Digital cameras forum: Canon 40D vs. Nikon D80

The 40D with the kit is over your budget. You might look at the XSI, unless the size is a problem. The 40D and the D80 are two different class of cameras. The D300 is the one that matches up to the 40D. The D80 is an entry level along with the XSI.

Hey guys, sorry for my blunder. I'd been scoping out the 40D just for fun. When I went into the store, I actually handled the D80 & the XSi. So my real question is between the two, which is the preferable model?
Also, I read a user review on the D80 and he said to pass on it in favor of the older D40 (the review is here: http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-cameras/nikon-d80/4864-6501_7-32004258.html?messageID=2530209)
Is there any validity to that statement?

Thanks.

I recently purchased a Nikon D40 kit from ShopSunshine in Brooklyn, Ny over the web and got the camera with 18-55 lens and the 55-200 along with both a soft and hard camera case, telephoto lens, digital slave flash, tripod (2), 3 filter lens, charger +ac/dc charger, 4GB & !GB memory cards, +other accessories for much less than a $1000. They shipped me goods with us warrenties, didn't try to sell me what I didn't want, and provided outstanding customer service on a small problem I had. I would not be afraid to buy from them again and have recommended them to my family.

Overall, the Canon 40D and the Nikon D80 are very similar cameras'; the Nikon is considered a prosumer level camera while the Canon is considered by some as a professional level camera. They both have 10 megapixels, both are from a great company, and both have a lot of lenses and accessories to back them up. One of the biggest differences is in the fps (frames per second). The Nikon shoots at around 3fps while the Canon doubles that at 6.5fps. This means that it you put the camera into its maximum shutter speed and hold down the trigger, the Nikon or Canon will shoot 3 or 6.5fps respectively. It you are more likely to leave the camera on auto and simply take everyday pictures with it, Nikon may be the better choice. It you are planning to really get into the camera and play with the setting, such as ISO, Aperture, Shutter Speed, etc, Canon may be the better choice; Canon also has 3 additional slots on the mode dial that you can customize and give personal settings to. Personally, I have the 40D and love it, though I did compare it to the D80 before purchasing. One of my family members has the D80 so I do know both camera fairly well. If we go back to your budget, the Nikon D80 with a lens can probably be found for under $1000. Though, if you want to go with the Canon, you will pay around $1,200-$1,400 depending on where you shop. The first thing I recommend doing, is going to the store and picking them both up, take some pictures, and test out the cameras in person. This will give you a better idea of how they will feel being carried around on a day-to-day basis. Next, go back and really compare the features side-by-side, make a list if you have to, and see what the cameras offer, and which features you need, and don't. For a site geared specifically toward cameras, try: [www.dpreview.com]. There, you can compare all of their features side-by-side, and read reviews on them. I use Cnet a lot though I have found that dpreview gives you a lot more info on cameras and they specific abilities. Good luck on your decision making. Cheers.

Here is a link:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_post.asp?method=sidebyside&cameras=canon_eos450d%2Cnikon_d80&show=all

Notice the red stars.
They are the rating given by owners of the cameras.

Right under the red stars is a link to Owner's Opinions.
Click that link and you can read what owners have to say about their cameras.

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The D80's kit lens is a very good range, but it lacks image stabilization which you would want in the higher focal ranges. Also, large focal range lens usually are not as good as short focal length lens. If you bought the D80, I would suggest getting the body and buying a lens with VR. The Canon kit lens has been reviewed at a number of different sites giving it extremely high reviews for a kit lens. They have a lens that matches up well with the XSI kit which is the 55-250mm lens.

Both kit lens are reviewed as performing well, but without image stabilization you could have a some blurry shots in the longer focal range. Shorter focal ranges typically perform better than their larger focal range counter parts. The difference though is that you still have a good lens in the Nikon larger focal range kit, but you would not have to change lens that often.

You could buy the 18-55mmIS lens with the XSI and later you can purchase the 55-250mm. That would give you 29-400mm(when considering the 1.6x sensor factor). The 55-250mm runs $280.

If you can find it, they used to sell a kit with the D80 with an 18-55mm, but it still does not have image stabilization. You can buy the 18-55mm VR lens for $170 off of Amazon. It would be worth the extra $70.

In the end, the difference between the lens and bodies will not be apparent in a novice's hands. Both will give you room to go and the ability to produce wonderful images. I'm still the weakest link in photos....not my camera or lens.

18mm is equal to 28.8 when using the factor of 1.6. I was illustrating if you had both the 18-55mm and the 55-250mm.

The Sony has very good features and produces very good photos in good light, but has problems in low light or shooting sports. Those will require higher ISO's and that's Sony's Achilles heal. Dpreview said this of the Sony A200.

"Image quality on the A200 is a bit of a double-edged affair. While at base ISO the Sony's output is fairly clean and detailed (though not very good at low-contrast detail) things go downhill once you dim the lights and switch your camera to a higher ISO setting. The A200's noise reduction is pretty aggressive and causes visible smearing of fine detail in the camera's JPEG output. Most of the A200's direct competitors can produce visibly better results in challenging light situations."

Hi there, I bought the Canon 30D and love it and will buy the 40D has a second. One thing to consider is, Canon lens's rake (if that's the word)the opposite direction to Nikon so if you are accustomed to one then using the other you may miss the shot.
Cheers,
P.A.

There is one thing about Nikon that Canon will NEVER match: Nikon lenses are clearly superior, particularly in their compactness but also in their optical quality. In some of the zooms with most useful focal length ranges, Canon lenses are huge and unwieldy while Nikons look like normal kit lenses.

So if you're thinking about the future, Nikon is the way to go. You will never feel buyer's remorse with the Nikon, and you probably will with anything else, including Canon.

The D80 will do anything and everything you want unless you are an experienced pro with unusually extreme demands, and Nikon makes cameras for them (the D200) too, and the cool thing is, your fine, fine Nikon and Nikkormat lenses will all still work.

Not to add to the confusion, but I agree with the poster who pointed out there are other very good brands to look at.

Didn't relay exclusively on user opinions because they will always tend to be biased toward the personal side.

Look at this site instead:

http://www.steves-digicams.com/hardware_reviews.html

Virtually no hype gets past "steves".
_________

And for my personal opinion and from my personal economic standpoint, Pentax was my choice; has been for years. (Their 1980s LX film camera still fetches upwards of $600 on the used market!)

Why Pentax?

1. Shake reduction

2. Automatic dust removal

3. You can use EVERY lens Pentax ever made for their cameras, including the screw mount flavors and medium format lenses!

4. My son - the photog student - has dropped his K100D twice. It's like the old Timex watches - takes a licking and keeps on ticking.

5. Price. He got his new for half the original retail.

And remember - a photo is only as good as the man behind the camera...
Just my humble opinion.

This is an awesome site for across the board info. If you can't find what you want / need to know here, you just ain't lookin' hard enough...

http://www.photosig.com/go/main;jsessionid=aIJ9mKc7R9qfhzSP7S

Here is some more websites I was checking out when deciding which camera to buy as well. Some review cameras with lens, one or two review both seperately.

www.cameralabs.com
www.dcresource.com
www.digitalreview.ca
www.slrgear.com
www.popphoto.com
www.photozone.de/

I recently purchased a D80 with 18-70 kit lens. Took it to the White Mountains N.H. for my holidays & got some wonderful shots of July 4th fireworks, waterfalls and lookoffs. It will take some time to learn all the possible functions it has, but it sure is a big improvement to change settings over my P&S digital camera.

This is the perfect timing for this discussion. I to have been looking at Canon 40D and Nikon D80, but I also have been looking at the Pentax K20 and K200 because I own a Pentax SLR. I want to buy my wife a new dSLR, but cannot make up my mind. She will not be using a lot of settings, but she likes to take a lot of pictures (inside and outside). I don't want to buy way more than she needs, but I want something that she will enjoy. One thing I like about the Pentax is that the image stabilizer is in the camera and not the lense.