I don't guess you could say I have jumped to Canon. I just ordered a 40D. I did so because I can buy a 500mm Canon lens and a 40D for essentially the same price of just the 500mm Nikon. All of the new long lens Nikon has just announced are out of my budget range. I just don't have that kind of income from my small photography business.
I am going to test the 40D with a 24 - 70mm 2.8 lens. If I like it I will start working on longer lens. Most of the Nikon cameras / lens combinations I have , I like. As of right now I plan to shoot both. Are there others out there who shoot both brands? Is there a downside from doing so? None of my customers has ever asked me what camera I used. I am guessing many don't know the difference. I just look for that smile when I present them with the image.
Thankfully I have not as yet had to deal with Nikon service. I appreciate the heads up about what to expect though. Refusing to work on something gray market seems harsh. I would just expect a higher cost to get gray market items repaired, {with no warranty honored of course}. I do not currently own anything gray market, but have been tempted at times when Nikon lens were really scarace. I have had to scrap pretty hard to aquire some of my lenses. {cameras too}. Hopefully Canon products will not pose those same conditions.
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
I have not been following Nikon prices, but the Canon prices on B&H of USA vs grey market lenses are pretty much a wash. They have been offering rebates in such amounts that the USA lenses are actually cheaper than grey market lenses, so it's really a no-brainer. I never actually set out to buy a grey market lens, that's just the circumstances I found myself in by buying a used lens on E-Bay.
I think the policy of not repairing grey market equipment is actually punishing customers for failing to manage the company's distribution problem. The problem is a distribution problem, which is the company's problem, not the customer's problem, and their actions have the effect of punishing customers because the company is unable or unwilling to properly control their distribution system. That's the way I see it. I think the company could control their distribution by tracking where the grey market stuff is coming from, and cutting off that channel. Maybe that's too simplistic, but looks simple to me.
Anyway, at least for Canon gear, there is frequently no penalty for buying USA gear vs grey market gear, and that's the way it should be.
__________________ Dennis
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
Last edited by Dennis_Vied; 08-23-2007 at 02:33 PM.
If you have a problem with Grey Market gear being repaired by Nikon, try Nikon Canada. They don't have an issue with where it was bought, as long as it's not a waranty repair. I think it's idiotic that Nikon USA doesn't service Grey Market gear. What if you're out of the country and buy some equipment? I bought a lot of film gear in Hong Kong and Singapore in the mid-1990's because I was traveling thought there on a regular basis.
This new announcement by Nikon has really up-ended the whole Nikon/Canon argument. Now Nikon has a 12MP, 9fps, full frame pro camera to run with the 1D MKIII. The D300 has a 12MP, 6fps (or 8 with the grip) that is going to give the 40D a hard time. As long as there aren't any unforseen issues with the cameras, with the exception of the 1Ds MKIII, the camera lines are at least equal.
What if you're out of the country and buy some equipment? I bought a lot of film gear in Hong Kong and Singapore in the mid-1990's because I was traveling thought there on a regular basis.
Dave - I could be wrong, but my understanding is that if you bought Nikon gear in another country and brought it back to the US (or Canada) that it is not grey market and would be covered by any applicable warranty. I believe grey market is Nikon gear that was imported by a business other than NikonUSA for resale in the US. I hope this is ccorrect since I had to purchase a replacement Nikon body in in May while in Austria.
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
Call your local Nikon USA service centre and find out what their policy is. As far as I know, if it wasn't sold by a Nikon USA dealer, they won't touch it. Nikon Canada says that a Nikon is a Nikon, and as long as they can get parts, they'll fix it. Go figure?
Call your local Nikon USA service centre and find out what their policy is. As far as I know, if it wasn't sold by a Nikon USA dealer, they won't touch it. Nikon Canada says that a Nikon is a Nikon, and as long as they can get parts, they'll fix it. Go figure?
Thats good to know, I bought a D2hs from canada, I asked and in a round about way was told he thought it was a US model but I pretty well knew it wasnt going to be but bought it anyway, so far no problems but thought I might send it in for a cleaning after xmas but shipping to canada is pretty pricey So I was hoping Nikon USA would do it, Ill at least ask,
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
Well... I was a Canon shooter with film (I actually still have my original F-1 sitting on the shelf in my den) but when digital came along I switched to Nikon for the D1 - a breakthrough camera in it's day. For me, if it gets MY work done with results that my clients want, it works. And Nikon has done that. I got over the DX/Full_Frame issue but simply using what was in my hands, learning it, and pushing it to the limit (which is when I upgraded to the D1x and now I have 2 - D200s). I always assumed that if there were problems, it was user error, and I was usually right. So.. I stick with Nikon.
The announcement of the D3/D300 is interesting, but the D200 handles 99% of my work now. Do I really need to upgrade? Probably not. I've improved my 'style' on the D200 so that I'm getting excellent results with it. Can I resist temptation for a D300, probably not... for a D3, most likely.
And regarding service. I am an NPS member and get my gear serviced in Toronto. The service is excellent. The last time I left my camera in for service, there was a message on my answering machine when I got back to the studio that the camera was ready to pickup. I went back the next day.
I have no complaints about the camera, the system or the service. I'm sticking with Nikon.
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