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Nikon D4 VS Canon 1D X

Last weekend I went out to a concert with the Nikon D4 and the Canon 1D X. I attempted to shoot the same image with both cameras and decided to share the results.

Lets take a look at the gear used. For the Nikon D4 I used the Nikon 200 F2 that BorrowLenses.com let me borrow. On the canon side I had the 1D X and a friend let me borrow their 70-200 2.8 IS I.

Ideally I would liked to have used the latest 70-200 2.8’s from both Nikon and Canon but I will save that test for another day.

What it looks like in these comparisons shots is that the D4 with the 200 F2 looks a heck of a lot sharper. But we have to look at the variables at play here. I had an older generation lens on the Canon and it’s possible I missed the focus slightly as well.

Nikon D4 VS Canon 1D X
Click Here to see the FULL RES screen grab of this image


This is why I can’t tell you that one is better then the other just yet. I plan on doing full on tests of the D4 and 1D X with the same exact lenses and settings using remote triggers to fire the sample images off at the same times.

For the second samples that are split almost a year apart I used the Canon 1D X with 70-200 2.8 IS II and the Nikon D4 with the 70-200 2.8 VRII.

Nikon D4 VS Canon 1D X Compariosn
Click the image to see the FULL RES screen grab.

The images are of the same artist but not shot at the same settings or the same lighting conditions. Like I said before there are so many variables at play here.

In this test the Canon by far looks better then the Nikon. The focus is tack sharp and you can see every line in his lips compared to the Nikon version.

Auto focus will be a major determining factor in which camera ultimately could be considered better. At this point I like both cameras and could see myself using either on a photo shoot.

Stay tuned for more comparison videos in the future.