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Archive 2015 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon

  
 
mcurley99
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


I shoot sports with both a Canon 7d mk2 and a 5d mk3, both utilizing a Canon 300mm 2.8 Series 2 lens and a Canon 70-200 f2.8 Series 1, in various combinations. At several events this year, a couple of Nikon shooters and myself were having conversations about the lighting of the stadium and comparing settings. I found that they were able to shoot at much faster shutter speeds and lower iso than myself. In both cases they were shooting Nikon D4s, and Nikon 400 mm 2.8 and Nikon 300 2.8 lenses. While they were shooting at 1/1600 sec, f2.8, iso 2000, I was shooting manually at 1/800 sec, f2.8, iso 5000 with the 300 lens. I have gone over and over my settings and can't find anything that may be contributing this issue. Has anyone else experienced a situation like this, or have any ideas what I could check as a cause of the discrepancy between my settings and theirs? Is it correct to say that I should be able to shoot with similar settings as my Nikon pals? Any info greatly appreciated!


Nov 01, 2015 at 05:01 PM
shaneroper
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


I wish I could help you but I shoot D4, D4S and D3S and I find most of the time my friends that shoot Canon are lower on there ISO than I am and when I shoot there settings I am way underexposed. I guess one of two things, the sensors are not calibrated the same or they may be underexposing or I may be overexposing the photo..only three things I can think of. Let me know if you figure it out!!



Nov 02, 2015 at 01:01 AM
innaeddy1
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


I cant even get my canons to act right, let a lone 2 seperate companies cameras, I shoot with 2 mk4s, with a 2.8 lens on each, and I can be at ISO 1600 f4 SS 1200, and on the other to get the same exposure it will be like ISO 2000

Andy



Nov 02, 2015 at 01:36 AM
gschlact
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


innaeddy1 wrote:
I cant even get my canons to act right, let a lone 2 seperate companies cameras, I shoot with 2 mk4s, with a 2.8 lens on each, and I can be at ISO 1600 f4 SS 1200, and on the other to get the same exposure it will be like ISO 2000

Andy


Andy, this is only a 1/3 stop difference.
The original example was 2 whole stops. I wonder if there were shooting the sa, E areas on the field and whether resulting images looked similarly exposed?



Nov 02, 2015 at 01:46 AM
mcurley99
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


Thanks for the input guys, in response to gschlact's question, yes to the same area of the field and target as we were standing side by side, but as far as the resulting images, they looked similar but I didn't really compare because I thought the brightness of the lcd's would be subjective and adjusted differently. I was more concerned with the metering on the front end. I appreciate all of you taking the time to offer comments, etc.


Nov 02, 2015 at 06:21 AM
schlotz
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


Some how it just seems unlikely there is actually a 2 stop difference between the Canon & Nikon mentioned. This makes me think there are other factors in play with the obvious one being answered by putting the two raws up side to side in a comparison. Settings combined with where each focal point was actually located for example can contribute to some (but possibly not all) of it. I too have shot next to a Nikon user. While our bodies are definitely different and even after taking into account lens capability, the resulting SS & ISO comparison was off no more more than 1/2 stop, sometimes less. JMTC

Matt



Nov 02, 2015 at 07:46 AM
darwinphoto
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


I call BS. Or confusion. An external light meter measures the ambient light at 1/1000 f/2.8 ISO 400. Set any Nikon or Canon DSLR to those settings and I'm very sure you'll get an actual image within 1/2 stop of each other. Well, OK, maybe if one is 1/2 stop bright and the other 1/2 stop dark, you'll see 1 stop between them, but I really, really doubt it.

For years I shot Canon next to a guy who shoots Nikon. We shot in the same gym. Shot the same settings. I went through 3 or 4 bodies in that time and he went through 2 or 3. Our settings stayed the same since the light was the same.

My suspicion is that what OP experienced was difference in the way people expose the images, not cameras.



Nov 02, 2015 at 06:17 PM
mcurley99
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


Well, it's definitely not BS from my end, but my wife would probably agree with you on the possibility of it being confusion! No really, I raised the question because I became concerned that maybe my gear wasn't working properly or more likely that I had missed something in my setup, because as you stated, logic would dictate that the devices should be close to one another in exposure settings. This does establish that most of the people who responded, agree that I shouldn't be that far out from the Nikon guys, so maybe I need to look at my methodology.


Nov 02, 2015 at 08:45 PM
Vancouver47
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


I frequently shoot aircraft with a variety of Canon bodies alongside Nikon shooters, with a variety of bodies. More often that not I'm shooting with +⅓ to +⅔ stop while the Nikon guys are almost always shooting -⅓ stop and occasionally -⅔ stop.

My only normal Canon body is the 5Ds which seems fine at 0 EC when the Nikon guys are shooting at -⅓.


Edited on Nov 04, 2015 at 07:19 AM · View previous versions



Nov 02, 2015 at 10:15 PM
mb126
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


I've shot <5000 shots with a Nikon in my life but every single time I view +2/3 EC as my default when shooting in Av on a Canon body. Could just be my eye but when I am not in Manual, Canon bodies definitely have a tendency to under-expose IME.


Nov 03, 2015 at 03:19 PM
hotdog12
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


It's been my experience that photographers often rely on "faith-based" exposures. They come up with an exposure that may or may not have any shadow detail, or that might blow the highlights. Trying to compare Nikon to Canon at a sports venue is hopeless unless the photographers are standing beside each other, using identical manual exposures with similar lenses shooting the same scene.

I've often found that I am exposing a stop or two more than the guy beside me at a game and that they are simply losing the shadows.



Nov 04, 2015 at 03:43 PM
P Alesse
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


Try shooting with the lens cap function set to OFF


Nov 04, 2015 at 08:36 PM
pjbuehner
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


I shoot next to people all the time who have no idea what a proper exposure is. Until you see the results, write it off as the other guy underexposing. I shoot in dark venues where I know for a fact that you need to be at ISO 6400 or higher to freeze action. People next to me will be shooting ISO 1600.
That being said, I tend to expose to the right and will always choose to pull back a highlight in post rather than to push a shadow. In my experience Canon can handle highlights slightly blown way better than an underexposed image. Perhaps the Nikon can handle recovering shadows better...the internet would have me believe so.
Regardless, you can always send your camera in for service but if the results are working for you, and it is two different cameras, I think you are fine.



Nov 05, 2015 at 09:01 AM
darwinphoto
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


I often find that indoor and night sports will meter brighter than you want. Follow the meter and you end up under exposed.


Nov 10, 2015 at 01:06 PM
brian_f2.8
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


You really can't compare a D4/D4s sensor to a 7D MII. Also as mentioned, shooting different parts of the field will give different results.

We would need to see the images to properly evaluate.



Nov 13, 2015 at 08:12 AM
whumber
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


Vancouver47 wrote:
I frequently shoot aircraft with a variety of Canon bodies alongside Nikon shooters, with a variety of bodies. More often that not I'm shooting with +⅓ to +⅔ stop while the Nikon guys are almost always shooting -⅓ stop and occasionally -⅔ stop.

My only normal Canon body is the 5Ds which seems fine at 0 EC when the Nikon guys are shooting at -⅓.


That's a metering issue that you're describing. What the OP is describing is a 2 stop difference with identical exposure parameters.

To the OP, I often shoot table tennis, indoors and almost always with awful lighting, along side another guy who shoots with a D4 and our exposure settings are always identical and we get pretty much identical exposure. I have to say, if Nikon was actually getting 2 stops more exposure at the same ISO I'd drop my 1DX and switch to a D4s so fast it'd make my wallet spin ... and empty out all of its contents .



Nov 15, 2015 at 10:35 AM
cocodrillo
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


Run a parallel back to the film days and the idea of +/- a 1/3 of a stop seems very reasonable. Different films at the same ISO or even the same film from different emulsion batches would give different results. I remember that Fujichrome Sensia 100 was spectacular if shot as if it were 80 ISO whereas such adjustments weren't needed for Ektachrome. I'm guessing there's something similar at play with the sensors in Nikon and Canon. But not two stops difference. Something else is going on.


Nov 15, 2015 at 10:42 PM
Konablue
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Canon camera exposure settings vs Nikon


How are you comparing the results between the Nikon and Canon? I know you mentioned you didn't trust the LCD and that's a good call but I wanted to add to that just for sake of discussion. The camera LCD displays have a lot of variables when used to compare between cameras and there is more going on with the displayed photo than simply matching the brightness levels. Another variable is the camera LCD is displaying the in-camera processed JPG even if you're camera is set to shoot raw only. Something else to consider is whether or not the camera is set to "High Level Noise Reduction" or using a similar setting. Also, the histogram isn't going to be that useful to compare either, unless you are both taking the exact same picture from the same location, same angle at the same time,same focal length, etc which is hard to do.

Probably the best way to compare the cameras is to compare their raws on the same computer/display. I'm confident you'll find the two brands are not that far off on exposure but I'd like to see how the noise levels compare once the exposure between the two brands is matched up in post. You will probably see more dynamic range from the D4 than the 5D3 or 7D2. I wouldn't put much weight on what another photographer is using for exposure settings until you can compare the raw files on a computer and view the final results.



Nov 16, 2015 at 11:08 PM





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