Nikon D200

Model Design / Appearance (Advantage: Nikon D200)
Both Canon and Nikon know how to make durable cameras – they've been doing it for many years. In construction materials and build quality, the 5D and D200 are steps up from the company's entry level cameras. Magnesium alloys make up the outsides of both the 5D and the D200. Canon's literature says the 5D adds a stainless steel chassis and a plastic mirror box. The D200 has a magnesium chassis, and sports the kind of environmental seals used in pro-level cameras.

The 5D is relatively unsealed – it's more like the 20D than the 1D series in that respect, and Canon fans have voiced their disappointment. We're not in a position to test the seals, so we don't have empirical data about how much more impervious the D200 might be.

We also found the Nikon D200’s design to be far faster and more favorable than the 5D’s. The control layout of the D200 is much more suited to photojournalists or shooters awaiting the "decisive moment." The D200 layout permits photographers to respond quickly from the off position with more control accessible on the surface of the camera. The 5D, on the other hand, is better suited for planned shoots. The 5D is at its best when placed on a tripod, directed at stagnant subjects with ample time.

When the cameras are in their off positions, there is a good chance you could miss a fleeting shot with the 5D that could have been caught with the D200. Here, the D200’s faster shooting rate, more accessible controls, and power switch formed around the shutter release allow the user to quickly power on the camera and snap off a shot (or five) in just over a second. The same process on the 5D is more involved, requiring both hands to turn the camera on and snap off a shot, with only 60 percent of the D200’s capture rate available.  

Delightfully, both the D200 and the 5D can also be enhanced with their own versions of elevator shoes – both accept battery packs that boost their height to the neighborhood of the pro models. The packs extend the cameras’ shooting capacity as well.

PHYSICAL TOUR

Front
The D200 and the 5D both resemble the rest of their respective lines, although the front face of the D200 is busier than the 5D’s. The EOS 5D shares the viewfinder hump of the 1D series cameras and nearly every other feature of the EOS 30D (and 20D before it). Conversely, the D200 has Nikon's standard red rubber triangle on the handgrip, and like the D2X and D2Hs, the camera also features a function button and a depth-of field preview to the left of the lens mount, a focus mode lever and a lens release on the right. The camera also has a 10-pin terminal, flash exposure compensation button and flash pop-up button. In contrast, Canon kept the front of the 5D relatively plain. The EOS lens mount is much bigger than Nikon's, and the lens release button is larger as well, but the depth-of-field preview is small and unobtrusive. The 5D does without the other controls Nikon put on the D200.

Back
Canon tries to pare down the number of controls on its DSLRs, sometimes having buttons work in pairs or putting features in menus rather than giving them their own buttons, while Nikon takes the opposite tack and opts for more dedicated controls. The back of the D200 has 15 controls, while the 5D has 12. Both backs are dominated by their 2.5-inch LCDs. The 5D features Canon's popular Quick Control dial, while the D200 has a good-sized 4-way controller and a control dial that pokes edgewise out of the back of the camera. Nikon users swear by the opposing front and back jog dials on their DSLRs, which control shutter and aperture.

The D200 also has a latch for the memory slot door, though the door itself is located on the right side.

Sides
The left and right sides of the D200 and the 5D show just how standardized DSLR design has gotten: both cameras feature rubber doors over USB, flash sync and video out ports on their left sides. Nikon also includes a DC in jack, while Canon adds a remote control jack. The cameras' right sides include their memory card slot doors, although the 5D's door must be slid back before it will swing open. The Nikon system seems less likely to loosen up under heavy use.

Top
The Nikon D200's control dial at the far left of the top is an adaptation of the control in the same place on the D2X and D2Hs, but this one clusters the ISO, White Balance and Quality (size and compression) buttons. Users crow about this dial, finding it easy to set all these options while keeping the camera at eye level. In each case, the user can hold a button with one finger of the left hand and turn a dial with the right thumb or index finger. On the 5D, ISO and White Balance are activated by buttons on the right side of the top, and the dials to control the actions are also on the right side of the camera, so the user has to shift a bit to operate the controls.

For the type of photographer these cameras are targeting, we feel Nikon’s use of the mode dial space is much more logical than Canon’s adaptation (leaving the half typically reserved for preset settings blank). The three crucial controls placed in the dial space on the D200 create a more logical interface and again contribute to a more efficient layout than the EOS 5D provides.

Bottom
The bottoms of the 5D and D200 play host to the battery compartments and the tripod sockets. The most significant distinction between the bottoms is the patch of rubber that Nikon put around the D200's tripod socket. It should protect the area from scratches and might prevent the camera from shifting on some tripod heads.