Switching from Canon to Nikon

I am going to make the switch from Canon to Nikon for my DSLR in the coming months. The Nikon D300 has captured my interest and envy.

I have been thinking about upgrading my Canon EOS 30D for quite some time. The Canon EOS 40D has some really nice features that I would like, but the improvements just aren't enough to justify the cost to upgrade.

So I have been holding out for the mythical Canon EOS 5D replacement to be announced to see what that brings to the table. Every few months you see an uproar of posts on the Flickr forums about the imminent release of the 5D replacement. We're all still waiting... and waiting.

Recently I started evaluating whether Canon was the best choice for *me*. I am certainly not saying that Canon is a bad product. Quite the contrary... I have been extremely happy with my camera. You can't go wrong with either Canon or Nikon for DSLRs. Those are the only two DSLR brands that I would recommend to my friends.

However, my friends and family (that have a DSLR) all use Nikon cameras. Most of the pro/semi-pro photographers that I follow use Nikon cameras. If they all had Canon cameras I wouldn't be questioning which brand is right for me.

One of the things that influenced me to choose Canon was the famous white professional lenses that you see at football games. I have one of those lenses: the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM lens. It's my favorite lens, but it draws a lot of attention. So much so that it's turned me off of the 'white' lens envy. I wish now that it were black. I will definitely be purchasing the Nikon equivalent of this lens.

I have to recover from a recent home repair, so I've got some time to think it through. But that Nikon D300 is drawing me in like a moth to a flame.

There's a lens calling my name

I visited my local camera shop this evening. I've been eyeballing the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens for several months, but I had never tried one yet... until tonight. The salesman reached into the cabinet and pulled out the f/2.8 and f/4 versions of the Canon EF 70-200mm lens.

The two lenses were quite different from each other. I understood before seeing the lens that the f/2.8 was much heavier than the f/4, but I didn't realize that the f/2.8 was also quite a bit larger too. I'm not talking astronomical differences here, but still quite noticeable.

I tried the f/2.8 lens first on the Canon EOS 30D camera body (the same camera that I use). It was substantially heavier than my Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM and Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM lenses. However, when I held it in my hands and snapped a few shots it just felt right. Very well balanced and if I'm doing handheld shots the tripod mounting bracket sits nicely in the palm of my hand.

I swapped it out with the f/4 lens and that really felt too light. Don't get me wrong... it's an amazing lens. But with the f/2.8 I felt like a superhero... and with the f/4 I felt like the superhero's sidekick.

I tried the f/2.8 lens a second time and felt that excitement flow again! I think I may rent it before making the big purchase so that I can get a feel of how heavy it is after lugging it around for several hours.

I told the salesman that I was going to have to take some time to think about it. He joked around saying that "this was the kind of money (for a lens) that you don't tell the wife about." I haven't crossed that road yet, so no worries here.

If you own either the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM or the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM lens, let me know what you think of it and whether you would recommend one over the other.

UPDATED - New hurdle for photographers at airport security

10/1/2007 UPDATE:

I received a response from TSA today. While they did not specifically mention DSLRs in their response to my very specific question, my take on their response is that their policy does not require DSLRs to be removed from bags.

"Laptop computers, full-size video game consoles, full-size DVD players, CPAP breathing machines and video cameras that use video cassettes must be removed from their carrying cases and submitted separately for x-ray screening. Laptop computers and video cameras that use cassettes have long been subject to this policy. Small and portable electronic items do not need to be removed from their carrying cases."

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Pro photographers Scott Kelby and Tom Hogan have both blogged about their recent experience going through airport security in the United States while traveling with their DSLR cameras. It appears that there is a new TSA policy that requires DSLRs to be removed from their bags when going through the airport security screening area. TSA has had a policy of requiring laptops and video cameras to be removed from their bags, but DLSR cameras are a new addition.

Scott said in his blog that "while passing through security the TSA Agent at the X-ray belt, said: “That’s a LowePro camera bag; do you have a DSLR in there?” I said yes, and he said I had to remove it and put it on the belt." Scott questioned another TSA agent about the new policy, who said that as of August 4, 2007 that all DSLR are supposed to be removed, but not all airports have instituted this new policy yet, but he felt certain most would.

According to the TSA website:

"Laptop computers and video cameras with cassettes must be removed from their carrying cases and placed in one of the bins provided. You will also need to remove your coat, jacket, suit jacket or blazer and place it in one of the bins. These items go through the X-ray machine."

I was unable to locate any mention on their website of DSLR cameras being added to this policy. I submitted a request to TSA for additional information regarding this new policy but have not received a response as of this writing. I will post an update if/when I hear back from them.