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October 12, 2005
[ CAMERAS and personality types ]
dpexpert gets requests from all over the world for advice on buying cameras. We never cease to be amazed at the effect of the Internet. Being of advanced years we still think that it was the will of God that a transglobal written communication should take a month or two to make the round trip. However, we digress…
Anthony emailed from Hong Kong asking for advice on buying a digital single lens reflex. We gave the usual advice. 1: you get what you pay for. 2: they are all good so you can indulge brand prejudice. 3: if you already have a film SLR with additional lenses then buy a digital SLR that will take the lenses in your kit.
Anthony wrote back to say that was all very well, but there was no way he would buy a Nikon. Nikon owners, he told us, are rude, aggressive, arrogant snobs. He would be happier with Canon because Canonites are warm and decent people. [Shades of Apple vs PC perhaps?]
Anyway we told him that we are nice, kind, considerate and humble persons here at casa dpexpert and we own a Nikon D70. On the basis of that Anthony decided to give Nikon another chance and he is now happy with his symbol of arrogant status.
We have been told that in Asia Nikon has the same cache as BMW and Mercedes. Status-conscious Asians wouldn’t consider any other brand. Hence the association with snobs.
Which got us thinking -- how much does personality and perception of the “meaning” of cameras play a part in the purchasing decision? Kodak boast that they are number one with women customers, suggesting that Kodak is from Venus and Nikon is from Mars. In which case where do Pentax, Olympus, Sony, Panasonic and Canon come from?
We are collecting opinions on this. Please zap us yours >> right here!
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Posted by terry at October 12, 2005 04:37 PM
Worth Checking Out
Digital Cameras SydneyComments
I shot with a large Olympus OM system in the 70s and 80s, Nikon AF in the 90s, transitioned with Nikon Coolpix, then went Canon in 2005.
Going back to 1970's and Canon's AE-1 shutter-priority automation, Canon has always been the 'action' brand. Nikon, with its highly regarded wide-angle lenses and flash technology, was the 'pictorial' brand. In the US, Sports Illustrated photographers used Canon's and National Geographic photographers used Nikons.
Take dSLR. Nikon was first with wide angle solutions for the smaller sensor sizes (again, the pictorial brand). Canon lagged behind. Meanwhile, Canon still has a more complete Image Stabilized telephoto selection (for sports and action), and has a few lenses Nikon doesn't have an answer for ... like the lighterweight 70-200/4L.
I'm a pictorial shooter, but I did switch to Canon. I bought a D70, but returned it because the viewfinder felt like a periscope. The 20D felt great in my hands (though missing a grid finder and Auto ISO). I switched. No big deal. When Nikon catches up to Canon on CMOS & FF technology ... and replaces the D100 ... I might switch back.
Tom Koetting
Fort Collins, Colorado USA
www.koettingfoto.com
Posted by: Tom at October 24, 2005 09:37 AM