Day 2: How to choose between a Canon and a Nikon!

When you start using a DSLR, the first thing you will face...is a lot of questions. Well, first off there was the little matter of why I needed to use a DSLR at all, which I dealt with on day one. The second question that inevitably comes in its wake is an outraged "why are you using a Canon? Why not a Nikon?"

The exact opposite question would have been asked, of course, if I had opted for a Nikon. And with equal outrage.


Yes, my wife influenced my DSLR purchase!

Well, my rationale is incredibly simple - because my wife has a Canon DSLR too (it was my wedding gift to her - the EOS 1000D). No, I am not just following the leader. As I had pointed out in my earlier blog entry, the biggest advantage of a DSLR camera is the fact that one gets a lot of control over what one shoots by tweaking settings and lenses. Well, the fact that my wife has a Canon camera means that I can borrow her lenses for mine as well - yes, the lenses which work on her camera will work on mine as well. And vice versa.

Magical. Wonderful. Especially because most lenses cost as much as a DSLR themselves!

So, forget the jargon and all the yakking about which brand gives better cameras, when opting for a DSLR, just try and grab the model for which you can get lenses most easily. If Anu had a Nikon, I reckon I would have been using one. But she has always been a Canon person - she says she loves the build and feel of Canon cameras and thinks the support works a lot better. A number of people have also been saying that it is easier to get third-party lenses for Canon cameras, as compared to Nikon. But ah, that might be just speculation. I will be finding out a lot more about that in the coming days, I guess.

Before ye buy (DSLR), check if ye can borrow (lenses)

In the meantime, the secret of how to choose between Nikon and Canon when it comes to DSLRs - heck, just see which one your friends/close relatives whose stuff you can borrow (and this part is crucial - if ye cannot borrow, no role models are they!) are using. That way, you will be able to borrow their lenses and even get some help when needed. Just make sure that the model of camera you are picking will be compatible with the lenses they use. I did. Don't get too hassled by the feel and interface and all that rot - you will get used to it once you start using it regularly. I did (again!).

Of course, if you have really deep pockets, then you can opt for whatever strikes your fancy. And you REALLY should be reading another blog.

Not rocket science, I know. But then I don't know any rocket science