Canonization

There was a photo shoot at the agency the other day, one of those “on the cheap” sessions where they set up a pair of stands and a roll of seamless in the cafeteria space. As I passed by, I noticed the photog was shooting with a Canon, the model of which I didn’t catch. I went back later to chat, but the set had been struck and he had left.

I recall as I passed by, hoping that it would be a Nikon, and experiencing antipathy towards this person that I have not even met. I did not like it. Have I become a Nikon snob?

Afterwards, I began to consider putting my feet in both camps. What if I got myself a Canon body? It wasn’t enough to simply have cut my teeth on Canon, and to have shot with an F-1 for years before migrating to Nikon. It would have to be a current commitment.

So, I started to look at Canon DSLRs. Really look at them. My friend suggested the 70D. Nice camera. But, it’s APS-C, Canon-style; a 1.6x crop factor. I never understood why Canon did this. Articulated LCD display; not crazy about that either.

Canon EOS 7D; APS-C, Canon-style

The 7D on the other hand does not have an articulated display, and I like the control layout a lot better. At only a fraction more expensive than the 70D, it seems much more like a camera for me.

But then there’s full-frame. And that’s the 6D. This circumvents the whole Canon APS-C issue. With the 24-105 f/4 lens, it comes in less that the Nikon D610. The controls are not nearly as svelte as the 7D, but not at all bad. But there’s one catch: no built-in flash.

Canon EOS 6D; Entry-level full-frame, Canon-style

This is an entry level full-frame, as supposedly is the D610. I could see not having a flash on the near-pro D5, but the D6? Strange, very strange. Like having a 1.6x crop factor. I now understand why the price is cheaper. And for pros, this might be perfect. But I would miss this important feature. Oddly it does have scene modes though, which would seem more of an amateur feature to me.

The 5D Mark III is out of my budget, but its layout is pretty much identical to the 7D. A used 5D Mark II is not out of the running, but the original seems a bit archaic, which has nothing to do with its 13MP resolution. That would be just fine. 

I find myself actually agonizing over this trying to find the perfect Canon. This is complicated, because the Canon line is more complex than Nikon’s. Canon has the Rebel T(x), Rebel SL(x), The (xx)D the (xxx)D and the -1D X, while Nikon has the D(xxxx), D(xxx), D(xx) and the D(x). Although, technically the D90 has been long discontinued, and since Nikon has run out of numbers the D(xx) series has likely seen its last days. Perhaps I just need to be informed enough to have a favorite Canon EOS to recommend. But if it came down to it, it looks like either a 7D or 6D for me.

The 6D is Canon’s closest equivalent to the D600/610. Its 20MP vs. Nikon’s 24 isn’t a deal breaker. But for me, the lack of built-in flash and spartan controls are. I’m simply not going to find a model in the Canon lineup that gives me all I yearn for, which is right there in my D610. So, I won’t obsess, I’ll just accept that the Canon’s are what they are, a very capable, but very different camera.