As a photographer, I participate on a number of photography forums and blogs. I do this to learn new techniques and get tips on the things that I do not know about. I also like to give back by sharing my knowledge and answer questions. One of the most frequent questions I see on these forums and hear from friends and family is “What Camera Should I Buy”? The answer is not a simple one.

Often the first reply on the forums comes from someone who has a personal bias for one brand over the other. The thread turns into a “My camera brand is better” type of debate. This is not often helpful to the person posing the question. The most common brand debate is Canon Vs Nikon because these two brands are the biggest selling brands of cameras, especially when it comes to digital single-lens reflex cameras (digital SLR or DSLR). This is a debate that will never end.

When people do ask me my preference, I tell them Nikon. The only reason I tell them my preference is because over the years I have made a considerable investment into my two Nikon DSLR bodies. This along with the handful of Nikon lenses and other accessories that are Nikon specific I have purchased. I believe that both Nikon and Canon are great camera manufactures, when I purchased my first DSLR I could have easily started with a Canon.

Here is my advice to choosing which camera to buy a DSLR.

I would recommend Nikon or Canon instead of one of the other brands. Why, because they are more popular and widely used. You will find a wider range of body styles, lenses and accessories for the two brands that outsell all of the other brands combined. Even the aftermarket manufacturers make more lenses to fit these two brands.

In deciding between these two brands, do not try to choose a brand based on the features of similarly priced models, each will have those same features in a lower or higher model. My best advice in choosing a brand is to ask those you know what brand they own and have the most knowledge. If more of the people you will be looking for help and advice from on your camera have Nikons, choose Nikon. If your support circle shoot Canon, then choose Canon. The other reason for this is that you want to be able to try their lenses or accessories on your camera body before you make a purchase.

This reminded me of a situation last year when a friend asked me how would they find the right virtual office Toronto for them. Putting aside my bias for the office space Toronto that I first started out at as a Toronto virtual office client, I decided to show him how he should choose what he wanted based on his needs.

I asked him if he needed a virtual office solution that included Telephone Message Service and Mail Service arrangements or just a Toronto mail service at a prestigious business address. He was not sure, so I explained the differences to him. He said that the virtual office in Toronto that he needed would need to have a live receptionist answering his calls and transferring them to either his home office, his cell phone or even directly to his voicemail.

I then asked him where he wanted his virtual office to be. Did he want an uptown or a downtown Toronto office? He chose downtown.

Did he want his mail forwarded to him or did he want to be able to pick it up when he wanted? He was clear that he wanted to pick up his mail when he needed to pick up special deliveries and cheques. I told him in that case, he would probably also want it to be a convenient location in terms of traffic and close parking.

After all this I went through a list of office business centres that offered downtown Toronto virtual office packages that would fit his needs. He asked me if my Toronto office space offered virtual office plans, because he would rather chose one that he knew some who would recommend it. Besides that he would also want to make arrangements so that I could pick up some mail for him from time to time.