I have been looking at different digital cameras for a couple months now and have decided that I want either the Cannon Pro70 or the Sony D700. Both of these cameras will pretty much fit my needs as an amature photographer and also business needs..

My problem is I can't seem to decide which one is better. The Pro70 has better resolution and is cheaper, but the D700 has manual just about everything (I really like that), and the resolution isn't that much lower. I don't know if I can justify another $500 or so for the D700 though..

I will never have access to either of these Cameras untill I buy them (I live in a small town and it would be a cold day in hell that anyone around here carried a camera even close to these). So I need other peoples opinions and suggestions..

Please Help.. Mike

-- Mike O'Brien (mikeydog@3-cities.com), February 25, 1999

Answers

My first suggestion might be unappreciated, but take another look at the new Oly 2000 & Nikon 950 before going for these.

For the canon 70, one of the most active and informative digicam websites is run by a person who owns one, he has been posting bunches of images and info on it.. check photo.askey.net I'd try the image comparisons and review comparisons on both this site and that one. I saw some initial user reviews for the sony 700 on www.steves-digicams.com. Someone who plunked that kind of money down for a camera has a tendency to want to justify their purchase tho. :) Not too often you see an initial user review that says, "gee this sucks, I am dumb for buying it!"

-- Benoit (foo@bar.com), February 25, 1999.

As Benoit pointed out, people tend to like what they buy. I think this extends to web site operators too! Phil Askey is a big Canon fan, Steve of Steve's Digicams is a big Nikon fan, etc. So far no web site operator owns a D700, so there hasn't been a heavy web-advocate for it yet! ;-)

We liked the Pro70 very much as a picture-taking device, particularly in the studio - lots of thoughtful little touches that made using it pleasant. Image quality is good, as you point out. I also like the manual-everything capabilities of the D700, but we haven't had an opportunity to play with one much yet (just fondled it at Comdex), so can't comment much on its use or image quality in objective tests. As Benoit also pointed out, the new Oly and Nikon cameras are also very deserving of a look: They don't quite go all the way to "manual everything", but provide a very high degree of picture control, and image quality should be at the very top of the field. Tough decision, but if you can wait another 1-2 months, we'll have more details posted on these cameras, and may even have (finally) persuaded Sony to let us take a serious look at the D700.

-- Dave Etchells (hotnews@imaging-resource.com), March 05, 1999.

It has been exactly my interrogation: Canon Pro 70 or Sony D700. D700 was better (zoom 5, reflex) but resolution too low. And everythink goes so fast that it s not reasonnable not to take the really best (if we can of course). And then i ve discovered the Nikon 950. And it s obvious for me that it s the only solution because it has everything : accessories wide angle, tele, 2,11 Mp, price which is reasonnable, manual control, ... i ll wait April and will buy the 950 Nikon.

-- Philippe Lepoivre Paris (phl@cogitel.fr), March 15, 1999.