With both the major DSLR manufacturers releasing flagship DSLRs within a span of just a month or so, there is a large debate on which one suits which application better.
There is a section that likes to debate on the general and the cliched Nikon vs Canon debate through and though, and there is another big section that has already decided on which body they will go for as they are either upgrading from a previous body, or hey are dedicated buyers due to being members of Canon CPS or Nikon NPS (News,sports and wire photographers) this post is not for them. This is meant for the significant section of the photographer-videographer population that are actually confused between the two bodies. This could be anybody, somebody looking to switch systems or a videoshooter loking to get a DSLR for HD/4K video.
So here’s our rundown-
Feature | Nikon D5 ![]() |
Canon 1D X Mark II![]() |
Sensor Size | Full Frame | Full Frame |
Resolution | 21.33 megapixels (20.8MP effective) | 21.5 megapixels (20.2MP effective) |
Frame Size | 5568 x 3712 | 5472 x 3648 |
Aspect Ratios | 3:2and 4:5 | 3:2 |
File Formats | Still Photo: JPEG, RAW, TIFFVideo: MOV, MPEG-4 AVCHD with H.264 wrapper | Still Photo: JPEG, RAW Video: MJPEG, MOV, MP4, MPEG-4 AVCHD with H.264 wrapper |
Media | 2 CF cards or 2 XQD cards (Can be swapped out for the other at a Nikon service center) | 2 Slots- 1 CFast 2.0 and 1 CF slot |
AF Points | 153 phase detection points, with 99 cross-type | 61 phase detection points, with 41 cross-type |
Viewfinder | 100% coverage and ~0.72x magnification | 100% coverage and ~0.76x magnification |
LCD | 3.2-inch touchscreen with 2.359 million dots | 3.2-inch touchscreen with 1.62 million dots |
ISO Range | 100-102400 (50-3280000 when extended) | 100-51200 (50-409600 when extended) |
Continuous Shooting | 12FPS at 20.8 MP for up to 200 RAW photos (14FPS with mirror lockup) | On new battery-14FPS at 20.2 MP for up to 170 RAW photos (16FPS with mirror lockup)With the old Canon 1D X Battery- 12FPS and 14FPS with mirror lockup |
4K Video recording and Frame Rates | 4K UHD ONLY- 3840 x 2160p at 30 fps, 25 fps, 24 fps | Full 4K- 4096 x 2160p at 59.94 fps, 50 fps, 29.97 fps, 25 fps, 24 fps, 23.98 fps |
4K Clip Duration | 3mins. | 30 mins. |
Weight | 1415 grams | 1530 grams |
Price | Indian prices yet to be announced. Expected to be about 400,000/- International price 6,499/- USD |
Indian price INR 4,55,995/- International price 5,999/- USD |
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It looks like the Nikon is the better option if you want to keep shooting without changing the battery as it can shoot three times as many shots as the Canon off a single charge. Then again, it only takes seconds to change the battery.