Nikon D40 6.1MP Digital SLR Camera Kit with 18-55mm f/ 3.5-5.6G ED II AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor Lens

Nikon D40

4/21/2009

This is an awesome buy. I love it! Even my old lenses work in a full manual mode.

I WISH I COULD CHANGE MY RATING

4/21/2009

This is the best and easiest camera I've ever owned. My past cameras have been canon powershots which take great pictures and are small and compact but I wanted to move up to a camera that would take better pictures in low light situations with my kids. ie in the gym, on stage at school events, etc. this takes awesome pictures all the time! And the ability to switch out the lens gives me just enough creative control that I can really have fun while getting a great shot. I can zoom and get a great close-up too which I never could with my powershot... I have several friends who have the D80 and D90. They struggle with the settings and often can't figure out why they can't get a good shot while I'm clicking away! This is definitely a case of "less is more". I love this camera and can't recommend it highly enough.

UPDATE: It's so sad. I was the biggest fan of this camera when I first got it. I raved about how wonderful it was and my friends with the D80 and higher were amazed at the great pictures I was getting. Many times I got the picture and they did not! about 4 months into it the camera started to jam. At first I was perplexed and went online and found others with the same problem. Some said when the shutter button locks you can take the battery out and put it back in and it will work after that. True but I miss the photo op doing this. Eventually I shipped it in for a repair and paid for shipping and insurance as Nikon requests. I received the camera back after several weeks only to find out "they couldn't reproduce the problem." (????) Since then, the problem only seems to have gotten worse. I did more research and found out it most likely is a focus issue. I would agree as I can usually take a long range pic but once I move the lens for a tighter shot the camera won't shoot. My finger hurts trying to get it to shoot! I've had friends and family all play with it to see if they can figure out the problem but they just shake their heads. I'm so disappointed and frustrated with Nikon. I thought I had found the dream camera. Cannot recommend it though as I've gone from being the amateur photog at family events to being the one mumbling about missing another great shot.

Excellent camera for a bargain price

4/16/2009

The D40 is a great way to step up from a point-and-shoot camera to a DSLR, whether you want to expand your creative possibilities, experience excellent image quality in a wide range of lighting, take pictures of action without the annoying shutter lag, pose as a professional photographer, or all of the above.

First, I like the light weight of the camera. It allows me to easily carry it around wherever I go, along with a few compact lenses, always ready to capture the moment as it happens. That's a huge image quality advantage over an expensive camera and a bag-full of exotic lenses that you left at home because it was too heavy to drag around.

Secondly, this camera has plenty of smart features which enable less fiddling around with the settings and allow me to focus on taking the picture. Some examples I like are:
* Customizable ISO-Auto function allows me to set the maximum ISO and minimum shutter speed I want, thereby eliminating the need to manually adjust ISO for different lighting conditions.
* After a picture is taken, it automatically gets displayed on the LCD for review, making adjustments, or deleting, without having to manually switch to playback mode.
* A customizable Menu for easy, fast access to features I use often without digging thorough every available item. I can leave the critical adjustments like white balance and picture presets, while hiding those I use once and forget, like date/time, language, etc.
* RGB histogram in playback mode lets me gauge if I need to adjust the color balance or if a certain color channel is clipping. Much more useful than a single-channel histogram.


Some other notable advantages, compared to the competition:
* The AF-assist lamp facilitates low light focusing. On cameras without the lamp, you'd have to use the annoying flash strobe.
* 1/500s x-sync means I can use the flash with shutter speeds up to 1/500s, effective for freezing motion or using the flash to balance out the shadows in harsh sunlight. Other cameras in this class usually only go to 1/200s.

The 6MP resolution is plenty for making great-looking 8x12 prints, and puts less space-clogging pixels on the memory card. Image quality is very good from ISO 200 - 1600, and I regularly use ISO 1600 in low light with great results. Included kit lens is sharp all around, and is perfectly adequate for making great-looking photos. Ergonomics of the camera are outstanding for its small size - it fits in my hand comfortably and doesn't make my fingers feel cramped.

There are, however, some limitations about this camera which may or may not be a big deal, depending on how you use it, such as:
* It lacks an autofocus motor in the camera body, meaning autofocus only works with AF-S lenses - those with an internal focus motor. Not necessarily a problem since all the newer Nikon lenses are AF-S, but Nikon also has a number of great, inexpensive, older AF lenses, and on the D40 these will be manual focus only.
* The built in flash cannot be used as a master to control additional wireless flash units. You'd need to buy a wireless flash controller for that.
* With only 3 AF points, you have to focus and recompose before taking the picture if your subject is outside these 3 points. Not a problem for me since I do this naturally, but something to keep in mind if you're used to a point-and-shoot camera.
* There are no buttons for directly changing white balance, image size/quality and ISO. There is, however, a customizable Fn button which I assigned to adjust white balance, and with ISO-Auto activated, I rarely miss having these buttons.
* 2.5 fps continuous shooting is too slow for getting multiple shots of fast-paced sports or other action. If you're not shooting those kind of scenes often, then it's not a problem.

Overall, this is an easy to use, well-designed camera which offers superb image quality at a relatively low price, and with plenty of features that make it easier to get great shots, instead of getting in your way. Seasoned photographers who need the AF compatibility with older lenses or are shooting fast-paced action should consider the higher end camera models, but for a casual hobbyist or enthusiast, the Nikon D40 is as a highly recommended camera.

The best little DSLR around

4/15/2009

I can't say enough about this little guy. It packs a lot of features into a little and light-weight camera. Yes, the biggest problem many point-and-shoot users complain about is the fact it doesn't auto-focus with many lenses. But you learn to be a better photographer with that "drawback". The best thing is the sensor on here is very high quality, much newer than even the D70. If you are looking to introduce yourself to DSLR photography, this is a great stepping stone. If you are not looking to be a stronger photographer and learn all that your camera is capable of, then better go with a D50 or D70 so you can autofocus on some of those older AF lenses. I for one am happy with manual focus and I have learned so much about aperture and shutter settings.

Love it!

4/14/2009

I have considered purchasing a DLSR for a couple of years, but it wasn't until my good ol' Sony point-and-shoot with awesome zoom started slowing down that I decided to go for it.
I LOVE this camera. I decided on it after talking with a couple of photographer friends and playing with some competing products. The menus on this camera are very intuitive for me.
I haven't had a chance to use all of the features yet, but the ones I have used are fantastic!
The included lens is an 18-55 mm, so the zoom doesn't even compare to my old digital...until I get another lens, I can live with it, though.