What would you consider a good dslr under $1,500?

Question

I'm thinking of either a Canon RebelXTi or a Nikon 80D. If you think there's a better one please tell me.

Answer 1

Including a lens and decent 2GB memory card, you can get a Nikon D80 for under budget.

Comparing the Nikon D80 vs. Canon 400D/Rebel XTi

Check this page:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond80/page21.asp

The first thing I notice is that the Canon does not have a spot meter. I thought they added that in the XTi, but I guess past criticism was not heard at Canon.

The Nikon user-definable Auto-ISO is an interesting feature that lets you define a couple of parameters about what's acceptable to you and what's not. I don't think this would be the tie-breaker, though, if you can't decide between cameras.

The D80 has a pentaprism and the Canon uses mirrors. "They" say that mirrors are getting pretty good, but I would expect the pentaprism to be a brighter viewfinder.

The Nikon lets you do actual multiple exposures in the camera and some people think this is pretty cool.

Click "next" and move to page 22 and you'll see some image comparisons. Click "next" a couple more times to see more direct comparisons on page 25. Click "next" a couple more times to see some noise level comparisons on page 27. It looks to me like the D80 has actually tamed the noise better than the XTi, but read the comments about image softness.

Click one more time and see that the D80 is clearly the winner in image sharpness.

Go on to the next page and read the conclusions.

You can go to the side-by-side at http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_post.asp?method=sidebyside&cameras=canon_eos400d%2Cnikon_d80&show=all and also click on "Our in depth review" and "Read owner opinions" for each camera.

The last line in the Nikon D80 review reads, "If you're a more discerning photographer who can see the advantages offered by the 'all round' D80 you may well consider the extra money well spent."

The last line in the Canon 400D/XTi review reads, "Thanks to its blood line and low price the EOS 400D will no doubt be a huge success for Canon. However unlike the EOS 350D, for me it's no longer the first or obvious choice, so before jumping on the bandwagon make sure you've weighed up the competition."

In other words, you've selected with the two best cameras in their price class. Canon is probably saving a little money using their CMOS sensor and this will bring them some market share. Whether the sensor and images are better or not is open to wild debate based on personal preferences. Whether one camera feels better in your hands might just be the determining factor. You have got to go to a real camera store and handle them both. I guess Costco, Circuit City or Best Buy would also have actual samples on display, but you may not get as much help from the staff.

As far as lens choice, I'd rather see you start with one decent lens instead of the kit lens, although Nikon's kit lens (18-55) has actually tested pretty well. Canon's new 18-55 Series II lens is okay, also. For Nikon, I like the Nikkor AF-S 18-70 f/3.5-4.5G ED DX. This costs about $300. I bought this for my wife on her D50 and liked it so much (for the money) that I bought it as a backup for one of my cameras. Nikon is now offering the D80 in a kit with a very nice 18-135 lens, although it does have a polycarbonate ("plastic") mount that might begin to wear if you buy additional lenses and change them often. For Canon, one of our best answerers (Panacea) recommends the EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM. This costs about $500, so there goes the $200 price difference.

Of course, you'll need a decent memory card and I recommend a genuine Sandisk Ultra II (60X) or Extreme III (133X) of at least 1GB - preferable 2 GB - for either camera. Lexar is another excellent card supplier and they have the "Professional" 133X as well as the Platinum 80X to choose from. Both Lexar and Sandisk come with image recovery software and limited lifetime warranties.
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The February 2007 issue of Popular Photography has an article where they compared the top 10 MP DSLR's, including the D80 and XTi. The Nikon D80 was BEST in Image Quality, Control and System Flexibility and the Canon Rebel XTi (400D) tied with the D80 for best in System Flexibility, but won no other categories.

http://www.popphoto.com/cameras/3569/10mp-dslr-shootout.html
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Here's another reference from outside the photographic press. Consumer reports compared the Nikon D80, Canon Rebel XTi and Sony Alpha. Personally, I'd say that the Nikon came out on top here, also. It beats the Sony in "noise-free ISO" with an acceptable rating at ISO 1600 (kind of optimistic, I think...) compared to the Sony's ISO 400. It beats the Canon (in my opinion) by having a spot meter that the Canon does not offer.

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/electronics-computers/news-electronics-computers/november-2006/shootout-10-megapixel-digital-slr-cameras-11-06/overview/0611_digital-slr-shoot-out.htm
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Nikon D80 vs. Canon Rebel XTi (400D) vs. Sony Alpha A100

http://www.digitalcamerainfo.com/content/Canon-Rebel-XTi-vs-Nikon-D80-vs-Sony-Alpha-A100-Head-to-Head-to-Head-Digital-Camera-Review-.htm [Note the navigation menu near the top of the review]
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Answer 2

Hi David,

Is your total budget $1,500 or is that just for the body?

For that much I would get this kit:

Canon Rebel XTi with kit lens - $729 (using promotional code PSJAN07006 at B&H)
Canon 50 mm f/1.8 lens - $69
Canon 430EX flash - $234

And if you're willing to go $90 bucks over your budget I would add the 70-200 f/4 for $559, it's superbly built and it's white!

Let's see the guys recommending a D80 try to put together such a nice package for that much.

With DSLR's it's not just the body, but the whole package that counts!

Ignacio


PS. Don't forget a tripod and a decent ball head, Bogen's 3001 with a 486RC ballhead is the minimum you should consider.

Answer 3

The D80 is the prosumer or middle camera of their SLR series. It has lots of pro features like the spot meter. The D80 is a much better camera since it has more focus points and has better picture quality in my opninion at high ISO levels.

My choice is the Xti (400D). Its cheaper the the D80 and it takes about the same quality picutres as the D80. The D80 does have more professional features on it such as the spot meter, but most of the features on the D80 I didnt need like trimming, red eye reduction, small picture, etc. The D80 is a great camera but for the price, I could get the 30D, but I do a lot of sport shots so the 30D isnt the most appealing camera if you dont need the fast FPS. The Canon cameras do take better JPEG files, which are great if you do not want ot do any post production after wards. But at the RAW level, both the D80 and the XTi are evenly matched, from there it depends on your skills and the type of lenses you get. For Canon get their red ringed lenses, I tried one and I couldnt go without one, any Canon with a red ring should have xx-xx mm f/x L <--- the L stands for Luxury which is Canons pro line. For Nikon their gold rings are the best ones they have (I do not know the name for their pro lenses). The D80 has the same imagine quality as Canon, why pay $300-400 more when you can get it for $700 with the XTi? Unless you already have glass invest in Nikon.

The reasons why I didnt choice the D80 over the XTi for myself.
1) Nikon does not have as fast auto focus as Canon lenses do. I needed all the help I can get since I do a lot of indoor sport shots.
2) More IS lenses, although I only have one it helps alittle bit in low light situations, other wise I just leave it off to conserve energy.
3) Full frame sensors at the end of their line (Mk-II's and the 5D)

Nikon vs Canon, this agrument can go on forever with flame wars. Nikon has better optics in my opinion (my dad owns a film Nikon) and Canon seems to have better in camera firmware than Nikon ( I own the XTi so I am a little biased to my camera).

The D80 if your going with Nikon, all lenses work for it and it will blow your mind with the imagine quality.

Just remember 80% of chocing a SLR is based on personal opinion (rough est.). If you have used a Canon use a Canon, if you have used a Nikon use a Nikon. Go to a local camera store and try one out yourself and see which one you like.

Answer 4

for a entry lvl dslr and if ur tight on the budget u can go for the Canon 400d is a great easy to use camera. It is much cheaper but tat doesnt nt means tat it lacks the functionality.It is much better than than the D40/40x imo.

The nikon 80d is more on the semi-pro dslr. it is on par with the canon 30d however i feel that the canon 30d is a much better camera.

it reali depends on ur budget and the best bet is to go and try out the camera first. See which is the one tat feels good in ur hands.

Answer 5

Pentax K10D + 18-55 kit $999
50-200 DA Pentax $199 (after rebate)
AF360G Pentax Flash $229 after rebate

all prices are retail store price not internet.
Plus you can pickup a 50mm SMC-A f2 manual focus used for <$40.

You might be able to come close to this with Rebel XTi kit, but here are a few things to remember.

Pentax K10D has in body Shake Reduction (all lenses are stabilized)
Pentax K10D is weather sealed (none of the other are)
K10D has a 22-bit sensor for better color range (12 bit for NIkon/Canon)
K10D is SDHC compatible. So is Nikon D80, Canon is not (still CF cards which according to most of the reps is the way it's heading. Pentax has switched, Canons compact line has switched, Nikon's compact line has switched and DSLR is almost completely SD (D200 and D2x still CF))
K10D has new PRIME engine proccessor for unlimted rapid fire JPG shooting (Canon quits after 20 , Nikon after 144)

i can keep going but I won't.

Answer 6

The D80
http://www.popphoto.com/cameras/3569/10mp-dslr-shootout.html
Note: Don't get the kit lens, select your lenses carefully.

You know, for $1500, you could go with the D-200 (body only)?

I am waiting until Olympus 510 gets it's review.
http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/product.asp?product=1295 just to see how they stack up first, but still leaning towards the D80.

One note of caution: There are many bogus camera dealers. They will sell you the camera CHEAP, but everything else that would normally come with it is extra (battery, manual, everything). Make sure you buy from a local dealer, BHPHOTO.com (well respected), Amazon, etc. to get the complete box.

Answer 7

I go for Nikon D80

Answer 8

its almost the as my question.....those are one of the best brands that's what pros use....if you don't mind high prices get the Nikon but if you are under budget get the canon

Answer 9

canon d20 or d30

Answer 10

i would go with the one that's $1,499 if you want to keep it under $1,500