Bought a Nikon D40

[Newc]

Finally replaced my old Sony CD350 (which replaced my Olympus D600L) with a Nikon D40.

Haven't spent much time digging through the settings, but I did snap these 2 comparison pics.

http://newcenstein.com/D40/CD350.jpg

http://newcenstein.com/D40/D40.jpg

They're too big to post here - 1024 pixels wide.

Both were set to Macro and AutoFlash. The D40 has a smaller focus point, even though it was set to the widest setting. As well, the center indicator (it has 3 - left, center, right) was dead-center between the two switches, so I don't know why the one on the left is so blurry, considering the pic I took with the 350 has them both well-focused.

However, the D40 can get closer than the 350. The 350 started to blur and tried to auto-correct but couldn't at the same physical distance or zoom level. Also, the D40's flash didn't wash it out like the 350.

The CD350 is 3.1MP, and the D40 is 6MP. I realize I'm way behind the times again

Still haven't decided if I'm going to keep it, though. It has the one feature my D600 had that drove me nuts - the viewfinder-instead-of-preview-screen.

Is this true of all Digital SLRs like the Rebel and whatnot? If so, I'll keep it and get the add-on viewfinder so my nose isn't pressed against the view screen whenever I take a picture.

[roodyrocker]

Newc, I have a D100 and a D200 and I believe all the digital SLR's require you to shoot through the viewfinder rather than the screen. The creen is for playback only. I think its the nature of SLR's using mirrors that flip up out of the way when you shoot. You may also find yourself using the manual features and thats the beauty of these cameras, well that and no lag when taking action shots unlike the point and shoots which are annoying that way. I still use my old Sony point and shoot for some things but my main cameras are the Nikon DSLR's which I use to shoot race car coverage for a magazine with Also, if you get some of the really nice lenses for it you can shoot concerts with a monopod with no flash I'll post some for you later which would have been impossible with my point and shoot. Just get to know your D40 for a while before you give up on it.

[Joe_Steeler]

A switch..... a friggin switch dude.
Couldn't you test it with something more interesting?

That's a great camera BTW.

[rjohnstone]

The Canon 40D and 50D have "Live View mode" on the main screen.
You don't need to use the view finder. A rare feature on digital SLR's.
Granted, the camera body alone is not cheap. Just picked up the Canon 40D for the wife for $800 (body only, no lenses) and that was a bargain. The 50D will run close to $1,400 just for the body.

The Nikon D series are comparable to the Canon Rebel series.
Professional grade "mom cameras".

[Spivonious]

Don't let the low megapixel count fool you; the D40 is a very nice camera.

What really matters in digital cameras is the size of the sensor. The bigger the sensor, the more data it can capture from the lens, the better the photo looks.

The D40, while it has a short focal length, definitely has richer colors.

[Newc]

Yeah well I wanted to test the macro mainly.

I'll do some geetar comparison shots this weekend when I'm off.


Roody - I've definitely been perusing the lenses this thing can use on Ebay.

@ the $$$


Definitely gonna spend some quality time with the book. All 126 pages of it


I was looking at the 10MP D40x, but it appears it's been axed. It's in the "Archived" section of Nikon's site :think:

Anyhoo, anyone know if Nikon has a program to upgrade the D40 to a bigger card? It's got a 4GB max, but newer ones can go up to 8GB.

Olympus had a deal with the D600 where you send it in with a PDF voucher and they upgrade it to take a 16MB card (8MB was standard). Missed out on that one by a month

No biggie if they don't, but if they do I definitely want to know

[Newc]

The Canon 40D and 50D have "Live View mode" on the main screen.
You don't need to use the view finder. A rare feature on digital SLR's.
Granted, the camera body alone is not cheap. Just picked up the Canon 40D for the wife for $800 (body only, no lenses) and that was a bargain. The 50D will run close to $1,400 just for the body.

The Nikon D series are comparable to the Canon Rebel series.
Professional grade "mom cameras".

$800 is a tad high for me for a camera, unless it's a 3CCD digital video camera (used in good shape like my Panasonic AGEZ1 was).

I was reading reviews on CNet comparing the Nikon D40 and the Rebel XT/XS and a few others, and saw the "Live View" function mentioned.
One thing I got from all their reviews was a touch of snobbery - one guy was even slamming the included 18-55mm lens after he compared it to a lens that costs more than the entire camera+lens package

Other reviews were comparing the cameras to the higher-end models, and giving them low marks because they didn't perform as well and didn't have all the features the high-dollar cameras did. WTF?


So I gave up on the reviews and took a chance.

[Spivonious]

The Nikon D series are comparable to the Canon Rebel series.
Professional grade "mom cameras".

And here I thought they were in the "prosumer" category.

[rjohnstone]

Yeah... I agree some photographers can be camera snobs... not like us guitar guys are any better.

As for the complaint about the 18-55mm kit lens that comes with the Rebel, yes... it IS a POS. Chucked it in the trash can. Not a single piece of glass in that thing. Take it out in the AZ summer heat and you can practically watch the front lens warp.
My point an shoot Canon SD850 Elph takes clearer pictures.

When buying an SLR camera, the body is not what counts, it the lens.
Camera bodies are meant to be replaced, lenses are what you keep.

The Nikon D40 is a decent camera. The kit lens that comes with it is bottom of the line just like the kit lens that comes with the Rebel.

They were meant to get you up and running, nothing more.

[rjohnstone]

And here I thought they were in the "prosumer" category.

I borrowed that line from my wife's friend.
She's a professional portrait photographer and comes up with some great one liners.
She calls them Pro mommy cameras because that what you see all the soccer moms running around with nowadays.

This chic knows her shit when it comes to cameras.

[slo100]

I have a D300 with the live view but I don't like it (the LV, that is). I found that I am so used to the viewfinder I have stuck with it even though I can use LV.

Newc, I have the little Nikon remote control leftover from my D80 that I sold. If you want it you are welcome to it. It is awesome if you are shooting from a tripod or doing still work.

It does not work with the 300. :-(

I also have a D80 book that is great and many of the features probably carry over for your 40 if you want it (though Ken Rockwell pretty much hits it all on his site).

PM or email me your address if you want either. Your lucky day!

[Spivonious]

I borrowed that line from my wife's friend.
She's a professional portrait photographer and comes up with some great one liners.
She calls them Pro mommy cameras because that what you see all the soccer moms running around with nowadays.

This chic knows her shit when it comes to cameras.

Not to hijack the thread, but would you have any recommendations for me? I currently have a Nikon L6 point & shoot that does a great job outside on sunny days, but is pretty crappy for anything approaching low light. I'm not that interested in switching lenses, but it appears that very few fixed lense cameras offer full manual settings and good picture quality, so I'm okay going with SLR if I have to. Looking to spend $500 max for everything I need to take photos, would be nice to stay under $400.

[Hellbat]

Newc, if you plan on doing any kind of telephoto shooting get the Nikon 70-300VR lens. While it seems expensive at first glance, it's a very sharp lens with vibration reduction and it works perfectly with the D40. I use one on my D70 (along with a 24-120VR for the more close-in work) and have taken bursts of waterskiing photo's from inside the boat and 9 out of 10 shots were steady and focused.

http://imaging.nikon.com/products/imaging/lineup/lens/af/zoom/af-s_vr_zoom70-300mmf_45-56g_if/index.htm

One thing to be aware of with the D40 is you have to use lenses with the built in "silent wave" motors. It does not support the older screw focus lenses, such as the older 50mm prime lenses. I think Nikon is starting to update their primes to the new motor system.

As far as digital photography in general goes, I strongly recommend the following two books by Scott Kelby. He is a talented teacher and presents things in a non-technical "shootin the shit with a buddy" style.

http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Photography-Book-Scott-Kelby/dp/032147404X/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1235580571&sr=8-2

http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Photography-Book-2/dp/0321524764/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1235580571&sr=8-1

[rjohnstone]

Not to hijack the thread, but would you have any recommendations for me? I currently have a Nikon L6 point & shoot that does a great job outside on sunny days, but is pretty crappy for anything approaching low light. I'm not that interested in switching lenses, but it appears that very few fixed lense cameras offer full manual settings and good picture quality, so I'm okay going with SLR if I have to. Looking to spend $500 max for everything I need to take photos, would be nice to stay under $400.

You're not going to get a digital SLR for under $500... not new anyway.
Amazon still has some Rebel XS kits available for $529.
It does come with the cheap kit lens, but it will work just fine for most consumer applications.

Another option is the Canon Powershot SX10IS.
Not an SLR per se, but similar format.
Under $400, has manual controls, image stabilizer, uses the latest DIGIC 4 image processor found in the higher end Canon DSLR's and also uses the latest SDHC memory cards as well as standard SD cards.
Good reviews as well.

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0809/08091703canon_sx1is_sx10is.asp

http://www.dpreview.com/

Gives the best, unbiased, side by side comparison of digital cameras.
I've found the reviews to be pretty spot on with my own personal experience.

As you can tell, I'm a big fan of Canon cameras. Nikon's are great too, just hate their user interface on their SLR's. Not intuitive at all.

[audiophile]

slickdeals.net has a pretty large following for nikon and canon deals.
The discussions alone contain quite valuable info.
At least you can be up to date on the best prices (bodies or sets)
dpreview is great but can be overwhelming cause the site has insane amounts of detail.

I tend to search slickdeals for nikon and canon, find all the models I would think are in my price range, then hit dpreview to identify pros/cons.
Only to realize, I wanna raise my price range much much higher. Vicious affliction.

I intend to pick one up sometime, but think I'll be reading a few books prior. The vast assortment of lenses/compatibility/etc is mind boggling not to mention understanding how exactly all the manual options and attributes behave.
I'm in it for telephoto and wildlife.

My Canon A590IS point&shoot takes fantastic macro and general shots and holds me off for the time being.