Nikon D3200 vs Canon T5 – Comparison & Review

This  guide that will help you make a choice between Nikon D3200 and Canon Eos Rebel T5.

1. Nikon D3200 Overview

1648 Reviews

Nikon D3200 24.2 MP CMOS Digital SLR with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AF-S DX NIKKOR Zoom Lens (Certified Refurbished)

• This Certified Refurbished product is manufacturer refurbished, shows limited or no wear, and includes all original accessories plus a 90-day warranty
• 24.2 MP DX-format CMOS sensor,Display Screen 3.0-Inch Rear Screen, LCD (921000)
• EXPEED III Image Processing
• Wide ISO sensitivity range,Filter Thread: 52 mm
• One-touch Full HD 1080p movie recording

$438.00

Buy on Amazon Product prices and availability are accurate as of 2018-12-14 and are subject to change (details)

Entry-level DSLR, Nikon D3200 is a solid performer that gives you good, detailed images in both RAW and JPEG modes. It comes with the highest pixel count in its class and has the great image quality across the ISO range. It’s great for beginner photographers who want capable all-around DSLR that is easy to understand, but also for more experienced photographers who are looking for a cheaper second camera to their more expensive DSLR. However, if you are a fan of LCD image composition, fast AF or filter effects at the point of the shoot, you probably won’t love this camera as much.

2. Canon EOS Rebel T5 Overview

734 Reviews

Canon EOS Rebel T5 Digital SLR Camera Kit with EF-S 18-55mm IS II Lens

• 18 megapixel CMOS (APS-C) sensor with DIGIC 4 image processor
• EF-S 18-55mm IS II standard zoom lens expands picture-taking possibilities
• 3-inch LCD TFT color, liquid-crystal monitor for easy viewing and sharing
• EOS 1080p full HD movie mode helps you capture brilliant results
• Features include continuous shooting up to 3fps, Scene Intelligent Auto mode, creative filers, built-in flash and feature guide

from $549.00

Buy on Amazon Product prices and availability are accurate as of 2018-12-14 and are subject to change (details)

Canon EOS Rebel T5 is also an entry-level camera, slightly updated version of its predecessor T3. It has the comfortable design with the simple layout of accessible controls. It’s also lightweight and easy to handle. It doesn’t really stand out of the other cameras in this class but it provides fine image quality and gives you usable images in low-light situations up to ISO 3200. It is perfectly fine camera when you are making the jump from point and shoot. It’s great for traveling and for beginner photographers who are looking for a camera that they can learn with.

Nikon D3200 vs Canon EOS Rebel T5 Comparison Table

As you can see Nikon has little better specs than Canon, but that comes with a higher price. Both cameras provide good quality images for an entry-level DSLR and are a good value for the money.

Detailed Specification Comparison

Senor

Sensor size is a good indicator of the quality of the camera. The bigger the sensor of the camera is, the better the image quality we get. With a larger sensor that can take 24MP high-resolution photos, Nikon has an advantage over Canon with smaller sensor and resolution of 18MP. Bigger sensors are better because they capture more light so it’s the clear win for Nikon in this category.

ISO

With a higher light sensitivity,  the sensor of a camera absorbs more light. Both Nikon D3200 and Canon T5 have the same native ISO range but there is the difference between the maximum ISO at which the device still captures excellent quality images. Canon T5 starts to show some noise in details at about ISO 400, but in-focus areas look just fine up to ISO 800. On the other hand, Nikon D3200 produces clean photos up to ISO 400 and after that increases noise and loss of detail but still gives us usable images up to ISO 3200. Based on that, it looks like the Nikon wins in this category too.

White Balance Presets

When we are shooting an object, its color is affected by the light conditions. The easiest way to overcome that problem is to use Auto White Balance, and that is the great solution when the light is constant and all of one type, but when that’s not the case we use White Balance Presets. The more presets we have the better. The Canon T5 has only one preset more than Nikon D3200 and even though that isn’t really a big difference we can say that Canon has a little better control of light temperature and that’s what makes it a winner in this category.

AF Points

The number of AF Points gives an image sensor a probability in identifying the right area of the scene to focus on.  The more focus points our camera has, the better because it also gives us more flexibility in picking the part of the scene which we want to focus on. So, it looks like the Nikon is better in this area with its 11 AF points against Canons 9 autofocus points.

LCD Screen

Both Canon and Nikon have 3 inches fixed LCD screen but there is the difference in resolution. A higher resolution screen provides sharper images which make it easier for a user to review photos. With its higher screen resolution, Nikon beats Canon once again (921k dots to 460k dots).

Video Resolution

There seems to be no difference between Canon T5 and Nikon D3200 in this area. Both cameras have the same video resolution of 1920 x 1080 with the frame rate of 30p, so it looks like it’s a tie.

Dimensions

When you are carrying your camera around a whole day things like the dimensions start to matter and we want the smallest camera possible. Although there isn’t a big difference, Nikon is a little smaller than Canon and that makes it the winner.

 Built-in Flash

The built-in flash is something that almost every camera has nowadays, even though it’s not something that we use often because it creates undesirable shades. However, we just need it sometimes so it is a good thing that both of these cameras do have a built-in flash. The only difference that will determine the winner is the usable range of the flash. With the slightly higher usable range of 12m (39 feet), Nikon takes the prize in this category.

Available Lenses

There is every type of lens imaginable available for both cameras, but the total number of lenses available for the Canon T5 is 266 and for the Nikon D3200 is 257. It is such a small difference but still exists and it made Canon the winner in this category.

Microphone Port

This is a great thing for a camera to have because when you attach the microphone to your camera you prevent motor noise appearing on your recording, but unfortunately one of our cameras doesn’t have it. Since Nikon features this option it is a clear win for this camera.

Continuous Shooting

When you want to catch action shots you need faster continuous shooting. With average 4.0 fps, Nikon can capture some sports photography or kids running around, but it still has faster continuous shooting than Canon so I guess this is another win for Nikon D3200.

Battery Life

This certainly isn’t the most important thing when you are considering buying a camera but, let’s being honest, it’s not like you are ok with a low battery in the middle of shooting.  When you are far away from any power source you want the longest battery life possible. Luckily, both of our cameras have just fine battery life, but with 540 shots Nikon beats Canon’s 500 shots long battery life and wins once again.

Shutter Speed

This is another category where we couldn’t seem to find a single difference. Both cameras have the exact same shutter speed from 30 seconds for longer exposures up to 1/4000 seconds for freezing the motion in front of the camera. Once again, it’s a tie.

Weight

You might think that this isn’t important thing until you finally buy the camera and decide to carry it around for a whole day. That’s when you realize you actually want the lightest weighted camera possible. That is why the winner is a slightly lighter camera, the Canon T5.

Viewfinder

Through an optical viewfinder, a photographer can see exactly what the lens sees and that allows him to compose a shot. While the electronic viewfinders drain battery life, optical viewfinders don’t require any power, so it’s a great thing that both cameras have it. Still, there is one difference between viewfinders of these two cameras and that is coverage. You might think that viewfinder always represents the whole picture, but that isn’t always the case. Cameras optics isn’t always perfect and that’s why the coverage ratio can be from 95-100%. While the Nikon’s coverage is 95%, Canon seems to have that perfect optics and 100% coverage which make it the clear winner in this category.

1648 Reviews

Nikon D3200 24.2 MP CMOS Digital SLR with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AF-S DX NIKKOR Zoom Lens (Certified Refurbished)

• This Certified Refurbished product is manufacturer refurbished, shows limited or no wear, and includes all original accessories plus a 90-day warranty
• 24.2 MP DX-format CMOS sensor,Display Screen 3.0-Inch Rear Screen, LCD (921000)
• EXPEED III Image Processing
• Wide ISO sensitivity range,Filter Thread: 52 mm
• One-touch Full HD 1080p movie recording

$438.00

Buy on Amazon Product prices and availability are accurate as of 2018-12-14 and are subject to change (details)

734 Reviews

Canon EOS Rebel T5 Digital SLR Camera Kit with EF-S 18-55mm IS II Lens

• 18 megapixel CMOS (APS-C) sensor with DIGIC 4 image processor
• EF-S 18-55mm IS II standard zoom lens expands picture-taking possibilities
• 3-inch LCD TFT color, liquid-crystal monitor for easy viewing and sharing
• EOS 1080p full HD movie mode helps you capture brilliant results
• Features include continuous shooting up to 3fps, Scene Intelligent Auto mode, creative filers, built-in flash and feature guide

from $549.00

Buy on Amazon Product prices and availability are accurate as of 2018-12-14 and are subject to change (details)

How good are these cameras for certain types of photography?

When deciding which camera you want to buy the first thing you should know is what you are going to use it for (what type of photography).  I’m going to try to help you with that by showing you what are the most important features that camera has to have for each type of photography and how good they are on these two cameras.

Nikon D 3200 is a small, lightweight but well-built camera. Its size is suitable for taking shots in difficult locations and angles. It proved to be very good for portrait, nature (landscape) and sports photography.

On the other hand, Canon EOS Rebel T5 has rug construction but it’s lightweight and its control layout is very functional. It proved to be good for product shots and nature, landscape photography because it provides great color and details. It’s also good for taking portrait shots and street photography but it struggles with sports or any action photos.

PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY

Both cameras are good candidates for portrait photography, but with higher sensor resolution, Nikon just seems to be better.

STREET PHOTOGRAPHY

With the large sensor that ensures a good low light image quality and provides shallow depth of field, both cameras are equally good candidates for this type of photography.

SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY

Canon seems to be just fine for this type of photography, but Nikon is an excellent candidate. An optical viewfinder that allows a photographer to stabilize the camera, lots of external controls, good high ISO, continuous autofocus, fast shutter speed etc. Nikon has all of that and even more.

DAILY PHOTOGRAPHY

Large sensors make these two cameras good candidates for daily photography, their size and weight are not exactly practical for carrying around all day. If you need a camera for this type of photography, you should probably look further.

LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY

High-resolution sensor is something that camera just need to have for landscape photography and without that Canon isn’t a good candidate. However, Nikon has just what it takes.

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User Stories

1. Nikon D3200 User Review

I love this camera! I’ve had it for about a month and so far I’m very pleased. As a beginner photographer who uses it for family shots and scenery, I can tell you that it’s very user friendly and it took me minimal effort to learn how to use it. It’s cheap; it’s light and at the same time really powerful. Since I’ve got more than I needed, I decided to try to do this mroe seriously. I’m more than happy!

2. Canon EOS Rebel T5 User Review

I have a little experience with photography and I wanted to extend my skills a little, so I started looking for a camera. It took me a while to decide until I found Canon EOS Rebel T5, which is just perfect. It’s not heavy and the photos are clear and look very professional even without editing. It’s a little difficult to understand this camera so I’m still learning my way around many features but it’s a lot of fun. It was a good choice!

Conclusion

The most important things have been compared and the camera that came out as better is Nikon D3200. Not only that has better specs, but it’s also smaller and easier to use. That of course, comes with a little higher price and if the budget is extensible, you would probably be happier with this camera.

However, if you have a fixed budget, Canon EOS Rebel might also serve you well, if you need it for capturing memories with your friends and family or while on vacation.