Canon 1000 d Is it good buy at 21 k

[theironhorse]

thats true that each reviewer will have diff pros and cons.. and yes canon is definitely good if budget is strict.... however if price band can be increased.. then we have better options..

 

[infinity]

I dont understand what is this topic doing here in this AV Forum. I think think this can be discussed in the photography forum of HFV.

Since the discussion had crossed 4 pages, I am also putting my views here. I am using Canon 1000D for the past 2 years and recently started using it for a hobby-professional / business uses. From my experience lens is more important than the body (to an extend). Irrespective of the body (canon / nikon) we can get very good pics if we know how to take photos (Manual).

I never suggest spending extra money over a 18-55 kit lens for IS. For a distance of 55mm we dont require any extra stability (capturing moving objects has nothing to do with this stability). If you are using an SLR / DSLR your hands are supposed to be steady or should know how to make it stable, which is a basic requirement. The 18-55 (both IS and Non-IS) are pretty decent lenses and they are not supposed to be used in a low light situation because of F3.5 - F5.6 aperture. For low light you should have a faster lens (fixed aperture preferred.) Instead of spending extra, I would suggest to get a 50mm 1.8 prime (killer lens for the price-performance) for the extra money for IS lens. Use the kit lens for bright light and use 50mm prime for low light and portraits, I am sure you will be getting far better pics than the IS lens. Moreover the kit lens can give you pretty good landscape pics ~ F11 + tripod (sweetspot of this lens starts at F8).

The sensors used in the entry level are almost same, but Canon uses CMOS which is better compared to CCDs used in Nikon (CMOS sensors are used from their mid level cameras, not sure). If possible, buy 1000D instead of 1100, coz to make the price same as 1000D we dont know what all they might have compromised. If you require video capturing, go for a separate camcoder or something similar else it will be a compromise for both videos and pictures. If you ask me, I dont prefer / like video capturing in a still camera.

Note: Don't give much importance to all the features (auto) for each model. All those will be irrelevant after 1 week of usage or once you learn how to use the camera.

Here are my views :

1. Which is more imp lens / body >> LENS !!! U can have a D3x / 1D but without a proper lens pics will come out terrible - worse than a P&S. However, you can do magic with a D40 fitted with a 50mm 1.4/1.8.

2. Kit lens - 18-55 ?? Good for general photography - both IS and NON IS - however if you try a 35mm 1.8G (Rs.12k) you will NEVER go back to your Kit lens PERIOD !!! You can do hand held extreme low light @ ISO 400 which you cannot ever with 18-55 and much better/sharper with nice bokeh at available light.

3. Prime Lenses - 50mm 1.4D / 1.8D - fantastic lenses at a bargain. Very good for FAST Action and Low light. 1.4 is almost 3 times the cost of 1.8. These lenses become equivalent to 75mm with nikon and 80mm with canons due to their 1.5 and 1.6 crop factor respectively. Therfore please please try them before getting them as more oftem that not you will find yourselves backing up to get more in your frame - which will hinder you for indoor photography. 35mm 1.8 is a better bargain as its DX lens which does the same thing that a 50mm 1.4/1.8 does on a FX body.

4. Tripod - A big NO NO - well thats why they make IS / VR lenses so that you can shoot more and carry less

5. Sensors - Nikon 3100 DOES NOT use CCD - It has a more refined CMOS Sensor :
CANON 1000d = 10 MP CMOS, 22.2 x 14.8mm (1.6x), 3,888 x 2,592 pixels native
NIKON D3100 = 14 MP CMOS DX (23.1 x 15.4 mm) 4,608 x 3,072 pixels native

The nikon has more pixels with a larger sensor.

6. Which Lenses to buy for a DSLR = I have always prefered to buy the body only (without the Kit Lens) and go for separate lenses. The kit lens takes you down to 18mm only and if you need wider..... you need a wide angle lens like Nikon 10-24 / 12-24 or Sigma 12-22 or the VERY good Tikona 11-16. In stead of the 18-55 go for a 35mm 1.8g...you will use this almost 90% of the time .. believe me :lol: For long range go for 55-200 / 55-300mm, however if you are shooting fast action the very good 70-300mm VR will do the trick. If you can afford the $$$$ a 70-200 - professional wud be a dream lens.

7. Lens compatibility - Almost all lenses made by Nikon since 1959 can be used with the DSLR bodies today :yahoo: Only EF lenses made by canon since 1988 can be used today as Canons completely changed their lens compatibility during 1988 which made many canonians move over to Nikon.

Nett Nett = Between 1000D and D3100 -I would get the Nikon any day over the Canon. The most important thing to FIX before the purchase is the $$$$ and then you are good to go :clapping: If you can afford the D90 just get it eyes closed and you will not regret it EVER !!!

Cheers

 

[no1lives4ever]

Here are my views :

1. Which is more imp lens / body >> LENS !!! U can have a D3x / 1D but without a proper lens pics will come out terrible - worse than a P&S. However, you can do magic with a D40 fitted with a 50mm 1.4/1.8.

With a DSLR both are imp. This is not film, where every camera body virtually produced the same image when the same lenses were used. Besides the sensor quality, you also need to consider the AF module difference between various bodies. For some types of photography both these factors become very important.

2. Kit lens - 18-55 ?? Good for general photography - both IS and NON IS - however if you try a 35mm 1.8G (Rs.12k) you will NEVER go back to your Kit lens PERIOD !!! You can do hand held extreme low light @ ISO 400 which you cannot ever with 18-55 and much better/sharper with nice bokeh at available light.

I agree that the image quality of a prime lens like the 50/1.8 or 35/1.8 will blow away that from the kit lens. When I compare the output from my cameras with the 50mm lens and the zoom lenses, the 50mm prime lens seems to add megapixels to the sensor. They are that good. But then again, one can not stick to a 50mm or a 35mm prime lens when using a DSLR for general photography. I would recommend that every DSLR user have at least the 18-55 kit lens with them unless they have some other lenses covering this range.

3. Prime Lenses - 50mm 1.4D / 1.8D - fantastic lenses at a bargain. Very good for FAST Action and Low light. 1.4 is almost 3 times the cost of 1.8. These lenses become equivalent to 75mm with nikon and 80mm with canons due to their 1.5 and 1.6 crop factor respectively. Therfore please please try them before getting them as more oftem that not you will find yourselves backing up to get more in your frame - which will hinder you for indoor photography. 35mm 1.8 is a better bargain as its DX lens which does the same thing that a 50mm 1.4/1.8 does on a FX body.

There are tons of situations where you can not zoom with your feet. e.g. try taking a wide angle landscape photo with a 50mm lens on either a DX or a FX DSLR

4. Tripod - A big NO NO - well thats why they make IS / VR lenses so that you can shoot more and carry less

If one is serious about one's photography, then a tripod is essential. A good tripod will get you the sharpest image with minimal lens shake. A tripod is also an excellent tool to use when taking landscape shots. It slows you down and allows you to easily check the various parts of the frame before you take the shot. If you are using grad ND filters or doing HDR or pano shots, then a tripod becomes essential to getting proper shots.

Get a good quality tripod that allows you to work with the camera and not keep you fighting with the tripod. I would at a very minimum recommend a set of sturdy legs and a decent ball head. The key is to get a quality ball head. The pan and tilt head that you get with the cheaper tripods is something to be avoided like plaque. Expect to spend at least 20-25k for a decent tripod kit.

5. Sensors - Nikon 3100 DOES NOT use CCD - It has a more refined CMOS Sensor :
CANON 1000d = 10 MP CMOS, 22.2 x 14.8mm (1.6x), 3,888 x 2,592 pixels native
NIKON D3100 = 14 MP CMOS DX (23.1 x 15.4 mm) 4,608 x 3,072 pixels native

The nikon has more pixels with a larger sensor.

The Nikon sensor is also 2 generations newer than the sensor used in the 1000d. I would expect the low noise performance of the D3100 sensor to be significantly better than that of the 1000d sensor. The 4 additional megapixels do not really add up to much, but it also helps when one is running short of megapixels in their capture

6. Which Lenses to buy for a DSLR = I have always prefered to buy the body only (without the Kit Lens) and go for separate lenses. The kit lens takes you down to 18mm only and if you need wider..... you need a wide angle lens like Nikon 10-24 / 12-24 or Sigma 12-22 or the VERY good Tikona 11-16. In stead of the 18-55 go for a 35mm 1.8g...you will use this almost 90% of the time .. believe me :lol: For long range go for 55-200 / 55-300mm, however if you are shooting fast action the very good 70-300mm VR will do the trick. If you can afford the $$$$ a 70-200 - professional wud be a dream lens.

The Nikkor 18-55 VR is a pretty decent kit lens. Now I never suggest a newbie to get a 50mm or a 35mm prime lens as their first and only lens when getting a new camera. The 18mm wide end does help people a lot. A typical entry level DSLR user would use their camera a lot when taking photos while traveling or during family functions, etc. These are situations where a wide angle lens is virtually essential.

I have lived the life of a SLR user with only a 50mm lens and also a user of a camera kit with a zoom lens and I would never want to give up on the zoom lens convenience for those situations when I do need a wider angle of view. This advice is fine for a photography student, but I would always advice a DSLR user to have even the cheap kit lens for those situations when a wide angle lens is required. The kit lenses are the cheapest wide angle lenses that you can get for either Nikon or Canon systems.

7. Lens compatibility - Almost all lenses made by Nikon since 1959 can be used with the DSLR bodies today :yahoo: Only EF lenses made by canon since 1988 can be used today as Canons completely changed their lens compatibility during 1988 which made many canonians move over to Nikon.

Nikon F mount compatibility is a big can of worms. By contrast, almost every Canon EF lens can be used fully on almost every EOS body, film or digital. The EF mount has been around long enough to make a huge variety of lenses available. And then there are lenses like the 70-210/f4 from Canon, which have no equavalent in the Nikon land.

Here is a sample of some of the quirks of Nikon's lens compatiblity:
1. With the current generation lower end Nikons, you can not use the AF with lenses that have screw driven AF. Most of the lower end Nikons do not have the AF motor in the body. So say goodbye to using any of the AF prime lenses like 50/1.8 on a low end DSLR.

2. Not all bodies are able to safely mount pre 1977 non AI MF lenses. These are mostly the higher end bodies which do allow you to meter with MF lenses. The lower end DSLRs do allow you to use the real old MF lenses w/o metering.

3. You can mount a AI or AIS MF Nikkor on all DSLRs, but only the higher end DSLRs allow you to meter with those lenses. Now this is not as bad with a DSLR as it would be with a film camera, as you can use the histogram to adjust exposure, but it is still a bother when switching between bodies that do and do not have the AI metering tab.

4. There is no Nikon extension tube for use with a AFG Nikkor lens. And Nikon does not have a teleconvertor that would keep AF active when using a non AFS AF lens. The kenko extension tubes have pretty poor build quality.

The big advantage Nikon has here is that the MF lenses when purchased used are dirt cheap with online retailers like adorama.com or keh.com. There are some fine lenses that one can purchase.

Since the OP mentioned macro, I would suggest the OP to figure out a way to purchase a 105/2.8 or 105/4 Micro Nikkor from keh and getting it shipped to India. These lenses are significantly easier to use for actual macro photography in the field than the current AF macro lenses that go down to 1:1 magnification w/o extension tubes.

-- no1lives4ever

 

[buswal]

Hi,

What is the price of nikon d 3100 at chennai and bangalore? I am planning to buy one based on recommendations and my budget limit. One of my friend who got a nikon d 3100 four months back is willing to sell it for Rs.27,500/-. Is it a good price for a months old nikon d 3100?

cheers,

 

[gobble]

I have lived the life of a SLR user with only a 50mm lens and also a user of a camera kit with a zoom lens and I would never want to give up on the zoom lens convenience for those situations when I do need a wider angle of view.

Sorry? With a zoom the filed of view is quiet narrow not wide. You got it warong 'ere ...

 

[argho]

Sorry? With a zoom the filed of view is quiet narrow not wide. You got it warong 'ere ...

Zoom simply means a variable focal length lens.

You can have :
- a wide angle zoom
- an everyday zoom (ie normal)
- a telephoto zoom.

For example, I have :
- a Sigma 10-20 (wideangle zoom)
- a Tamron 17-50 (a normal zoom)
- a Nikon 55-200 (a telephoto zoom)

An everyday / normal zoom (eg 17-50 / 18-55 / 18-105) which are sold as "kit" lenses along with camera bodies, do allow you to zoom out and take a much wider shot then is possible on a fixed focal length "normal" lens (50mm for Full-frame cameras, 35mm for APS-C cameras).

Gobble - I hope this clarifies.

 

[gobble]

Zoom simply means a variable focal length lens.

You can have :
- a wide angle zoom
- an everyday zoom (ie normal)
- a telephoto zoom.

For example, I have :
- a Sigma 10-20 (wideangle zoom)
- a Tamron 17-50 (a normal zoom)
- a Nikon 55-200 (a telephoto zoom)

An everyday / normal zoom (eg 17-50 / 18-55 / 18-105) which are sold as "kit" lenses along with camera bodies, do allow you to zoom out and take a much wider shot then is possible on a fixed focal length "normal" lens (50mm for Full-frame cameras, 35mm for APS-C cameras).

Gobble - I hope this clarifies.

ok thanks for zooming in on the clarification

I got it in my sights hyeah:

Cheers