[Hassiman]

Hi,

 

I am looking for a camera system and am considering either a Canon 6D or a Nikon D600.  I have heard that the dynamic range and image quality of the D600 is better than that of the 6D but that the D600 has had some serious problems with sensor oil and dust.

 

I was hoping that someone here has used them both and could tell me if the difference is great enough to warrant buying the possibly problematic D600 over the 6D?

 

Alos I have heard that the Canon lens line ( L lenses ) is a bit better than thje Nikon glass.

 

Please advise

[JJ_SO]

I also have heard a lot of things


First, you're generalising.

Second, it's stuff that doesn't have to do with your new cam necessarily.

Third, you didn't mention the kind of photos you're up to create with it.

So, is it helpful to read our opinion of issues that appear to be fixed?


As Nikon user I was only shakin' my head over the dumb behaviour of Nikon in the oil spot affair. Canon on their 5D III also had a problem with light of the LCD illumination influencing the exposure meter in some cases (at night photographs or long time exposures in general. Switching off the illumination was also a possibility to fix it.


They checked, admitted and fixed it.


Nikon and the oil spots were a sample for bad communication culture, for stubborn management and obviously not working QC. Did I forgot something? There's no way to collect more and bigger bonus points than to treat your customers right when there's an issue.


These days the oil spots are no longer a question, I guess. They just do the couple of some thousand shots before the bodies leave the manufacture unit.


If you want to have inbuilt GPS and WiFi connection in camera, it's Canon. Nikon needs for all this external stuff and sells it for steep prices, okay, for WLAN the made a cheap connector, which only works on some of their bodies. If you want to do landscape and night shots wit a huge dynamic range, it's Nikon, as well if you want to use 2 SD cards (1 as backup or RAW and JPG on different cards). If you plan to shoot movies, hands off Nikon.


Now, as to the lenses. Define "better"! Do you plan to buy the whole L-line? Or do you select some lenses for your purposes? Each manufacturer has weak ones and really strong glass. I know Canon shooters adapting 14-24 Nikkor on their EOS, which is possible. Vice versa, you can't adapt one of the excellent Canon tele-lenses to a Nikon. Better you become clear for yourself what you want to do and which lenses you need, then you go. The last Canon lenses for full frame always became a lot more expensive compared to their predecessors, so you better have big pockets.


My opinion: Nikon is delivering traditional, solid tools and Canon sometimes takes a risk with new technologies. I like much more the way my Nikons render colors than I've seen it from Canon but that's a question of taste. Sometimes I was suspecting, they secretly develop their lenses together :/ but that I can't prove. Canon usually has less focus points in the finder which are more difficult to access. In that case, it's 39 to 11 focus points which looks like a disadvantage to Canon. But the AF module of the Nikon comes out of the 3 year old D7000 and I read some complaints the AF points are too far away from the borders. So one can question all this number games.


Why don't you go to a dealer, grab one of each and see which feels better for you? Outstanding pictures both are capable to do, depending on the person behind the finder.

[mst]

Why don't you go to a dealer, grab one of each and see which feels better for you?

That's the best advice one can give to such a question. Grab both, see which you like better. Shoot with both, and see which you can manage better.

Decide after that. And from there on continue to think about which lenses or other accessories you may need.

Both the D600 and the 6D are very capable cameras.

-- Markus

[JJ_SO]

Of course, people who're new to DSLR will still find it difficult to judge which is better to handle. But I think, a first impression is always a very good base to work on. Buttons on the wrong place, grip feels wrong, body too heavy or too light, don't like the LCD layout, don't like the shutter noise, and much more... These issues will remain with the camera, even if 1000 people tell you, that's the best.


And lenswise, they usually are on a very high level from both manufacturers.

[Sylvain]

My modest piece of advice would be not to underestimate the color rendition of brands.

 

If you intend to shoot JPEGs, it will be very important.

 

If you intend to shoot RAW, then it will be mostly up to the processing software you're going to use. Also, shooting raw, you could virtually completely recalibrate the colors to your liking, but it's a tedious, endless effort I wouldn't venture in.

 

Camera manufacturers do define themselves with a defined color feel & signature. To even complicate the matter further, they all have different "picture styles" too... Mind you, it also depends on the lenses used. But still, overall, you can distinguish a color identity.

 

I found at my DSLR days that I much liked Canon over Nikon. Nowadays, eventhough they're slightly more cast, I can only live by Olympus colors.

 

Hours of surfing on flickr can give you a first peek at that, somehow, or looking at testing material such as imaging-resource & dpreview (but here, you'll be seing adobe interpretation, mostly, but luckily, for big names, Adobe is trying to stick with the brand identity, I think).

 

Hope this helps,

 

Greetings.

[Brightcolours]

Hi,

 

I am looking for a camera system and am considering either a Canon 6D or a Nikon D600.  I have heard that the dynamic range and image quality of the D600 is better than that of the 6D

Do you know what that dynamic range stuff is actually about? Probably not? In reality, you do not see it in images at all. Neither camera will put the full DR in images, simply because such big DR ranges (from both cameras) make for very unappealing flat results.

 

In reality, both cameras have very high quality results, where the D600 has a slight edge at ISO 100 and the 6D a slight edge at ISO 6400. Go figure.

but that the D600 has had some serious problems with sensor oil and dust.

The D600 can show problems with camera born "dust" and "oil", but that can be wet cleaned. So, while an annoyance, nothing that can't be solved.  

I was hoping that someone here has used them both and could tell me if the difference is great enough to warrant buying the possibly problematic D600 over the 6D?

There is no difference. If you take an image with one, and an image with the other, with the same lens, you can't tell them apart, basically. 

 

Alos I have heard that the Canon lens line ( L lenses ) is a bit better than thje Nikon glass.

Some Canon lenses are better than the Nikon counterpart. Some Nikon lenses are better than the Canon counterpart. 

What is a better choice for you totally depends on the lenses you are thinking of buying!

Please advise

I can't advice, because you have not specified which lenses you are thinking of, nor what you will find important in the camera usage wise. For instance if you want to get tilt-shift lenses (17mm, 24mm, 45mm, 90mm TS-E), or if live view is a very important feature, or you want to do more than 1:1 macro (MP-E 65mm f2.8), the 6D is the best choice. Or if you want to have corrected ultra wide upto 14mm Nikon is teh way to go (14-24mm f2.8). 

 

The main plus point for the D600: 100% view finder.

 

The main plus points for the 6D: better ergonomics, much better live view implementation, GPS included, WiFi included which allows you to use your iOS or Android device to act as remote view finder in live view, better software package which includes a RAW converter (DPP) which can do magic with quite a few Canon lenses, and USB tethering (EOS Utility).

 

Both cameras are capable and good, both have very good AF systems.

[JJ_SO]

Could it be, brightcolours, that you're sliiiightly biased pro Canon  ^_^?

 

1 plus point vs. 6... Actually, I do think you're overloading the thread opener a bit because his kind of questions didn't appear as if he could tell what you're talking about, no offense meant.  B)

 

And I'd say, one can tell the difference between the pictures of both. But not as better or worse, just "more to my taste" or less. And while the dynamic range is at the moment not even printable (what both cams can deliver), it sometimes is good to have the DR as reserve when exposing was just not as expected.

 

Now let's see if there is a reply from the OP. So far he just remains silent for 4 days. I don't find that very polite.

[Hassiman]

Hi... I catch his drift.  I find that the high DR is really a huge benifit when shooting for B&W conversion.  I don't find it as vital when shooting with color as the final product.  I really like the 6D and would love the Wi-Fi teather as I sometimes shoot with a tall tripod, I also like the grip on the Canon better as well as the L lenses, High DR is more imortant to me than all of those things.

 

I might get the 6D as it is only a matter of time until Canon releases a body with great DR.

 

Why Nikon did not address th D600s contamination issues head-on is a mystery to me.  The whole ordeal has severly damage their reputation.  Pure Corporate insanity on their part.

 

I really apreciate the advice!

[Brightcolours]

Could it be, brightcolours, that you're sliiiightly biased pro Canon  ^_^?

 

1 plus point vs. 6... Actually, I do think you're overloading the thread opener a bit because his kind of questions didn't appear as if he could tell what you're talking about, no offense meant.  B)

If you can think of more real plus points for the D600 over the 6D, feel free to add them. I can't, so I can't add any. 

And I'd say, one can tell the difference between the pictures of both. But not as better or worse, just "more to my taste" or less. And while the dynamic range is at the moment not even printable (what both cams can deliver), it sometimes is good to have the DR as reserve when exposing was just not as expected.

 

Now let's see if there is a reply from the OP. So far he just remains silent for 4 days. I don't find that very polite.

[Brightcolours]

Hi... I catch his drift.  I find that the high DR is really a huge benifit when shooting for B&W conversion. 

I find myself always limiting DR drastically with B/W. I Just like contrast versus flat, I guess....

I don't find it as vital when shooting with color as the final product.  I really like the 6D and would love the Wi-Fi teather as I sometimes shoot with a tall tripod, I also like the grip on the Canon better as well as the L lenses, High DR is more imortant to me than all of those things.

 

I might get the 6D as it is only a matter of time until Canon releases a body with great DR.

 

Why Nikon did not address th D600s contamination issues head-on is a mystery to me.  The whole ordeal has severly damage their reputation.  Pure Corporate insanity on their part.

 

I really apreciate the advice!