Yes, I know, this has been done before. I am doing this solely for the fact that I am camera shopping, and I needed a good comparison. So here is the match up:
Nikon D7000 vs Canon T4i
Wait. WHAT??!!
Yes, I know this is not a fair comparison, and they are two totally different cameras (FYI, technically because the T4i is newer, it has a better processor and sensor). Yes I know its entry level (T4i) vs prosumer level (D7000), so before you jump on me with both feet, let me explain.
I am looking not only for overall quality, but also ISO range. This is the biggest selling point for me. I need to be able to not be afraid to crank up my ISO so I can raise my shutter speed in low light situations, and not worry about the image suffering too much. Grain will be present in both cameras sure, but it needs to be acceptable grain. Plus, a D7000 was the only Nikon I was able to get my hands on for the test.
So here is how I tested. All photos, including the videos, are hand held. Both cameras have a 50mm 1.8 Canon and Nikon lens respectively, and in all shots the cameras have the exact same settings which I will notate below the picture. The photos were put into Lightroom for the side by side comparison, but no edits were done to any of the photos. These are as they were taken with the camera. The images were then snapped with the built in Mac OSX screen grabber (I could have put them into Photoshop, but I was being lazy about it).
So now the stage is set, lets get started.
So here is the first set. Taken around 6ish in the afternoon. Still some decent natural light in the house and a backlighting provided by my computer monitor. T4i on the left D7000 on the right. Both cameras were set at 3200 ISO , F1.8 and 1/125 shutter. Not a big difference here. The Canon looks a bit warmer.
Same picture cropped 1:1. You can really see the difference in the grain when blown up. Obviously its there in both photos, however it is much finer in the Nikon on the left.
The second set here is basically the photo, but I bumped the ISO to 6400 and brought the shutter up to 1/200th. In this one, the 7000 is on the left with the T4i on the right. At first look, still not much of a difference.
At ISO 6400, both of these cameras are performing superbly, but the grain is just a tick finer in 7000 on the left. You can really see it around the text on the headphones.
And what would a DSLR matchup be without a video test?
This is the 7000. I brought the ISO back to 1600 because I wanted it a bit cleaner for this. Use a shutter of 1/60th at 1.8. Good looking video. Who said Nikon cameras fall short on video??
T4i here with the same settings as above. I tell ya, I think the D7000 looks a bit better....
So far, the D7000 has the advantage. But you are probably saying, "Of Course"!!
Last one. D7000 left, T4i right. 6400 ISO, f2.8, 1/80th shutter. In my living room, practically dark outside. the only light here is the lantern that my daughter had. Right off, you should see the big difference. The image on the left looks a lot cleaner. Something that I love here is the fact that with the grain, this looks like film stock out of the D7000. The Canon image is just not usable. The interesting thing though, and I am not sure if you can see it, at the light of the lantern, in the 7000 image, the light looks blown out. In the Canon it looks more natural.
Same image cropped 1:1. You can really see the difference here. The light looks much more natural in the 7000.
I writing this up, I have answered my own questions. It is obvious that the ISO range is much better in the D7000. Question is, is it enough to purchase a new camera over? Time will tell.
Let me here your thoughts. Buy or no??
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