Photography
Camera Confusion
28/08/08 01:33
Today saw the launch of the Nikon D90 DSLR , the worlds first with VIdeo capture ability. The launch grabbed my attention and annoyingly a lot more so than the launch of the Canon 50D Yesterday. And why would that be? If anything it should be the other way around as I’m a canon DSLR user I have a 40D, The 50D has 15Mpx, 6.3fps , ISO up to 12,800, same high res screen as the high end nikons. Yet the launch was quiet, boring, very little excitement very little other the improved noise handling to get excited about and new marketing, no fancy website no demo video like the nikon got by a pro photographer. Now is this because of the camera can sell its self or because nikon are just more exciting than canon or because the D90 is aimed at the enthusiast end of the market and the 50D is for the pro amateur , semi pro market where mass marketing isn’t need?
Perhaps it’s a bit of everything but I feel Nikon has the edge in the market at the moment, They seem a lot more “cool” and marketable than canon does at the moment and also more importantly they appear to be innovating faster not just with cameras but also with new lenses that not only produce a high quality image but are made to a high quality and don’t look cheap even if the prices are. Where as I think canon are using lenses they’ve had for years and any most new lenses they are producing at the moment are the cheaper EF-S lenses such as the 55-250mm IS and the yet unreleased 18-200mm IS lens. Both these lenses resemble the kit lens and appear cheaply built and don’t feature the faster USM motors, which is a real shame if you ask me, especially with the 18-200mm having such a high price tag (£500+).
So all this leaves me wondering if sticking with canon is the right thing to do. I don’t think I’d sell all my canon gear just yet as The quality of the optics I have at the moment is really high and the 40D is a really great camera that has a higher shooting speed over the D90. But as I think on if I wished to upgrade my kit lens to something higher end such as an L lens then it would be closing in on the price of the D90 and with the D90’s kit lens being an 18-105mm VR then it may end up being a better solution. But before all of that I need to decide if it’s worth using 2 SLR systems, my thoughts at the moment is that yes it might well be worth it.
Perhaps it’s a bit of everything but I feel Nikon has the edge in the market at the moment, They seem a lot more “cool” and marketable than canon does at the moment and also more importantly they appear to be innovating faster not just with cameras but also with new lenses that not only produce a high quality image but are made to a high quality and don’t look cheap even if the prices are. Where as I think canon are using lenses they’ve had for years and any most new lenses they are producing at the moment are the cheaper EF-S lenses such as the 55-250mm IS and the yet unreleased 18-200mm IS lens. Both these lenses resemble the kit lens and appear cheaply built and don’t feature the faster USM motors, which is a real shame if you ask me, especially with the 18-200mm having such a high price tag (£500+).
So all this leaves me wondering if sticking with canon is the right thing to do. I don’t think I’d sell all my canon gear just yet as The quality of the optics I have at the moment is really high and the 40D is a really great camera that has a higher shooting speed over the D90. But as I think on if I wished to upgrade my kit lens to something higher end such as an L lens then it would be closing in on the price of the D90 and with the D90’s kit lens being an 18-105mm VR then it may end up being a better solution. But before all of that I need to decide if it’s worth using 2 SLR systems, my thoughts at the moment is that yes it might well be worth it.
Chester Unsnapped
02/06/08 23:46
I went to chester today with my camera, mainly so I could get a bag from next so that I have a more normal bag to put my 40D + 70-200mm F/4 combo in as the Tamrac pro 5 bag I have is a bit unwierdly sometimes and it won’t fit in any other bag I have. I managed to get the bag and greatfully got a lift back with a friend I bumped into, saving me the long bus ride home. However my photo snapping was a bit of a non starter as there was very little to take pictures of that interested me. I did bump into some nice people from a church/religion that were handing out free bottles of water and they greatfully let me take a few snaps but I don’t think bottled water will win me over just yet. The Best snaps I got of the day was of a bird in my garden who let me get within about a meter of him and get plenty of shots before I scared him away. Hopefully I’ll have more luck on my travels soon. Here are the mentioned shots, I hope you like.
Sell or Keep?
02/06/08 02:07
I currently have 2 Digital SLR camera’s the canon 400D and the 40D. Typically as I did with the 400D I purchase my camera’s on buy now pay later but after having some money a couple of months after christmas this year I decided to purchase the 40D as a small but lust after upgrade to my Camera. I bought the 40D off ebay for a good price brand new and I love this camera! One of the reasons I went for the 400D was to have a smaller more lightweight camera than the Nikon D80 I had before that but once you upgrade the kit lens you find the camera is typically quite heavy anyway so I didn’t feel the 40D’s extra weight would make much difference. And in reality that was quite correct as when it’s in my camera bag it’s not very noticeable, though holding it for long periods of time can start to ache a little. However I do really love the 40D as a camera! It’s excellent big screen, spot on exposure and weighty chunky feel without feeling “Too” big something I think personally the D80 felt.
But now I have a dilemma as I still have the 400D and it remains quite unused ( as does my 40D a lot of the time lately) and I’m finding it hard deciding if I should sell it or not. I’d rather not sell it on ebay but more to someone I know and looking on ebay there really not selling for a great deal ( you can pick them up for around £300 new anyway!). However I do have the official battery grip for it that I got cheap in a sale so I might make some money on that. Currently with the low price it would fetch there’s little reason to sell the camera and I think I might benefit from keeping it as a spare for situations that I’d rather not take the 40D to. I have 2 similar range telephoto lenses too so both camera’s and my higher and lower end lenses are almost a mirror of themselves. It’s also good to have 2 camera’s to mount a wide and a telephoto to each in certain situations as that way your not likely to miss shots at events by not having the right lens attached. Also carrying 2 SLR’s will make you look like a pro
So for now I think I’ll keep the camera and the battery grip but there are times when I wonder if it’s worth selling, but by the time I possibly decide to sell I think it won’t be worth hardly anything anyway.
But now I have a dilemma as I still have the 400D and it remains quite unused ( as does my 40D a lot of the time lately) and I’m finding it hard deciding if I should sell it or not. I’d rather not sell it on ebay but more to someone I know and looking on ebay there really not selling for a great deal ( you can pick them up for around £300 new anyway!). However I do have the official battery grip for it that I got cheap in a sale so I might make some money on that. Currently with the low price it would fetch there’s little reason to sell the camera and I think I might benefit from keeping it as a spare for situations that I’d rather not take the 40D to. I have 2 similar range telephoto lenses too so both camera’s and my higher and lower end lenses are almost a mirror of themselves. It’s also good to have 2 camera’s to mount a wide and a telephoto to each in certain situations as that way your not likely to miss shots at events by not having the right lens attached. Also carrying 2 SLR’s will make you look like a pro
So for now I think I’ll keep the camera and the battery grip but there are times when I wonder if it’s worth selling, but by the time I possibly decide to sell I think it won’t be worth hardly anything anyway.