gdanmitchell
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 p.4 #5 · Canon 5D Mark III or Nikon D800e? | |
SOMEONE wrote:
A puzzling comment. Have you actually used either system? 
(The attributions in the original may have been a bit off, so I removed the names to avoid misidentification - and to move the thinking away from the person and towards the issue.)
I value the thoughts of people who have used products that are under discussion. This is one of the reasons that I enjoy spending time with friends and colleagues who shoot with a variety of gear and who will, in idle moments, talk about their experiences. These folks can often offer direct commentary that others of us cannot, since most of us made a decision to work with one or the other.
On the other hand, I'm often amused at and occasionally annoyed by the reflexive dismissal of any comment from people who have not used both or all of the products under discussion - typically from a commenter who disagrees in some way with the thoughts presented. (While people often employ this argument when they hold a contrary opinion, I don't recall ever hearing: "I agree with your opinions completely... but please don't post them since you haven't used both systems!" ;-)
A few things to think about:
1. Some people who don't own both options (cameras, lenses, cars, computers, furniture, televisions, etc.) made a carefully researched choice among the options, and in the process developed a great deal of knowledge of the options, including those that he/she ultimately did not select. While we can argue that the rare person who owns every camera, lens, car, computer, couch, television, etc. can have a better basis for offering first-hand comparisons, it does not follow that the person who educated himself or herself about the options has nothing worth saying. In fact, these people often know a great deal about the options.
2. In other cases, people who do not own each of the options under discussion may well work closely with other photographers who do and, in fact, may have had extensive discussions of their comparative first-hand experiences with the different products. (In my case, I've shot extensively with a colleague who added a D800e to his MF digital system, and we have spent a great deal of time discussing the differences among these and various other systems, and circumstances in which any of them might or might not be the best choice.)
3. General principles apply that may not be obvious to the OP in many cases. A person who has not used a D800, for example, can accurately point out the objective potential difference in native pixel resolution from the higher MP system without having used any of the cameras being compared, or set straight a poster who imagines that no one complains about Brand X and everyone complains about Brand Y, or help someone understand the unfortunate role that brand loyalty (or brand hatred) can play in some discussions, or point out the settled knowledge that brand distinctions tend to even out over time.
I think all of us value thoughtful input from people who have extensive experience with various products, but the dismissal of contributions from all who do not own and extensively use both systems is simplistic and misguided. This, and personalizing the discussions by speculating about the personal competence and motives of other participants, do little to improve the quality of forum discussions.
Carry on... ;-)
Dan
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), and based upon my limited rental experience with both cameras simultaneously, I would concur.