A big thank you to everyone who responded to my
post regarding Digital SLR Cameras. I had a
number of very helpful direct contacts in addition
to the responses that were made on Tweeters. Many
of the answers were very long and technical and
others focused on specific pragmatic or
preferential considerations. My basic questions
had been thoughts regarding Nikon vs. Canon and
then which "level" of camera might be best. As
might be expected there were no "absolute answers"
per se with the general direction being that "it
depends" on objectives and expectations. Since
much of the advice is within the messages on the
board, I will not repeat all of the details, but I
would like to share what I perceived to be the
main points and hope the summary might be helpful
to others.

1. Canon and Nikon both offer terrific options
and the quality of the two systems are
outstanding. It was acknowledged by many that
Canon probably has more momentum from the number
of users who got started with those systems and
have by now invested much in time and money
(especially for lenses).

2. Another consensus was that as great as the
systems are, probably the most important
consideration is "the photographer" and how well
the photographer learns and uses the basics in
addition to some of the more advanced techniques
and options.

3. Walk before you run. Much advice (well
received) was given to the effect that there is
much to learn and that there is no substitute for
experience and that it makes sense to get started
with "either system" and learn as you go and in
the process will come to better understand what
real needs are and how best to meet them. One
take on this was to start with a less expensive
camera body and then step up later if experience
suggests that to be of value. In that regard a
number of people referenced Glazer's as an
excellent local company with great equipment,
advice and a rental program that enables one to
try out various options.

4. Lenses, lenses, lenses. Everyone acknowledged
that the lenses are the most important
considerations and will be significantly greater
(cost and time) investments than the camera
bodies. Most people changed their bodies every so
often while keeping (for the most part) the lenses
acquired. Accordingly the general advice was to
get the best lenses you could as they will give
the greater return on investment and time. There
was also much difference of opinion about the
ability of the photographer to best use the higher
powered telephotos with or without tripods or
monopods even with the CANON IS (Image
Stabilization) or NIKON VR (Vibration Reduction)
lenses.

5. Light, not surprisingly, is one of the key
considerations...and of course the quality of
light that will be experienced is tied into the
choice of lenses, speeds, etc. Many people gave
long treatments of specifics of one lens vs.
another (even within systems and magnifications)
under varying light conditions.

6. One pattern was that the new Canon 7D had
superior video to the Nikon equivalents but that
is expected to change with a new Nikon release.
Similarly many noted that the pixel structure for
the 7D was not ideal and resulted in more noise
than the Nikon counterpart. Many also preferred
the ergonomics of the Nikon although generally
that is felt to be personal and not a make it or
break it consideration. There were also a number
of people (but not all) who felt that the optics
of the Nikon lenses were somewhat superior to the
optics of the "equivalent" Canon lenses but many
(but not all) also acknowledged that the Nikon
lenses were generally somewhat more expensive.

7. Clearly this is an EXPENSIVE undertaking
almost no matter how it is undertaken, with the
cost of a "really good" major telephoto lens being
well over $1000 and as much as many times that
amount.

8. As much time as is spent in the field on the
photographic side, many pointed out that to best
utilize the resources, much more time is actually
spent on the computer...editing, enhancing, and
organizing.

Most importantly it is clear that many birders are
passionate about their cameras and the images they
are able to capture/create and derive great
satisfaction and enjoyment from this aspect of the
hobby.

I will probably be making the investment in the
next month or so. Still not decided which
specific direction to go but am pretty convinced
that any route will provide far more potential
than I will ever be able to fully use and that the
first expenditure will be just the start with
significant additional investments sure to follow.

Thank you to everyone who shared their thoughts.
Greatly appreciated.