Wow... a photography site dedicated to Disney... my kinda place I’m after a bit of buying advice...I have narrowed it down to 3 choices. The first two are similar prices with each camera offering a few advantages over the other. The next is more expensive but may be more convenient. Anyway.. the choices (Did I mention I hate choices?) Canon Rebel XTi 400D 18mm -55m & 70mm – 300mm kit Nikon 40Dx 18-55mm # 55-200mm Virtual Stabilizer kit Nikon 40Dx 18-200mm VR lens. The Nikon 18-200mm lens is more expensive (About 300 more than the other options) but would the fact that i don’t have to change lens so often be a good thing. Will I miss the extra 100mm zoom of the Canon or is I two long for me to use without a tripod anyway? Anti Dust... important or gimmick? The Nikon doesn’t twin lens kit doesn’t have the gap between 55-700mm that the Cannon has. Help!!! My head hurts too many choices.
ok here's another choice, can you wait till mousefest?, there will be several models there from both major players, you could get to talk plusses and minuses with actual users, you probably can arrange a little side by side handling, this way you could get the feel for the ergonomics of each, ie: some do not like the canon xti because the smaller body size does not fit their hands as well, both camera makers have some great offerings, both take fantastic photos in the hands of a knowledgable user, we don't equipment bash here since that leads to the flame wars we find so distasteful on other sites i realize you probably had you heart set on showing up at mf with a new toy to try out, but postponing a decision for a little bit may also allow you to be happier with your purchase in the long run, i feel a major vacation is not the best time to be climbing the new equipment learning curve, and mf is less than 2 weeks away. bear in mind whichever make you decide on will probably be a long term committment, you will be buying into a lens line, remember body models may come and go, but good glass lasts a lifetime. i myself am a canon user, simply because back in the day when i needed to replace the old manual argus, my choice became a canon rebel, followed by the eventual acquisition of several body upgrades and the step up to L glass for much of my lens set IS or VR, this is really needed technology, the difference in what you can create handheld compared to the non equiped lens is just almost unbelievable anti dust, my xti has it, i believe it works as designed, my 5d does not have it, and i had to go right out post purchase and get a visible dust sensor cover cleaner, since canon did not charge me extra for the 2 gigantic sensor boogers my 5d arrived fresh out of the box with if you do hold off till mf, look me up, i'm usually wearing a battered straw hat with a mousefest pin stuck in the side, white band with zebras on it, grey beard, usually kind of scruffy batterd look to me, but it's ok to approach, i'm not really a scary homeless guy
If you can wait until early spring, I would. Nikon's new CMOS sensors should filter down to the entry level models for PMA in late Jan 2008. Canon's entry level cameras are also due for an upgrade, but I'm not sure where they would go other than to a 12 mp sensor since the consumers haven't figured out that megapixels don't matter for quality. Canon has a new EF-S 55-200 IS lens that was announced, but I haven't seen it yet, but they know they need it to compete with Nikon. But honestly, you should try both out at a store and see how they feel in your hand. With that being said, Canon's next model up - the 30D/40D series is a little larger so may feel better in your hand. I think the D40(x) is also on the small side compared to their big brothers. At least the D40 is - Nikon puts ads in the sports magazines with "actual size" inserts for them. Once you choose a system, it's hard to switch. Anti-dust - once you get it you'll like it. Nikon is using it now too. And as for hand holding lenses - I remember back when Canon released their IS first. When "body" IS was NOT an option - kind of hard to move a roll of film. In the old days you would just have to use a faster shutter speed to handhold. But once you've used the modern IS you probably won't go back. So basically it's your decision. And your last option - I've heard nothing but good things about Nikon's 18-200 VR.
