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Ex Canon shooters

James R
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p.2 #1 · Ex Canon shooters

Jun 30, 2009 at 11:49 PM

Sean Mills
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p.2 #2 · Ex Canon shooters

Recent convert here... overall I am happy with the result. I could list bad things about both, but here is my takes on the good stuff.

Things I miss dearly:

The GLASS (24L 35L 50L, no reasonable equivalents)
The WHEEL... I so miss the canon thumbwheel, I'm getting over it, but it would be so nice to have back. It seems to hinder my ability to control the camera a bit without it.
21mp (had previously owned a 1ds3 and 5dmk2, can't afford the D3x at the moment, I love pixels almost as much as pictures, so this part hurts)
Adaptability, though the 14-24 on an adapter got me here in the first place.

Things I embrace:

The GLASS (24-70g and 14-24g, no reasonable equivalents, nothing even close)
The BUTTONS, after a quick adjustment phase, you realize all those buttons are there for a reason, it makes shooting more fun to control most everything manually without menus on the LCD
The PERFORMANCE... the D700 functions every bit as good as my old 1ds3 in terms of metering, focus, and feature availability, in a small body for (relatively) peanuts.

Glass, and user dependent, the IQ is just about the same. Neither is better, and I do see myself picking up a used 1ds2 here later this year so I can have fun with some L primes.

There is no reason to have allegiance to a brand name, nor is there a reason to switch if your current gear is treating you well... if you are missing out on something, do your research about what you have to give up to get it... both have their high and low notes

$0.02(cdn)

Jul 01, 2009 at 12:07 AM

leewoolery
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p.2 #3 · Ex Canon shooters

Skyehigh wrote:
I switched from Canon a few months ago for the D700 and will move back again when new 1DS comes out . Not impressed by D700 or Nikon glass

Man...you must have high standards if you're not impressed with the D700 and Nikon lenses.

Why would you switch from one make to another without thoroughly testing the same equipment from both manufacturers? It cost me thousands to purchase new Nikon gear in the last month but I wouldn't have even considered that unless I did some real-world comparisons with similiar lenses and camera bodies.

After my two-week trial with the D3, D700 and a few Nikkor lenses, it was pretty obvious to me that Nikon products would serve my business better and I haven't looked back.

Trust me...I wouldn't have made the partial switch unless I had compared the results.

Nikon Professional Services will loan out camera gear to legitmate professionals who are not current NPS members for evaluation. Why not take advantage of that program since it only costs you freight charges.

I don't know if Canon Professional Services offers the same deal to non-members but they do that for Canon pros. I still have enough Canon gear to qualify for CPS membership and they're sending me a 300 f/2.8 for an event next week.

Much success,

Lee Woolery
Speedshot Photo

Edited on Jul 01, 2009 at 11:46 AM · View previous versions

Jul 01, 2009 at 01:20 AM

Kit Laughlin
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p.2 #4 · Ex Canon shooters

Skyehigh, thanks. And nothing is more confidence-sapping than a failure (especially in the field, with the client breathing down your neck!). At the end of the day, you have to go with what inspires confidence.

Cheers, kl

Jul 01, 2009 at 01:22 AM

Wickedfn4u
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p.2 #5 · Ex Canon shooters

Switched about 9m ago and due to lack of response (they tried but did not work) to the focus issues on my MK3's. Out of the box my shots were on target and looked great. I believe both high end glass and bodies will produce great results, but going from my MK2 to 3's just took a major step back wards.

Controls is subjective I cant say I like one over the other just left and right hand. Once you learn one the other seems awkward.

Glass For what I shoot there was not big gap, other than learning all the letters and what they stood for. Miss a few, 85 1.8 and 135 2.0 for focus speed but sharpness is tit for tat. (hope these will be upgraded to "s" models soon) The Holy Grail of 2.8 zooms is amazing and add the 2-400 and wow.

Not a flash expert but man stick on a Sb-8 or 900 and you can get some amazing shots.

When I switched I bought used glass I sold used glass and the switch was not that painful. I am sure when the MK4 comes out I will drool but it won't get me to switch as I am sure not far behind will be the D4.

Good luck

TC

Jul 01, 2009 at 02:29 AM

BCNY
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p.2 #6 · Ex Canon shooters

James R wrote:
Skyehigh wrote:
Kit , I knew almost immediately that this camera was not for me after I had to send the first one back ! The guy asked a question , I answered honestly , as for my work , I thought I was doing ok till I bought Nikon .

www.jerrymoffatt.co.uk all shot with Canon !

This is a subjective comment, but, almost all your pics look over saturated--at least on my computer. I would assume you could get that look with a Nikon, if you worked on the setup. KR likes that saturated look and gets it with Nikon gear, as well as Canon stuff. BTW, this isn't a knock on KR or his photography. It is all a matter of choice.

+1, my eyes hurt after looking at the pictures. Everyone has their own preference I guess.

Easy to get that color in Nikon, shoot Vivid mode and bump saturation +2, per KR instructions.

Jul 01, 2009 at 03:31 AM

keoniahlo
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p.2 #7 · Ex Canon shooters

1. I had a 40D and liked it, however, I had a hard time believing that Canon's point and shoot LCD screens were so much better than their DSLRs! When Nikon debuted its D300 and Sony its A700, I waited...waited...and waited for Canon to respond. Nothing. I hate to admit it, but the ability to review a shot and judge critical focus simply made shooting more enjoyable. 50D was a bit too late, that's what the 40D should have been.

2. Also, as much as I tried, I would occasionally experience odd exposures with the Canon flashes, much less so with the Nikon.

3. Lastly, I really like that I can zoom in on the photo I just took without having to press the play button first (and I can delete the image with two presses of the delete button--easy!

Aloha,
Keoni

Jul 01, 2009 at 05:16 AM

rico
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p.2 #8 · Ex Canon shooters

I (largely) switched to Nikon last year. Reasons include a flash system that works, AF that works, D300 build quality in that price range, and the awesome 17-55/2.8 DX. I truly detested the two-handed operation of the Canon 1 Series (and Canon now agrees

). I do prefer the Canon grip and back wheel, but Nikon controls rule otherwise. I continue to use the Canon 1Ds in the studio, mostly with alternative glass (Zeiss, Yashica, Leica).

Jul 01, 2009 at 06:52 AM

Derek
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p.2 #9 · Ex Canon shooters

I haven't switched, but own both systems and plenty of both

The D3 has better Hi ISO performance, and produces beter Hi ISO images under mixed indoor sports lighting, and better Auto WB under the same

The Nikon 200-400 is unrivalved for sports, Canon don't have an equivalent

The Nikon 200 f2 can be used in crop mode as a 300 f2 effective, nive feature

Canon has a better range of short fast primes for indoor sports, the Nikon range is a bit old had in terms of Focus speed

Jul 01, 2009 at 08:27 AM

Alistair Watson
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p.2 #10 · Ex Canon shooters

Skyehigh wrote:
Kit , I knew almost immediately that this camera was not for me after I had to send the first one back ! The guy asked a question , I answered honestly , as for my work , I thought I was doing ok till I bought Nikon .

www.jerrymoffatt.co.uk all shot with Canon !

No offence intended, but this is exactly the reason why I urge anyone considering switching to get an evaluation or rental body + glass from either a pro dealer or directly from Nikon and use it as you normally would for a couple of weeks. In addition, any working photographer, I think, would be very very careful in approaching a brand switch, or even a significant body upgrade of the same brand, to avoid disruption to client results etc., I personally know a pro sports photographer in the UK who sold his 2 1D2Ns and a 1D2 48 hours before 3 new 1D3s arrived. He business suffered greatly because of all the AF issues and essentially he had 3 nice new paperweights valued at £10,000 and in the end he had to buy 2 used 1D2Ns to continue producing the results his clients needed.
To me it's kinda like test driving a car before I buy it and avoiding a costly mistake.

Anyway, hope you feel happier again whenever the new 1Ds x is announced.

Cheers

Alistair

Jul 01, 2009 at 08:36 AM

Pixel Perfect
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p.2 #11 · Ex Canon shooters

Plenty of pros and cons to both systems, but at the moment the prohibitive cost of the Nikon superteles, lack of f/4 lenses, f/1.4 UWA/WA primes, no 400 f/5.6, and a 1x-5x macro stops me from a wholesale change. I would consider a dual setup. However, Canon is now addressing weakeness in the UWA primes and the new TS-E lenses are another reason I would stay. The major weakness is a lack of a D700 FF equivalent. I'd like to see a 3D with say 16MP, 1D II AF, 7fps, pro sealing, inbuilt gps and flash control. Still it is very hard to resist the 5D II, despite the same old AF, which BTW is really only crappy in AI servo; it's fine in one shot mode.

If the 60D does not address the AF weakeness of the 50D, and Nikon does deliver a new 80-400 AF-S VR and/or 400 f/5.6 VR, I might jump on a D300s and also grab one of the superb Nikon macro lenses.

So for me Canon the glass line-up is overall better and the superteles much cheaper, but Nikons non-pro camera lineup is better but mainly in the AF area and sealing, as Canon has slowly caught up in other areas.

Jul 02, 2009 at 03:33 AM

dasrocket
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p.2 #12 · Ex Canon shooters

hmmm, funny that I also felt like Skyehigh with my D700; it just seemed to require a lot more work than my previous Canons to get equal images. I switched to NIKON to get a better image as I felt the Canons were giving me "flat" photos, but I did not get what I was expecting.

Since you asked about sports, I have shot quite a bit of water racing and white water sports and honestly I could not find a difference between Canon and Nikon AF for my use. Certainly not the reason I would switch between brands.

Jul 03, 2009 at 02:58 PM

Jim Sykes
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p.2 #13 · Ex Canon shooters

I switched after a long time getting told by CPS that the focus issue was my fault cause their camera just had a more advanced focus system than I was used to using.

After recalls and trips to service and continuing focus problems, little help from CPS and using a D3 and a 500 f/4 for five minutes next to my MkIII and 500, the answer was obvious as the Nikon was almost 100% in focus while the canon was 33% on a good day.

The secondary reasons/benefits were the better flash system, better ergonomics and short/wide zooms that blow away their Canon counterparts.

Not sorry I did the switch at all, though I have heard the latest recall (announced after my switch) has fixed much of the MkIII problems. But that said, the Nikon works better than any 1D body I have owned and I owned them all.

Jul 03, 2009 at 06:47 PM

parsons
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p.2 #14 · Ex Canon shooters

simon
canon shooter with a nikon 14-24

Jul 03, 2009 at 09:15 PM

jofoto photo
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p.2 #15 · Ex Canon shooters

Focus, focusing/keeper rate was the magic bullet. 1DIII focusing was a sham blah blah blah, you know the story.
D3 is a P&S camera, you point it at the subject shoot job done. No machine gunning in the hope of getting one or two in focus.

I liked canon IQ, 1 series ergonomics plus the 85 and 135 L's ( IDSII and 1D111 superfix drive you potty blue dotty

Jul 03, 2009 at 10:19 PM

DonM2
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p.2 #16 · Ex Canon shooters

zamorasurfboards ---

If your immediate needs and/or budget are concerns, get a low-mileage EOS 1D or 1D2 for your sports shooting.

Otherwise, wait for the Fall product announcements from Canon that might replace the 1D3.

-- DonM

Jul 03, 2009 at 11:29 PM

daskibum
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p.2 #17 · Ex Canon shooters

Skyehigh wrote:
I switched from Canon a few months ago for the D700 and will move back again when new 1DS comes out . Not impressed by D700 or Nikon glass

Personally, after switching brands, I would give it longer than a few months and actually learn the system/camera. The results in your gallery can easily be replicated using Nikon or Canon. Pulling it out of box, shooting a few shots and writing it off without giving it much time seems pretty retarded.

Jul 04, 2009 at 01:00 AM

Antonio Tiki
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p.2 #18 · Ex Canon shooters

parsons wrote:
Skyehigh wrote:
Kit , I knew almost immediately that this camera was not for me after I had to send the first one back ! The guy asked a question , I answered honestly , as for my work , I thought I was doing ok till I bought Nikon .

www.jerrymoffatt.co.uk all shot with Canon !

as a canon shooter, i find these examples hideous of the canon brand, especially the first gallery of scotland.
that sort of tat can be created with a point and shoot, if you have swicthed from canon to nikon and going back again, save some serious money, get a P&S and get some photography lessons

simon
canon shooter with a nikon 14-24

Simon, naughty naughty..... but kind of exactly what I was thinking.

They are not what I'd be showing as examples of why I switched.

I'm surprised by the comments from Skye... "I am convinced my photos look better from a Canon camera , i have hardly used the D700 since I got it , lost any enthusiasm I had since I bought Nikon and I know it will be costly but I prefer it"

Seriously, you might think your images are better on the Canon and they very well might be... but "have hardly used the D700".

You can't be real. Hardly used it? Ok.

Jul 04, 2009 at 02:43 AM

rjk55425
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p.2 #19 · Ex Canon shooters

Shot a series of Canon DSLRs since 2003; 10D, Rebels, 20D, 1D, 1D MKII. Used the best L lenses. Have put 30K shots through a D700, also using top glass. No doubt in my mind, I prefer the Nikon and very glad I moved in this direction.

Jul 04, 2009 at 03:32 AM

MajinHurricane
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p.2 #20 · Ex Canon shooters

anyone having problems getting into this thread through chrome? Something about www.mustangmods.com

Jul 04, 2009 at 04:31 AM

globalkiwi
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p.2 #21 · Ex Canon shooters

Not to be provocative, but it might be interesting (for comparisons sake) to post a variant of this on the Canon board - asking why people who were considering a shift to Nikon ultimately choose not to (not to mention getting input from ex-Nikon shooters). Might get a more nuanced evaluation that way - posting here alone kind of gaurantees a pro-Nikon result.

Jul 04, 2009 at 04:14 PM

keithreeder
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p.2 #22 · Ex Canon shooters

orangefirefish wrote:
1) Bodies- The 1d mark III gives great image quality but can't focus on crap.

Horsesh1t and you know it - you might not be able to get it to focus, but most folk seem to do just fine...

The AF system of the D700 is the same as the D3, and the D300 is not far behind.

And yet the 40D's AF is every bit as good in the Real World as (and in some ways better than) that of the D300 - so maybe the gap between the best Nikon can do and Canon's AF isn't as big as some would like us to believe...

Jul 04, 2009 at 04:32 PM

millsart
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p.2 #23 · Ex Canon shooters

keithreeder wrote:
orangefirefish wrote:
1) Bodies- The 1d mark III gives great image quality but can't focus on crap.

Horsesh1t and you know it - you might not be able to get it to focus, but most folk seem to do just fine...

You must of never owned a 1D mkIII then. I went through 3 of them. First two where when they came out and before the sub mirror fix was done. Useless out of the box. 3rd one was later and useable but still not very consistant. 1D mkII worked much better overall.

Of course you don't have to take my word for it, theres always Rob Galbraiths in depth write up of focus issues, the fact that theres been a ton of other sports shooters who have all switched, including USA Today, Sports Illustrated etc, the thousands of threads you can find about the AF issues or the very fact that Canon itself is still issuing service bulletins about the AF performance.

So where are the "most folks" that seem to belive it works fine

Every Canon shooting peer I know isn't thrilled with the camera, admits its got some issues, and are all just waiting to see what Canon brings out next because not everyone has the luxury to be able to afford a switch to Nikon.

Lots of people have though, and often at great cost, myself included, and trust me, thats not a move people took lightly. I didn't switch because it would be fun or I wanted to rebuy all my glass in the Nikon mount, I did it because the D3 simply worked better.

Tried a D3 against my 1D mk3 at the same events, side by side and the D3 produced far more in focus shots with better exposure and less noise, and by a large enough margin I couldnt be happy shooting Canon anymore.

Jul 04, 2009 at 07:40 PM

leewoolery
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p.2 #24 · Ex Canon shooters

millsart wrote:
Every Canon shooting peer I know isn't thrilled with the camera, admits its got some issues, and are all just waiting to see what Canon brings out next because not everyone has the luxury to be able to afford a switch to Nikon.

Lots of people have though, and often at great cost, myself included, and trust me, thats not a move people took lightly. I didn't switch because it would be fun or I wanted to rebuy all my glass in the Nikon mount, I did it because the D3 simply worked better.

Tried a D3 against my 1D mk3 at the same events, side by side and the D3 produced far more in focus shots with better exposure and less noise, and by a large enough margin I couldnt be happy shooting Canon anymore.

I agree with everything you say here.

I did get my Mark III back from Canon for the last fix on Thursday and will try and test but cannot trust it for a figure skating competition this weekend, July 10-12 so I'll be using a D3 and D700 to cover this event.

Will try the Mark III and 300 f/2.8 for practice and warm-ups but I just can't take a chance on the Canon AF performing at the same level of the D3.

Much success,

Lee Woolery
Speedshot Photo

Jul 04, 2009 at 08:22 PM

parsons
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p.2 #25 · Ex Canon shooters

just thinking about the comments above regarding the mk3 canon,
whilst watching wimbledon this week and todays final, from about 60 photogs on the side lines and in the upper areas,
id say 85% where canon super teles atached to the mk3. with a few black nikons in between!

so iam guessing that focus issues arent a real problem any more

s

Jul 04, 2009 at 08:38 PM


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