TheByte

cawimmer430

Hi guys,

Well my trip to the 'Ring with Alok really convinced me that I need a new camera, despite me having bought my Olympus FE-200 digital camera less than a year ago! It's a decent camera but like all digital camera's it's slow to respond, terrible for panning shots and the picture quality is blurry and terrible at maximum zoom, especially in an environment like the Nürburgring where there are so many cars driving past that need to be photographed! Basically I need a quick-acting and responsive camera with excellent picture quality and a DSLR camera offers this no doubt.

I've really been getting into photography as of late and I was thinking of perhaps enrolling in a university in Munich and taking a course in photography if I quit my current job (which I am not to happy with).

At my local Media Markt yesterday, I came across a NIKON D40 for close to 500 Euros. Alok used a Nikon D50 when he took those 'Ring shots, and he told me that the D40 is the replacement for the D50. I've also looked around and various camera enthusiasts have told me that a Nikon is basically the best choice as it feels substantially heavier than say a Canon and that means better pictures because of the physical "feel" you get when holding it (hope you understood me there!).

Basically I am saving up and thinking of selling my Olympus on E-Bay or Amazon for around 200 Euros starting price. I've also got my sights set on the Nikon D40, because I've used the D50 from Alok a few times and it was easy to use and understand.

ANY OTHER SUGGESTIONS? Other good DSLR camera's out there? If you have one, which make and model and how do you feel about it?

I've heard that Canon's are pretty good and they even have a system cleansor that uses vibrations to clear the lense of dust, yet I also heard that you don't really need that and it's more of a gimmick to get people to buy the camera.

ADGvast

The D40 or D40x is the basic model between the "big" DSLR and DC.

Depend what you want, if you are those with more specific lens requirements , then to go for the D80. from my point of view, lens is more important then the body. So when you make a choose to buy a DSLR, you also need to consider all the related equipments (lens.. etc) Also, the ISO of the D40 is start from 200 to 3200, no ISO100 to select (which i used most of the time)

here is the pros and cons of D40 from Nikon D40 Review: 25. Conclusion: Digital Photography Review

**** ps. Digital Camera Reviews and News: Digital Photography Review: Forums, Glossary, FAQ is good site to see all the camera reviews


Conclusion - Pros

* Excellent image quality, great resolution and detail, who needs eight megapixels?
* Surprisingly good build quality, tight shut lines
* Very compact and lightweight (especially with kit lens) yet still comfortable to use
* Kit lens is better quality than many others
* Great in-use performance, very responsive, short black-out time, very fast media write
* Good fast auto focus system (only 3 areas but that's not a big issue for this camera)
* Auto-focus assist lamp rather than requiring flash to be raised
* Reliable, sophisticated, if sometimes a little conservative matrix metering system
* For a Pentamirror the viewfinder delivers a surprisingly bright image
* Extremely useful, customizable automatic sensitivity (ISO)
* Easy to use playback / delete combination
* All playback functions available in record review
* Very attractive and intuitive menu system
* Unlimited continuous shooting in JPEG mode (with a reasonably fast card)
* Good SD card throughput and USB 2.0 transfer speed
* In-camera retouching features including D-Lighting and Red-eye reduction
* Support for SD and SDHC cards
* Good large LCD monitor with wide viewing angles
* Dedicated help button provides both shooting and in-menu assistance
* Programmable Fn hard button
* Value for money

Conclusion - Cons

* No lens motor in body means non-AF-S/AF-I lenses are manual focus only
* Disappointingly RAW+JPEG setting only records Basic quality JPEG's
* No status LCD panel on top of camera (we hate to see these go)
* No exposure or white balance bracketing
* No hard buttons (without customizing) for ISO or White Balance
* No depth-of-field preview
* Occasional visibility of moire artifacts (although seldom)
* Fixed exposure steps (1/3 EV)
* Disappointing automatic white balance performance in incandescent light
* No RAW adjustment with supplied PictureProject, only simple conversion
* Limited image parameter adjustment (especially for color saturation)

Choleric

Don't automatically set your mind on just a Nikon or Canon, Pentax is a great alternative. But most importantly go to the store hold them in your hand and decide what you like best.

Rob

That is so true Jeff.

Check out the Olympus SLRs too (Olympus is so underrated) -- the Zuiko lenses are excellent.

Choleric

I've heard good things about Olympus, I was considering one before I got my K100 actually.

cawimmer430

Thank you for your very helpful response.

I am aware that the lens really is one of the most important (if not the most important) factor when it comes to achieving great pictures. What I am probably going to do is first get hold of the DSLR camera and get to know it a bit. I was able to play around with the Nikon D50 of Alok and it was surprisingly easy to use. The only thing I need to brush up on is the exposure, shutter speed etc. adjustments, but I guess hanging out in the photography sections, experimenting and occasionally asking for advice will fix that problem.

I probably will rarely shoot my pictures in RAW form, but did I read correctly under cons, that this camera I am potentially considering has poor JPEG quality pictures!?

A couple of questions:

1) What's ISO100? Why is it "better" than 200-3200? I am a bit clueless here.

2) Which DSLR camera do you use? What lens have you bought with it? Are you happy with this make and model?

3) Any other recommendations?

Thanks again.

cawimmer430

Thanks Jeff.

Don't worry, I want the best performance-price deal so I won't be obsessed with getting a Nikon D40. A friend of mine has a Canon DSLR something... It's fairly new and costs 700 Euros and it comes with that automatic lens cleansing system. That was a great camera too. Alok told me that a heavy camera means better pictures because you "feel" the camera. I did notice that Canon's are lighter than Nikon's by a lot. Not that this really means anything to me but I am just curious what you think about that statement.

So we have Pentax, Canon, Nikon and Olympus.

Does Fujifilm make good DSLR cameras? My first digital camera was a Fujifilm 4700 FinePix and it was awesome. Fujifilm has a high standing on my list.

cawimmer430

Thanks!

A question. Do you have this camera? If so, what's she like?

Alfie

I tried an Olympys SLR once and I prefered Canon. I've heard great things about the K10D. But never tried one, never even seen one for real even.

And well, I'm a Canon man so I guess that says where I stand on this.

Rob

Sorry Chris, I do not own this camera. My digital camera is an older model Nikon compact point-and-shoot. I used to own an Olympus SLR (when I was a teenager), I always liked the quality of the Zuiko lenses.

I am a big fan of Leica M cameras, I own an M6 (film camera) ......and I would love an M8 digital model