Clash of the Titans – Canon 1Ds Mark III vs Nikon D3X for Stock
Posted on: May 10, 2009 (49) Comments
Canon vs. Nikon: Battle of the Titans
I recently bought a new Nikon D3X and after playing with it I’m now ready to let you know how it stacks up against the some other comparable cameras on the market, specifically the Canon 1Ds Mark III.
Today in my studio you’ll find the one Nikon D3X, three Canon 1Ds Mark IIIs, two Canon 5D Mark IIs, and one 39MP Hasselblad H3D-II. Because I’m constantly swapping between bodies, a lot of practical experience has surfaced about these cameras. Through time, trial and error, I’ve realized that each body has its own particular place to shine. I also get a lot of feedback from my assistants as to which cameras they prefer to shoot with and why.
Sharpness Results – A Breakdown
You’ve heard me say it before, and I’ll say it again: I am a huge stickler for sharpness. When our new Nikon D3X came in, the first issue my team and I wanted to test was sharpness. How much detail could we capture? Could we use this camera for stock production or maybe even for fashion (which probably has the highest degree of quality concern in the photography industry)? Could we get a similar or maybe even better result than with the Canon (or even the Hasselblad)?
We tested the body with a couple of the sharpest Nikon lenses and the result was surprisingly good. (I must say I was personally quite happy that I had not just wasted $8,000 USD, plus another $5,000 USD on lenses.) Here are the results:
Center Focus
The first thing we tested was the Nikon 85mm 1.4 vs. the Canon 85mm 1.2L. I personally use the 85mm a lot and find this focal range very suitable for stock, so this was a very interesting test for me. We tested the center area in sharpness as the first. Remember that to do this comparison we had to downsize the nikon file to match the canon.
Peripher Focus
The second thing we tested was the Nikon 85mm 1.4 vs. the Canon 85mm 1.2L in it’s peripher focal abilities. Here are the results:
With the right lenses the Nikon easily matches the Canon. But if you make the mistake of pushing some Nikon lenses to the edge, they certainly do not do justice to the full 24MP that the D3X is capable of handling. To get great sharpness out of this camera, you really need to know which F-stop range each lens achieves maximum sharpness within. Once my team and I figured out the right parameters, we soon learned to work beautifully with this camera. We ordered a whole bunch of lenses and returned the ones we did not find sharp.
Unfortunately, we did not find any of the Nikon Zoom lenses in the mid-range 24-70mm to be sufficiently sharp for our needs. We were however extremely impressed by the Nikkor 14-28mm f2.8, which was completely in its own league with outstanding sharpness and fringing kept in check. Canon simply does not have a wide zoom lens or prime that matches this lens in sharpness. (In fact, I believe you would have to go to medium format to match this lens.)
Before the new Nikon, I would always go to my Hasselblad prime 28mm if I was doing a wide shot. The wide Canon lenses weren’t worth using because they’d fringe the whole thing so much that it took my outsourcing staff hours per file to fix the issue. Now it seems I can shoot wide without having to get the heavy firearms in position. Great!
So to the big question—in terms of sharpness, could I do stock or fashion with this lens? The answer is yes….but.
The “but” comes in because you really have to know what you’re doing and chose just a few handpicked lenses to work with. If you look at it from an overall perspective, the canon lenses perform slightly better all around. After much research we settled on using these lenses from Nikon:
Nikon 14-24mm f2.8 (impressively sharp lens)
Nikon 50mm f1.4 (useless below f3.0, sharpness lacking, will be rejected for stock)
Nikon 85mm f1.4 (too blurry below f2.0, very sharp at f5.6)
Nikon 70-200mm f2.8
Noise Breakdown
Noise is a problem for Nikon. If you remove the noise reduction setting that is on by default and take a look at the unfiltered RAW file, the Nikon D3X has much more noise than the Canon 1Ds Mark IIIs RAW. With both cameras set to “no noise reduction”Canon significantly outperforms. In fact, a Canon ISO 1600 file looks almost like a Nikon ISO 800 or 640. We borrowed the graphs from Dpreview to illustrate this:
Luminance noise graph (black patch)
Chroma (color) noise graph
We also did our own noise test on the Nikon:
This was quite a surprise to us because most online forums had predicted that Nikon would be better than Canon at handling noise. In retrospect, this is probably because a) Nikon has turned their noise recognition on by default, making most images look much more noiseless than they really are, and b) Nikon is often regarded a photojournalistic tool and the choice for tough conditions in photography. However, when going above 1600 in ISO the noise handling of the Nikon looks to be slightly better than the Canon. But shooting above ISO 1600 is a very rare thing, so I would have liked to see the Nikon better at the lower ISOs.
Unfortunately, Nikon’s auto-noise reduction makes their files look slightly filtered, so to my team and I (and some very qualified iStock inspectors) these files qualify for rejection by default. Not good.
Bottom line: How bad is it really? Well, because the margins are small in today’s digital camera offerings in terms of quality, this noise issue is not enough for us to disqualify the Nikon in any way. To be realistic, maybe only a handful out of about 1000 people in the world are capable of looking at a Nikon file with the default noise reduction turned on and say “hey this file looks slightly filtered,” so in real life, this simply does not matter. Will this work for stock? Yes, but not above 360-400 in ISO.
Usability
As I mentioned earlier, because the margins are small between the top end Canons and top end Nikons, usability is the real tie-breaker. Nikon has a far better reputation for listening to their photographers than Canon, and this is plainly illustrated by the features available in the new Nikon D3X. (In fact, Nikon listens so much, that I am expecting a phone call from them to talk about their new camera next week.)
The Canon Mark II, 16mp, was a nightmare in terms of usability. To change basic settings you had to free both hands and press three buttons at once. To review an image, press two. This camera was a joke and any photographer shooting with it for five minutes prior to release would have told them so. Even Canon’s basic point and shoot cameras launched at the same time had better usability options at that point. The Canon 1Ds Mark III was greatly improved in terms of usability but it now risks being compared to the new Nikon D3X and frankly, it looks like a joke again. Let me take you on a tour of the small differences in the D3X that make a real difference in real life:
Instant, one press, 100% cropped view of focus area (the little red spot in one spot metering). This feature is unbelievable. For the first time in digital history on a top end camera, I can actually routinely check if I am shooting in focus. To navigate to a 100% view of the focused area on a Canon takes anywhere from 10 to15 button presses (with both hands) and requires a cognitive effort that is better used shooting. This Nikon feature is simply fantastic and is something that can be found on other Nikon high-end cameras as well.
- Two CF-cards slots with backup capability. Incredible. Shoot jpeg small res for inspection on one card and shoot RAW on the other, or shoot double for backup. Fantastic!
- Two custom assignable buttons for any purpose. Genius.
- Simply outstanding auto focus and AI focus. Much better and more precise than Canon. In other words, you can actually count on it being in focus when the red spot lights up. Canon has a problem here and this was actually one of the reasons why I went medium format a year ago, because Hassy autofocus is extremely precise.
- Impressive buffer size and continuous shooting capabilities. An impressive 7 frames per second really beats Canon’s lumbering 4 frames per second.
Things we are missing on the Nikon:
- Custom definable shutter delay time. Default is 1 second, but too long of a delay and we would like to see this alterable to lower settings. Shooting in “silent” mode on the Canon 1Ds Mark III gives my assistants about 50% sharper files. The silent mode has a short shutter delay of maybe 300-400 milliseconds. This is perfect and matches the shutter delay I have on my Hasselblad. On the Hasselblad I can customize my shutter delay in internals of 50 and 200 milliseconds. We would like to have seen the same option on the Nikon. This fixed in firmware and would require little effort.
- One press custom white balance test, such as on the Hasselblad. On the Hasselblad you can press one button while pointing the center of the lens at a gray card and the white balance is automatically adjusted and shifts to custom white balance settings. This feature is quit addictive and shooting with Canon or Nikon you constantly wonder why they have not created a similar function.
- Sensor cleaning. Automatically.
Conclusion
The Canon has lower noise levels and the lenses perform generally better, but what does this matter if your images are more out of focus, if the camera is much harder to work with on a daily basis and if you can get the same results form a Nikon by just choosing the right lenses and get another 3 mega pixel on top? For stock and fashion, about 90% of what we shoot is shot on ISO 100 and here the two cameras are so close in their noise levels that this is not something that would ever be a defining matter in choosing a Nikon or a Canon.
Formerly, I would shoot most things on my Hassy and move down to my Canon when shooting subject material that required flexibility or that was fast moving. Now that I’ve met the Nikon, this will change for sure. I plan for my basic setup going forward to be: Hasselblad for studio and high-resolution stuff and Nikon for the rest. Because I know what lenses to use, never shoot much more then ISO 400 anyway and need to count on the focus system, the Nikon D3X is a dream come true. I will report back a couple of months into using the Nikon and let you know if I still feel the same way.
What’s Next
If Canon is to stay competitive then they have to start listening to their photographer’s needs and they also have to come up with a new top model within the next six months or so. We will probably see a full frame 28MP just around the corner. I predict Canon will supplement this new camera with a new lineup of two or three central range lenses with their new glass, which will create impressively sharp images even at this resolution.
Two years from now, both camera brands will have to consider going beyond full frame. While Canon might be able to do this (with new and better lenses in the horizon) this might be a problem for Nikon unless they upgrade their current lineup of lenses. The challenge for Canon will be usability and functionality as well as developing a better focus system. The challenge for Nikon will be noise control and better lenses.
Nikon should probably start working on a semi-medium format top-end camera with a new and physically larger lineup of lenses that can handle the extra mega pixels required in the future to come. Nikon could also win even more on usability by launching a TLC compatible radio controlled flash series, instead of their nearly useless infrared system. This would be a massive winner for press photographers, location photographers, travel photographers, wedding photographers, etc. The alternative, without TLC, is to bring four or five Pocket Wizards along all the time, which fills up quit a lot of space in the camera bag, needs batteries…and is expensive…
So, to conclude my review, I’d say that the Canon 1DS Mark III and the Nikon D3X, are neck and neck in many regards – each trumping the other in certain areas. Overall, I choose the Nikon D3X as my winner for its super focus capability and its great functionality. Stay tuned for more reviews to come.
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super review… was about to do a similar one, but you covered just about everything I was going to say. Can we syndicate your article?
since you wont be using the 50mm 1.4 under f3, try giving the older 50mm f1.8 a go. It will be just as sharp as the 1.4 (unless the apperature > f2, but that obviously wont be a issue here) and it has less distortion than the 1.4 and at £115 its dirt cheap as well, so you might as well give it a go really
Yes you can Sean. Good to see you here.
Interesting. I might try that. I will get back to you on that.
Great review, very well written!
Since you complained that there is nothing in the focal range of 24-70 that is sufficiently sharp for you, have you tried the 24-70G f/2.8? It is as sharp as it can be, provided you forget a bit about the field curvature at 24mm. Also the Micro 60mm is really good.
I recently jumped to Nikon D3x from the 1Ds mk III. With a bit more use I am sure you will get much better results. The images I’m getting from the D3x are cleaner and have a lot more detail I ever got from the Ds. S you say good lenses are a must. The 200 f2 is an absolute winner!
Yuri,
I love your website and especially this article. I’m an amateur shooting with a Nikon D200 and feel I’ve outgrown it’s abilities. I shoot in the studio as well as the field and I’d like to upgrade. Do you think the jump from D200 to D3X is too vast? Is there another camera you’d recommend in between?
Thanks!
I’m mostly a wedding photographer,
using both the d3 & d3x.. the glass that works fine for my d3x are
Tamron 90mm 2.8 macro – so sharp it hurts if you touch it haha
nikkor 60mm 2.8 old school one.
14-24mm 2.8 ( love it to death do us part
24-70mm 2.8 ( its perfectly fine mate! but also my least used glass on the d3x – sits on the d3 almost full-time and is great on that rig – but on weddings its on the d3x and used mostly in DX crop mode – great range then for weddings and 10.5mp is fine res – i’ll pop it into fx mode for the location shots that might get printed big and/or the pano centre four page flip out ( 4x 16″ wide pages – what I got the d3x for ) on the albums )
70-200mm 2.8 ( just turn off vr and its ‘ok to good’ – needs a update bad at 200 end still very useable though for portraits & weddings – but perfectly fine and sharp upto 180mm f3.5 and down )
my real winners are the new 24mm pc-e and 85mm pc-e ( both these tilt-shifts rock my world )
I’ve got both the d200 and the d3 and d3x.. the D200 & 18-200 nikon glass – I still use as a carry around rig, it’s always with me, the d3 and d3x are just too far too heavy to bother karting about with me everywhere and theres no good ‘does it all’ glass like the 18-200 for it.. if i wanted that range i have to carry three bit of very heavy glass with me everywhere, the 14-24, 24-70 and 70-200 and that all weighs a ton to carry.. so stuff it.. the d200 and 18-200 still comes everywhere with me.
if you think you have outgrown the d200, look at a 2nd hand d2x or a D700 if you feel you must have a fx rig, but to be honest – the difference from DX to FX isn’t really much to write home about – you get a wider rig but loose out on the reach of the 1.5crop. The image quality isn’t that much of a difference ( for most typical shots the typical photographers out there will take anyhow ) where people will go oh that was shot with a dx rig and that one shot with a fx rig.. so you most likely wont notice earth shattering breath taking images just by upgrading from dx to fx at all…
probably is correct for 14-24 and 14-28 before the drop-down list (above in the text)
Yes I have. I find the 28-70mm 2.8L much sharper. : )
Thanks for this review!
Regarding the 1 button WB, on the Nikon, its almost 1 button. Set your WB to one of the custom ones, then release the WB button, press on in again and hold it until Pre can be seen on the top LCD. Aim your camera at your grey card and press the shutter release. If the camera displays Good, then the new custom WB has been remembered.
I find the 28-70 to be very sharp with my D3x in most of the frame, though I shoot landscape and the edges are a little disappointing but usable.
The best lens edge to edge so far on the D3x for me has been my old 80-200 AF-D (2 ring)
The 17-35 is acceptable and I dont have a 14-24
Hi, Do you check WB via live view?
This very great function.
I mean Nikon D3X.
Hi Yuri,
Thank you for your article, approximately 2 weeks ago I asked for your advice on which Nikon lens to use:)
I was also looking for a detailed Nikon-Canon comparison, so perfect timing:)
Thanks, but some comments on RAW-Noise:
Do you used Adobe products like Camera Raw or Lightroom? This products use Canon DLLs for Canon Files, but its own NOISY dll for Nikon. This together with Silkypix are the noisiest products.
Use any other for Nikon, i have good results with Bibble, Capture one Phase one, Sharpraw, Rawshooter or even Acdsee or Thumbsplus.
This will imho improve your noise by nearly a stop.
Mention is made of in-camera noise reduction by the D3x which can actually be turned off. I have worked with too many thousands of files from the 1D Mark III and the 5D that show in-camera NR even when it is “OFF” and that at ISO settings of 1600 and above generate files with the “plasticy” skin tones you will find as a not uncommon complaint.
One feature that is provided only with the D3 and D3x is the 5:4 crop which I cannot believe is exclusive to Nikon and only these two full frame models. Great to know that you can shot away and all files can be used for 8×10 prints without cropping in post production. Also have smaller files when shooting in situations where the ends are going to be cropped anyway so less to transfer, store, archive.
The Nikon flash if using their strobes is also much more accurate and consistent than the Canon system and this includes the Mark III cameras with the 580EX II strobe.
Hi, to add something about the noise:
i love dpreview, but their graphs aren´t representing reality. Not only this camera, but nearly always. Other reviewers present other graphs, like:
http://www.digitalcamerainfo.com/content/Nikon-D3x-Digital-Camera-Review-20489/Noise.htm
This time the D3X is on top, but i don´t use this as a proof. The eye is the best measurement tool until now.
I agree. However. If you look at the noise presented in the visible images, there is much more noise at low ISO with the Nikon over the Canon. Unfortunately. I love Nikon and shoot most things on my Nikon now-a-days. To be fair, unbiased, Nikon has more noise.
…another name for the photo is Nikon
I am interested to know your application workflow in processing the D3X images. I have found that CaptureNX 2 is the only software that handles the color aberration of the D3X well. My problem being that I normally use Lightroom and don’t care for changing my workflow. The color aberration seems to be more of an issue with the 24-70 but is also more pronounced with the 14-24 than I would like. It was much less of an issue with the D3. It is fixable in Lightroom but obviously I’d like to avoid time in front of the computer. What to do, what to do?
I upgraded from a 1Ds MKII to a D3x. Honestly the Nikkon is day and noght compared to the Canon. It is an extraordinary piece of equipment and Canon DOES NOT have glass that even comes close to the better zooms and primes from Nikon. The combination of a great body with stunning lenses from Nikon puts the Canon to shame. It does not matter if Canon comes up with a 28MP or 32MP new body. They have no lenses and this is the bottom line. Till they do, it will be very difficult to surpass Nikon any time soon. And one final word regarding noise… it is said so many times (and untrue) that the D3x is noisy. It is not. The noise is handled extremelly well, and when it shows up, it looks like FILM NOISE, not digital camera noise which for my eyes is revealing. It seems many people have forgotten how noisy 400, 800 and 1600 ASA 35mm film is! The D3x at any of those film stocks, beats their noise charactericts. It is a camrea that if you know what you are doing, can bring many years of enjoyufull photography and high-paying jobs.
I think that the biggest problem with Nikon is their Lenses. Too many that are simply not good enough.
Do you used Adobe products like Camera Raw or Lightroom? This products use Canon DLLs for Canon Files, but its own NOISY dll for Nikon. This together with Silkypix are the noisiest products.
Use any other for Nikon, i have good results with Bibble, Capture one Phase one, Sharpraw, Rawshooter or even Acdsee or Thumbsplus.
This will imho improve your noise by nearly a stop.
Hey Yuri
Just discovered your web and blog today. The article above is interesting and on the Nikon 50mm f1.4 lens I totally concur. With my copy wider than say f4 is a dog (fringing is terrible); from f4 to f11 great then it returns to being a dog again. This though is the older D lens, have you tried the newer G lens?
I think that you have mentioned the truth in your article . the main important thing is the lenses you use.
you have chosen 4 good lenses of nikon ( f 1.4 ) and the result is like you told , but how come you couldn’t choose a good lense in canon series ?
I think that canon is an unachievable digital brand in camera market due to its various lenses and various bodies also.
good luck.
This is an excellent piece of writing and research Yuri! I am a Virginia Beach Wedding Photographer on the East Coast of the US, and I have some stock up on istockphoto.com, but not enough by any means. When did you get involved in stock as your primary means of shooting? Have you focused on any other area prior to stock?
I have to agree with the usability of the Nikon’s over the Canon. I used to shoot Nikon and went to Canon only because of a few lenses I wanted to use. I find that I have to wrestle with my Canon where the Nikon made life simple by providing the controls where I wanted them, and the right ergonomics to do what I want to do with little effort. Your test images are making the 1D and the fantastic 85mm lens look very soft compared to the Nikon. That’s a real shame. Thanks for the micro-stock focused write-up on these.
I’m Canon and Nikon user.
“”"”Unfortunately, we did not find any of the Nikon Zoom lenses in the mid-range 24-70mm to be sufficiently sharp for our needs”"”".
This is really unbelievable! Between the actual Nikkors objective and those old, you have not found than at least matches your Canon in range 24 to 70?
In youth I remember me that in Italy the canonistis ware spoking very bad of Nikon. In the years I have discovered then that the Canon lent indefinitely them the photographic equipment! I don’t want to think that is so in this case, but your judgment it seems me little technician.
“”"To be realistic, maybe only a handful out of about 1000 people in the world are capable of looking at a Nikon file with the default noise reduction turned on and say “hey this file looks slightly filtered,””"”
Many experts suppose that the Canon sensors produce files previous aid of filtration, but Canon doesn’t declare it.Only doesn’t know to do it so well as Nikon!
It is known however that every digital sensor is assisted from a files optimization system and therefore it is not strange that there are differences on this technical circle, especiallyon the type of control on the filtration that the builder prefers to leave to the photographer. Here Nikon denotes a good service to the photographer. Far better of Canon one! Finally, are you sure that being accustoms to the files Canon, those of the Nikon Dx3 appear to you “exotic?”
I hope that my comment doesn’t couple too much malicious on your review but surely it is very negative, from a commercial point of view, on the Nikon dx3, since it dissuades the purchase of those people that would use her in studio. The preferential sector of the Nikon Dx3!
By
hey there
thx for the nice statement
im a nikon user and i use the nikon d3 momentary and have a question . . .
what do you think about the colors of the nikon d3x
in comparison to the canon mark III? are the pictures
neutral or too yellow?
thx for your input
hey Bud, I just wanna say, Been with Nikon since the early 60’s and the 14-24 is the most amazing Lens I’ve ever used in this format. On My D3 it is spectacular. Thanks for your site and for sharing so much.
Best to you, laurin
Excellent blog. I am a photojournalist and I have shot both the older Nikons and Canons. Papers are not springing for new equipment lately. The only problem with the Nikons our staff photographers have found is a lack of durability. They are constantly letting our photographers down and with NPS it takes at least 4 weeks to get the equipment repaired. That said in five years with the Canon all the break downs were my fault. Broken flash shoes and a dropped body, I actually put a hole in the corner near the vertical grip shutter release. The camera continued to work except for the vertical release for a year before I sent it for repair. The bill?
250.00 and it, like all the other work from CPS was back in a week.
If you need sharpness on your d3x; then you NEED to check out the zeiss 100mm f2 makro-planar. It is stupid sharp across the frame, only dipping a little wide open and @ f22. I love your studio by the way. Amazing.
I find your review really interesting and impressive.
I actually use Nikon D3 and D700 but my focus is on low noise at high ISO.
Thanks for all the tips that you share.
You have to try the nikon mount zeiss zf lenses especially Makro-Planar 100mm f2
Hello Yuri,
I’ve been following your blog for a while, and you do provide some very valuable information. I’m in the studying stage now, reading as much as I can. Although, I’ll never have your resources, I am interested in stock, and I believe there are ways to shoot stock without spending too much. I had a comment to make about what you said regarding Nikon’s near useless infrared system for their flashes. There are alternatives to the old bulky Pocketwizards, Pocketwizards recently redesigned their system, and they are much smaller. There’s also a new company called Radiopopper, and they manufacture compact radio transmitters and receivers, reviews have been good about their products.
I like very much to take photos.
I´m not a photo expert but glad to read and follow your twitter and blog.
“Instant, one press, 100% cropped view of focus area (the little red spot in one spot metering). This feature is unbelievable.”
This statement is very interesting: I have just got the D3X but have not yet found this tool. Where can I find or activate the 100% view?
Thanks in advance, Dan
I only received my D3X, so I’m not yet familiar with all commands (However I’m a longtime user of many film Nikons, then D1, D70, D200, D300 etc.) Now there is an interresting remark in your review: “Instant, one press, 100% cropped view of focus area (the little red spot in one spot metering)”. This feature is unbelievable. How can Ifind or activate this??
Thanks in advance, Dan
Dear Yuri,
I have always been pro Canon and equipped these bodies with L series lenses. Recently i’ve been looking at upgrading to the Canon 1Ds Mk III (the jury is out on the 1D Mk IV at the moment) but also debating the challenge from Nikon with the D3X. Having read the article you posted on May 10th 2009 and given we are now another six months down the line in 2009, have you reached any more conclusions about which brand you are truly favouring?
Have you entirely moved away from your three Canon 1Ds Mk IIIs and opted for Nikon D3X overall performance?
Sorry but your test is not good for me.
Nikon give you some money?
Yuri,
Have you tried the new D3s or can you explain why you wouldn’t use it for stock? I know it’s only 12MP but that would seem enough based on what I have seen for the majority of the uses. Am I missing something?
I currently shoot D3 and an old D200 (which is exceptionally sharp). I was at Alamy for a while and both seemed to perform fine so long as I submitted excellent work. I had no rejections after I learned what was acceptable and how to post process it correctly. I was doing all managed then and sales were slow with micro up and coming. Now I’d like to jump back into mix so I’m here doing some research before getting too carried away
— Thanks in advance
Hi Yuri,
Great review I’ve always been a nikon man myself I shoot a bit of fashion and have found that the skin tones seem too red to me, I hired a canon 5dmrk2 on a recent job and ever since have been thinking about making the change. Did you find that a problem? Maybe it has something to do with the way I process the images, not sure.
Dear Yuri,
I am interested in hearing your responses to these questions from Nikon users. Still trying to decide from the many photographer’s experience, which camera I can buy where I don’t have to mortgage the house!!
Great article. Nice to see a good comparison.
Enjoyed the site!
You should have bought the Nikon D3s not the D3x, the D3x is slower than the Nikon D700s. The D3x is not worth the money you paid for it! sorry mate, beg borrow or buy a D3s and then show me the results.
just my opinion.
aja
Hi Yuri:
Have been using your keyword tool for a while–fabulous–and just discovered your blog–a lot of great info.
I’ve been shooting stock for about a year now and trying to learn as much as I can and I really appreciate all the advice you share with readers. I shoot with the Nikon D700 and find that if I use Lightroom or Photoshop RAW the files are less sharp than when I use Nikon Capture NX2. I love NX2. I’ve even reprocessed some old files from my 6MP D70 that were rejected by Alamy QC initially (since they have to be upsized so much) and got them by easily. I have the 24-70mm f/2.8 and while I had to recalibrate it, once I did, it is super-sharp. I’m surprised that people said Nikon took 4-6 weeks for repairs. I’ve sent one camera and one lens to them for warranty repairs in the past few years and received both back within two weeks. (I’m in NY and sent the cameras to their Melville NY facility). I love the D700 for the low noise if I’m out shooting at night or if I want to shoot fast at a higher ISO when I’m out without a tripod. I do a lot of editorial work so the low noise is a plus and lets me shoot indoors without a flash as well. I’ve also done some excellent studio work with it (I use Elinchrome strobes so can’t speak to the Nikon speedlights–I only have one and occasionally use it off camera when I need a third strobe-the infrared on the Elinchrome works with it so that’s fine for my needs). Anyway, thanks for all the good advice!
-Marianne
Hi Yuri, I heard mention of your blog on the D-Town weekly video blog. I noticed above how you criticized some Nikon’s lenses for not being “sharp” and leaned more towards Canon’s lens but you never told us what your favorite Canon Lenses were that you liked.
Can you tell us your favorite Canon lenses that you utilize. It would be greatly appreciated. I will check back to see if you have noted them. Thanks again for all the tips and information.