Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Funny Funny

7 comments:

Naomi said...

Hey Laurie. Joey is super cute! I had a random question for you (well actually probably more for Matt). We are looking into getting a new dSLR and are torn between the canon Xsi, Xti, or the nikon D60, D80. Obviously Matt is a Nikon person but we wanted to get his brief opinion. Thanks.

Matt and Laurie Beardsley said...

Hey Guys, Matt here (I love talking about the nerdy stuff!) I am definitely a Nikon Guy and can recommend the D60, but this is one bracket of the camera market with lots of good options worth considering. The 5 big entry-level SLR makers, Nikon, Pentax, Olympus, Sony, and Canon, all have snazzy, new offerings. The major advantage of going with either Nikon or Canon is the ability to expand into professional or field-specific gear someday down the road. I had a Pentax SLR that I loved, but had to start from scratch with Nikon once things got serious. Having said that, Sony is supposed to release a pro-level body this year which could be interesting.

Since the beginning of entry-level DSLRs, though, The Canon Rebels have been the best thing going and , by far, the most popular. The Canon XSi or 450D is the newest hottest camera in the bracket and shares a lot of features with the mid-range Canon 40D. Its the most expensive, but has an edge over the Nikon D60 in low-lighting/high ISO shooting. Also, though you'll have to confirm this, the Canon 450D is supposed to work with the whole line of Canon lenses, while the Nikon D60 is only compatible with Nikon's newest AF-S line which is pretty limiting.

One issue with the Nikon D60 is that it has relatively little advantage over the older Nikon D40 (the D60 replaced the D40x) and is considerably more expensive. There are even a couple advantages, besides price, to the D40, lower minimum ISO and higher flash sync speed. Some people might even recommend a Nikon D40 with a nice flash and beefier lens as a better investment than the D60's kit price.

(See www.kenrockwell.com for that argument)

The D80 offers a lot of upgrade to the D60, a wide-range of lens options and exposure bracketing, bigger, better build with more buttons for control (instead of menu-surfing). Its really a pared-down D200. I used one as a backup for a wedding a couple weeks ago and was happy with it (very similar images to the Nikon D200, witch shares the same sensor). Also, I think it might be slightly less expensive than the 450D which might indicate the 450D is pretty over-priced. Two drawbacks, its a lot bigger and heavier that the Rebel and not a pared-down version of Nikon's awesome new D300 (if that were available, it would be an easy choice).

Most of my Canon experience is with the 5D and 30D, but the whole Canon line seems to be cameras that do well, on the plus side, with skin-tone and low light, and offer good resolution and low noise, but, on the negative side, have awkward ergonomics, cheap build, and aggressive in-camera processing. Nikon tends more towards solid build, good ergonomics, and more neutral images (my preference, because I appreciate the control and post-processing possibilities).

Wow, this might go down as the longest "comment" in history; I hope it was helpful!

To wrap it up, I think at the $750 price point, I'd pick the Nikon D80 over the Canon 450D, but between the Nikon D60 and 450D would pick the Canon. For a bargain option, I would consider the Nikon D40 or, more likely, a used D80 now that Nikon people might be upgrading to the newer D300 and D700. But I'm pretty biased.... Shoot, maybe you should just get the 450D.

Matt and Laurie Beardsley said...

...and that was like reading in another language. Good luck guys!!

-Laurie

Naomi said...

Thanks for all of the wonderful information. It was very helpful. We've at least narrowed it down between the D80 and the Xsi. We'll let you know what we decide.

Matt and Laurie Beardsley said...

One more post for the Nikon/Canon debate.... I'm just now plowing through the editing from a recent wedding. My assistant shot with a Canon 40D, which is supposed to be very similar to the new 450D in many ways.... I shot with my usual Nikon D3 and D200.... Let me tell you, I have spent HOURS taking the weird yellow/green color out of all 669 shots from the Canons. The Nikon shots, 1523 in total, are nearly all spot-on with white balance right out of the cameras..... It seems to be have been especially noticeable for this particular event, which could mean a little operator error. Other shooters I've worked with have had better results from other Canons.... Just an observation and a little venting from Team Nikon!

Savannah Jane Springer said...

On a completely unrelated note...though the past comments were very informative...i was just found this event and maybe you already know and maybe you're too far away...but i thought it looked cool! i would go if i were in san fran! sorry i missed you guys the other weekend...:-(...matt...thanks for the 'card'...i'll always keep you in mind!

anyways...here the link to the renegade craft fair!

http://www.renegadecraft.com/sanfran/index.html

much love from all the springers!

Naomi said...

Hey Matt and Laurie, Thanks for all your opinions and information. We actually bought a camera on Friday night. We ended up with the Nikon D80 with a 18-135mm lense. We also got a free Quantaray 55-200mm lense. We haven't had too much time to play with it yet. But, we love it and are very happy with it. It makes us feel even better after your last comment about the coloring. Well, we have lots of learning to do now. Thanks again for all your help!