If I was starting in photography, what OTHER brand would I choose?

[RaoulIsidro]

I would choose a brand (or brands) with the most lenses and accesories.
Right now there are only two.
To me both of them are leaders in the field and they are equal.

[Xebadir]

I use Nikon, and my preference would flow to Canon. It seems easy and cheaper to buy Canon gear second hand, not to mention that a few of my friends use it and I have played with their cameras, and have been very satisfied with the results achievable and the ease of use.

[GlennSan]

Kiwi - your comment brought a huge grin to my face - thanks.

I'm a long-term Nikon user and have mostly bought second hand. Nikon new prices sh1t me to tears and I believe, but don't know for sure, that Canon are more progressive than Nikon while being a little more reasonable price wise. That is the main reason I voted Canon.

[Snappytom]

Thanks Tanin for clarifying the questionaire, these are the answers I was after. Cheers
PS I particularly liked to hear people squirming as they voted for 'the enemy'

[Snappytom]

I chose Sony. I think Sony are working hard to be a progressive player in this market and pushing hard to develop stuff that stands out from the pack. I would be interested in going along on that ride.

And the Pentax 645 does seem rather inviting toooooo.

What do you think of the Translucent mirror technology in Sony SLT 55 and Slt 33? do you remember it from when Canon introduced it?. As a new player I am not sure whether to be brave and follow new trends or stay with the tried and tested. It's just that I like the size and weight (from specs) of the SLT and mirrorless/prismless cameras. But are they as versatile as a DSLR?
Cheers

[Xenedis]

Don't tell anyone I told you this, but I would choose Nikon.

(I shoot Canon, and my last six cameras have been Canon cameras.)

I've never owned a Nikon and don't know my way around one, but the range of cameras (including full-frame availability) and range of lenses is large and for the most part comparable to Canon.

[natalie]

what a great thread and intial question
thanks for asking it in such away that provides some valuable info for prospective camera buyers
i have done some research into a new camera and this validates my choices
cheers

[phild]

It pains me to say this.... but.... Nikon.

The lovely whirring sound of the Nikon's mirror as opposed to the crash of the 5DII mirror.

Then there's the 14-24 Nikon lens, Canon has no equal for FF, to top it off proper wireless flash triggering.

Now where did I put that bucket, I feel sick...

[TOM]

I firmly believe if you dont choose either Nikon or Canon you've got rocks for brains.

yeah well they are both good cameras for shooting sport and wildlife.

I couldn't choose Other (Mamiya, Rollei, Leica, Holga, iPhone), Nikon, or Olympus, so I chose Canon. It was a tough choice between them and Sony. I've said it before, I think that Canon and Sony will be the two big players in five or ten years. But with Canon's large and versatile lens mount, and factory support programmes (such as Nikon's NPS), they got my vote. But how many members shoot with only one brand, or one style of camera?

[Allann]

Interesting question, I went Pentax, but would have chosen Nikon if not for 645.

[Tannin]

Interesting to see all the squirming people are doing, especially from the Canon people voting Nikon, and perhaps even more so from the Nikon people voting Canon. Great to watch. (Is there an evil smiley? Can't be bothered hunting for one, just imagine it here please.)

Me, I voted for Pentax*, and I was happy to do so: I really like the company, and the products, and they just can't be beat for all-round value. I could have happily voted Nikon too - I don't care for their prices, but there is nothing at all wrong with their cameras, and I'd very happily shoot with one. I've actually pondered buying one as a second body now and then.

Rocks for brains if you don't go with C or N?

Not so! If you are a pro or an aspiring pro, or you have a specialist field that needs things only C or N make (big birding lenses, for example, tilt/shift lenses for food photography as another), then I agree with Kiwi - they are the only two in town.

If, on the other hand, you are a hobbyist, anywhere from casual user to dead-set keen, then there is a heap to be said for buying the other brand. Pentax simply try harder, they think outside the square more often than the big two, and they make great lenses too. You pay less and get more. How can that be bad?

Err ... did I vote for Pentax? Maybe I went Nikon. IO'll be forgetting my name next, which is, err .... Can I get back to you on that?

[swifty]

Such a tricky question. I'm just glad I have already chosen so I wouldn't have that dilemma today.
I would seriously consider Canon, Sony and Panasonic but not necessarily in that order and not necessarily just one brand.

[ricktas]

What do you think of the Translucent mirror technology in Sony SLT 55 and Slt 33? do you remember it from when Canon introduced it?. As a new player I am not sure whether to be brave and follow new trends or stay with the tried and tested. It's just that I like the size and weight (from specs) of the SLT and mirrorless/prismless cameras. But are they as versatile as a DSLR?
Cheers

To be honest I haven't really investigated brands much in recent years, though reading a bit here and there just to get a bit of knowledge.

My thoughts are this. If you see a nice garden in your street, and want a nice garden yourself, what questions do you ask the garden owner? I have yet to hear of someone ever saying "Nice garden, what brand is your spade? I need to get one so I can have a garden like yours". The tools of your 'trade' are just that, it is how you use them that is the key!

[Xenedis]

Personally, I don't pay a lot of attention to cameras.

A full-frame sensor is important to me, however, but I've been shooting with full-frame sensors for almost four years now.

Cameras these days have an obsolescence rate which is getting to the point of rivaling that of computers. The manufacturers keep willing punters in the vicious, never-ending upgrade cycle.

For what I shoot and how I shoot, I don't need all sorts of fancy features that cameras provide these days; I just need the thing to have a full-frame sensor, produce a clean image and not much more.

I've had my 5D Mark II since May and I still haven't even tried the video mode. :-)

I've well and truly lost touch with the specs (and even the pixel counts) of all of Canon's cameras, and I wouldn't know the difference between a 40D and a 50D, or a 450D and a 500D. Given that I rarely buy a camera, I don't have much of a need to be familiar with all of them.

In my experience, from having moved from a 5D I had since 2006, to a 5D Mark II which I've had for only a little over three months, I shoot the same way I shot before, so the user experience has been the same. I haven't even made much use of the live view mode. Old habits. :-)

Personally, my concern lies more with getting a great image than fussing much about gear, as gear is not a limitation for me. Stunning light and the wow-factor image is more elusive than gear.

Just my 5c.

[Shane.R]

They all do very well with image quality, pick one out of a hat.

[SPL]

I have Olympus and have since OM1 OM2n OM4 but now only an OM2N and an E520. If Olympus stop making/suporting SLRs I would choose Nikon for a replacement.

[11TCo]

Probably a medium format Pentax if I had lots of spare cash.

[Redgum]

I use Nikon and wouldn't buy any other brand. Had stacks of Pentax over the years but they don't have a service centre in Uganda.

[JM Tran]

I use Nikon and wouldn't buy any other brand. Had stacks of Pentax over the years but they don't have a service centre in Uganda.

oh but you could trade your camera gear for a well worn and loved AK47 with a few hundred rounds in Uganda though, and it shoots too!

[TOM]

love the Kalashnikov's, but not great for shooting stuff far away, you'll still need a 2.8/300 for that.