D70 vs. Digital Rebel XT

[Chris Nuttall]

Well, I've finally saved enough money to venture into the DSLR market. I've been trying to decide what I want to buy, and I think I've got it narrowed down to a Nikon D70 or a Canon Digital Rebel XT. I've got about $1200 to spend, and I figure this will be good to get a camera and a decent accessory kit (lenses, memory, etc.) to go with it.

I've read some reviews about both cameras, but they really haven't been very useful. So, I was wondering if anyone had any advice, information, experience, etc. about these two cameras to help me out.

Thanks!

 

[fplowman]

i would wait and watch for a mint condition canon
10d on ebay with some extra goodies but thats just silly old me

 

[Court Hubbard]

My vote would be for the Rebel XT out of those 2 options. Although they are both good cameras, I always hear people having Canons and not as many Nikons. There has to be a reason.

 

[Ryan McGinnis]

Originally posted by Chris Nuttall
Well, I've finally saved enough money to venture into the DSLR market. I've been trying to decide what I want to buy, and I think I've got it narrowed down to a Nikon D70 or a Canon Digital Rebel XT. I've got about $1200 to spend, and I figure this will be good to get a camera and a decent accessory kit (lenses, memory, etc.) to go with it.

I've read some reviews about both cameras, but they really haven't been very useful. So, I was wondering if anyone had any advice, information, experience, etc. about these two cameras to help me out.

Thanks!

Here are a couple of very very detailed reviews that may help you. Note that there are almost a dozen pages for each review; the dropdown menu at top is the easiest way to navigate them.

Rebel XT

Nikon D70

To be honest, Canon pretty much blows Nikon away in the digital world at the moment. Some of the pro photographers I know feel the Rebel XT takes better photos than the $3,000 Nikon units they're issued by their employer. Canon's pronounced lack of digital noise at ISO100 is not matched by any current Nikon unit. That said, the Nikon D70 is built waaay better than the Canon Rebel XT, which is to say, it's a metal chassis, whereas the Canon XT doesn't.

 

[Chris Nuttall]

Okay, well, let's throw the Canon 10D into the mix then. Obivously, the 10D is supposed to be a higher level camera. It has some features that I really like, such as the dial for adjusting WB, etc. I don't really like having to negative through a menu with buttons...I have to do that now with my cheap Canon point-n-shoot, but I suppose I could deal with it.

Spending this amount of money, I would prefer to get a brand new camera vs. a used one....even a slightly used one.

Just trying to generate a good discussion, so I can make sure I'm choose the right camera. It is a lot of money, after all. BTW, I did read the reviews on dpreview.com and they gave me a little bit more info.

 

[Steve Burrows]

I have also just got enough money together to start looing at a DSLR.

One that has caught my eye is the DiMAGE A2 (a SLR-type digital camera)
is that a true DSLR camera? also after peoples thoughts on this camera.

Cheers Steve

 

[Mike Peregrine]

Digital SLR primarily comes down to Canon v. Nikon alright ... bpreview.com is the best resource for making a decision. Most folks decide based on their familiarity and history with each ... it's not much different in the digital arena than it was in the film arena this way. People either gravitate toward one or the other (and usually defend their brand to the grave). I love Canon ... but it's what I've always used ... I know what all the little dials and gizmos do ... and I already had a full line of lenses that I can interchange with the film camera (yep, still use it). One of these times I'm going to shoot the same storm with both the Digital Rebel and the Elan 7. Will shoot digital Rebel in RAW format and then take time to carefully edit (for once in my sorry life) ... and just stick with Velvia slide film in the Elan 7 and see how each turn out ... in some respects for storm stuff I'm almost tempted to go back to slides sometimes just to avoid editing ...

 

[mikedeason]

Originally posted by Steve Burrows
I have also just got enough money together to start looing at a DSLR.

One that has caught my eye is the DiMAGE A2 (a SLR-type digital camera)
is that a true DSLR camera? also after peoples thoughts on this camera.

Cheers Steve

I can't comment specifically on the A2 (except to say that no, it's not a true DSLR), however, I do own it's "replacement", the A200.

Let me first say, I really love my A200; it was well worth the $700 I paid for it, is 8MP and takes great pictures:

It has all the common features of an SLR (apperture, shutter speed, etc) as well as a very nice 7-50mm (28-200mm equivalent) lens. I've had little problems with chromatic aberration on the wide end, though barrell distortion can be a little distracting, as in this example:

Another great feature of the A200 is the tilt and swivel LCD. I can set it up on a tripod and angle the LCD so I can comfortably view it from any position. I'd say this feature is definitely one big advantage over DSLR's, especially in storm photography.

However, depsite what I've said in favor of the A200, if you have the money to spend on a good lens, I'd say definitely don't hesitate to go with a DSLR. The biggest, most crucial drawback about the A200 (and the A2) and one that I find particularly handicapping at times, is the smaller sensor. At ISO200 on the A200, you're probably gonna have as much as, if not more, noise than ISO800 on a good DSLR. And for me, I hate post processing and with the A200 I have to do quite a bit noise reduction in order to get shots like the lightning image above. Just because so many of my shots are taken in low lighting conditions, I'd rather trade some of the features I like about the A200 for better performance at faster ISO settings.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Mike

 

[Steve Burrows]

After looking at Pedro C. Fernández, photos im sold!

Canon EOS 350D it is!