6D vs D610

[jjj]

Yes, a good prime will bring a 25%~ enhancement over an average zoom.

Is enhancement a technical term Bernard? Also what units is enhancement measured in? Beautys or would it be millihelens?

Which reminds me of one of my pets hates in lazy scriptwriting - 'Enhance'

[BernardLanguillier]

Is enhancement a technical term Bernard? Also what units is enhancement measured in? Beautys or would it be millihelens?

Which reminds me of one of my pets hates in lazy scriptwriting - 'Enhance'

You may want to check with Edmund, he is the one who suggested primes. My units are the same as his.

Cheers,
Bernard

[fido]

As opposed to relying strictly on DXO sensor stats (as suggested earlier)....

Look at the photos of the D610 v 6D at low ISO's.  This (plus reliability and customer support) is where the rubber meets the road.  Some prefer the character of the Nikon photos...some the Canon.

From what I read...the D610 may have a slight 'visible' advantage in DR and detail at low ISO's.  But if you are familiar with Roger Cicala...at Lens Rentals (a good site with much testing info)....he acknowledged a slight advantage of the D610, but still purchased the 6D.  See his commentary...Roger buys a camera...at the Lens Rentals site.  

You might also compare the two cameras' photos at Imaging Resource...on their comparometer.
When viewing the two cameras' photos at 100 ISO on the Imaging Resource site....the two look even. One may have a (very) slight advantage in one area...and visa versa.

You might also look at the 2 cameras on the Amazon site...and read the camera user comments.

Good luck.

[lowep]

Soon cameras like this one will have the ability to shoot 40MP photos via built in stitching even for hand held street photography... so why not wait?

[Chris Livsey]

. so why not wait?

Simply because by then you would be waiting for the rumoured 80MP model to come out 6 months later, then..........

[fido]

Soon cameras like this one will have the ability to shoot 40MP photos via built in stitching even for hand held street photography... so why not wait?

This 16 mp camera gets the 40 mp resolution by shooting a series of photos...and stitching those photos together.   It requires the camera to be stable through the series of photos.

[Jack Hogan]

Mainly I'm shooting:
- Landscapes and nature (I'm not doing wildlife).

Nobody other than Bernard must shoot Nikon in this thread: a 2 stop advantage in DR at base ISO is a major, usable benefit for landscapes.  I used to bracket, I no longer have to.

For landscapes it's all about the sensor (+glass of course): today it doesn't get any better than Exmor sensors like the ones in some of Nikon's current FF cameras, including the D610.  Most people do not understand how to properly compare online images from different systems. Sites like DxOmark or Bill Claff's do all the hard work for us and make things simpler: a is better than b for this purpose.  Believe them and you'll be happy.

I also agree that if you can afford the switch to FF the D750 is probably the best all around full frame camera out there today.  The 6D is pretty good, but as far as photographing landscapes is concerned it's locked into sensor technology that is almost a decade old.  A lifetime in this day and age.

Jack

[dwswager]

Hi,

I know that many people asked this question already and there are a lot of YT videos on it, but my question is more specific.

I want to move from crop to FF and I don't know if I do need to switch from Canon to Nikon. Because moving from crop to FF it's a big step from me that's why I'm thinking on the option to switch (if I had FF Canon DSLR already wouldn't open such topic at all).

Photography for me it's only an hobby, and I do care about image quality.
Mainly I'm shooting:
- Landscapes and nature (I'm not doing wildlife).
- Street photography.
- Macro, not extreme.
(You can check my flickr and see)

My current gear is:
- Canon 650D
- Canon 70-200 f4 IS
- Canon 100m 2.8 macro
- Tokina 11-16 ATX 2.8 II
- Canon 18-66 kit lens.
- YNG flash for canon.

For what I'm shooting which DSLR will give me the best for what I'm doing? or maybe there is no a big difference.
I know that the 6D is better in low light, and of course I can use it without changing my lenses. What I don't like about the 6D it's feels like Canon removed some 'pro' DSLR features (like focus sys, dual slot) from it.
The D610 got a better AF system and a sensor with more dynamic range (good for landscapes, right?).
The problem moving to Nikon is that I need to sell all my gear.

So do you think that the switch is the right thing to do, there will be a big difference for my type of photography?

I do want to buy with the new DSLR another lens - Sigma 35 1.4 and in DXoMark I saw that it's one of the best lenses for the 6D.

If you are willing and able to switch, now would be the time.  Canon has now given two big signals that they are still behind in the Senosr Subsystem area: The 7DmkII and the announced 5Ds.

Either camera would be a good camera.  I just purchased a D810 and it is fantastic.  Probably out of your price range, but like Bernard, I would recommend looking at the D750.

[fido]

Try this.  Rent the D610 and the 6D....or the D750 and the 5D3.  Use a good comparable lens on both (or the same good 3rd party lens)....and decide for yourself.  It will cost you less than $200.  

Your opinion should be more important ....than any of ours on this site.

Just a hunch, you may find the differences to be fairly small.

Good luck.

[spidermike]

If you are willing and able to switch, now would be the time.  Canon has now given two big signals that they are still behind in the Senosr Subsystem area: The 7DmkII and the announced 5Ds.

Regards the 7Dii it all depends on what your main area of photography is
http://www.clarkvision.com/reviews/evaluation-canon-7dii/index.html

Blanket statements like 'the D800 is a better camera without saying what you use it for is meaningless.

[dwswager]

Regards the 7Dii it all depends on what your main area of photography is
http://www.clarkvision.com/reviews/evaluation-canon-7dii/index.html

Blanket statements like 'the D800 is a better camera without saying what you use it for is meaningless.

I never said that the D800 is a better camera than the 7DmkII.  I said the 7DmkII was a sign [that Canon was unwilling or unable to execute a better sensor subsystem at the current time] and therefore it would be a good time to switch if he was so inclined.  The 7DmkII is by far the best low light, crop sensor action camera on the market.  Nikon has nothing to compete in that niche which is inexcusable (former D300 shooter here).  But the original poster is looking at Full Frame.

What I will say, is that the D810, in my opinion, is the best general purpose DSLR on the market.  (The D750 has some attributes that elevate it above the D810 as a general purpose camera, but shooting in crop modes leave you with very little image to work with.) The D810 sets the standard on the landscape side for resolution, DR and low noise shadows at the current time and is fast enough for most action use, especially shooting in 1.2x or 1.5x crop mode.  I shoot sports with the D810 regularly and find it not only faster than the D7100, but more than sufficient for most sports and action needs.  It certainly would not be the go to camera for super high speed action where you really need 8-12fps though.  But those instances are exceedingly rare!

I keep going back to this John Shaw quote on the D800 (much slower operation than the D810 in every way): “Can the Nikon D800 be used for wildlife photography?”  Well, why not?  Here are two full frame images taken last week during a short stop I made at Bosque del Apache.  Both images: D800E, Nikon 600mm, ISO400, early morning light.   FYI, I don’t have the extra battery pack for the camera so the motor drive rate is 4 frames/second.   Anyone else remember when 4 frames/second would have been considered pretty amazing?  Remember winding film with your thumb?"

[NancyP]

Roger Cicala likely also chose the Canon because he has very intimate knowledge of Canon Service - he started his lens / camera rental business with mostly Canon stock, and added Nikon stock and other stock gradually. He started out relying a lot on Canon Service, and has brought more and more repairs in house now that he has gained more experience and hired some camera repair people. I suspect that when he does need Canon Service to fix something, he gets the very best service possible because he is a major lens buyer (equivalent of CPN 100,000+ points?). Roger as owner has had access to any unrented lens in the Canon lens lineup. I think that he has had less than stellar service from Nikon. These are good reasons for him to buy Canon.

[DeanChriss]

You can read Roger Cicala's remarks about service from the two companies at http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2013/02/roger-buys-a-camera-system-finally. The gist of it is that Nikon takes 3 times as long at twice the cost.

[fido]

I hear this buzz that the D610's DR exceeds that of the 6D.  Is that coming from DXO?
Imaging Resource and CameraLabs shows the 6D have a 1/2 stop lead over the D610 in JPEG...and the two are even in RAW.

Folks need to compare the photo outcomes...and not the stats.

In fact both resources also feel the two camera's sensors are near even....when comparing outcomes.

Cheers!!

[BernardLanguillier]

I hear this buzz that the D610's DR exceeds that of the 6D.  Is that coming from DXO?
Imaging Resource and CameraLabs shows the 6D have a 1/2 stop lead over the D610 in JPEG...and the two are even in RAW.

Folks need to compare the photo outcomes...and not the stats.

In fact both resources also feel the two camera's sensors are near even....when comparing outcomes.

The gap in DR is very real, affects significantly many real world applications such as landscape, architecture,... and has been proven countless times.

Cheers,
Bernard

[nma]

You are not a pro (me too). Do you make really large prints? If not the logic for the change to FF is not very strong. As has been suggested, stitching and the use of fast prime lenses will open new dimensions for your work.  Get and use  a really good tripod and ball head to improve your image quality. There is no excuse for going to full frame other than the hope that it will make you a better photographer. It won't. That is strictly in your hands and your studious approach to making images. There are conditions where better dynamic range and high ISO performance can make a shot but for most of us this pretty rare and something that often can be mitigated by good technique. Can you make natural-looking HDR images? that would help. Do you focus stack? Another important tool where arguably a crop camera has an advantage.

[dwswager]

You are not a pro (me too). Do you make really large prints? If not the logic for the change to FF is not very strong. As has been suggested, stitching and the use of fast prime lenses will open new dimensions for your work.  Get and use  a really good tripod and ball head to improve your image quality. There is no excuse for going to full frame other than the hope that it will make you a better photographer. It won't. That is strictly in your hands and your studious approach to making images. There are conditions where better dynamic range and high ISO performance can make a shot but for most of us this pretty rare and something that often can be mitigated by good technique. Can you make natural-looking HDR images? that would help. Do you focus stack? Another important tool where arguably a crop camera has an advantage.

Multi shot stitching, exposure compositing and focus stacking are very useful tools, but they are work arounds that 1) take time to execute, 2) take some additional equipment/software/training and 3) do not substitute well for moving subjects.

Below is a scaled down version of the 5 shot stitch that I did down and dirty yesterday at the Alabama Softball Game.  Look at the blur on the pitcher to see the limitations.  Oops hard to see.  Added a detail of the pitcher.

[Jim Kasson]

Multi shot stitching, exposure compositing and focus stacking are very useful tools, but they are work arounds that 1) take time to execute, 2) take some additional equipment/software/training and 3) do not substitute well for moving subjects.

Below is a scaled down version of the 5 shot stitch that I did down and dirty yesterday at the Alabama Softball Game.  Look at the blur on the pitcher to see the limitations.  Oops hard to see.  Added a detail of the pitcher.

While not denying the limitations of stitching that you pointed out, I'd like to say two things:

1) You did a great job on that stitch.
2) You could eliminate the blur on the pitcher by masking all but one exposure in that region in the stitching software.

Jim

[Misirlou]

Try this.  Rent the D610 and the 6D....or the D750 and the 5D3.  Use a good comparable lens on both (or the same good 3rd party lens)....and decide for yourself.  It will cost you less than $200.  

Your opinion should be more important ....than any of ours on this site.

Just a hunch, you may find the differences to be fairly small.

Good luck.

There is your answer. That is what I did when I bought my last couple of cameras.

Also, I would never make a decision like this based on some small difference in "image quality." Amateurs don't use their equipment every day. That means that getting used to handling characteristics is a big deal. Among other things, changing between these two brands will lead to a new camera with very different lens controls. I've been using Canons for almost 40 years now, and every time someone hands me a Nikon, I fumble around with which direction the focus rings turn (Or is it zoom? I can't remember which, which is my whole point). If I shot every day, I'm sure I'd get used to it pretty quickly. But since I don't, it would take me a long time to re-learn all of that. May or may not matter to you.

Then there's the issue of local support structure. Camera stores seem to be getting pretty scarce in my neck of the woods, so good phone and e-mail support when needed is critical. I dropped my 6D on a stone paver a few months back and damaged the mode dial. I set up a repair online, and had the camera back in a week. The lady across the street fought with the maker of her DSLR for weeks on something similar. Have you looked at the support options in your area?