plan ahead and make sure your lenses and equipment are always in keeping with future potential purchases.

Also whilst down at the local college to view one of their exhibits; I nosed around and found that most of the prof's (who all work in the industry) own Canons and all endorsed the L lenses whole heartedly. Which is interesting, as the school AND most of their events are partnered with Nikon

Edited October 13, 2009 by Kavvz

Kavvz · October 13, 2009

HardHat said:
again thank all for your views and hey Peri, that's a geat site and the 'head to head' feature really helps
I'm a lot wiser now but still torn between the two.

My local pro-shop offers rentals. Any chance of locating a similar outfit where you live? If so, why not rent a D90 and a 500D on consecutive weekends?

Edited October 13, 2009 by Kavvz

Kavvz · October 13, 2009

Just looked at your flickr (its been a while since I was on there) but holy crap: http://www.flickr.com/photos/blindshooter/3968267909/

As we fuss about stuff, that's a pretty sobering thought...

Edited October 13, 2009 by Kavvz

Ripper · October 13, 2009

Kavvz said:
Just looked at your flickr (its been a while since I was on there) but holy crap: http://www.flickr.com/photos/blindshooter/3968267909/
As we fuss about stuff, that's a pretty sobering thought...

oh yeah! that has to be one of the saddest shots i've taken to date and that day and the memory of it is still fresh in my mind!

I know much worse stuff happens all over the world including SL but being witness to one and capturing that in a pic sorta hits you hard...

Devinda_Z · October 13, 2009

Kavvz said:
Just looked at your flickr (its been a while since I was on there) but holy crap: http://www.flickr.com/photos/blindshooter/3968267909/
As we fuss about stuff, that's a pretty sobering thought...

Damn

really does put things into perspective doesn't it

MasterDon · October 13, 2009

Devinda_Z said:
Damn
really does put things into perspective doesn't it

yeah...that it does bro..

nice shot ripper!

HardHat · October 13, 2009

hey Kawz thank for your input

Now kudos to the wisdom of the regulators of my ISP, flickr is blocked as the contents therein allegedly are not compatible with the cultural and moral values of the country!

so I can't see the photo, is it available somewhere else other than flickr?

Edited October 13, 2009 by HardHat

Devinda_Z · October 14, 2009

HardHat said:
hey Kawz thank for your input
Now kudos to the wisdom of the regulators of my ISP, flickr is blocked as the contents therein allegedly are not compatible with the cultural and moral values of the country!

so I can't see the photo, is it available somewhere else other than flickr?

hmmm wouldn't the use of a proxy like www.vtunnel.com or www.hidemyass.com work?

Etisalat ?