Canon EOS 70D vs Nikon D810

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Canon EOS 70D and the Nikon D810, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Canon EOS 70D was introduced in October 2013 and Nikon D810 was introduced in June 2014. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Canon EOS 70D over Nikon D810.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Nikon D810 over Canon EOS 70D.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Canon EOS 70D has a 3.0" Fully Articulated screen with 1,040k dot resolution and Nikon D810 has a 3.2" Fixed screen with 1,229k dot resolution. Fully articulated screen makes Canon EOS 70D selfie and vlogger friendly and generally very useful for video shooting. Canon EOS 70D also features touchscreen which has advantages such as easy menu navigation, intuitive controls, quick setting adjustment and most importantly a Touch-to-Focus functionality allowing users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording.

Viewfinder

Cameras have built-in Optical (pentaprism) viewfinders. Canon EOS 70D has 98% coverage with 0.95x (0.59x 35mm equivalent) magnification and Nikon D810 has 100% coverage with 0.70x magnification.

Canon EOS 70D features a 20.2 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor with dimensions of 22.5 x 15 mm and a total area of 337.5 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 12,800 and expands to 100 - 25,600 in boosted mode. Nikon D810 features a 36.3 megapixel Full Frame CMOS sensor with dimensions of 35.9 x 24 mm and a total area of 576 mm². Its native ISO range is 64 - 12,800 and expands to 32 - 51,200 in boosted mode.

Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how different sensors compare with each other:

Sensor size chart

	Sensor	Dimensions	Area	Aspect Ratio	Crop Factor
	Medium Format	44 x 33 mm	1452 mm2	4:3	0.79x
	Full Frame	36 x 24 mm	864 mm2	3:2	1x
	APS-H	27 x 18 mm	486 mm2	3:2	1.3x
	APS-C	23.6 x 15.6 mm	368.2 mm2	3:2	1.5x
	APS-C (Canon)	22.3 x 14.9 mm	332.3 mm2	3:2	1.6x
	Micro Four Thirds	17.4 x 13 mm	226.2 mm2	4:3	2x
	1-inch	13.2 x 8.8 mm	116.2 mm2	3:2	2.7x
	1/1.7-inch	7.44 x 5.58 mm	41.5 mm2	4:3	4.7x
	1/2.3-inch	6.17 x 4.55 mm	28.1 mm2	4:3	5.6x

Canon EOS 70D is equipped with DIGIC 5+ processor and can take pictures up to 5472 x 3648 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 3468x2432, 2736x1824, 1920x1280, 720x480, 4864x3648, 3248x2432, 2432x1824, 1696x1280, 640x480,5472x3072, 3468x2048, 2736x1536, 1920x1080, 720x408, 3648x3648, 2432x2432, 1824x1824, 1280x1280, 480x480 with 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios. Nikon D810 is equipped with EXPEED 4 processor and can take pictures up to 7360 x 4912 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like FX: 5520 x 3680, 3680 x 2456; 1.2: 6144 x 4080, 4608 x 3056, 3072 x 2040; 5:4: 6144 x 4912, 4608 x 3680, 3072 x 2456; DX: 4800 x 3200, 3600 x 2400, 2400 x 1600 with 5:4, 3:2 aspect ratios.

Lens Mount

Canon EOS 70D has Canon EF/EF-S lens mount and Nikon D810 has Nikon F lens mount. Due to APS-C sensor in Canon EOS 70D its crop factor is equal to 1.6x, this means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 1.6. Due to Full Frame sensor in Nikon D810 its crop factor is equal to 1x, this means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length.

No Low-Pass Filter on Nikon D810

There is no optical low-pass filter (OLPF), also known as an anti-aliasing filter, in front of the sensor on Nikon D810. This results in a slightly sharper image but may also introduce moiré patterns and aliasing artifacts when photographing subjects with fine, repetitive patterns or details.

No Image Stabilization

The cameras do not have image stabilization. On Canon EOS 70D it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Nikon D810 nothing can be done. On Nikon D810 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Canon EOS 70D nothing can be done.

Built-in Wi-Fi on Canon EOS 70D

Canon EOS 70D has a built-in Wi-Fi which allows to easily transfer photos and videos from the camera to other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as smartphones, tablets, printers, or computers. This eliminates the need for cables and allows for quick and convenient media sharing and social media integration. It gives you the ability to control your camera remotely using a smartphone or tablet. This is particularly useful for taking self-portraits, group shots, or capturing images in challenging conditions without having to touch the camera. Firmware updates can also be downloaded and installed wirelessly.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in WiFi.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB inputs for data transfer. Canon EOS 70D has a Mini HDMI and Nikon D810 has a Mini HDMI connector for video signal output.

Battery

Canon EOS 70D comes with LP-E6 battery pack with battery life of 920 shots and Nikon D810 comes with EN-EL15 battery pack with battery life of 1200 shots.

External Storage Slots

Canon EOS 70D has a single SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I) card slot. Nikon D810 has two card slots - one for SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I) and one for CompactFlash (Type I, compliant with UDMA).

Shutter

Nikon D810 has Mechanical Focal Plane shutter and Electronic shutter. Shutter speed can go up to 1/8000 sec on Canon EOS 70D, and up to 1/8000 sec on Nikon D810. Canon EOS 70D can shoot continuously up to 7.0 fps. Nikon D810 can shoot continuously up to 5.0 fps.

Focusing

Canon EOS 70D has Dual Pixel CMOS AF system with 19 (19 cross-type) focusing points and Nikon D810 has 51 (15 cross-type) focusing points. Canon EOS 70D has detection range from -0.5 to +18 EV and Nikon D810 has detection range from -2 to +19 EV.

Exposure

Exposure meterings of Nikon D810 ranges from 0 to +20 EV and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±5 EV range on Canon EOS 70D and ±5 EV range on Nikon D810. You can also do exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Canon EOS 70D and exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Nikon D810.

Flash

Cameras have built-in flash with maximum range of 12.00 m on Canon EOS 70D and 12.00 m at ISO 100 on Nikon D810. They also accept external flash which can be connected via Hot Shoe to Canon EOS 70D and via Hot Shoe or PC Terminal or Wireless connection to Nikon D810. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/250 sec on both cameras.

Canon EOS 70D body has dimensions of 139 x 104 x 79 mm (5.47 x 4.11 x 3.09") and Nikon D810 body has dimensions of 146 x 123 x 82 mm (5.75 x 4.84 x 3.23"). Canon EOS 70D weighs 755 g (1.66 lb / 26.63 oz) and Nikon D810 weighs 980 g (2.16 lb / 34.57 oz).

Canon EOS 70D

Nikon D810

139 mm

104 mm

146 mm

123 mm

104 mm

123 mm

79 mm

82 mm