Canon vs. Nikon: a quick comparison

This ‘test’ is unfair, incomplete, unbalanced, but hopefully brief.

Okay, I was bored and limited in my opportunities for things to do. So I walked around the yard with both the Canon T100 and the Nikon P610 and took a few ‘simultaneous’ shots. A couple of things to note: 1). you can confuse yourself easily switching between two cameras with quite different controls, never mind features and; 2). the shots were not ‘controlled’ in respect to exposure or framing (i.e. I did not use my side-by-side mount).

In operation I noticed that the Nikon’s electronic viewfinder is noticeably dimmer than the Canon’s pentaprism. You would think there would be some way to adjust the brightness/contrast of the display, but I have yet to find such settings in either the controls (interminably nested menus) or the instruction book. It does, however, include correction for my ailing eyesight which the Canon does not. On the other hand I have not noticed much improvement in my viewing/framing with the brighter Canon system or any worsening for its lack of diopter.

Another shortcoming of the Nikon’s operation is the need to switch into close-up focusing mode whereas the Canon smoothly transitions to it. The Nikon’s focusing is slower as well. For a third point against it, the Nikon’s wondrously long zoom capacity is much slower due to being operated by a motor controlled by a switch. However, not only is the Nikon’s lens longer, it is also wider (despite the numbers given by the makers). See here:

That is the Canon at “18mm” first, and the Nikon at “24mm” second. Note also the Nikon’s colour is slightly more saturated in the green range.

When  we look at the Nikon’s close-up against the Canon, it again wins out. In this first picture not only is the saturation stronger, but to my eye the image is sharper. Of course different lenses may be purchased for the Canon which may overcome this fault, but we see the Nikon comes with some pretty good optics – especially for a “bridge” camera. (Again Canon first, Nikon second.)

This third set I took to see how the redder tones are rendered by each. Once again the Nikon (second image) appears the better choice for colour and sharpness:

So what conclusions do I draw? First that both are quite capable cameras, but in different uses. For over-all shooting ability the Nikon wins out, with its ability to see near and far with minimal fuss. The Canon exceeds in experimental capacity, with its ability to change so many aspects if you have but the time to do so and learn to use it under the conditions. This we will see more of in the next photography posting.

Disclaimer: my quite recent eye exam declares that I do not see things the way any of you with normal or corrected vision do (I shoot and evaluate sans eye wear). Thus my conclusions may not be as valid as they should be.