D5500 Review vs Nikon D3300, Canon 70D & Sony a6000: Portraits, Landscapes & Sports

What's the best camera under $1,000? We test the four big rivals to find the winner for every type of photographer.
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STARTER CAMERAS:
Basic Starter Camera ($280 used at Amazon): Canon T3 help.tc/t3
Better Starter Camera ($500 at Amazon): Nikon D5300 help.tc/d5300
Better Travel Camera ($500 at Amazon): Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II help.tc/em10ii
LANDSCAPE CAMERAS:
Good ($550 at Amazon): Sony a6000 help.tc/a6000
Better ($1,400) at Amazon: Nikon D5500 help.tc/D5500 & Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 help.tc/s35
Best ($3,150) at Amazon: Pentax K-1 help.tc/K1 & Pentax 24-70 f/2.8 help.tc/p24
PORTRAIT CAMERAS:
Beginner ($950 at Amazon): Canon T6i help.tc/t6i & Canon 50mm f/1.8 help.tc/c50
Better ($3,000 at Amazon): Nikon D610 help.tc/d610 & Tamron 70-200 f/2.8 help.tc/t200
Best ($5,300) at Amazon: Nikon D810 help.tc/d810 & Nikon 70-200 f/2.8E help.tc/n200e
WILDLIFE CAMERAS:
Starter ($1,100 at Amazon): Canon 7D help.tc/7D & Canon 400mm f/5.6 help.tc/c400
Great ($3,200 at Amazon): Nikon D500 help.tc/d500 & Nikon 200-500 f/5.6 help.tc/n500
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Beginner ($500 at Amazon): Panasonic G7 help.tc/g7 & Panasonic 14-42mm help.tc/p42
Better ($1,400 at Amazon): Panasonic GH4 amzn.to/2p5dAmD & Panasonic 14-140 f/3.5-5.6 help.tc/p140
Best ($4,300 at Amazon): Panasonic GH5 help.tc/gh5 & Metabones Speed Booster XL help.tc/mbxl & Sigma 18-35 f/1.8 help.tc/s35 & Sigma 50-100 f/1.8 help.tc/s100
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Beginner ($400 at Amazon): DJI Phantom 3 help.tc/p3
Travel ($1,000 at Amazon): DJI Mavic Pro help.tc/Mavic
Better Image Quality ($1,500 at Amazon): DJI Phantom 4 Pro help.tc/p4p

[@TonyAndChelsea]

📷Nikon D5500 on Amazon help.tc/d5500 📷Nikon D3300 on Amazon help.tc/d3300 📷Canon 70D on Amazon help.tc/70d 📷Sony a6000 on Amazon help.tc/a6000

[@stekkerbox]

In almost all of the videos they say: The A6000 has superior autofocus and nails focus almost everytime super fast! Why was it that bad when you shot it?

[@stekkerbox]

Because I'm thinking about this and the D7000. Can you help me with that? Thanks

[@dannor6]

Tony & Chelsea Northrup 0

[@jackskellington6sic6]

Thank you so much. This really helped. Especially that the Sony having all those focus points didn't really hold up better in the end. Maybe it does have better focusing tech but the implementation was bad. But the results are what they are.

[@sheldonwhite4960]

Tony & Chelsea Northrup I want to date her is she single?

[@coorsleftfield]

D5500, D3300 and 70D all shoot around 5-7 fps, while the a6000 does 11fps. So the Sony camera autofocus system has to process 2X the amount of photos. I'd love to see the results of the test done with the Sony drive speed set to mid instead of high which should be around 6fps. Seems like that would be a more apples to apples comparison that way. I suspect it will get a lot more in focus if it's taking half as many, or maybe it will be even worse, be interesting to see.

[@evans8488]

+Brian Weaver thank you

[@ScaRxFaceLP]

What do you have from 11 fps when you cant use half od them ?

[@SangsakaCreative]

You need to update the latest firmware of 70-200 f4 FE lens to make it able to work with a6k PDAF, otherwise the the auto focus will use contrast detection only, slow and innacurate. i have 55-210 on my a6k, it's a lot slower than 70-200 f4, but i got better AF results in hi speed burst mode than your video.

[@tenchjohns4832]

thanks

[@bladerealm124]

Tony, in my experience the eye autofocus on the A6000 works quite well. It may eliminate some of the focus issues you had in the studio with the small spot focus accuracy or missing focus on the eye with only face detection. To use eye autofocus you simply set it as a custom menu button. I use the AEL button. Once the camera detects a face, simply hold down the button you set it to (AEL button placement works well) and you will actively see the camera switch focus from face detection to eye detection. I'm curious to hear if this improves your experience and accuracy in the studio

[@mithunnambiar1433]

I really appreciate the amount of hard work you put behind creating such videos.

[@CyberdyneSystemsSkynet]

Should have done this using only kit lenses to be fair to the actual intended consumer.

[@kskisser]

why is it that when people do comparisons that they use pro lenses as opposed to the kit lenses? This is a huge disservice to those who are trying to decide which camera to buy. Most people cannot afford the lenses you use.

[@nvincnt]

The new af-p kit lens from nikon is actually incredibly tack sharp, focus really fast, but well, in this video the focus is on testing the camera capability, so it is make sense to use pro expensive glass to minimize the lens limiting the camera capability

[@kurtsteiner8384]

Yes good point. Most kit lenses are very basic made of plastic. However normal nenses are usually not and are far superior. There are several not nessisaily the pro l type lenses but mid range ones are perfectly good lenses and do most things. Its not the kit thats important, but the person taking the shot behind the camera that matters.

[@GileadLovert-zs7dp]

I just bought a Nikon D5300 and I’m planning to pair it with a Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8. Seeing this comment also made me question since they’ve also made a video where they discourage use of FF lenses on crop sensors.

[@josefpre]

I agree. KZbinrs need kit lens so we don't feel left out and feel like we won't be as good unless we have a pro lens

[@osasenoma-owens5072]

The low light performance of the D5500 is amazing!!! Look at how clean it looked during the sports/ISO test. The colors also seemed to be unaffected by the ISO.

[@Asmoc23]

I really like your camera reviews. I seen a lot of videos but yours is the most impartial and fair. When you are reviewing, i dont get the impression that you favor one brand and i like it. Great job !

[@drRouman]

Thanks for the great video guys, I've also experienced hunting on low light with the a6000, I'm glad to see I'm not the only one. I was using the 50mm 1.8 with the updated firmware. I would pick the A6000 again, but the D5500 would be my choice if I wanted a DSLR, looks fantastic.

[@kh.g4049]

drRouman trust me the focusing on the d5500 is whack, especially given am never affording either of the lenses used.

[@Noughtilus]

Tony's beautiful brown eyes eyes reminded me that I'd left my cup of tea in the kitchen. Thanks guys. Night saved!

[@Dombowerphoto]

so jealous of the amount of snow you guys get. And what is that above the snow. OMG is that a blue sky! holy crap. its like paradise.

[@erica4550]

I'm tired of snow tbh.😂

[@curlykale]

I have the A6000 and I have been seriously let down by the autofocus in lowish light. A great review.

[@Skwoop21]

As an amateur photographer, I find the Sony A6000 to be fairly easy to use and very helpful (features) when learning about photography. I've played with the Nikon D5100 previously (bought it for my ex-wife who rarely taps into its full potential). Since using and learning about the features on the A6000, it's made it easier for me to use the D5100. In my limited experience comparison, the A6000 is better with the quality and "burst" shots, as long as the auto focus catches focus of course. It seems that I can take more shots with the A6000, but I'm finding that I'll probably get a better/higher "quality-to-shots" ratio with the D5100, alhtough I haven't done the math on this yet. I will easily take 500 photos in an hour with my Sony, but probably only half of them are work looking at - that's probably just my own personal learning curve though. As for the Nikon, I'll only take about 100 photos in an hour, but it's slower and I'm less interested in it . . . and I'm not sure how many of those photos would be good quality. I still love the Sony A6000 for the following reasons: 1) I'm a Sony fan; 2) It's lightweight and portable, yet take awesome quality photos; 3) Almost makes me look like a pro out of the box (or at least makes me feel like it); 4) Takes extremely fast burst shots in the Hi muli-shot mode, extremely helpful with action shots and what they call "image stacking"; 5) It's easier to clean the sensor than a DSLR, although that's not too tough anyway; 6) Easy to send photos to my phone, tablet, computer, or even directly to the internet via FB.

[@iSOBigD]

+Patrick Main I'd say the sony has better modern features since the D5100 is many generations/years old. However, the D5100 still takes great pictures and even video if you know what you're doing, the D5xxx series are usually great for crop cameras. I've done everything from nice portraits to car photography, star timelapses and long exposure photography to macro without a problem. The only drawback is shooting at high ISOs, which is normal for any crop camera. instagram.com/daniel.draghici/

[@MichaelBruceTaos]

Tony, one thing I have found with Sony mirrorless cameras is the entire system relies on Sony 'tuning' everything correctly. Out of the box my a6000 was horrible, missed focus, noise levels were too high and other odds and ends. I sent my copy back to Sony for repair and sent specific photos on a DVD for them to analyze. When I got my a6000 back it was stunning. The AF system is dead accurate and although I didn't do any quantitative tests, it worked so well post repair that I forgot about 'testing' and just shoot the thing. I will say one thing. Shoot into veiling flare, like the sun where it casts a pink/purple hue over the frame and watch the a6000 fail miserably with green/pink pinstripes all over the image. This is an actual flaw of the a6000 sensor. Other than that one problem I very much enjoy shooting my a6000. Oh one last thing, make sure your camera AND lens have the latest sony firmware on them. Initial firmwares do not perform like the current ones.

[@frankyvee1]

You do know that the a6000 has three different speeds for continuous shooting. Lo, Med and Hi. To set it you push the left side of the rear dial. Also why you are shooting studio portraits @ 11 FPS is beyond me. Your other cameras would be buffering to if they were able to shoot that fast. The a6000 is an awesome little camera if you know how to use it properly.

[@eddyg1794]

Exactly. Tony meant well but he wasn't setting the a6000 up properly IMO

[@petermoeller5901]

+Franky Vee "The a6000 is an awesome little camera if you know how to use it properly." But for some applications it simply isn't the best camera among that line-up.

[@frankyvee1]

That's true for every camera..There isn't one camera that does it all..example go pros are ideal for drones..Every camera has its ideal use. A canon 5DS is ideal for Studio Portraits. The Sony A7S is ideal for video and low light. The Canon 7D is great for wildlife, etc.. Take in consideration all the things the a6000 can do and the price and it becomes a very big bang for your buck camera. I have a Nikon D750 and a Canon 7D as well but I travel and vacation with my a6000 more often. For paid work I use the D750. 

[@petermoeller5901]

Franky Vee "That's true for every camera.." Obviously. You praising the a6000 they way you did as a response to a very good in-depth review of a lineup of four cameras sounded like a Sony fan-boy defending his favorite brand.

[@eddyg1794]

And of course if your favorite brand wasn't being used to its fullest potential you'd be doing the same thing. obviously

[@3elwoo]

Oh many thanks Tony & Chelsea. Liked!

[@stavrozinio]

@a6k Writing times are much shorter with fast sd cards :) I am using sony's 90mbs write-speed card, and I can review bursts of shots pretty much immediately after.

[@Ferarri4444]

I absolutely love your videos. You are not too serious to the point it's boring, but you aren't dumbing it down to the point where it appears presumptuous. Best of all, you showcase things in a very practical, often satirical manner that adds a human element. This not only makes me actually seek your videos, only. It also entices me to feel involved synergistically with what you say. Thank you for these videos. One of the best on KZbin.

[@alexjakob1344]

The A6000 has Eye-detection and can specifically focus on the eyes - you prob would have much faster focus results

[@TonyAndChelsea]

Alex Jakobs We tested that and found it to be slower and quite inconsistent.

[@alexjakob1344]

I wonder why you guys having focus problems with the a6000. You guys should compare the same cameras but do a manual focus test to see which one works better. That's actually the only reason why I got the a6000, because I love old lenses.

[@mikepasatieri502]

Alex Jakobs Alex, I second what Tony says. The CDAF system needs a couple more iterations to match what mature PDAF systems do today...regardless of face detect.

[@alexjakob1344]

***** hmmm but you can't tell me in a studio setting the eye & face detection is slow or not as good as a DSLR. They should have used object tracking for a moving subject. It would have made a big difference.

[@mikepasatieri502]

Alex Jakobs Alex, I can't explain it but my a6000 kept missing faces and eyes. It was better at ears and shoulders. :) I admit that my a6000 copy could have been bad. I didn't give it another chance and returned it - sticking with DSLRs. Oddly enough I've had the same problem on multiple Olympus m43 bodies and the original nex-5. No such problems with the Nikon D3100, D5500, Canon T6s or any other DSLR I've had. Trust me bro, I am waiting for accurate and fast CDAF. That said I did get some great pictures with those mirrorless cameras! But it also missed focus too often for my picky self. I'm eyeing the new Panny G7.

[@AlanSturgess]

For those who want an ultra-detailed demo and comparison this is superb. VERY useful. Thanks.

[@SovatOung]

Thanks! Your video makes me decide to go for D3300.

[@Capri.P.S]

+Sovat Oung How is Nikon D3300?

[@untilnexttime9095]

+Peedhu Pulinguzhy it's a super awesome camera for such a less price

[@desertoo23]

This is my first time here and I have to tell you guys I loved this review. Excellent job.

[@lozoft9]

You should start doing low-light tests.

[@EdmontonRails]

Nikon and Sony would obliterate Canon.

[@CCGamer-kl4dd]

Noah S. Maybe you just lose your mind... check tony video test in low light... before you comment, check their video list first...

[@oneuptoptv]

@@CCGamer-kl4dd post link

[@jeepjoseph9036]

Nikons would win

[@alfredconqueror4422]

Your videos are really nice, one of my fav photography channels

[@TonyAndChelsea]

Jaime Alfredo Muciño Thanks!

[@redauwg911]

Another great video thank you, I think you should compare the Nikon D7100 to the Canon 70D... Both are just under 1000$ at B.H

[@maximoffz]

I like your videos a lot ! I just bought D5500 with 18-55 and 55-300mm,and i am still learning,but your chanel is helping a lot,thank you.Like.

[@williamsawtell9184]

Tony and Chelsea.... Just another great product review, I really appreciate your format and that you both add input and perspective. Its so refreshing to see your family approach with such quality content throughout the video. Whether I am interested in the product or not, I always learn something from your videos. Thanks for being the leader in our space.

[@TonyAndChelsea]

William Sawtell Thanks for the kind words!

[@mcmillanvideos]

It's interesting to watch this 8+ years later... I have the Nikon D5500 w/ Sigma 17-70 and was considering using the Sony A6400 (or 65 or 66) w/ Sigma 18-50 as my travel camera instead... because of the super-fast focus abilities and slightly better portability. Also, the manual controls on the D5500 are difficult with the touch screen for some controls, menu for others, and dials for others.. just too many places to make simple adjustments. The Sony has come a long way since the A6000. I'm still amazed at how slow yours was to focus. The ones I've played around with in stores focused instantly, much faster than my D5500. But I haven't ever shot with one in real life situations. So, thanks for this video/review. I would imagine your daughter is all grown now.... I use my 2 boys as test subjects all the time... Look forward to what things look like in 8 years... but for now am enjoying every moment. :)

[@maximowilson5338]

They purposely made the Sony a6000 suck. Continuous mode is for wild life and single shot af is for portraits. They should of changed the creative style to natural or portrait, and put single shorting drive mode. I own a sony a6000 and its a magnificent camera.

[@TonyAndChelsea]

Maximo Wilson We used single shot AF for portraits, and continuous focus for the sports segment. We used continuous shutter for both, but that does't impact focusing. I can assure you we're not trying to make any camera suck. We included the a6000 specifically because we knew it would win the travel segment, and because it's the right choice for many would-be-DSLR buyers... but clearly it's not the right choice for all of them.

[@suneefilm]

Tony Northrup Hi have watched quite a few reviews, thx firstly. The sports mode testing seems to be a little bit old fashion. the focus test is 30% or less scenarios in reality, what put DSLRs struggle in sports are tracking an object moving in a zigzag mode with disruption objects. and that's what a6000 will stand out. Also did you pre-register your model's face and lock on af during test, I am wondering if there is any improvement.

[@gersonrendon2188]

Takes 20 photos *then complains about the camera buffering*

[@NewNoise02]

Good stuff as always! As someone who has been considering the 70D and a6000 for a while now, I appreciate this comparison.

[@sc12100]

Why does Tony smile during Nikon and frown during Canon?

[@revopat1257]

Racist lol

[@MuchoBe]

noice m8 Cameracist? :3

[@gibbs-13]

well i wonder why a color of cameras are always black..

[@huitzicruz3811]

the cameras always are black, beacause the black color do not reflect,

[@EdmontonRails]

No it's because blacks can't be racist obviously, the cameras can never take blame.

[@willa.3416]

Great Video. I'm really thinking about taking up photography. Your video was very informative. I have my eye on the Nikon D5500. Looking to purchase soon. Thanks for all your help.

[@sajida7305]

Only thing you missed is the video capabilities and canon 70d it's amazing live view autofocus and touch screen does much better job at it....a6000 only problem there is no touchscreen

[@rockcaholic]

Wow, the video was really nice. I love how you 2 where taking turns. And how you used a moving subject. I won't use a DSLR for sporting events. But my pick is the D5500 for my first DLSR. Thanks for the amazing video!

[@Razor2048]

On sensor phase detect is slower and less accurate than the traditional phase detect auto focus. Due to the way it functions it needs a higher bit depth ADC to get the same accuracy which they do not tend to use, thus it is common to see on sensor phase detect being assisted by contrast detect auto focus. They also have a lower signal to noise ratio, thus more error prone, so while the combo is overall faster than contrast detect auto focus, it does not compete with the accuracy of a quality traditional phase detect system.

[@TonyAndChelsea]

Razor2048 Wow, thanks for the detailed explanation! I've fielded at least 50 comments from a6000 owners today telling me that their camera out autofocuses DSLRs, but it's just not the case--you're right that all mirrorless cameras, including those with on-sensor phase detection, just don't focus as well.

[@LORDgregz1]

Hi tony... Did you use Continuous AF then set Zone Focus area... Or Focus tracking...... That's the best set-up for sports...

[@CarlosAndradeK]

I was really amazed by the quality of the video and explanation. For a newcomer, you did wonders in let me clearly see the difference between all the cameras I came across BestBuy the other day. I was ready to buy a Nikon3300 but after seeing the touchscreen in action that made me think twice on the long run. I would love to hear if a camera body is something you usually keep for years to come if this is a hobby or if it would go away fast. Other than that, I am certainly a subscriber and likely soon a buyer of the books too :-)

[@brrrrr_1]

WOW... super awesome review. I quickly know which 1st "high performance" camera i should buy after watching this video. Appreciate the research knowledge a lot. Thanks a lot.

[@cweb1988]

if the a6000 just had a touch screen it'd be game, set, match for me.

[@richardnevermore8536]

Thank you for the video. It helped me make up my mind and go with the D5500. Awesome camera. Great videos and a good book.

[@oli4b]

I really don't understand why you didn't use the a6000 correctly. In the studio portret shot situation you could have used eye af by simply assigning it to the center button to automatically focus on the eye. In terms of the action photos. I have even seen comparisons with the 7dmk2 where the a6000 performs a lot better. Talking about the video from Gary Fong. Why didn't you try the lock on af mode?

[@olivierblitzblum84]

Yes, I do own one since may 2014. Eye af works great, even in dimmer lighting conditions.

[@yourpalcliffy]

lovely family T&C... I went to buy sony a6000 but i got a D5500 kit instead for $590 AU... real good deal i feel... when i picked up both the cameras D5500 just felt right..

[@elvinlewis5827]

Question, why did you not include the D5300 in your tests? It's also under a grand, ( last I checked) has the tilt screen, and more AF points than the 3300. The D5500 intrigues me, though size eventually wins. I bought the a6000, because you can use any of those "cheaper lenses" on it, as well as the e-mount, smaller lenses with a simple (meta-bones?) adapter. Image quality is also very good. Other reviews indicate the a6000 is just as good, if not better than dslr's for action, although more than once, you've indicated the hit rate is far fewer. That much is clearly debatable. Other tests have indicated a much higher hit rate than yours. In my opinion, ILC eventually wins this fight, if it hasn't already. Quite a few "pro's", have already defected to ILC. Size alone for many of us, is enough on it's own to make the switch. Add in image quality, and very easy uploads to social media, and you have at the very minimum, a formidable alternative. A mostly objective review for the dslr die hard,I'll give you that. The 5500, despite it's size over ILC, is still worth a look. Nice job.

[@TonyAndChelsea]

Elvin Lewis Yeah, the D5300 is still a good camera, and I like the GPS. We have to draw the line somewhere, and we decided to stick with the latest-gen cameras.

[@TonyAndChelsea]

Elvin Lewis BTW, if you're looking for reviews showing that the a6000 beats DSLRs in focusing, you can find them. If you're looking for reviews saying DSLRs beat the a6000, you'll find a lot of them. Confirmation bias. We've tested the focusing system 3-4 times now, and used it a lot in the real world, and there's simply now way that the action focusing is better than a basic DSLR. Chelsea, Justin, and I all have the same issues with all mirrorless cameras. On-sensor phase detect focusing is a compromise; it has to be hidden between individual pixels. It simply can't be as large as off-sensor phase detect focusing used in DSLRs. It's getting better, though, and I hope it will soon be "good enough", because I prefer mirrorless in every other way.

[@elvinlewis5827]

Tony Northrup "I prefer mirrorless in every other way" Huge statement.

[@Razor2048]

Due to the design of on sensor phase detect, you are dealing with far smaller differences in phase, thus to get the accuracy up, you need a significantly higher bit depth of the information being collected for which do do the various floating point calculations. Since these companies are not making a break through in ADC technology, they instead use the phase detect to get things close enough, then contrast detect to lock in the focus. A traditional phase detect system can shop that process, and get nearly perfect focus relying on just the phase detect system. You can have the highest resolution sensor when with the ability to use 1 billion ISO and have no noise, and it will not mean much if the image is out of focus. Unless nothing is moving, the auto focus system is just as important as the image sensor. The D5500 and D5300, are still the current best all round sub $1000 budget DSLR on the market.

[@lakshyd]

hi @tony ... ur videos are so very knowledge ....though i do not have a camera rt now...but i am planning to hav one by d end of ds year....m little confused b/w d 5200 ,5300,5500.... whch one wud u prefer for landscape/outdoor n at d same time indoor shoots ...d former two seems to hav quite similar tech specs .... plz help ! ...thanks...

[@Stengell]

There is a button for doing auto eye focus on the a6000.. but yes it should just do this as default.

[@TonyAndChelsea]

Jakob Engell Right, and it works sometimes, but it's just not reliable enough.

[@Stengell]

Tony Northrup true.. and again i just don't get why its not default when it detects a single face in the frame. But guess they need to save some features for their next camera.

[@RBBBBBBBBB533]

Tony Northrup eye AF will only work when it recognises a face. You must see the white square around the subject's face for it to work.

[@605manuel]

I've been debating for some time on which of this cameras to purchase this video is going to make my decision a whole lot easier ! Thank you so much

[@Kelkschiz]

Could you please do a similar video but focusing on video instead of photography?

[@TonyAndChelsea]

Kelkschiz Yeah, we can do that.

[@Kelkschiz]

Great, thanks :)

[@vampire5003]

That would be great! Really want to see which I should get as a companion camera.

[@jcleversley]

First time hearing that from a KZbinr. Bravo.

[@eliseenvisionz7588]

14:45 excellent use of marketing your book. Brilliant work.

[@rawishjess6630]

I bought Sony a6000

[@fbpaaaea]

and is it good?

[@akashchakole7674]

Is it worth buy now?

[@Rheso-q2n]

Akash Chakole i just bought mine. And I really love it. And you should watch other reviews. a6000 is still one of the best budget cameras out there.

[@oneuptoptv]

@S Tra what reasons made you return it?

[@GrandmasterBBC]

Good stuff. I carry an a6000 because it is small and I love it. But I would like to get my hands on a Canon 70D.

[@IrisEpping]

Yay for the Canon :) i love my 70D but I do hope that canon improves their sensors soon. Can't wait for the 5DSr review when it comes out :)

[@shamimint4533]

hi

[@CMRinehart]

Excellent vid here Tony. I am getting the 3300 soon.

[@77appyi]

i am surprised skin tones was not mentioned from the different cameras....i did not know tony has yellow hair.....i have a sony nex-c3 for my travel cam and was looking to upgrade it with a camera with a viewfinder, the 6000 was the obvious choice but after downloading lots of raw files i decided for me that the canon 100D/sl1 will be better for me with canons better skin tones and colors probably better AF in low light ..another deciding factor was lenses i wanted a sharp compact 24mm and nobody has one for the sony front to back my 100D with the 24mm F2.8 stm is more compact than my sony nex with its 17-55 kit lens EDIT Tony you have changed something.. the image of you with yellow hair is not hera now

[@StefanDim]

david appleton 100D is with bad output quality

[@artmaltman]

david appleton Canon color differs visibly from Sony/Nikon color, in my experience. Canon tends to look a little more beautiful straight out of camera but also a little less realistic. Tough call. Logically I think well of course I want something more realistic but then I see the beautiful Canon color and sigh. :-) To my eye, the Canon emphasizes red and blue just a hair more, especially blue, and downplays yellow, which is what I tend to do in post processing anyway ....

[@artmaltman]

david appleton I definitely get more consistent autofocus in lower light with my Canon and Nikon DSLR's than with my Sony a6000. It's my one big disappointment with the Sony, but it does make a big difference in usability. Am eager to test the a6000 now with version 2.0 software but the switch from PDAF to CDAF in lower light seems inherently problematic. On the other hand Sony blows away Nikon's "Live View".

[@13druid13]

+david appleton I do a lot of post processing for Canon users and I always thought the Canon colors were a bit more drab than Sony or Nikons (Sony sensor) and take more LR processing to achieve eye-poppong tones. The greater dynamic range in Sony and Nikon is very noticeable, at least to me.

[@TheHikeChoseMe]

I love my d5500. broke one,(fell down a cliff) coulda bought anything else in this price group..bought a d5500 again. d5500 is good for urbex..love the sanitarium!

[@oOcitizenOo]

I don't get the Nikon marketing point. D5500 costs nearly 850$in my country. Having this sum of money you can buy semi-pro D7100 which IMO is much better than D5xxx. Also another great variant for beginners is to but D5300 for 600$ and with the rest of 200-250$ but a prime nikkor lens (35mm f/1.8g or 50mm f/1.8g) which is more important than body. D5xxx series is aimed to be bought by beginners, who in most cases doesn't have 850$. If Nikon wants this to happen the price should be 600$ for a new kit set , otherwise it won't be popular. As for me, i have D5100 with 35 mm f/1.8g and 85 mm f/1.8g and i'm not intended to buy even D5300 because D5100 sensor is still good and can compete with newer sensors :)

[@iSOBigD]

+oOcitizenOo The thing is the D7100 has a better body (harder to break, etc.) but the same image quality (same sensor) as the D5xxx series and they're both crop not full frame, so the reason to get the cheaper model is you can get exactly the same image quality for less money with a better LCD screen. Personally I think if you're paying over $1000 just go for an older generation full frame which will have noticeably better image quality and less noise at high ISO. I would not see the point in getting anything that's 1-2k and still a crop unless you mainly shoot video and get something like a GH4 since you have no other choice there.

[@brianminkc]

+oOcitizenOo Hell ya... Buy a D7100

[@oOcitizenOo]

iSOBigD Yeah, that's what i'm thinking about now. I love my D5100 but still think that D7100 could have been a better option. Speaking about old FX-cameras, i feel that i don't have necessary skills and knowledge to use it and still have some issues to find and work out while taking shots with my D5100. The only point i consider now is what lens to buy. I mean i have 35mm F/1.8, but sometimes i miss wide angle. So, searcing through the web, i revealed that Sigma 17-50 f/2.8 is a great lens for its money. What do you think? I know it's only for DX cameras, but still.

[@iSOBigD]

+oOcitizenOo Yeah that's normal, there is no point spending money on a better camera if you'll take the same pictures. A lens and practice will help a lot more. I believe the Tokina 11-16 f2.8 is considered the best DX wide lens for the price ($600-700). I personally own the 10-20 Sigma (f4+) because if was half price at the time but now if the prices are similar I'd go with the Tokina. Those and a cheap 50 mm f1.8 and an 85mm f1.8 are enough for most things. Later you can go with a 70-300 or some kind of telephoto if you wanna shoot birds and other things.

[@oOcitizenOo]

iSOBigD thnx for advice. Tokina 11-16 is great, but i can't afford it now because of exchange rate and my salary which is 150$ (i work as an engineer and have a university degree, that's brutal russian reality). Regarding my savings, 350$ is the sum of money i can spend for the lens. Anyway, thnx again and have a good day :)

[@carlosrueda5386]

just started getting into photography. awesome video. awesome channel

[@joshpoop2655]

the Sony lenses are super expensive so I'm gonna get some vintage Minolta lenses instead :)))

[@mpxz999]

Thank you for your GREAT videos, Tony and Chelsea! You always make informative videos that actually show us what you're doing in real time, with examples, and everything is always very high quality. Really, the editing work is so pro too. These cameras have been on my radar for a while too, along with the D7100. I would like to request that you do a video talking about the video capability of these cameras. It would be great to have a camera that takes BOTH: great stills AND has functional stress free video; for creation of KZbin videos. I know all of these DSLRs could do decent video when the subject is sitting still, but once the camera or the person leans forward or steps to the side... Focusing hell could break loose! Here's the big pros+cons I've learned about these 3 cameras (and still cannot choose) (I have no interest in sports/high speed photography) -Nikon lacks aperture control in live view mode (mechanically this is impossible for the DX lens mount. Nikon wont add this with a software update) -Nikon hunts for focusing a lot (contrast detection) so it wont auto focus well if you're moving for video... -Arguably has the BEST image quality of the 3 cameras in question (in video and for stills). But is it THAT much better in portraiture/low-light/videos? -Sony a6000 has issues with overheating. It may do one 20 minute video, but the next video will probably cause it to shut down for heat reasons. -No microphone port -Battery life is inferior in this unit compared to the DSLRs -Affordable body, but Expensive lenses! Want cheap lenses from other makes? The Metabones adapter for this is $200+ and will take away your cameras auto focus capabilities so you still lose out. -The Canon 70D's sensor DOES NOT produce AS nice image quality as the sensors in the other 2 (Sony in both!) for stills. How big is that difference? Damn I'm just not sure. DXO mark feels like a placebo to make deciding on cameras more difficult. - The 70D is considerably bigger/heavier than the Nikon and the Sony -But the 70D uses "phase detection" (not contrast detection) so it AUTO FOCUSES amazingly for video. No hunting back and forth! Could this be the video deal breaker? - But again, are the stills image quality inferior to the other 2? Seems like thats the case everywhere I look, unless you're in a Canon forum (where you will be lynched for not worshiping the 70D) And last but not least... Would we be better off looking at a Panasonic GH3 for the best of both worlds (portraiture/low light and Video) Sorry for the small essay. I don't expect a detailed response to ANY of this, but those facts put together are what makes me unable to decide on anything. Just wanted to share what may be going through a viewers head! Side note: I went to the store and ergonomically in my medium sized hands, the D5500>D70>>D6000.

[@TonyAndChelsea]

mpxz999 Great info on the video! Gave you an upvote hoping others will see it :). The only reason we didn't compare the video features is that we moved to 4k ourselves a year ago, and so 1080p cameras are completely off our radar... plus, video is a lot of work to review. But we did use the 70D as our primary video camera for a while and the phase detection AF works amazingly well.

[@JoeyRoa30]

that Sony A6000's burst... :D wow

[@nforester]

A6000 has face recognition PLUS focus on eyes option! ALPHA , mirror-less, crush them all!!! I'm so happy with my a6000, actually with big lenses i carry it in my backpack, BUT I have an option to mount low profile lens (like kit lens) and put it in my pocket. Great, isn't it ?

[@andylaurel]

Gasp! Tony you admitted you like the (1980s style) top LCD!

[@TonyAndChelsea]

Hey now--only that it's better than not having a top display. My 1978 Ford Pinto was better than walking, but it doesn't mean I liked the car.

[@andylaurel]

I totally agree with your sentiment, in that the top LCD is terribly useful but it deserves to be upgraded to a better, color display. I love closing the screen on my 60D and shooting just using the top LCD. It really prolongs the battery life. Thanks for your great content Tony and Chelsea.

[@timdesmet9870]

Tony & Chelsea Northrup You're so a philosofist no hate tho

[@TheSwankyGaming]

I'm going to do be doing mostly stills, landscape, possibly some action shots of my friend's yoga business. I like the Nikon D5500 but heard that the manual control in liveview leaves a bit to be desired. If I was going to choose between the a6000 or the Nikon D5500 which should I pick?

[@webfrasse]

Who shots portraits at 11 fps?

[@محمدالخلفي-ط1ل]

Mikael Fransson 11 fps for action mouvement not for portrait

[@webfrasse]

Really? Duh...

[@zaidmuscle80]

Yea I love there videos but here it doesn’t make any sense, when you shoot portrait use a single shot mode , best way to focus

[@gersonmadrid6675]

Only if you have a fat check from Nikon to diminish the Sony A6000

[@zamiulrashid1090]

Everybody is forgetting that the a6000 has eye af

[@dailymmafighting]

Hello Tony & Chelsea Northup, I have a question, does shutter count matter for mirrorless cameras? and thank you for your videos i really enjoyed them.

[@echt114]

The smaller size of the Sony is rather meaningless once you put any decent sized lens on it.

[@drea24c]

Wow! Thanks for doing this video! I think it will help with my next camera body purchase!

[@WhitecatProject]

I need to apologize to Mr.Northupand and must say that I am very sorry. I am one of the a6000 owners that accused him in the previous video of a6000 review (vs EM10). I shoot a very difficult subject: dogs running. After 1 year with the a6000 and almost 15.000 clicks I can confirm that it cannot focus as fast as a DSLR. I bought recently a secondhand d3300. The d3300+kit lens is much more accurate than the a6000+kit lens (tryied also the 50mm f1/8). I tested them with the same settings (removing any setting that could delay the Sony such as face recognition) at bright sunlight with 1/1250 shutter and f7.1 and still the d3300 was way ahead. Also the Sony kit lens cannot resolve enough detail for a 24MP sensor while the Nikon can. With this data I do not trust Sony anymore and I am not going at any case to buy their expensive 70-200 f/4 lens (it was the next lens I was going to buy). Now I try to sell my Sony equipment, buy some lenses for Nikon, and hopefully next year I will be able to buy a d7200. No more mirrorless for me. I am going to build a solid DSLR system that will serve me well. So, once again, I am very sorry Mr.Northup.

[@mikepasatieri502]

WhitecatProject I found the same thing. The a6000 is fast but not accurate. I didn't want to bother picking through hundreds of images each day, searching for the shots in focus. I felt like it was a waste of my time. but perhaps I wasn't using it right or had a bad copy. I picked up a Nikon DSLR and have gotten really good images....but I must say the slow focusing olympus e-pl1 from a few years ago - wow, what an awesome JPG engine (better than the e-pm2). at lower ISO, sharp and punchy colors. loved it. Many times the Olympus JPG engine did better than I could in PP! With the Nikon D5500 I'm still new to it (so the jury is out) but the D3100 needs lots of PP to get images, bright, punchy and clear. Also Nikon's ADL feature on both the D3100 and D5500 (and every model in between) adds a hue shift that I don't like...especially in the reds. This is just my personal preference but turn it off for portraits. For landscape or still life photography it seems ok.

[@akanbilincoln3891]

You just made a major mistake in your photography career for the Sony is the future.

[@jimgarlock33]

Bought the D5500 largely based on your reviews. Love it...and I like the Ledge Light photo @ 1:15. See it almost every day.

[@Wolfox360]

Drop test?

[@tac540]

I second that!

[@TheHikeChoseMe]

I dropped my d5500 off a cliff onto some rocks. it still shot, although the body cracked a tiny bit and the lens broke and wouldn't autofocus anymore.

[@codybranham2264]

Thank you guys for the great videos, they are very informative and they helped me decide what to buy for my first camera!

[@PhotoshopMeNow]

I love Paul Reiser 4 lyfe

[@the_max]

the actor? :) www.imdb.com/name/nm0001663/

[@chandan6119]

***** who said sony af is inferior to canon?have you used a77 mark 2?it has more sophisticated af than all the cameras below 1000$.look when someone publicly reviewing a camera,they have the responsibility to be not biased.when he claims best camera below 1000@,he has to test all the cameras from the competitors.otherwise he shouldn't make such claims.

[@johnbuterbaugh]

Tony and Paul Reiser both have ties to Binghamton, NY, where I live

[@SimonBauer]

Well glad I bought a d5500 promo package, can't wait to use that tilt screen

[@UnderArmy]

i don't know that anderson cooper is a photographer

[@everythingamazing3807]

would it be possible for you do to a test with all of these cameras, but for night photography?

[@smartmonei]

the best is the a6000 😜

[@zamiulrashid1090]

Yeah in single shot with eye af nothing can beat the a6000 out of the group.it even punches a solid punch to 80d

[@chrisna8893]

My wife loves camaras but never had a real camara though she has taken really impressive photos only with cell phones. I want to surprise her with a nikon d5500 as a gift and I was just wondering what lenses are you using in the video with the d5500 & external flash. Thank you for the video it has helped me greatly with your review

[@kingalias]

[troll] NO, TONY AND CHELSEA! YOU'RE WRONG! The a6000 is far better at everything that has to do with everything photography, you just don't know how to use the a6000 and unlock all of it's power! You need to talk to Gary Fong and Jason Lanier to learn how to truly get the most out of these cameras. the a6000 destroys DSLRs and kills the need for full-frame sensors FOREVER!!![/troll] lol ;-)

[@Ekiboy1]

One word! Illuminati! Wait for the next photo reviews and you will see the flood of Illuminati photos. And you can't crop them!

[@StephanEilert]

I think it will be the case, in the next years, but not right now.

[@TonyAndChelsea]

kingalias haha, yes, i was waiting for the Gary Fong comments to come in. Glad you beat them :)

[@MrExcite96]

to troll you need to open the troll correctly [troll] ---- [/troll]

[@Ekiboy1]

In all honest, that's the problem with these many self claimed "pro" togs. They talk only about gear and don't give any general tips that you could use with any camera including film! Tried to watch Gary Fong's education video and all he did was talk about creative filters that are in his Sony camera. Well what if I am shooting film? If you want to be a good educator then you need to teach people regardless of what camera they are shooting.

[@kithobart2116]

+Tony Northrup Hi Tony, I am am looking for a new camera. My choice is either the Canon 70d or the Sony a6000. I want a camera that is cheapish for sport and some filming. Which would be my best bet. At the moment I am heading towards the a6000 because of it's price and compactness (if that is even a word), however having said that size is not an issue. Also is there a difference with the lens quality between the two companies. If so should I get an adapter. Thank you for your time. Kit

[@quyenluu5662]

You are brother and sister?

[@TonyAndChelsea]

+Quyền Lưu Husband and wife

[@quyenluu5662]

+Tony Northrup great, You two look so much alike.

[@hellopsp180]

+Quyền Lưu thought the same thing also

[@Photo-ms1mo]

Hi Chelsea & Tony ! Could you please review Pentax K-3 vs Sony A-77 Mark II vs Nikon D7200 vs Canon 7D Mark II as Portraits, Landscapes,Sports Cameras ???

[@derydtp]

Hi Tony, would you consider it wise to invest in E mount-glass? I have the a6000, but for the price of the FE 70-200 or even the SEL18-105, I could buy a (used) D5500 with all the possibilities of Nikon glass... Did you try the SEL 18-105?

[@MrAlex36320]

Hi there...Nice video... :-) What flash would you suggest for Nikon D5500? Few that you would prefer... Thanks...

[@giangcj_game]

Hi Tony, I hope you can suggest me some len for Sony Mirrorless. I see that len for Sony is limited and feel very hard to choose. Thank you and sorry for my English

[@giorgiogra]

Hello Tony and Chelsea, could you give me some advice? Which camera is better between Canon 750D and Sony a68? Not only in terms of image quality, but also as regards the convenience in using different lenses.

[@DennisBloodnokPhotographyVideo]

Interesting video. I have a 2012 Nikon D7000 (which has many similar internals to the D5500 and D3300). I look forward to any comparisons that you do of the newer Nikon D5600 etc.. against the opposition from Sony, Canon etc...

[@kingdommusical]

thanks to those who made this video to be useful for those looking for specialization in this area .

[@Dipdot2002]

thank you tony and chelsea i love your tutorials and reviews pls i will like to know how to set the bracketing on my d5300 instead of shooting directly with the HDR setting,also will like to know what software to use for HDR.

[@LMPS5]

hmm.... i dunno, if the subject is walking towards you. have you considered using face registration on the a6000? or you've had it on already?

[@petermoeller5901]

Great video, guys. You seem to have dropped the pro-Canon bias you had in the past, which is good to see. I found this a very good review, close enough to real-life shooting, very relevant for anyone buying a new camera. There will always be people who don't like certain aspects of the review, but you cannot please anyone, especially the Sony fans who don't like their favorite brand criticized :)

[@simoncelli8219]

Hello Chelsea and Tony, Great review. Question: which is the best for an entry level for child & family portrait photography. *NIKON D5500 DSLR Camera with AF-P DX NIKKOR 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6G VR - Black *NIKON D5300 DSLR Camera with 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens + 70-300 mm f/4-5.6 DG Telephoto Zoom Lens with Macro - for Nikon *CANON 750d/t6i with EF-S 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM Zoom Lens All options are relatively the same price and I am on a budget. Thank you & Merry christmas

[@simon5665]

add a k-3 to the testing! cool video guys.

[@cobrax80]

Tony Northrup Have you read about the IBIS technology that is used in some of Sony's new FE lenses? A little quote from DPreview: "The in-body stabilization (IBIS) technology developed by Sony is used not only for IBIS, but also for autofocus motors in the DSC-RX10 and the new FE mount 35mm F1.4 ZA lens being introduced. We were able to try out Sony's '4D' continuous AF with this lens on an A7 II, and it was, frankly, jaw-dropping impressive. As long as our subject stayed within the phase-detect area of the frame, horizontal, vertical, and depth tracking was incredibly accurate, fast, and completely silent for an erratically moving subject. Almost every shot was tack sharp on the intended subject matter at F1.4. In good light, we wouldn't be surprised if this combo gave top-of-the-line DSLRs a run for their money when it comes to continuous AF with subject tracking (automatic AF point selection to track an initially chosen subject across the frame)." More info on this: www.dpreview.com/articles/3468545272/cp-2015-sony-shows-off-new-technology?slide=3

[@LORDgregz1]

You should turn on AFC Flexible Spot then focus Lock tracking the best for sports and wildlife....

[@ericheyblom]

Very easy to watch you both doing each comparison, the video work was nicely done! One day soon I will make a switch to mirrorless, preferably I like the Fuji line. Watching someone like Damien Lovegrove who made a complete switch to Fuji, shows just how incredible the results can be with smaller mirrorless cameras. There's a lot said recently with the new Sony's, but there are some quirks, and I'm not too sure about the color results I've seen? Dave Dugdale for example has just a made a complete turnabout from Canon gear, but if there is one thing he is noticing is...the color reproduction with Canon (video) is spot on, whereas the Sony (video) has to be played with in post production. Now that's something you never hear about with the Fuji cameras, however I'm referring to still images. Presently I have the Canon 70D. And for sure with a very close look the image quality may be somewhat softer. However it is the one camera that really is very capable in both video and stills, so this is the one reason I think it is such a great camera! It seems the mirrorless cameras excel in either video or stills...but not both, and this would be a very important factor in deciding whether or not to purchase one yet for me. Having the Canon 70D at my side is like having two cameras in one! Anyways your productions are great to watch. Perhaps in the future you could do some comparisons with the Fuji x100t fixed lens, and the Fuji xt1 camera body and lens. Thanks!

[@davidmiller88ify]

Hi Tony, Great Video. I have decided to go with the a6000 because of my basic photography needs and the size. Someone lent me their Canon 30D with a couple of nice lenses, and I cannot imagine lugging that thing around. I am upgrading from my Lumix LX5 PnS. I have seen 3 different kits. - a6000 with 16-50mm Only - a6000 with 16-50mm and 55-210MM - a6000 with 18-55mm and 55-210MM What is your preference on the 16-50 vs the 18-55? I like to take candid shots of my family and pets, but also like to take random landscape shots as well.

[@SERGE_Tech]

down to earth review really like it. how about the d5500 vs d5300? does the d5300 have the same awesome touch screen?

[@TonyAndChelsea]

No touch screen on the D5300

[@SERGE_Tech]

I subscribed and liked 10 of your videos! I thought your review was very professional and to the point. Great footage! yeah I'm researching whether I should get the d5500 or d5300 theres about 100-150 price difference on ebay. and I'm looking for top notch image quality while doing technology video reviews. In your professional opinion what camera do you think is the best for 400-700 indoor shooting with lots of lights ill be recording the new Macbooks/laptops and desktop computers. They will all be stationary. Hell im thinking about getting 4 nikons and just figure it out on my own and than do a review. So far I been using a go pro hero 4 and its been a nightmare, no way to remove the fishy eye effect unless i edit it out which adds more wasted time to my editing, plus you have to use go pros software to edit out the fishy eye and go pro has one of the worst video editing softwares I have used. Not to mention there horrible UI in the actual go pro it self! The micro sd card also keeps dieing out and freezing. what a nightmare. my channel is pretty small I gained about 200 subs in the last month and I'm hoping I can get an additional 500 subs in the next month but I need to revamp my systems. Any advice you can give is greatly appreciated.

[@wpherigo1]

Nice way to compare them!

[@cavalrycome]

How about comparing their video features? Would like to see that.

[@amtahboub]

Hey Hey! Tony! Chelsea! Why don't you do some Fuji reviews? the X-T1 and the X100T seem like they could be an interesting switch from DSLRs?

[@fetzinger10]

The A6000´s eye-AF has to be activated by assigning it to one of custom buttons. It works nicely!