Canon or Nikon?...Let me Help with That

"There is only you and your camera. The limitations in your photography are in yourself, for what we see is what we are."

~ Ernst Haas 

Art Model, Emma ©2013 Terrell Neasley

 I often get asked variants of this question or hear statements pertaining to Canon vs Nikon.


"Should I buy Canon or should I go Nikon?"
"Canon is the bigger company so is it the best?"
"Everybody I know owns Nikon so Nikon is better, right?"
"I had a Canon once and it broke after 3 months. Canon can't be a good company."

I am pretty sure it will be a perpetual inquiry until one company ultimately fails. I've touched on this before over the last Christmas holiday discussing both, "How to Shop for YOUR Photographer" as well as, "Getting into Photo, Part I...The Camera". But hey...this is a blog. So I'll touch on it again.

Art Model, Emma
©2013 Terrell Neasley

Canon is the bigger company. Nikon is next depending on whether or not we're talking compact cameras or the bigger DSLRs. With respect to compacts, Sony is actually No.2, just ahead of Nikon, but Nikon holds the No.2 spot with DSLRs. You also have to throw in the new mirrorless systems, (Sony NEX cameras or the Nikon 1 systems) as well as the mirrorless micro 4/3rds systems  that are increasing in popularity like the Olympus OM-D system.

But lets keep this simple. With respect to the main question, its should you go Nikon or Canon. First make your decision off of two parameters. One, how does it feel in your hands with respect to weight and the natural feel of where the shutter release button is. You might even consider aesthetics, or how the camera looks. Two, find out what your friends have, especially where DSLRs are concerned. You may be able to borrow or interchange gear between the each other. Your buddy may want to check out your wide-angle lens. Your lens could fail and you can borrow your buddy's nifty-50. The point being, you can help each other.

Aside from that, both camera companies are just about even. You won't go wrong with either manufacturer. With regard to DSLRs, you're buying into a system. Later you'll need better lenses or lenses for different purposes. You might need a flash, or a cable release, or any other numerous dedicated equipment pieces for your camera. Any particular year, either company may take the edge in megapixels or some other feature. I used to shoot Canon for quite some time. I changed because my needs changed. I wanted to be closer to medium-format for better depth in my images. Nikon gave that to me in the 36mp D800e system. I switched because Nikon accommodated my need better than Canon, but for the average user, Canon STILL makes great cameras. Tomorrow, they can produce a 46 megapixel camera. Will I switch back to Canon? No. Not as long as my needs are being fulfilled adequately enough by Nikon.

"Giving a camera to Diane Arbus is like putting a live grenade in the hands of a child."

~ Norman Mailer 

Art Model, Panda ©2013 Terrell Neasley

Now...if it were me and I was buying my first camera today, I'd honestly probably still go Nikon, just because of timing. Two years ago, I'd still say the Canon Rebel was better than Nikon entry level systems. Today, Nikon has the D3200 and the D5200 that are both REALLY good systems with 24mp, more Autofocus points, and also cheaper than the newest Canon Rebel T5i. Next year, I may not be able to say this, so I'm talking for today and right now. As a comparison, you can easily check out Snapsort.com where you can compare specific cameras and see how well they fair. This is one I did with the T5i and the D5200.

Just because you bought a camera from one manufacture which broke, remember that was ONE camera. Its not indicative of the entire company or even all cameras of that model, unless there is a actual identified defect in all of them. Working in the camera shop the 2 days a week I do, I see customers come in often with a complaint about a camera model and swear to only buy from the "other guys" from now on. That's not a very tenable solution, because I can tell you for fact, that both manufacturers have products that fail, sometimes right out of the box. I can also tell you that when products DO fail, Canon is "Johnny on the Spot" with getting things fixed.

Art Model, Panda ©2013 Terrell Neasley

Buy a camera that has the features you like with benefits that are important to you. Maybe you like Wi-fi, touchscreen, megapixels, or the ability to shoot 60 images a second. Let that be your main guide in camera selections. You can easily visit Las Vegas-based  B&C Camera and talk it over with the guys working there to help explain some of these features. Ugy manages the main West location (4500 W. Sahara) and Tony handles the new East location (1550 E. Tropicana). Both have the best TEAMS working there which is why they are now the only camera shop in town and thriving...just just surviving. Check 'em out.