I am currently in the process of evaluating a move to Nikon. I have a D3, 24-70f2.8, 70-200f2.8, 1.4tc, and a SB900 flash. I would be moving from MkIIN and MKIII and a full compliment of L glass and other Canon gadgets.

So far, everything is reversed on the Nikon gear. The lens mount, cf cards, hoods, even an anti-flash confirmation . The lens mount is smaller and does not feel as robust as the Canon, and the vignetting on the 70-200 is so severe, you can see it easily in the viewfinder of an FX camera. If you like DPP, then you will have to learn a new raw converter. I am trying to learn NX2 but the software is pretty slow to update images during editing. I hope the new release will make better use of computer resources.

On the + side, pretty much what others have said is true. Image quality is outstanding, high ISO is great, the AF seems more accurate, the flash system is MUCH better, and suprisingly the 1.4 tc on the 70-200 does not appear to degarde the images much, thus making this a very usable combination. I only use the Canon 1.4tc on the 300f2.8 and the 400f2.8. It just didn't work well on the zooms.

My 2 cents so far,
Richard K.

Some useful info for you if you do switch:
http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/704373

I made the switch in November and couldn't be happier. I picked up a D3, and recently added a D700 to the kit. Love them, and I could never go back. My recommendation, pick up some of the carl zeiss glass that is out there if you want primes. I came from a full line up of Canon primes and I was just not happy with the Nikkor primes, but once I switched to the Zeiss... oh man... so happy. If you don't need AF in your primes, Zeiss is the way to go.

The criticism of the "white" lens only comes form those who don't understand why they are white.

White is the color used on "tele" lenses.

The reason why is because most people shooting with a tele wil be in the sun waiting for a shot.

The sun beating on the lens body can distort the glass as it heats up.

White keeps the glass cooler longer and the change , if any, is more gradual.

mantat wrote:
cputeq: actually, there is a lot of stuff any Nikon body can do that even D1 bodies cant: time lapse and multibracketing exposure are the two most annoying.

Please, never refer to the 5DMrkII as a pro-sumer body in a Canon crowd! It is a money machine for a lot of pros!



Especially in a crowd of wedding photogs.

James R wrote:
mantat wrote:
cputeq: actually, there is a lot of stuff any Nikon body can do that even D1 bodies cant: time lapse and multibracketing exposure are the two most annoying.

Please, never refer to the 5DMrkII as a pro-sumer body in a Canon crowd! It is a money machine for a lot of pros!



Especially in a crowd of wedding photogs.

, just spill your glass of water on the 5DII. 'Oh shit, sorry man, it'll be ok right? It's a pro camera, those are tough!'

I haven't seen any local wedding pro's using 5DII's yet, not that I make it a point to hunt them down. Seems like most of them are using original 5D's and 1 series around here.

It just seems that Nikons are made by and for photographers, and Canons are made by and for the marketing department. Also it seems that comprable Nikkor lenses are much sharper/better made than the Canon equivalents. Whether this is true or not, it seems the perception. I have yet to see a Nikon user go through 3+ lenses to get a sharp one.

martines34 wrote:
The criticism of the "white" lens only comes form those who don't understand why they are white.

White is the color used on "tele" lenses.

The reason why is because most people shooting with a tele wil be in the sun waiting for a shot.

The sun beating on the lens body can distort the glass as it heats up.

White keeps the glass cooler longer and the change , if any, is more gradual.



That's because Canon uses fluorite elements which are sensitive to heat. Nikon uses ED elements to do the same thing that the fluorite elements do in L glass. AFAIK.

Jammy Straub wrote:
James R wrote:
mantat wrote:
cputeq: actually, there is a lot of stuff any Nikon body can do that even D1 bodies cant: time lapse and multibracketing exposure are the two most annoying.

Please, never refer to the 5DMrkII as a pro-sumer body in a Canon crowd! It is a money machine for a lot of pros!



Especially in a crowd of wedding photogs.

, just spill your glass of water on the 5DII. 'Oh shit, sorry man, it'll be ok right? It's a pro camera, those are tough!'

I haven't seen any local wedding pro's using 5DII's yet, not that I make it a point to hunt them down. Seems like most of them are using original 5D's and 1 series around here.


Read the Wedding Forum, a lot of pros over there have moved to the 5DII.

James R wrote:
[...]

Read the Wedding Forum, a lot of pros over there have moved to the 5DII.

I'm sure they have, I just haven't seen any round here. I'm an anomaly around here shooting Nikon.

Upside: Nikon has the 14-24 and 200-400 VR.

Downside: I would rather not go there .......

Is that why they don't make f1.2 lenses anymore .... because photographers don't want it?

Grognard wrote:
It just seems that Nikons are made by and for photographers, and Canons are made by and for the marketing department. Also it seems that comprable Nikkor lenses are much sharper/better made than the Canon equivalents. Whether this is true or not, it seems the perception. I have yet to see a Nikon user go through 3+ lenses to get a sharp one.

very redundant manual, every option has 3 ways to look at it, well at least my D300 does.

I've been shooting weddings on Canon for about 6 years. 1DmIIs, 5DmII, & others. Various L glass zooms & primes. I've been wanting a Pro feeling $3k for a while and the 5D series isn't it (all I want is a responsive shutter & 5fps!!). It's hard for me to justify buying pro bodies for $4-5k just to get a responsive camera. I just bought a D700 & 50mm to test. Used it for a little while at a reception for low light practice.

Rather than Renting I think you're better off buying and reselling if you don't like it. You will get to use it far more and get the real feel for less $$. I personally need more than 1-2days to get a good feel for something.

Anyway, I am a very "fast" shooter on Canon. I am very SLOW with Nikon. But in the few hours of shooting I learned:

My hand cramps up a little with the Nikon. I think the width of the grip is narrow so I pinch it more than grab it. It feels a lot more solid than the 5Ds ever did. It's weight is between the 5D & 1DmII bodies (I'm comparing this with the grip on the D700 & 5Ds). The wheels on the Nikon seem close together and harder to turn (but the Canon rear dial was always too easy and changes when the camera brushes against your body).

But the BIGGEST issue I have is that the Nikon's AF flashes when the focusing activates. The Canon flashes to confirm it's focused!!! After years of getting used to that type of focus confirmation it is so hard to look for the green dot in the corner of the VF!! To you guys who shoot servo this wont matter, for some reason I still use the Single focus. Also you cannot change the focus point while there is any info on the rear LCD. So if you have the image pop up after every shot (Lots of Canon guys do this) you need to press the shutter 1/2 way then move the focus point. I might just have to turn off the auto view on the Nikon, it's more important to change the FP fast.

I will not be able to give up the Canon 24/1.4 unless Nikon makes something wide @ f2 or faster. Hopefully Nikon will update the 70-200 for improved FX images. Other than that the Nikon is nice and if I switched I'd get a D3 as the main body.

This is all I know for now...

JS

I was delighted with the D3 until Nikon just told me it has water damage around the USB port and is not covered under warranty. (it's not working comes up "err" everytime you fire a shot)

It's never been used in anything other than light rain, and certainly never in conditions any where near as rough as the 15 odd Canon 1 series bodies I've owned.

I would say at this stage the D3 weather sealing is very poor (at least on mine), and does not perform as marketed.

Something to consider if you are a sports shooter.

If I get the wrong answer from someone higher up on the D3........I'll dumping everything Nikon, as it clearly can't handle the weather like the Canon's can

I dab'd with canon once when my D1x was in the shop with a bad firewire connection, and at the time it was a 1D, I liked it, but I felt the ergonomics and illogical placement of buttons and dials gave me more headaches than good shots, by the time I got in the groove with the 1D my D1x came back from nikon... so, I guess I didn't miss much. They're great cams in capable hands, don't get me wrong, I'm just happy I'm vested in nikon though...

Interesting that the OP said Nikon has too many buttons. When I've used Canon, there don't seem to be enough buttons! EVERYTHING seems buried in the menu or hard to find. I'm sure one get's used to it but I always found the Nikon interface more intuitive. But I'm one of those guys who miss the aperture ring and shutterspeed knob. At least Nikon finally allowed you change the wheels and +/- orientation of exposure. To me more exposure is to the right. I swear, 20 years of shooting Nikon and I never got used to the reverse. Never found a way to grok it.

Derek wrote:
I was delighted with the D3 until Nikon just told me it has water damage around the USB port and is not covered under warranty. (it's not working comes up "err" everytime you fire a shot)

It's never been used in anything other than light rain, and certainly never in conditions any where near as rough as the 15 odd Canon 1 series bodies I've owned.

I would say at this stage the D3 weather sealing is very poor (at least on mine), and does not perform as marketed.

Something to consider if you are a sports shooter.

If I get the wrong answer from someone higher up on the D3........I'll dumping everything Nikon, as it clearly can't handle the weather like the Canon's can

Very strange Derek

My plastic D70s (Definitely not pro build) has survived tropical downpours in Bougainville under my shirt and I think its undoing was when the driver rolled the landcruiser and while it was bouncing around the body cracked. This resulted in misalignment of the the mirror and sensor but I am getting it back this week for a price so reasonable I couldnt even justify an upgrade.

Corrosion at the the USB port would just about have to be impossible with the plug in. If they knock you back "Tell them they are dreaming " (Only us Aussies will understand)

Tim

fishfilm wrote:
Interesting that the OP said Nikon has too many buttons. When I've used Canon, there don't seem to be enough buttons! EVERYTHING seems buried in the menu or hard to find. I'm sure one get's used to it but I always found the Nikon interface more intuitive. But I'm one of those guys who miss the aperture ring and shutterspeed knob. At least Nikon finally allowed you change the wheels and +/- orientation of exposure. To me more exposure is to the right. I swear, 20 years of shooting Nikon and I never got used to the reverse. Never found a way to grok it.

At first I found Nikon has to many buttons as well.
Now I'm used to it I don't want to miss them.

About the reversed mount and so on; now Canon has everthing reversed

Chris Dees wrote:
....
About the reversed mount and so on; now Canon has everthing reversed


Agreed, and Canon is the dark side!