what brand of camera is best?

Murrayville Mom says:

Hi again!

I was out camera looking last night. I was leaning towards the Canon Rebel XTi, but then a lil Nikon caught my eye. It was the Nikon D80. I am also a leftie and have a learning curve with all of the buttons and dials being on the right side.

What should I be thinking about in terms of a camera/body/lenses etc. I think for what I want to do, would mostly be indoor photography and some outdoor I would think...

Can you help me figure this out?! I don't want to purchase the WRONG camera as it will be a HUGE purchase for me!!! EEEK!! So exciting.

At the end of the day, you could sit and split hairs over everything from MP to the colour of the neckstrap and there will be discrepancies across the board in terms of features and functions.  As I always say, it isn't about the camera anyways - it's about the photographer.  I did a random read up on the Nikon D80 and on two of the sites I visited it scored higher user satisfaction than the Canon XTi, while on two other sites it scored lower (Pentax scored the highest customer satisfaction rating on 3 of hose 4  -YAY Pentax!!!  lol); there were several comments from users who crossed platforms lamenting that their new Canon certainly wasn't their old Nikon.  However, the Canon XTi is currently the #1 selling entry-level dSLR on the market, and internet reviews aren't really the best measure (how do we know Canon users aren't just thet ype to hate .  Having seen a couple of them in the workshops, they are fine little machines in terms of what they will take a picture of, but the Canon set-up just is not comfortable for me - the buttons don't feel like they are where they 'should' be to me.  I seriously debated going to Nikon when I upgraded this time but after going to the store and manhandling a few cameras, ended up remaining a loyal Pentax customer.

So, for me this question is easy to answer: whichever one you put in your hand, that feels like you own it the second you are touching it - THAT is your camera.  The important thing is to love your camera, and not be swayed by popular opinion, what's in vogue, or what brand people tell you THEY would buy or think YOU should buy.  You are ultimately the one who will be lugging it around like a 5th appendage, so you better like it.  

The only thing I caution you about is that before making that first purchase you should seriously contemplate if you're ready to marry that brand.  Here's why: you will upgrade the body of the camera over the course of your career, but your lenses will probably carry forward.  The lenses are the real investment, and once you start acquiring additional glass it can become a fairly large investment, one that would cost much more if you were to decide three years from now that you want to switch to Canon or Olympus.

It sounds like you have your heart set on that Nikon, Miss Murrayville.  Does it feel good in your hand?  Do your fingers intuitively find the buttons, dials and knobs where it feels like they 'should' be?  Do you like the look of it?  Does it feel like it's 'yours'?  If the answer is 'yes' then go ahead and buy it, and you will never regret it.

I'm going to do a separate post about setting up for a very basic 'beginner' studio, one that can grow with you and be expanded over time.

Hope that helps,

~H.