So yeah. I’ve been thinking of picking one up. Well, that’s if and WHEN I do have the budget to do so. I found this link on a forum site I’m a regular of which might help you guys in choosing a camera for yourselves. Thanks to a very helpful member there he described in detail which ones to get and which ones to stay away from.
Here it is:
Nikon
Pros
- One of the two biggest brands, lots of support and accessories than sony, pentax, olympus.
- Pretty cheap starter lens like 18-70mm, 18-105mm VR, 50mm 1.8, 35mm 1.8
- Access to third party lens is easier compared to Sony, Pentax, Olympus
- Cleaner iso 1600 and above than competition, although Canon is a close second.
- One of the Cheapest body offered today (d40,d60)
- Offers Full Frame
Cons
- Stabilization is build on to the lens, so usually you have to pay for it to have the technology.
- Some models don’t have AF motor (D40,D40x,D60,D5000) which means those AF-D lenses that are pretty good would be manual focus only on the said bodies. But marami nanamang lens na with built-in motor, so this is less of an issue IMO.
Canon
Pros
- One of the two biggest brands, just like Nikon which means plenty of support and accessories.
- Clean iso 1600 and above, just like Nikon although Nikon is cleaner by a bit.
- Like Nikon, access to third party lens is easier.
- Cheaper Pro lenses relative to their prices.
- access to the cheap 50mm 1.8.
- No AF motor issues, so all lenses will AF with Canon.
- Offers Full Frame
Cons
- Unlike Nikon, starter lenses are pretty expensive, so most likely the upgrade route would be go third party.
- Stabilization is on the lens, so you have to pay for it.
Sony
Pros
- Built-in stabilization on the body, which means all lenses you put in here would be stabilized. (Tamron 17-50mm 2.8 IS anyone?)
- Minolta lenses can be used here, so there are plenty of lenses to offer here too.
- Carl Zeiss optics offered although EXPENSIVE, (you have to use one to see how good IQ really is.)
- Access to third party lens.
- No AF motor issues
-Offers Full Frame
Cons
- Since we are in the Philippines, lenses and accessories here are overpriced imo, so to get items cheaper, most likely you have to source it somewhere else. (although we have a seller here that sells lenses at a competitive price.)
- Noisier iso 1600 and above.
- Support is tougher compared to Nikon and Canon.
- Third party lens access could be tougher, since there are fewer Sony users than Canon and Nikon.
Olympus
Pros
- Like Sony, Stabilization is built-in to the body
- Access to the most effective sensor dust-reduction system
- Smaller lenses like the pancake (90g), 14-42mm kit (190g), 40-150mm kit (220g).
- Since the crop factor is 2x compared to the competition (Nikon,Sony,Pentax 1.5x), (Canon 1.6x), telephoto reach is easier with this system (70-300mm lens is equivalent to 140-600mm Full Frame).
- Known for their zoom optics, as dpreview have said, the strong point of this system lies within the optics, from standard to the super high grade.
Cons
- Iso 1600 and above, noisier than competition. (Due to the smaller sensor than competition)
- Support is tougher compared to Canon and Nikon.
- Lack of cheap prime low-light lenses.
- Only Sigma is the third-party company that offers lens for this system.
Pentax
Pros
- Built-in Stabilization into the body. (Like Sony, Tamron/Sigma 18-50mm 2.8 IS anyone?)
- Weather-sealed body at an entry-level price! (How I wish the e-620 is weather-sealed)
- Primes, Primes, Primes! Want Primes? This is it! (They also offer Pancake lenses!)
- Old lenses are cheap and can be used with the newer bodies if I’m not mistaken.
- Built like a tank! These things are tough!
- Pretty decent iso 1600 and above performance (Above Sony and Olympus, below Nikon and Canon.)
- Third Party Lens offered.
Cons
- Like Sony and Olympus, support and accessories is tougher than Nikon and Canon.
- Maybe third party lenses are tougher to find here, like Sony as there are fewer users of Pentax than Canon and Nikon.
(Note: With Olympus, Depth-of-Field is deeper by one stop compared to APS-C sensors, deeper by two stops compared to Full-Frame. This may be a pro or a con depending on what applications you would use.)
(Note 2: Fujifilm makes dslrs too, using the Nikon Mount, so Nikon lenses works with Fuji. Panasonic makes one too, and uses the Four-Thirds Mount, which is what Olympus is using so their lenses are interchangeable, while Samsung uses the Pentax mount and is interchangeable to the Pentax dslrs too.)
Source: TipidPC
